A frequent question we receive from clients and prospects is how they can get coverage in the Wall Street Journal. Our answer is: Why do you want to appear there?
Don’t get us wrong, we love the Wall Street Journal. It’s a fine newspaper with solid reporting and a large readership. However, the readership is broad and the barrier to coverage is high. We could spend months working to secure an article in the Wall Street Journal, when a smaller but more targeted publication would produce better results.
So, we challenge our clients to tell us why they think coverage in the Wall Street Journal (or any other publication) is where they should put their PR investment. Often, they can’t make a business case for this.
The better approach to PR includes:
- Researching where our clients’ prospects get their news and information, and which outlets they trust the most. In B2B, this list usually includes targeted vertical publications.
- Identifying the issues that most concern the industry.
- Developing messaging that enables our clients to talk about their company in a compelling and memorable way.
- Delivering solid, non-commercial article ideas about trends, issues and current events to pitch to reporters and editors. This includes the use of our clients’ data, insights and customer case studies.
- Presenting reporters with a client who is knowledgeable and well-trained to deliver a great interview.
- Offering to develop well-written, interesting and unbiased byline articles, then delivering these articles to editors on time and with strong visuals.
This approach ensures our clients are gaining good exposure with the right audience that’s hungry for the information they are providing.