New Carpet is Not Newsworthy!

Once upon a time, not too long ago, a client asked its public relations agency to pitch the new carpet they recently refurbished. Gently, yet assuredly, the public relations team broke it to the client that the new carpet - albeit big news around their office - would not appeal to the media.

While this story may seem trite, it's actually true. As PR practitioners, we're often faced with the difficult task of asking our clients, "Who cares?" Surely we've bruised an ego or two along the way, but hopefully we've shielded our clients from the far-worse crucifixion of a cranky journalist. And, since we know they can't all be winners, we've created the following suitcase of things to pack into any press release or announcement before it's considered "news":

Timeliness - Consider whether your story is up to date with the content of the medium you're pitching. If you're pitching BusinessWeek, ask yourself whether your story ties into a current news trend and if it's happened recently enough (within the last 24-48 hours).

Impact - Does your story impact anyone outside of your organization? Does it have consequences for its audience? News makes an impact if it affects a large number of people.  

Conflict - Drama, conflict and tension are more captivating than peace and smooth sailing. If you're willing to go head to head against a competitor, your story will be that much more compelling. 

Proximity - Stories which happen close to home have more significance to our lives. Can your company bring the local perspective to a national trend?

Human Interest - Human interest stories don't have to necessarily be recent or widespread to make an impact - they simply have to tug at heartstrings.  

Prominence - Famous people get more coverage because they are famous.

As a senior PR expert at Xstatic PR (xstaticpr.com xstaticpr.com) in Denver, Sasha is responsible for project management, editing and quality assurance, and client projects including media relations, writing, social media, community relations, research and event coordination. Sasha is an experienced PR agency executive and has worked with top firms across the country, including Schenkein Public Relations in Denver and Lois Paul & Partners in Boston.