Public relations is an industry that requires constant learning and adjusting. You have to stay on top of social media trends and keep up with best practices while dealing with ever-changing social media platforms and AP Style rules.
In the same way that we must be on top of changes in the industry, it’s important to be aware of common mistakes. In public relations, you regularly convey messages to the public, meaning that mistakes are clearly visible and easily accessible for others to scrutinize.
Looking at common PR missteps allows us to learn from others’ mistakes and have a mental guide of what-not-to-do as we write our next press release, reach out to a reporter, create a website or hit “publish” on our next social media post.
Common PR Mistakes:
1. Failing to pitch newsworthy content
Often, the definition of newsworthiness is misunderstood. According to the Purdue Online Writing Lab, a story must have an element of timeliness, relevance, proximity or human interest to be newsworthy. For example, the next time you pitch a story to a reporter, ask yourself these questions:
Did the news unfold recently?
Is this relevant to my audience?
Did this happen locally or is there a local tie?
Is this something inspirational or appealing to human interest?
If you can answer yes to any of these questions, be sure to focus on those aspects of the story, proving to the reporter that your story is worthwhile and appealing to their audience.
2. Writing long introductions to reporters
According to MuckRack, PR pitches should be engaging, relevant to your story and to the point. Journalists are busy and typically receive an overwhelming number of story pitches every day. If your pitch is too long, a journalist will likely move on to another story idea. There are a few ways to keep your pitch short:
Start the email by giving a brief summary of the most important information.
Try to keep your pitch to three or less paragraphs.
Cut out any fluff, repetition, or irrelevant information.
3. Forgetting to utilize social media trends
It’s easy to get in a routine of using the same designs, platforms and verbiage that you’re familiar with. However, learning about trends and finding ways to incorporate them into your company’s content helps your content stay relevant and engaging. Here are some ways to stay on top of trends:
According to HubSpot, turning on Google alerts for the term “social media” is a helpful tool, allowing you to see recent blogs and news stories about what’s trending.
Join groups on LinkedIn such as Social Media Marketing and Social Media Today.
If you’re interested in learning about specific social media tactics, check out our blog on 2021 social media trends that are still implemented in this year’s social media landscape.
4. Dismissing proofreading when trying to meet a quick deadline
Public relations is all about quick turnover, whether you’re writing a press release, putting together a social media calendar, or creating website content. However, proofreading is crucial to avoiding embarrassing mistakes and establishing credibility. According to PR Week, people are two times more likely to leave a website with obvious typos. Everyone is bound to make mistakes, but here are some ways to catch them before they’re published:
Install Grammarly to your browser. Grammarly is a free AI-powered app that monitors your grammar, spelling and tone in real-time.
Make sure at least one person (preferably more) proofreads your content.
When proofreading your own work, give yourself a break between writing and proofreading, allowing yourself to look over it with fresh eyes.
5. Overlooking opportunities to incorporate additional sources
When creating website copy or writing a press release, it’s important to include external links to reputable sources. According to HubSpot, external linking improves your credibility and search engine optimization. When your website has external links, search engines have an easier time determining that the website is useful and relevant, leading your website to rank higher. You can incorporate external links in several ways on your website:
Link to credible sources in your blog posts when mentioning new information, tips, statistics, etc.
Reporters will appreciate links to additional resources in a press release or pitch email. Use national datapoints to show how your pitch connects a local story to a national headline, or how your story idea or product links to a bigger trend, just be sure the source you’ve linked to is factual and well researched.
Don’t use the word “here” when linking to an external source ( e.g., read more about search engine optimization here). Instead, use anchor text that is relevant to your website’s content (e.g., read more about search engine optimization).
There are many common mistakes made in public relations, but this list is a good place to start when evaluating if your company is using industry best practices. No one is perfect, and mistakes are a part of life, but knowing what’s common gives us the opportunity to minimize those errors.