An Open Letter to Company ABC on PR Best Practices

or ("The Biggest, Most Important Secret to PR Success")

Dear Company ABC,

I just called you to interview you for an exciting, 2-page spread because I thought your product line was perfect for the feature. I checked your website first to find the number of your PR person, but all that I could find was a general number. Maybe you don't get a lot of press and don't have a PR person? I called the general number, and instead of talking to a person, I talked to your high-tech phone menu. I couldn't figure out which number to push as there was no marketing or PR option, so I pushed "0" for the operator.

Could you find someone a little more personable to be your operator? First, they assumed I was calling about selling you something and hung up. The second time, I got past the point where I introduced myself by blurting out "I'm a reporter from XYZ publication looking to interview your marketing person" faster than an assumption could be made. Expecting better, more responsive treatment, I was disappointed when this person said, "please hold" and put me directly to someone's voicemail. She didn't tell me who the person was, she didn't tell me when they would be in, all I got was "hi, this is Bob, I'm not in - leave a message!"

I could have been a little more diligent, since I really liked your product, but time was of the essence, so I moved to the next person on my list and called them, hoping to get a live person. Someone friendly answered the phone and now their products are featured in my article. What's wrong with this picture? Well, Company ABC, a whole lot - you missed out on free PR! How did this happen? Let's start at the beginning.

(Read on to learn the biggest, most important secret of PR Success.)

I often wondered back when I served as a PR person why my job was so easy - at least when it came to getting PR for my company. I did what any good PR person would do. I made the media a priority. If there were major upcoming deadlines for internal projects, the media might not have been my first priority, but they were still always a priority. When a member of the media called, I would immediately mark their deadline on my calendar and determine the best way to get them the information as quickly as possible, even that same day.

Why? I'm not sure if it was my training, my college internship experience or something I learned throughout my career, but I have always had a heightened sense of urgency when it comes to the media. A fast response time can mean the difference between my CEO being featured at the head of the article, or a small quote being plastered in at the end. A quick response time also means that there is time to send photos, product samples or anything else a reporter might want - giving my company greater exposure.

So here it is Company ABC, the biggest, most important secret of PR Success: Answer Your Phone.

Yep, it's that simple. If you answer your phone, chances are we'll get the opportunity to talk and you'll appear in my next article. But no, that's not all there is to it. In order to successfully answer your phone, here are a few tips:

1. Have a dedicated PR contact
Whether the person is a true public relations specialist, or you've tasked your administrative assistant with answering press inquiries, have a real live person who handles the media. Then, let everyone in the building know who that person is. If a receptionist or operator picks up the phone and the person at the other end of the line says "Hi, I'm from XYZ publication and I'd like to interview someone about tater tots," the secretary should know who to direct the call to, whether it's the CEO or the marketing assistant. Helpful hint: generally the CEO is not the best person to be a PR contact because they aren't often readily available. The PR person should be available most of the time. There should also be an alternate person who knows what's going on in the event that the PR person is out of the office.

2. Publish the dedicated PR contact's number somewhere
This seems like a no-brainer, but apparently it isn't. I can't tell you how many times I've visited a company's website only to find a media page with no PR contact. Sometimes there isn't even a dedicated media page. Even worse is when the only contact information on the entire website is a web contact form. I'm the media - I need an immediate response. Typing my request into a web contact form is even less reliable than leaving a voicemail, and I generally won't bother with it. If you want to get some positive PR for your company, create a media page on your website, add your press releases and post an email or a phone number (or even both!) for your PR contact. That way, I don't waste time calling your customer service line and tying up six of your sales people looking for the PR contact.

3. Train the person answering the phone
If a machine answers your phone, you might want to rethink that. Nothing is more frustrating than trying to figure out which option to press and never being able to find a live human being to answer your question. If you must have a phone system, consider adding a numbered option that leads to your media contact. If nothing else, make sure that when the caller dials "0" during business hours, a live operator actually answers. That operator should know that media calls are very important and should have a list of people to transfer the call to. If they absolutely must transfer the media person to voicemail, they should let them know that they are doing so, tell them who the person is and when they might return their call. Your receptionist or secretary should NEVER transfer a media person to voicemail without telling them. That often causes media people, myself included, to hang up and move to the next name on my list. Incidentally, it's also helpful if the person who answers your phone has a friendly and helpful disposition. Nothing is worse than getting the mean, suspicious receptionist who wants to know your blood type before transferring you.

