The Importance of Dealing with the Media When You Run a Business

Running a business means having to deal with the media. Any kind of public organisation has a public profile. And the media can be used to scrutinise businesses when they do something wrong. But they can also be used to help your business promote itself and find valuable publicity. Here’s what you should do when dealing with the media on behalf of your business.

Get to Know People Not Organisations

When you want to get the media on your side, you should start by making contacts. And it’s important to understand that you don’t make contact with organisations. Instead, you have to make contacts working for those media organisations. Whenever you contact the press or talk to someone at a media company, you should be talking to a journalist you know well. These press relationships will develop over the years, and that’s how trust between you will grow as well. So, try to get to know as many journalists as possible. You can go to ereleases.com to learn about maintaining these relationships.

Know When to Say Nothing

There are some times when you just have to say nothing. This might sound like a bad strategy. But when you deal with the media, it might not always be for a good reason. If there has been a mistake or the business is going through a bad patch, telling the press that you have no comment to make can be wise. You don’t want to give them all the details about every little incident that the business experiences. By saying nothing, you can maintain a relationship with the journalist but not give them the information that you want to keep private. You could always give them some off the record details if you trust them.

Prepare the Best Press Releases

Press releases allow your business to get its message out there to as many media outlets as possible. Dull and boring press releases usually get skimmed through before being thrown in the nearest bin. So, you need to prepare good, interesting and engaging press releases if you want them to be effective. Go to Newswire.com if you want help with your press releases and dealing with the press generally. It can be tricky when you have many things to juggle, so don’t be afraid to get the help you need. Whether you get help or go it alone, your press releases need to be strong.

Be Quick to Respond

It’s vital to be quick to respond to any media enquiries that your business receives. If you are slow, this just annoys your contacts in the media. And you really need to keep them onside if you’re going to make a success of your media handling efforts. When you lose contacts, you lose access to a huge platform that your business can take advantage of. As I mentioned above, you can always decline to comment if that’s necessary. But ignoring calls and messages from your best contacts never ends well for your business. Remember, those reporters have what you want, not the other way around.

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