Insights for Leaders Navigating
Visibility, Credibility, and Growth.

From media strategy to reputation management, we explore the trends shaping public perception and share the approaches that drive measurable results for growing brands.

Four Tools to Build an Effective Press List

PR pros know that behind every piece of media coverage is an effective press list. Your client might have a great story to tell, but getting the right set of eyes on that story can be challenging.

Securing media coverage means having the right information at the right time, and then getting that info in front of the right people. So how do you build a press list that will generate the attention you and your clients deserve?

A good press list includes a wide range of media contacts to pitch, from the more traditional newspapers, magazines, broadcast media and wire services to newer media like podcasts, bloggers and influencers. Whether you’re targeting trade, local, or national publications, a well-refined press list helps ensure your pitches find the right person.

Here are four tools I use to create more targeted press lists. These tools can help refine your contact lists and increase your chances of getting the coverage your client needs.

Cision

Cision is a comprehensive platform that helps PR pros manage their media relations, monitor and analyze media coverage and measure the effectiveness of their PR campaigns.

Cision helps you find contacts and easily create press lists. The platform boasts a massive database with over 850K+ contacts and outlets—one of the reasons Cision is first on our list. Here’s how you can use Cision effectively:

Narrow your focus: Cision offers filters for subject matters, publication types, editors, bloggers and reporters worldwide so that you can search for specific journalists or media outlets. It provides a list of complete contact information, outlet details and social profiles.
Create lists: These filters can also help you create lists more efficiently. You can organize your final media list by media type, location, industry, topic or other characteristics. You can also access your created lists and add contacts from existing lists.

Sparktoro

SparkToro is a market research and audience intelligence tool that helps PR pros find media by analyzing the behavior and interests of your story’s target audiences. After all, you’re trying to get your story in front of your target audience, so what better than going directly to the source?

Sparktoro shows what your audience is already reading, watching, listening to and engaging with online. Since Sparktoro may be new for some, here’s how you can use this tool to identify journalists who might be interested in your story:

Conduct a search: Sparktoro has several search options. For example, you can select “My audience frequently talks about” and type in your industry, niche or keywords. You’ll see which publications, journalists and websites your audience already engages with.
Review your media options: By clicking on a publication or journalist, you can view their audience insights, which include information on their social media followers, websites they visit and other interests. Use this information to figure out who might be interested in covering your story.
Find journalists’ contact information: At the top of the profile, you’ll find public contact information, which could include social media handles and email addresses.

Google News

The phrase “Google it” is in our lexicon for a reason. Google has made it easy for PR pros to search related stories or topics and see which publications and journalists are already covering similar stories.

There are a variety of ways you can use Google News to stay up to date on the latest trends for your company’s or client’s industry. Here are two of the simplest methods:

Set up Google News Alerts: News Alerts email you notifications whenever articles related to your specified search query are published. To set up a News Alert, simply enter a search in the Google News search bar and click on the “Create Alert” button. Consider setting up alerts for your company’s or client’s name, industry terms or other phrases. You can even try “[keyword] reporter” to get more results.
Use advanced search filters: Filters can narrow your search results by publication, location, date and other factors. They can help you find more specific news articles and journalists covering stories related to your industry or niche.

Advertising Kits

Let’s say you’ve found a publication you’d like to cover your story. Reviewing their advertising kit can provide valuable insights into their target readership and help build a targeted press list.

Advertising kits have detailed information about the media outlet’s audience, including their demographics, interests and purchasing habits. PR pros can use these kits to understand the types of stories likely to resonate with that audience, as well as the types of pitches its editors and reporters are most interested in seeing.

Using these tools can help you regularly refine and update your press list. You’ll likely find that people change jobs, new beats emerge or new publications launch while others fold, creating a whole new list of potential contacts. By keeping your list refreshed, you will always be prepared to pitch your story to the right audience.

What to look for in Keynote Speakers for your Event

Anyone attending a conference or expo can tell you that a speaker can make or break an industry event. This is especially true for keynote speakers. A great keynote sets the tone, inspires the audience and leaves a lasting impact on all the attendees.

Whether it’s insight or inspiration, a memorable keynote gives an audience something only the speaker can provide. Look for these attributes when lining up your next keynote speaker.

