Can PR people fail to deliver press wins? Yes. As a founder, you should know PR is no different than many startup-related tasks and project. Risk is involved.
PR is about scaling relationships, that’s not easy. Sometimes your message doesn’t resonate no matter how carefully it’s crafted. Press wins (also called earned media) aren’t’ a sure thing.
If outsourced or in-house PR fails, here’s where you probably effed things up.
Unrealistic timelines
If your desired outcome is a feature in The New York Times and your runway is 3 months there’s a 99.999% chance you will lose your PR investment, and maybe your dignity. Your PR team should tell you this.
Many founders seem to believe PR people have an “in” with reporters, as if they’re gatekeepers of some kind. Founders may believe, if a PR person takes on a new client for example, that’s your in! While it’s true some PR people deceptively perpetuate this belief it’s BS.
Effective PR people are skilled at finding a story within your organization, framing that story in a way journalists appreciate. Journalists want more readers and more clicks. Great PR people work with their clients to give that to them.
Anticipating your “big break”
Many founders think of PR as a big-break opportunity. They see one huge story being access to millions of overnight customers. It can happen, but it’s the exception, not the rule. Outside of validation for investors and current customers, people outside of your circle don’t know you and don’t care. They’re naturally suspicious. They’re unpredictable and don’t believe stuff that seems obvious to you.
In addition, people are siloed. They get their news from X, YouTube, LinkedIn, ChatGPT, Grok, Gemini, Facebook, and Podcasts. You can get a huge win in The Wall Street Journal and the wide-majority of your audience will never see it. If advertising is the act of talking about oneself, PR is how others talk about you. It takes strategy and long-term thinking.
If your entire PR strategy hinges on a big press win, you’ll be disappointed. Yes, you may see a small traffic spike for a single day, but it likely won’t last and you’ll be forgotten in 24 hours.
Effective PR people are skilled at driving awareness for your solution and idea. If your plan is one-and-done, you’ll lose your investment.
Trophies, not results.
PR people can be guilty of trophy hunting. And some founders might overlook this because of their equal excitement. My first published article ran in The Wall Street Journal on my first attempt. It was energizing to see my article Tweeted every 2 seconds.
When I started doing PR, I got low name recognition clients into Bloomberg, TIME, The Wall Street Journal, Inc., Forbes, and many others. Bigger was better. I was adding to my trophy case and that’s not what drives results for clients.
If your PR strategy focuses solely on big trophy names you might be excited when those publish, but within a few days you’ll be asking what the purpose was and where the sales are.
Effective PR people focus on strategy and concentration of ideal customers, not circulation size of a particular publication. Your goal should be to become a hero in front of your ideal audience, not huge portions of the general public that don’t care.
You used an advertising mindset
If you or your PR team applies an advertising mindset, you’ll lose. At it’s core, advertising is a “look at me” approach. You talk about your features, your stuff, and how you can help. PR is a “look at you” approach. You enter the conversation customers are already having with resources, data, information, or entertainment for them.
Sound weird?
This is a really hard one to understand, but when it comes to earned media great PR teams generally pitch stories where you play a part, but aren’t the full focus. They pitch you as the star role of a play, but your company isn’t the whole cast.
As an example, a client of mine was featured in an article that ran in The Wall Street Journal because I pitched a story about AI’s practical usefulness in work and manufacturing. Multiple companies were included in this trend, not just my client.
In another example I pitched a story about how companies were attracting new workers to skilled trades. My client had one program that was making an impact in the industry as a whole.
Effective PR people pitch fresh, exciting compelling stories not companies. You get to play a starring or supporting role or no role at all.
You got “interned”
If you opt for a larger PR firm, some companies may assign an intern to your account or someone with less experience. When I wrote for The Washington Post in their Innovations section, I saw a lot of inexperienced PR people repping startups and founders.
They were disorganized, had no clue what I wrote about, and in many cases didn’t understand their client due to limited access to them.
Effective PR people work closely with their clients every week. They find unique stories, and they push clients out of their comfort zone. Make sure you ask your PR company who will be handling your account and get a good understanding of how often you will touch base.
You didn’t polish your image
A founder told me last week, “Justin, I really don’t care about being polished. I care about results. But I’m finding people want both.” Yep. The saying “don’t just a book by it’s cover” is because that’s exactly what we do instinctively.
If your brand looks unprofessional and your website looks “local” your brand is DOA.
Effective PR people get editorial-style photos, polished video, and improve your online brand assets before pitching your story to journalists. They may work with you to find a graphic designer to improve your digital brand. They know the chances of coverage increase if you look the part.
No contact info
When I was writing for The Washington Post I would often come across a great idea or great company I was unable to get in touch with. After about 5-10 minutes trying to search for contact information, social media profiles, and even contact forms, I’d often move on.
And here’s the kicker, I’d often do a web search for “Company XYZ Competitors” if I wasn’t familiar with their industry.
That means, the company that got my attention, wasn’t always the company that would get the earned media. That’s wild if you think about it—the company who won the content game, lost to a company who sucked all because they were hard to contact.
Effective PR people make their brand easy to contact! They kill friction without mercy.
Your PR people didn’t understand your story
When PR people rush to start pitching stories to publications with minimal understanding of your brand or story, they burn important bridges.
Journalists have “beats,” that is, niche industries or areas they cover. Some beats are so tight they exclusively cover a handful of companies. It goes without saying, they actually know quite a bit about these industries—far more than the average PR person pitching ideas.
When a PR person pitches a story and gets the details wrong, it’s sends the message your brand is a waste of their time. You could be blacklisted without knowing it due to a numbskull PR person.
Effective PR people know the subject matter thoroughly because they spend time full synthesizing the brand and industry. I often spend a full day in person to jump start a client’s PR process, and the first 30-60 days getting vision, mission, and messaging right.
The PR people didn’t respond.
Some PR people suck at responding. Seriously. When I was writing for WaPo, I would reply to pitches and be ghosted by PR people at times. They’d respond days, weeks, or sometimes months later, asking me if the opportunity way available.
No.
Effective PR folks are organized and responsive. They don’t fill their calendars with busy work. They understand journalist deadlines. Make sure you discuss your PR people’s process and how they organize their workflow. Make sure you walk through “what if” scenarios with them. Journalists are on tight deadlines, if they don’t hear back they’ll move on.
The PR people were slime balls
There are some slime ball PR people out there and if you hire one, your brand will inherit their bad blood. I’ve seen it all. Some buy giant journalist databases and spam everyone, and if they get a reply, respond asking for more information about the publication they pitched!
They may pitch a fairly big name at their organization then say they’re unavailable, and pitch another person.
Some PR folks make bizarre demands, request to see stories in advance (not a thing), and some have even asked how many readers my articles get.
Without your knowledge, slime ball PR people can drag your reputation through the mud.
Effective PR folks have integrity, respect journalists time, and are easy to work with. When I transitioned to PR myself, I was stunned how many journalists thanked me for making their life easy.
Your PR Folks Didn’t Provide Media
Great images tell a story. During my time writing for WaPo finding the perfect image was often difficult. If I needed photos to show a specific technology or even a professional photo of someone I interviewed it was rarely available.
While the absence of great images likely would kill a story, it might lessen the impact of a particular story or lesson reach. Great photos can also widen disruption via print. As a PR person today, in many cases because I sent over great media assets, video, or incredible photography I’ve turned what were simple one-line quotes into full features.
Effective PR people know readers love visuals. Journalists know readers love visuals. If you don’t prepare proper media assets in advance you risk.
