Offering news to several publications on embargo, but giving one publication a much earlier “exclusive” isn’t the best way to ingratiate yourself with all of the other reporters. Even worse? Expressing the hope that all of the other publications stick to the original embargo time, despite the fact that the story is out.
Tip: When a story is out, embargoes mean squat. This is yet another reason why I hate embargoes.
These kinds of exclusives happen all the time. I’ve both enjoyed them and been the one left out in the cold, and it’s the part of what reporters deal with. But insisting that publications hold their stories despite the exclusive already being out is the kind of amateur hour act that gets PR firms banned in newsrooms. Yes, we talk.
Pitching a meeting to a reporter at a conference that starts that very day is not a good idea. Tip of the hat to PC Mag’s Sascha Segan.
Yes, a confirmation email a little before a meeting is acceptable, and actually appreciated. But a stream of confirmation emails — one or two a day for several days — is not. You just come off sounding desperate.
Pitching an announcement, research report, or study is fine. Asking for an embargo that comes after the news is announced isn’t. Embargoes are bad enough, but if they’re set for after the news breaks, they’re intolerable.
To PR folks looking to send story ideas: no thanks. We’ll come up with our own stories, thank you very much. Adding “story idea” to the subject line of an email is a quick way to get it sent to the trash bin.
Do the courtesy of looking up the correct number for a reporter before haphazardly dialing. If you get the wrong number, or a reporter who isn’t covering your company, don’t ask to be transferred. That’s 1) annoying and 2) not that person’s job. How hard is it to do a Google search?
That’s the corporate world’s way of referencing someone who got fired. Ouch, how bad is that? I’m not even sure it makes sense as a euphemism.
When wishing someone well on their promotions/birthday/other special occasion, sneaking in a pitch isn’t going to win you any points. In fact, it does the opposite. Yes, this has happened to me recently.
When you get (and ignore) a pitch from one flak, only to have the very same pitch come from a colleague of the first flak hit your inbox the next day. No, reading the same pitch twice isn’t going to somehow spark any new interest.