Preparation and professionalism – The best keynote speakers take their role seriously and fully prepare for the event. They should be punctual, well-organized and have a professional demeanor. Quality speakers should be flexible enough to adapt to schedule changes or other unforeseen situations, ensuring their presentation is seamless and impactful.
Expertise and knowledge – A good keynote speaker has a deep understanding of their subject matter. They should be an expert in their field and have significant experience in their topic. This expertise will help them deliver an engaging and educational presentation.
Authenticity and credibility – Expertise can be lost on a crowd if a speaker’s not able to establish their credibility. Audiences don’t just connect with knowledge but with the person sharing that knowledge, their story and authenticity. Whether the speaker’s credibility is demonstrated through personal anecdotes or stage presence, authenticity helps the audience connect with the speaker’s message on a deeper level and trust what they have to share.
Relevant and impactful content – The content of the keynote speech should be relevant to your event and audience. It should be tailored to the event’s theme and the audience’s interests, needs and expectations. Impactful speakers provide new insights and perspectives that leave the audience with actionable takeaways.
Engaging presentation style – Expertise and credibility create a critical foundation for a keynote speaker, but those who captivate their audience from start to finish leave a lasting impression. They use storytelling, humor and other engaging techniques to keep the audience interested and attentive. Speakers should be dynamic and charismatic in their delivery.

A great keynote speaker can be a game-changer for any event. By carefully considering the above attributes, you can find a speaker who will engage and inspire the audience, provide valuable insights and leave a lasting impact on your attendees.

Tips to Maximize Value and Support at In-person Client Events

In a recent blog post, I outlined tips to prepare for in-person client events. These tips included aligning expectations and planning logistics in advance, reviewing health and safety guidelines, packing accordingly, and establishing a channel for real-time communication.

These tips came in handy while on-site at Acumatica Summit in Las Vegas. I also learned additional lessons at the event, which will be useful in the future. My four tips below focus on takeaways and learnings for supporting in-person client events.

Be Proactive

My biggest takeaway from supporting Acumatica Summit in person is to be proactive. Look for what needs to be done and do it. If you’re not sure what to do or directions are vague, take the initiative to find answers and add value. Remember: The client is paying for your time, and you are an extension of their on-site team. Regularly ask yourself if what you’re doing is adding value and consider additional ways you can maximize your contribution.

Here are a few ideas to help you be proactive if you’re unsure where to start:

Introduce yourself: With work being largely remote the past three years, there may be several people you’ve only met virtually. If you see a familiar face, go out of your way to make the connection and build relationships.
Confirm upcoming meetings: Send reminders to participants and ensure meeting rooms are available. If a reporter or analyst is leaving the event soon, reach out to thank them for their time and participation and determine whether they have everything they need.
Take notes: Write down what you learned during the keynote addresses, breakout sessions or other meetings while it’s fresh in your mind. These might be key company messages, questions from reporters or analysts, product updates or ideas for future PR campaigns.
Think ahead: Brainstorm questions or action items you think might result from the event. Are there presentation materials reporters or analysts might ask to receive? If so, outline a recommended process for file sharing to your client.

Be Present, Attentive and Accessible

Stay present and be an active participant at the event. Take notes during meetings, track action items, thank participants for their time, and chime in with questions. Stay energized throughout the event by drinking plenty of water, fueling your body with healthy snacks and getting fresh air. Get as much rest as possible in the evenings if you’re supporting a multi-day event.

As previously mentioned, you are an extension of the client’s team while on-site, with a specific role and responsibilities. It’s essential to be accessible. Ask yourself: Do key stakeholders (my client, media and analysts) know how to contact me? While you don’t want to be glued to your phone and appear disengaged, keep your phone handy, regularly check for key stakeholders’ communications and strive to reply promptly.

Be Adaptable

Events are typically scheduled from morning to evening to maximize attendees’ time and ensure they have ample opportunity to connect with peers, learn about the latest industry trends and engage with sponsors and exhibitors. Since these events are carefully planned and structured, it can be tricky to find time for executives, customers, partners and other stakeholders to meet with media and analysts.

It’s also crucial to adapt to the many ways scheduled meetings might evolve. For example, if a session runs long or a stakeholder gets caught up networking with someone in the hallway, they might be late to or miss a scheduled appointment. If possible, work quickly and efficiently to reschedule the meeting. Stay calm, be gracious in your communication and remember that schedules can shift on a dime.

