The Factors that Make PR Spam Worse

If I had to guess, I ‘d say 80% of what passes for media relations is scattergun, rather than customized. And even the customized stuff isn’t necessarily laser-focused.

You see examples of PR every day that push information out almost randomly, instead of finding just the right place to share information.

The factors involved:

• Easy access to lists of journalists
• Agencies are increasingly hired to perform functions (ie. write and distribute news releases), rather than achieve results
• Companies doing their own promotions without having time to build relationships
• Newswire services are paid per item
• Journalists’ e-mail addresses are widely posted in print, online and on the air
• News organizations sometimes use spammed info
• Reduced news staffing makes for fewer beat reporters and less opportunity to target pitches
• Globalization of business means companies are more likely to be trying to reach media outside the company’s home turf
• Everyone includes the big media outlets in their distribution of releases/pitches
• New news outlets are either ultra-niche, or ultra-general
• Greater awareness of PR means more middle-managers demanding activity
• Employee churn decreases continuity, relationship building and knowledge

It’s too damn easy to send a news release to an extra thousand people.

It’s too easy to say yes when a district manager demands a news release for a non-story.

It’s too easy to increase the signal-to-noise ratio.

There are times when a wide-spectrum news release is the perfect tool for the job. Just don’t act like it’s the only tool in your kit.

Tags: spam, public relations, business, journalists, media, tools