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Strip out all eight-bit characters.Like HTML tags, characters like the bullet and the trademark symbol show up in many people's mailing programs as gobbledygook, losing your original intent and adding distractions to your message. Find other ways of giving the character: an asterisk (*) instead of a bullet, for example, and the letters "TM" for the trademark symbol. |
Sidebar: Why are they called eight-bit characters?Eight-bit characters are so called because they require eight binary digits, or "bits", to represent. The full set of computer characters was originally defined by a seven-bit code that yielded 128 characters (27=128). When it became apparent that the computer alphabet would have to expand to include other characters, such as the Spanish ñ, an eighth bit was added, bringing the total number of characters to 256.
The standard is now expanding to 16 bits, incidentally, to facilitate the thousands characters in Chinese, Japanese, Thai and other non-Roman alphabets. 16 bits per character will probably suffice for quite a while: this standard (called Unicode) allows for 65,536 discrete characters. (For more background information, see Henry Bortman's excellent article in the August 1997 issue of MacUser.) |
I received one to two dozen press releases per day at MacWEEK; at larger or more-mainstream publications, it's not unusual for editors to receive hundreds of releases per day. Needless to say, editors can't afford to spend more than a few seconds determining whether a given release is relevant to their beats. Make it easy on them by putting the information in a format they'll recognize. That means:
The rest is gravy, but nice. Other typical ingredients include enthusiastic quotes from users, statements from the company president, a history of the company, and so forth. Only the laziest editors would reprint these instead of getting their own material. But hey -- there are a lot of lazy editors out there.
- A clear and descriptive headline ("hed") of 5-10 words.
- A subheadline ("subhed") that summarizes the entire release in 5-20 words.
- A first paragraph ("lede graf") that gives the name of the company; the name of the product; what it does; who its target audience is; its medium (Web site, Mac program, downloadable Java applet, etc.); its price; and its "hook" ("The first eight-port Fast Ethernet hub for under $500.") A good writer can do this in under 50 words. Really.
- Contact information at the top of the page. If there are two contacts (one at the company and its P.R. agency), give both.
Having said that bit about catering to "lazy editors," above, let's not get carried away. Two sides of paper (about 500 words), max. Press releases should ideally serve to get editors interested enough in your product that they'll write an in-depth story about it, but realistically should give enough information to allow them to write a tight 50-line blurb about it without having to call you.There's another reason for brevity: If you're sending your release out over one of the major newswire services (Business Wire, PR Newswire), they charge extra for every 100 words over 400. The additional charge is pretty low -- about 25% of the base fee -- but it's worth keeping in mind.
Be spare with your use of words like "revolutionary." Not everything's that important, and such words have become cliché. They're the sign of a writer who places style over substance, and editors have to go through extra effort to strip away such posturing. In the process, they'll come to distrust your message. Don't alienate them.
Nobody proofreads their own writing well: If you missed a mistake when you wrote it, chances are you'll miss it when you read it. Proofreaders should try to improve three aspects of the text:
Ironically, the bigger something is, the more likely people will miss it. Take special care with headlines, the product's name (yes, people have misspelled their own product's name) and so forth. Oh, and watch out for the kind of mistake I made above. (Did you catch it?)
- Technical correctness. (Is the price correct? The date? Do you say megabytes when you mean kilobytes?)
- Writing style. (Includes focus and pacing as well as such mundane matters as grammar and spelling.)
No-one reads them. Those thirty-page booklets that step reviewers through a product's features are somewhat insulting: They stink faintly of manipulation and suggest that the writer is too stupid to understand the product without being walked through it. If a reviewer doesn't understand a product after reading its sell sheet, seeing a demo and spending a couple of weeks with it, he or she will never understand it.On the other hand, a one-or-two-page spec sheet that lists features, changes in the latest version, product positioning and other salient information is priceless. Keep it free of marketing hyperbole. Use the time you save to call the reviewer and editor and let them know that you stand ready to answer questions and give additional information.
Strangely, I liked getting P.R. phone calls at MacWEEK: they broke up the day and gave me a chance to learn who's who in the industry. Even if I knew we weren't going to review the caller's product, I'd try to pass them on to someone who would give them some ink.I think most editors feel the same way. After all, good P.R. agents make editors' jobs easier by calling their attention to new products and issues they might otherwise miss. If you don't think you're offering the editor a service, don't make the call.