Be Organized

Ensure you have all the information you need at your fingertips. Helpful information might include:

Meeting schedules for key stakeholders (e.g., media, analysts, executives, customers, etc.).
Contact info for the client and other key stakeholders.
A map of the event space.
The event schedule.
Room availability.
Transportation information to and from the event space.
Hotel concierge information.

When you first arrive on-site, orient yourself with the event space. Walk from end to end, identifying critical locations on the map. Doing so will not only help you find your way, but it will help you help others find their way.

By following these four tips, PR professionals can ensure they maximize value and support for in-person client events.

Best practices to measure PR campaign results

As the statistician and management consultant W. Edwards Deming once said, “Without data, you’re just another person with an opinion.”

Collecting and analyzing data is critical for all businesses and organizations. Understanding results gives teams insight into what is working versus what isn’t. It helps them make informed decisions and optimize performance.

As strategic partners, PR professionals should constantly review and analyze the effectiveness of their work. Understanding the success of a campaign can be paramount in driving results for your client.

Below are some common questions and best practices for analyzing a PR campaign’s effectiveness.

Where do I start?
PR professionals should begin by defining campaign goals, so you have a clear idea of what you want to achieve. For example, some common goals might include building brand awareness, enhancing reputation, managing a crisis and growing thought leadership. Clearly defined goals help you track and measure your progress.

What types of data should I track?
You’ll want to choose relevant metrics that align with your PR goals. For instance, consider measuring things like website traffic, share of voice, the number of articles published or message pull-through.

On a larger scale, it can be helpful to measure the impact of PR efforts on business outcomes, such as sales and leads or customer retention. You’ll likely need to ask other department heads for this data, which you can then correlate with your PR campaign.

Once I’ve decided what I’m tracking, what measurement best practices should I use?
Below are a few best practices to ensure your data is accurate and reliable:

Organize your data in a spreadsheet: This allows you to easily manipulate it and see metrics like coverage by quarter and region, growth rates, the correlation of activity to results, response rates, average domain authority, unique visitors per month and the like.
Use consistent measurements: This ensures you can compare results over time. For example, when tracking growth rates, be sure to use a consistent period of time to ensure an apples-to-apples analysis. When tracking data on the number of articles published on your client’s behalf, you should gather the articles published within a given quarter, year, month, etc.
Use benchmarks: It can also be helpful to benchmark results against key competitors. To do this, gather the competitor’s articles within the same time period, then review and compare the growth rates to those of your client.

How do I use this information?
Once you’ve gathered all the necessary data, dig deeper. Analyze your results to better understand what activities contributed to your campaign’s success or failure. Nailing down causes can help you identify specific improvements for your next campaign.

For instance, to increase your chance of media coverage, you may want to update your pitch to add value. Including unique angles in your pitch removes some of the burden from journalists, making your story more appealing and increasing the likelihood of coverage.

You can also target different reporters to ensure you’ve thoroughly covered the media on behalf of your client. Consider a shift in strategy if its execution is not driving results.

What’s the best way to present this information?
Once you’ve gathered and analyzed the data, present your findings to the client in the most organized and professional manner possible. Consider developing a slide show using the following template:

Introduction: Begin with an executive summary that highlights your findings and reiterates your goals.
Findings: Use the middle slides to dig into the campaign metrics and results. Use charts, graphs and tables to make your data easily accessible.
Next steps: Provide clear and actionable recommendations on how to improve results for the next campaign.
Be sure you are measuring the impact of each campaign as your relationship with your client continues to grow.

Analyzing data and results is equally as important in PR as in any other business. It’s critical that PR professionals understand the impact of their campaigns and make necessary adjustments to provide clients with results that move the needle for their businesses.

Carbon Robotics Unveils LaserThinning

Over the last three years, Carbon Robotics’ groundbreaking developments have captured the attention of customers and top-tier media. The company, a leader in AI-powered robotics, is addressing the agricultural industry’s biggest challenges, inducing labor shortages and the cost and availability of herbicides. Most recently, CNN featured Carbon Robotics on a segment about how automation is supporting the evolving labor market and BBC highlighted how technology, including Carbon Robotics’ LaserWeeder, is disrupting the future of weeding.

Since we began working with the company in early 2021, the Carbon Robotics team has continued innovating at a rapid pace.

In 2021, we supported the announcement of the Autonomous LaserWeeder. A year later, the company announced a re-design of its LaserWeeder with higher performance. In 2023, we are supporting Carbon Robotics’ latest innovation, LaserThinning, a new capability added to its AI-powered LaserWeeder.

