When members of the Women and Girls Foundation of Southwest Pennsylvania traveled by bus to Albany, Ohio earlier this month to meet with Abercrombie & Fitch and complain about the retailer’s controversial T-shirts, a reporter from the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette rode along with them.
The women were upset over sleazy T-shirt slogans such as “Who needs brains when you have these?” Fenton Communications, the PR firm that worked with them, did something I wish more Publicity Hounds would do: get a reporter involved in the story. They invited a newspaper reporter to ride along with the girls. You can read the entire story here.
It doesn’t sound as though the reporter attended the meeting. But the story included lots of quotes from the women and girls, and photos of them on the bus and entering the Abercrombie headquarters. If they had called the reporter AFTER the visit, I’ll bet they would have gotten a much smaller article. And certainly no photos.
The next time you’re planning a protest or any other event, don’t contact reporters after the fact. Invite them to participate. Not all media have the time to do this. But reporters who accept your invitation will become more excited about the story. And excited reporters seldom write dull stories. “Special Report #42: Tips for Letting Reporters Experience Your Story, Not Just Write About It,” will even show you how to get reporters involved in a product or service you offer. http://tinyurl.com/4s59p