How not to pee off the media and get your agency blacklisted.
Getting your estate agency in the papers is great. Providing it’s for something positive.
“All publicity is good publicity,” is the biggest load of bollocks I’ve ever heard. Just ask Gerald Ratner, Thomas Cook or Alton Towers.
I’d rephrase it say, rather boringly to say: ‘Positive publicity is the ONLY publicity which is good.”
Contrary to what some of my peers in the PR game will have you believe getting your agency covered by the media isn’t that mystical or magical.
Like most things there’s a system to follow and certain rules to adhere to if you want to get results.
Using my own experience as a journalist who dealt with estate agents before selling my soul to swap sides and represent them I’ve drawn up a How NOT to deal with the media guide.
Let’s use a hypothetical example. Your estate agency has just done a deal to sponsor the local football club’s youth teams and you want the world, his wife, their little rascals and the local paper to know.
Here’s what not to do:
Don’t call them on deadline day and expect to get through to the editor. It won’t happen and even if it does their focus will be elsewhere.
Don’t email them information without ringing to check which reporter is the best person to send it to.
Don’t put the reporter on the spot and ask ‘so when will it get printed?’ There’s every chance it won’t. If you want guarantees take out some paid for advertorial.
Don’t demand the reporter calls you back because ‘you need to know when it’s going in so you can buy ten copies.’ And ‘Will it be on the front page?’
Don’t call the reporter to have a moan when the following week’s paper comes out and your story isn’t in there or isn’t on the front page.
Don’t have a hissy fit and threaten to pull your advertising with them because they haven’t covered it.
I had an experience once with an estate agent who pretty much did all of the above when trying to ‘charm’ me into covering a story. We didn’t cover it because a) it wasn’t a story it was a badly dressed up advert and b) he alienated the news desk with his insistence and bullish approach.
That’s the bad news. The good news is if you don’t do any of the above with a story such as financially supporting a local sports or social club there’s every chance it will get covered if the news release is well written, not salesy and has good quotes from both parties.
When I was a journo I had two estate agents who I would call regularly for any updates, local news and gossip because they had courted the paper over the years, were honest, approachable and grasped the media do’s and don’ts. They got plenty of free coverage.
Without blowing our own trumpet (actually, that’s nonsense as this is exactly what we are about to do) recent results we’ve won for our clients include:
Getting mass media coverage for a client who sold Sir Elton John’s childhood home.
Local coverage for an agents’ policy of being environmentally friendly.
Local coverage for a lettings agent who stopped an old lady from getting mugged.
Industry media coverage for an established agency looking to raise their profile and ultimately sell their business.
In my opinion PR is the most underused weapon in an estate agency’s marketing armoury. It’s something you should do, so don’t delay.
Thanks for reading and here’s to your next instruction.
Jerry
PS If you won’t to find out more please pop over to our website: www.propertyprexpert.co.uk
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