This Week in PR Takes - Week 32

Take of the Week:
Emily Gallagher wrote a deep take on the lack of PR pros who still love pitching the media (hat tip to Jen Holmes at LaunchSquad for sending it to me). She uncovers a huge flaw in how PR is organized. You enter the industry, develop your sense of news and pitching style, then slowly but surely you rise in the ranks to be more of a day-to-day client contact and then eventually your job is to bring in new business.

Now, you’re more of a salesperson than communicator. Not that there’s anything wrong with being a salesperson (I am a salesperson turned PR pro), but it is an interesting dynamic.

I believe that PR pros should always take on some level of media pitching, even if it’s just a few outlets or contacts. Doing so keeps you in tune with what’s happening on the front lines, and also shows your colleagues that you’re in there with them.

Half Chuckle, but seriously:
I got half a chuckle, but also you should seriously check out Maik’s $100k contest for finding a head of media at Taktile.

Resource of the Week:
Chris King linked out to PRWeek’s AI / PR study that they conducted along with Boston University

Bonus Resource of the Week!
The folks at OnePitch have an amazing free resource for PR pros to submit a pitch and get back a curated media list. I’ve used it a couple of times, and recommend it!

The Rest of the Takes:
Media Relations
- Rozelle wrote about the importance of being a human in PR amid all of the AI tools available.
- Brandon dove into why the follow up is just as crucial as the initial pitch.
- Rosie questioned how junior PR people are supposed to learn, and stressed the importance of access.
- Think all case studies are press-ready? Agam wrote about what he questions when it comes to case studies.
- This is a shout out for the shout out, from Adrian to Jared. We often see journalists gripe about PR people, but I love that Adrian commended Jared publicly for his hard work. Kudos!

Measurement
- A lot of the ground work for coverage happens well beforehand, and Justin argues that agencies shouldn’t be judged on a monthly basis. 

Media Landscape
-Cristin posted about the changing media landscape and how the center of gravity is shifting towards individuals.

PR Misc.
- Kerry acutely went into the difference between BRAND messaging and PR messaging (hat tip to Clare Sayas for sending this!)
- I often recommend to clients and colleagues that you never know who is around when you discuss private matters in a public setting;
- Do clients care if we use AI? Dustin dives in.
- PR or posting on LinkedIn for 30 straight days…Erica wrote about which she believes is better.

That’s it for this week’s takes, thanks for reading.

-Brian

https://www.linkedin.com/in/bkramer/