Do it yourself? DIY is popular for home-improvement projects. After all, Home Depot, Lowe’s, and Orchard Supply Hardware built empires out of it.
“I read an online article once. So, I’m an expert. Duh!”
But the do-it-yourself concept isn’t transferable to serious public relations where your reputation is on the line.
Just as a doctor who treats himself as a fool for a patient, so too does a person in the spotlight who seeks to adjust the glare himself.
In an earlier post, we sketched a picture of what motivates the media. That’s the easy part.
The hard part is being able to deal effectively with journalists without making a mess of it. That comes from decades of dealing with them from the other end of the phone. It’s even better if you were one of them. Nothing begets clarity better than having walked in someone’s shoes.
So here’s a quiz, for all of you who wonder, “Can I handle this myself?”
Ask yourself two questions:
- First: Are you comfortable dealing with the media yourself?
- Second: Are you confident that your media skills will achieve your goals, or your client’s?
If the answer to either is anything less than an absolute yes, don’t try it yourself. Because working with the media is an extremely slippery slope. So much is at stake, and the risk of making a fatal error is so great.
There’s a reason why experts exist, be they homebuilders, doctors, lawyers — or PR folks who specialize in Crisis & Reputation Management.
Gillott Communications is a Los Angeles-based public relations firm that specializes in high-stakes Crisis & Reputation Management with more than 50 years of expertise in strategic communications, corporate public relations, and working with the media.
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[Great|Awesome|Good|Fantastic|Excellent] post. Thanks!
Roger, this is great and so true. Dru
I think the biggest mistake most DIY PR types make doesn’t have to do with the words they write, but the fact that they forget that getting attention to those words in a busy world takes a pro with contacts as well as smarts. Writing great copy that no one sees is like the tree that falls in the forest with no one to report on the sound.
Godfrey Harris
Looking forward to more wit and wisdom.
Shel
Interesting
Good stuff
ROGER: I don’t know where your website comes up when someone types into Google, CRISIS MANAGEMENT or other such panic searches, but you clearly need to be on the first page. There are lots of companies that do this. One in Washington (Vocus) seems like you might want to be in touch with them.
Jeff Godfrey Harris President, Harris/Ragan Management Group Public Policy Consultants since 1968 520 S. Sepulveda Blvd., Suite 204 Los Angeles, CA 90049-3534 USA Tel: + (1) 310 476 6374 Fax: + (1) 310 471 3276 Mobile: + (1) 213 500 8037 EM: hrmg@mac.com www: harrisragan.com