We've all been interrupted at dinner by telemarketers reading off of some script. You know immediately that they're trying to sell you something, but their scripts all start off with fake pleasantries: "Is Mr./Ms. _______ at home? How are you doing? Good. I'm calling to tell you about ________ (etc.)." I don't know about you, but I find those scripts obnoxious.Again, editors are people, and they want to be treated as such. They want to know that they're more than just names on your list of people to call. Even if you've never talked with them before, try to learn a bit about their personalities as you talk and react appropriately. Maybe they're unfamiliar with the your product's category: Help them to feel comfortable enough to tell you that, and you'll be able to deliver a more appropriate message. Alternately, maybe they're experts in the field: You can form a collegial bond by talking at a higher level.
Media pros work in a system of unforgiving deadlines, and sometimes have to put all else aside to meet them. Don't be put off if editors ask you to call them back. They may really want to talk with you, but be unable to at the moment. Remember to call them back later. And if they say that they'll call you back, give them a day to do so. If they don't, feel free to call them again.
About four months after I started at MacWEEK, we moved to a new building. In the process, the computer we used for demos got misplaced, and the monitor never quite worked the same. We lost quite a bit of demo time looking for cables, twiddling with the monitor and re-installing system software.Your best bet is to bring everything on a portable computer, with cables and adapters to hook it up to every sort of monitor. If your product requires an Internet or network connection, provision it yourself (through a wireless modem or similar system) or make sure that there's one in the demo room. Don't expect there to be anything in the room except a power outlet.
When you set up the demo, try to get a feel for how many people might show up. Then, bring twice as many press kits. Make sure that you have product shots (as transparencies), screen shots (on the appropriate platform) and a few boxed copies of the product. Your audience won't use all this stuff, but it'll be good to have what they need at hand. And don't forget your business cards!
Find out what the audience wants or needs to see, and show them that first. I've been to too many demos that started out with a canned PowerPoint presentation about the company's history that left only ten minutes to see the product itself. Plan the demo to take less than the time allotted, and use the rest of the time interacting with your audiences. Clear up misunderstandings, and feel free to ask them questions. If they're seeing your demo, they've probably seen those for competitive products, and therefore have valuable perceptions and the market and your place in it.
At any given outlet, there may be only one editor who writes about products in your category. Don't be offended if that's all that shows up. A bit of research will often uncover additional editors you can tweak into attending; call them well before the demo and let them know it's coming up.
If your product costs you under $20 to produce, that's a drop in the bucket compared with its value in the right editorial hands. You should give away the exact same boxed product that the consumer gets. Altering it in any way -- or including extra pieces not available to the general public -- gives editors a false view of your product, and could lead to inaccurate stories.There are a few unspoken, industry-wide rules to know. They are:
In any case, be clear about your terms when you turn the product over.
- Editors get to keep software. Give only full, "uncrippled" versions.
- Editors are expected to return hardware. Be sure you make it easy for them to do so by giving them a return airbill or, at least, the name and address of the contact to return it to. Make sure it's clear that you expect the equipment back when you give it to them; typical terms are 30-, 60- and 90-day loans.
- If your hardware product costs you under $50 to produce, consider letting the editor keep it. It'll probably cost you that much to process the return and repackage it.
- It's universally considered unethical for an editor or writer to resell press copies. If you think you know someone who is, tell the outlet's Editor In Chief.
Finally, don't feel hurt if you see your product on the bottom of a stack in a corner. Few editors have time to try out every product they receive.
If your demo is at nine in the morning, bring breakfast. You'll double your audience and be, um, well-liked.
High-tech P.R. is difficult, exciting, challenging and wonderful. You get to meet some very smart people, own some cool products and be the first to see cutting-edge technologies. After twenty years of playing with computers and three years of computer-related publishing, I still discover new aspects of the industry that fascinate me, every day.But not everybody shares my love of the field. If you don't, you're better off looking for something else to do with your time. As William Faulkner wrote, "You can't eat for eight hours a day nor drink for eight hours a day nor make love for eight hours a day -- all you can do for eight hours is work." If you spend that time doing something that doesn't interest you, you're -- pardon me -- wasting your life.
Do you like music? There are thousands of bands in this country needing good media representation. Have an environmental bent? Non-profit groups everywhere need talented people to help them get the word out. Honestly, there's a job out there for every love. You may have to create it yourself, but it's out there.
And ultimately, those who sincerely enjoy high-tech P.R. do it better. For editors are really just ordinary people, and like everyone else they're more receptive to messages delivered with honest enthusiasm. Remember that, be good to them, be kind to yourself, and you can't fail.
- Writer Daniel Dern published has published several articles on good P.R. practice, including a list of "P.R No-nos".
- Esther Schindler's "Care and Feeding of the Press" is a classic.
- Infoworld Editor in Chief Sandy Reed graciously provided "10 Ways to Get Your Product or Company Covered in Trade Publications" for a panel discussion we did in 1998.
This page was last updated on Monday, February 09, 2004 at 2:50pm CST. All contents copyright 2005 by Tom Geller.