4. Have a detailed voicemail message
Ok, so this seems like another no-brainer, but trust me - I've heard many a professional whose voicemail says "Hi, this is Bob, leave a message and I'll get back to you!" First of all, please make sure your job title and last name are part of your voicemail message. At least then I might have some idea of who I'm leaving a message for. The best voicemail messages go something like this:

"Hello, you've reached Julie Cajigas, manager of public relations for company ABC, it is Friday, October 31 and I am in the office, but away from my desk or in a meeting, please leave me a detailed message with your name, phone number and the reason you called, and I will return your call within the next half business day. If you need immediate assistance please dial "0" to have me paged."

Or, when you've left for the day or will be out of the office:

"Hello, you've reached Julie Cajigas, manager of public relations for company ABC, it is Friday, October 31, and I have left for the day. I will be out of the office starting Monday, November 3 and returning Friday, November 7. If you need immediate assistance please press "0" and ask for James Smith, the marketing assistant. Otherwise, please leave me a message and I will respond when I return."

Yes, having a message like that means changing it every morning and evening, which is an extra (tiny) inconvenience. Trust me when I say that all of the information in that message is crucial! As a member of the media, it helps me to know if you are in or out, when I will be able to reach you and when I can count on you to return my call. If everyone in your business has a voicemail message like the one above, your customer service will also take a giant leap forward.

5. Always, always, always acknowledge receipt
So the PR person gets an email or a voicemail from the media. Maybe the media person is looking for some obscure detail or wants an interview with your elusive CEO. Avoid your temptation to wait till next Thursday, when you have a few minutes, to look into the request before calling the media person. Return their call immediately (within the hour if possible) and acknowledge that you have received their message and are working on finding them the information. During this phone call (or email response if you absolutely can't reach them via phone) you should clarify their deadline and determine what their expectations are. Then, set a timeline for you to get them the information and stick to it! If you don't acknowledge receipt of a media call immediately, your media person may move on to the next company in line because they aren't sure when they will hear back from you.

6. Make good on your promises
Deadlines are a big deal to media-types. If they tell you they need to conduct an interview or receive a product image by a certain time, chances are they aren't kidding. Back in step five I advised you to give them a timeline and stick to it. Here in step six I'm just reminding you about the most important part of PR after you've answered the phone, and that's follow-through. Nearly every success I ever had as a PR professional had to do with follow-through. Now that I'm operating on both sides of the PR fence as a member of the media, I understand why that follow-through is so important. Writers depend on the PR sources at these companies for the information they need to write their article. If they don't come through, the writer will be scrambling for another source at the last minute, which definitely won't endear them to the company. If you can build a trusting relationship with your media contacts, where they know you will make good on your promises, you will being to see your PR presence grow.

So company ABC, I hope you've found this helpful. If you follow the above steps, you will ensure that none of the PR opportunities coming your way are squandered. As far as actively seeking PR is concerned, we'll need to work on that in future blog entries. I hope you have moseyed onto this blog and I implore you: just please, please answer your phone next time. I'd love to cover you.

Thanks Company ABC!

Warm Regards,

Julie A Cajigas

Comments

[Paige]

Oh for goodness sakes. What should be common sense has turned into a great case study for any business class.

My biggest pet peeve is the deal with the receptionist.

As a former administrative assistant and current PR rep, I can attest to the importance of having an INTELLIGENT human being at the front desk. That person is the face of the company, and should be included on most public business matters.

Way to go Company ABC, way to go. You just lost yourself a great opportunity.

[Will]

This is a great piece! I'm just a few years out of a AD/PR program, and found this to be a nicely written letter... I almost feel the need to print this out and take it to a few companies I've had to deal with in the past... not even from a PR standpoint, but just as a customer.

Nice Blog so far! I'll be tuned in for more posts :)