Why PR is about probing

Do you want your business better showcased in target media? Do you want to jump start your proactive PR results?

One essential method is to do regular PROACTIVE PR PROBING to source that irresistible ‘story’ that excites journalists and editors on your target media, whether specialist B2B, regional or national.

Here’s an example of PROACTIVE PR PROBING.

We telephoned a client – a care home provider – to discover if there was a good news ‘story’ from one care home that we could put together into a media pitch.

We found out that being cared for at the home was a married couple with a combined age of 200 (one aged 99, the other 101). Most importantly, they were to spend Valentine’s Day in the care home where they lived.

A premium PR opportunity beckoned – particularly as it is unusual for care homes to have capacity for married couples.

With the added media hook of Valentine’s Day, we came up with a catchy headline, based on a quote from the couple.

“Every Day is Valentine’s, say Care Home Couple”.

Then we got writing the media pitch, had it signed off, and distributed to target media.

Now, for care homes PR activity is often prioritised on securing local media coverage (newspapers, online, TV and radio) to reach audiences. Sure, we got great results here.

But, in this case, there was the bonus result of securing national media coverage for the home. (It’s rare to see national “good news” stories on care homes).

And all due to our ‘probing’ 15-minute conversation with the home manager.

Remember, whatever your business, if you’re serious about making PR work, then not only have a deep grasp of what the ‘story’ is, but also do PROACTIVE PROBING to make sure you don’t miss out on those ‘stories’.

Of course, if you’ve an intimate knowledge of your business then that PR probing should be significantly easier.