PESO Model and Earned Media

• Exam consists of 30 questions, mostly multiple-choice with some true/false questions.
• A Scantron form (106173) is required.
• Late arrivals are allowed to take the exam unless someone has already completed it and left.
• "Understanding" a concept involves knowing definitions and being able to apply the concept.

PESO Model

• Lines are becoming more blurred, and the overlap is growing across different components.

Earned Media Characteristics

• Coverage (publicity) that the organization doesn't pay for; news outlets are the focus.
• Coverage is based on the newsworthiness of the information.
• Newsworthiness can target either a large/general or a narrow audience.

Earned Media Advantages

• Credibility
• Does not require payment for coverage
• Ability to reach large audiences
• Ability to reach targeted audiences

Earned Media Disadvantages

• Difficult to secure coverage
• Organization loses control over the message
• Long lead times
• PR professionals outnumber journalists 5 to 1
• Trust for all media is declining

Making Content Newsworthy

• Connect to a current news topic or issue relevant to a reporter's previous work.
• Promote a newsworthy presentation.
• Promote current research findings.
• Provide a product demonstration (especially if it is new).
• Create feature events such as trade shows, product launches, or new openings to highlight what makes your product the best-est.

Public Service Announcement (PSA)

• PSA promotes programs of government or voluntary agencies that serve the public interest.
• TV stations typically air about 137 PSAs per week.

Podcasts

• Podcasts are an increasingly viable channel to reach a targeted audience.
• A growing segment of the media market focuses on niche markets.

Media Pitch Objective

• Aim to get the media's attention for a specific story.

Pitching Approach

• Long-term approach when picking the right audience to pitch.
• Identify the appropriate audience to pitch to, not target audience, journalists or news outlets
• Locate journalists through Twitter bios, LinkedIn, or reliable media databases like Cision One.

Pitching Rules

• Establish yourself as a resource and your credibility before pitching anything.
• Follow reporters on social media and turn on post alerts.
• Engage with reporters by liking & commenting with meaningful insights, reposting, and expanding their sphere of influence.
• Stay updated on reporters: news orgs, position, what they cover, personal life.

Good Pitch Characteristics

• Be brief (one screen for email).
• State point & start with an attention grabber.
• Objective: define next steps or specific call to action, or interview, meeting, specific info etc.
• Emails should be tailored for specific journalists, no email blasts, include the benefit/newsworthiness to the outlet.

Pitch Style

• Rules are not always consistent with what you should do or not do.
• Different moods for murder story vs lighthearted.

Following-Up on Pitches

• Most journalists say follow up once.
• When you follow up, be courteous and respectful and do not assume they are ignoring you.

Pitch Delivery Methods

• Email

News Releases

• Frequently used and desired
• Write like a journalist, creating a news story not a pitch.
• Minimize promotional aspects.
• Organize in an inverted pyramid with a well-written lead.

Inverted Pyramid

• Lead (most important information)
• Body (crucial information)
• Tail (any extra information)

Avoiding Click-Bait

• No Click-bait; click-bait is fake

Multi-Media News Release Characteristics

• Reflects changing media environment
• High-res: videos, photos, and audio
• Send a secure storage link like DropBox

Video News Release Characteristics

• Complete video story, more than b-roll
• Variety of video files & sound-bites
• Not scripted into a complete story
• Controversial: news outlets don't always credit the footage

Media Alert Definition

• Notice about an upcoming event
• Strictly for the media, not a general audience
• Alert does not mean short notice, provided well in advance of the event.

Media Alert Features

• One page
• Typically 100-150 words
• Bullet points are preferred

Planned News Conference

• Positive tone typically
  • Good news, like new product, new plant to be built, etc.
• Advance notice to media
• Specific planning efforts, internal and external.

Unplanned News Conference

• Often combative or contentious
• Crisis communication
• Short notice to media and participants
• Contingent planning (crisis planning)

Media Tours

• Bring remote media outlets into direct contact with organization
• Junket:
  • Reporter is invited to specific location/event like tour building site (superbowl) or ride inaugural flight.
  • The company covers expenses and should consider the policies of media outlets because that can be seen as biased.
• Road-Show:
  • Company executives travel to media outlet.
  • Executives can meet one-on-one or in a conference room setting with a group of editors like part-interview part-press conference.
• "Fam-Trip":
  • Familiarization trip
  • Industry specific to travel industry
  • Designed to generate positive stories for convention/visitor areas or resorts, etc.

Earned Media Tips

• Image: How your audience sees your organization
• Identity: How you define your organization

Explore the PESO model and earned media. Earned media is unpaid coverage driven by newsworthiness, offering credibility and broad or targeted audience reach. Securing coverage can be difficult, with the organization losing control over the message.