Focusing on Media Relation Strategy: Media Intelligence

The stories you tell must have an underlying meaning, just like any fable. Before you begin pitching stories to the media, you must first understand the company’s mission and how you plan to carry it out. Not only can this help you fine-tune your communications, but it has also been shown to help you develop your business: The purpose-driven brands at Unilever developed 69 per cent faster than the rest of the company. Working out your messaging and preparing for the months ahead becomes much easier once you’ve figured out your intent.

Send a short email to everyone on your marketing and communications team to fine-tune your communications plan.

Ask them to:

In three words, describe the mission of your business.

Describe the target audience’s most significant beliefs and values.

Make a list of the three key messages you’re sending out as an organisation.

You’ll also need answers to the following questions to get a clear picture of who you are as a company:

What is the purpose of our business?

How do we get the stuff done that we want to get done?

And what are we doing this?

What are we going to do with this?

What is the Big Hairy Audacious Goal for which we are striving?

What is our backstory—how did we get here and what does it mean to us (and our customers)?

What are the product’s or service’s three main selling points?

If you can answer yes to both of these questions, you’re ready to start working on your messaging.

Developing your message

After you’ve figured out your “why,” you can focus on your messaging. Your marketing explains why your target market should be interested in your product or service. It is unavoidable to have a messaging plan. It will connect all of your interactions, direct your efforts, and assist your audience in understanding your product or service. Customers won’t grasp what you’re doing without it, and journalists will dismiss all of your proposals as half-baked.

The media is a message-bearer that is objective. Since they are perceived as neutral, messages about you in the news are more trustworthy. It’s also why public relations is so successful. It’s important to remember that in order to maintain that confidence, you’ll have to work hard to earn it. Trust is a delicate commodity, which is why it is so precious.

In your public relations plan, you’ll need to figure out four different types of messages:

Like all great stuff, brand marketing should be as easy as possible. It’s the top two or three messages you want to get across about your business. Anything you make should have this messaging running through it. Consider Nike’s “Just do it” and Apple’s “Think Different.” It’s a straightforward and consistent message that will stick with your audience.

The aim of thought leader messaging is to share your person or company’s expertise. As a result, it should be more intimate and focused on your opinion leader’s specific ideas or perspectives. You’ll be more likely to be called upon by the press for a quote or a valuable perspective if you become a well-known name in the industry.