is building relationships with the media. At Dittoe PR, we pride ourselves not only on getting great coverage for our clients but also on building and maintaining positive relationships with members of the media and earning their respect as PR professionals.Inexperienced PR people - and those who are just lazy or indifferent - often don't take the time to research members of the media prior to reaching out to them. Consequently, they'll pitch something that's completely off-topic from a reporter's beat. Most reporters get hundreds of emails a day (many of which are from PR professionals) which they have to sort through. It's certainly very frustrating if a good portion of these emails are irrelevant and unhelpful, so many reporters are forced to quickly scan their email and delete most messages without replying.
As a PR professional who relies on my ability to reach out to the media and grab their attention, I don't want reporters to lump all PR people together as "spammers." I completely understand their frustration at receiving off-topic pitches, which is why PR pros everywhere need to make it a priority to do their research, pitch on-topic, and foster positive give-and-take relationships with members of the media. To not make an effort to do so is irresponsible on the part of these individuals, and it brings down the quality of the PR industry as a whole.A positive relationship between a PR pro and a reporter or journalist should be one of mutual respect as professionals and involve give-and-take from both sides. PR pros should be willing to offer helpful information or data to a reporter, even if it doesn't benefit their clients. Journalists will appreciate this assistance and hopefully be more willing to work on a story for their clients somewhere down the road. On the flip side, reporters must be open and honest with PR pros - if a story suggested is something that the journalist would never write about it, he or she should let the PR pro know this right away. Stringing the PR pro along won't help either party.
All in all, PR pros everywhere could take a few tips from Dittoe PR's philosophy. Always be professional, do the proper background research, and give - don't just take. This benefits reporters and PR pros alike. Isn't everyone better off this way?
