If you are thinking about engaging in PR activity to build your brand awareness this year, I have one very important piece of advice for you. Please keep media deadlines in mind.
I understand if you do not work in the media industry there is no reason why you would know when journalists’ deadlines are for the range of different media that is available in this country. This is why I think it’s important to enlighten you so that you make sure you begin working on your campaign early enough so that all the media opportunities can be utilised.
Journalists who write for long lead media (e.g. monthly magazines), are generally working on stories that will be published in three-to-four months’ time. Some examples of magazines that fall into this category are Vogue, Madison, Harper’s Bazaar, Notebook, FHM, Ralph and GQ. This means that if you lock in a story tomorrow, it is likely to be published three-to-four months from now.
Importantly, each media outlet has a different lead time. Newspaper supplements and magazines range from weekly to monthly lead times (eg. The Sydney Morning Herald’s Good Living or Sun Herald’s The Sunday Magazine), while the news team will operate on a day-to-day basis.
Publicity on radio or television can be much more immediate, particularly if your story is linked to an event or situation that is happening at the time of pitching. If a television program such as A Current Affair produced and filmed a story around your product/service that was not particularly timely because it didn’t relate to a current situation, it may not get a run straight away.
The most immediate media exposure that can be expected to be seen in a PR campaign is online press as the story will be uploaded as soon as it’s written.
Sounds complicated? Actually, it can be pretty confusing to the uninitiated. This is one of the reasons why you may pay good money for a PR company to handle your media relations, as timing is one of the expertise they bring to the table. When we work with clients we endeavour to find out as much as we can about what they have forecasted for the following six-to-12 months. We then incorporate this information into a strategic timeline and ensure we do not miss out on valuable opportunities due to timing.
I cannot tell you the number of clients who called us in mid-to-late November 2009, hoping they were not too late to achieve media exposure for their products in the lead-up to Christmas. Unfortunately, it was too late to take advantage of what would have been a great opportunity had they contacted us in July!
