Strategic leader building incredible teams in public relations and corporate communications. Fluent in big ideas and creativity; powerful with a pen.
Lots of posts out there this week on why media relationships don't matter in PR. Sure they do, all relationships matter. But debating if knowing an editor gets your client a hit isn't the only conversation we should be having. You, the PR pro, matter. You have to be able to think like a journalist, you have to understand who they write for and what that audience reads for. Then, you have to have the creative skill to see all the potential in your client. Maybe it's not breaking news. There might not be a product launch, an event or even a widely noticeable differentiator. This is where relationships come into play. Your relationships with the storytelling of the moment, the current conversations in the industry, the pressures on the business. And, can you find a way to enter that conversation with the things your client DOES have? I won't trouble my media relationships with things I know they don't write about. So some of my relationships, therefore, won't mater to my client. What should matter is if our team can mold the clay of the client into something my relationships DO want to hear about. Rely on great PR thinkers before you rely on their contact list.
