What’s the biggest PR howler you’ve made?

Working in PR can be a tough job and one of the most common blunders that PR people make is not planning. It is tempting to jump straight into a campaign, but time invested in research at the start pays dividends.

Ann Pilkington, director of training provider PR Academy, points out that sometimes PROs fail to plan because the client asks them to act immediately, but this shouldn’t be done without questioning the reasons behind the instructions: “If nobody has done the thinking first, how do we know it will address the problem? Time spent on research and setting objectives can seem expensive and time-consuming, but implementing a campaign that doesn’t change behaviour is a big waste of money. We need to understand our audiences, how they feel and why they feel that way before we can hope to influence them. Then, it’s about setting our objectives based on outcomes – not just hits on a website or quantity of coverage.”

Another reason for acting quickly without thinking is because of sheer pressure of work. Vicki Cole, marketing and PR executive at ICT company LapSafe Products, says that when faced with large media lists to get through, PROs can fall into the trap of getting releases out, without taking time to customise what they have written. She adds: “Targeting regional newspapers or trade magazines with an overarching release or verbal pitch won't get the best response. For example, sending out a release about survey results from East Anglia won’t mean that much to newspapers in Essex.”

If failing to target information to individual publications is a mistake, then sending out one mass mailing is surely a disaster! Yet this is a blunder the industry is sometimes slated for. Marco Fiori, account executive at agency Bamboo PR, says: “It comes up time and time again in criticism of the profession. Untargeted emailing, which is essentially spam, helps no one. We hate it when companies send us unsolicited mail, so why do we think that journalists appreciate it?”

Taking the time to plan and target PR activity is not rocket science. And it is easy to avoid making other PR howlers too, by making an effort to listen.

Alastair Turner, managing director, of agency Aspectus PR, says that not listening to a client or journalist is the biggest blunder that PROs make: “It’s easy to do. You’re all keyed up for that big meeting or pitch. You’ve got some great ideas, you can stack them up and you have some killer arguments lined up too. But you’re so keen to get all this off your chest that you fail to pause and listen to who you’re meeting with. As a result you fail to adapt what you’re saying to meet the needs of the client or the journalist and before you know it, you’ve lost them and fluffed the meeting.”

We are all only human though, and so mistakes happen. When they do, the best tactic to is admit your error. Becky McMichael, head of strategy and innovation at PR agency Ruder Finn, says: “The single biggest mistake a PRO can make is to be dishonest. If you make a mistake, hold your hands up. Not being transparent about a client or something that went wrong will ruin the trust that both clients and the industry have in you as an individual and that is far harder to recover from than a PR mistake.”

The final piece of advice comes from PR Academy’s Pilkington: “Never send a clock in the post. I recall a story about one PRO who did (to promote a deadline for ISAs I think it was) but of course it ticked, and one local BBC radio station ordered everyone to leave the building!”

Five ways to prevent common PR blunders:

1. Don't use 'Bcc' – Group emailing a sell-in is likely to make journalists hit delete without even reading your pitch. “Bcc” is a tempting time-saver, but always try to make it personal.

2. Research the publication – Look at all the background you can get your hands on about the publication and its audience. Also, most journalists have online profiles, so running a quick search should give enough background to confidently approach them.

3. Pick up the phone – Try to pick up the phone occasionally, it can save time, avoid confusion and help cement relationships. Before you do, get the basics right – for example make sure you know how the editor’s name is pronounced. In case the editor is currently away from their desk, make sure you have the name of a deputy or the editorial assistant and ask to speak to them instead. ALWAYS ask if the editor has a minute or two to talk right now. They may be on deadline, or in mid-flow of another important topic.

4. Think before you Tweet – Most agencies have social media guidelines to encourage best staff practice, so gen up and pause before posting.

5. Manage client expectations – Ensure clients are aware that even a “dead-cert” story can be pulled at the last minute, and have a Plan B ready.

Thanks to Shelley Wyatt, board director at PR agency Clarion Communications for suggesting these tips and Keren Burney, founder of PR consultancy Compege for her contributions.

This article was written by Daney Parker.