PR coverage

August 14, 2023

When we onboard any client, one of the most common questions we’re asked is when and where PR coverage will be achieved. That’s understandable – we are a PR, social media and content marketing agency after all.

However, it’s not as easy to answer as you may think, so let’s take a look at everything you wanted to know about PR and media coverage but were too afraid to ask…

Q: What are the benefits of PR coverage?

A: Well, they’re endless, really, but much of it is around the idea of brand awareness; PR is distinct from marketing, in that it’s not solely focused on selling. Put simply, PR improves your reputation among your chosen audience, helping to boost your brand and paint you in a positive light. From this will potentially come increased sales and demand for your goods or services, along with raising your personal profile too.

As investor and philanthropist Warren Buffett said: “It takes 20 years to build a reputation and five minutes to ruin it. If you think about that, you’ll do things differently.” That’s PR.

Q: When will my story appear in the media once it’s been distributed?

A: As experienced PR professionals, we only write releases that are strong enough for the media to use, so we have every faith it will be picked up and published, but unfortunately we can never say exactly when it will appear, which we know can be frustrating for clients.

However, once the release is sent out to the media, ultimately it’s in their hands and down to our skills of persuasion. We do have excellent relationships with local and trade media, cultivated through years of working together, so our chances are pretty good.

Some journalists and editors let us know when they plan on using it and although this is a great guide, sometimes the story may still not appear if more urgent news has broken and taken up the space that your story was going to be used in.

Sometimes our stories are used the next day, and sometimes it takes a couple of months for coverage to appear, especially if you’re targeting monthly or bimonthly magazines. If targeting a mix of media i.e. online, daily press and monthly magazines, it can take a good few months for all of the coverage to appear, which is great as it keeps your company in the spotlight for that whole period of time. It also depends how in demand the publication is with stories as to when they can fit yours in.

Even though we often can’t tell you exactly when your story will appear, we will always keep you updated on feedback and will let you know when coverage has appeared.

Q: Where will my story appear?

A: Again we can’t guarantee exactly where coverage will appear but we will only send it to media outlets that would typically use your story. This forms part of the research we undertake when onboarding any new client, delving into their target audience and pinning down which media they consume and how.

Bluntly speaking, it’s very rare that everywhere we send your release to will use the story, as often if one media outlet has done a big piece on it, this will put the other platforms off using it as it will be seen as old news.

Alternatively, sometimes the publication may have just run with a similar story, therefore can’t use yours; news goes in waves, and so it’s not unusual for more than one brand to launch a product or service at the same time. In other cases, perhaps some news has broken that affects your story, and it may now be insensitive timing or no longer relevant.

However, like in the above answer, we will always keep you updated on where it’s looking likely that coverage will appear and let you know as soon as it has.

Using media monitoring tools as well as good old-fashioned reading, we check for your news regularly, beginning with daily coverage checks immediately following distribution, before moving to weekly and then ad hoc.

What’s more is we always follow up with journalists, either by calling or emailing. We know how busy their inboxes get, so it’s a good idea to check in every now and then to make sure nothing’s been missed. It also helps us build positive relationships with the media outlets that matter to our clients, which is never a bad thing either!

Gaining press coverage can never be a certainty – it’s not called the news for no reason – but, with our extensive media contacts, nose for a story and top-notch writing skills, we have a pretty good success rate if we do say so ourselves. Or, if it’s guaranteed, regular coverage you’re after, we can help facilitate sponsorship deals with relevant outlets to make sure your voice is being heard.

Plus, we also know plenty of ways to boost your brand even if traditional press coverage isn’t quite your thing.

So if you’re looking for PR coverage, throw The Pack a bone on 01325 486666 or email info@harveyandhugo.com