LaserThinning is the first innovation in the industry that targets areas where vegetable crops are purposefully overseeded and then thinned for optimal growth and yield. LaserThinning is valuable to farmers growing direct-seeded leafy green and cole crops—such as lettuces and broccoli.

In addition to LaserThinning, the company released several other product and software updates, including prioritized seed line weeding, speed optimization and crop models across more than 40 crops.

When planning the LaserThinning announcement, we knew there was an opportunity to highlight the impressive results that Carbon Robotics achieved since the product’s launch. These included helping growers reduce their annual weed control costs by up to 80% and selling LaserWeeders to growers across 17 states in the U.S. and three provinces in Canada.

Finally, we worked with Carbon Robotics to time the LaserThinning announcement with the World Ag Expo, one of the industry’s largest events. We engaged media ahead of the Expo, arranging interviews over the phone and scheduling in-person meetings at the conference. The LaserThinning announcement was a great way to entice media to visit Carbon Robotics’ booth, see the LaserWeeder in person and meet with executives to learn more.

Since the announcement was specific to growers’ needs, we targeted agriculture reporters, securing multiple broadcast interviews, as well as phone and in-person briefings.

Below is some of the coverage secured through this announcement. Congratulations Carbon Robotics!

Carbon Robotics Unveils Autonomous Crop Control Laser—IOT World Today
3 hi-tech tools that are helping solve perplexing labor puzzles—The Packer
Robots and automation at the World Ag Expo 2023—The Robot Report
Top 5 Organic News to Help You Grow—Organic Produce Network
Carbon Robotics adds LaserThinning capability to its LaserWeeder—Robotics and Automation

Best practices for interviewing a subject matter expert

In PR, subject matter experts are invaluable when developing content for bylines, speaking opportunities and other messaging purposes. Interviewing a subject matter expert gives PR professionals a unique perspective that will ensure they are meeting their clients’ goals.

However, interviewing a subject matter expert is no simple task. If not done correctly, PR professionals may be left with unanswered questions, inconsistent messaging and an incomplete picture of the subject. It’s essential to follow these best practices to ensure your next subject matter expert interview goes smoothly:

Identify and understand the subject: Determine what you need to learn from the subject matter expert, then research the subject to get a baseline understanding before the interview. For example, if you want to learn more about AI in the accounting industry, research current statistics and news on the subject so you’re familiar with what’s happening in the industry. This baseline knowledge helps you draft better interview questions and ask informed follow-up questions during the interview.
Determine the right subject matter expert: This is critical. Once you’ve determined the subject of your interview, find the right person to speak with. This requires some background research. Take a look at job titles and previous experience to determine who may have a strong understanding of the subject. You could also see who has already been interviewed or written content on the subject.
Share your questions before the interview: Sending your questions to the subject matter expert before the interview gives them time to prepare their responses. This preparation often yields more detailed and thoughtful answers.
Define your goals and audience: At the start of every call, always define what you are trying to learn and how this will play into your larger plans. Are you writing a byline that requires specific knowledge? Are you drafting a speaking nomination on behalf of the subject matter expert? The subject matter expert should understand the call’s main goal. In addition, identify the target audiences. Will the byline run in an accounting magazine? Will the discussion aid the development of content for a company’s social media platform? Identifying the audience helps the subject matter expert tailor their responses to a specific audience’s needs.
Ask follow-up and clarifying questions: Listen attentively, so you know what follow-up and clarifying questions to ask. Sometimes, a subject matter expert may not go into enough depth, and you’ll need to ask additional questions to get a full answer. Without this skill, you risk not having answers to all your questions, which can hurt your content.
Record the interview: With the permission of the subject matter expert, record the interview so you can refer to it when developing content. A recording helps you develop accurate content without needing to ask the subject matter expert unnecessary follow-up questions after the interview due to incomplete notes or spotty memory.
Check-in with the subject matter expert: As you end the interview, it’s a good idea to ask the subject matter expert if there is anything that wasn’t discussed that should be on the record. This gives the subject matter expert a moment to reflect on the conversation and fill in any holes or discuss something that wasn’t asked, helping to ensure the conversation is well-rounded and that everything on the subject is covered.

These best practices can help you make the most of your time with the subject matter expert and become an expert yourself. Before your next interview, consider implementing these steps for a smooth and constructive conversation that will help you develop content.

Insights for Leaders Navigating Visibility, Credibility, and Growth.