11. What are the common pitching mistakes the PR officers do when contacting a journalist?
The common pitching mistakes are:
i.) Sending generic pitches.
ii.) Sending off-topic pitch which the reporter has never covered before.
iii.) Sending a pitch which is actually a press release.
iv.) Sending a long pitch with too much of explanation about company history and product specs.
12. What is a Press Release?
A press release provides information and details about something which is important and newsworthy. It is generally longer than a pitch. It is distributed more widely among reporters and newsrooms and is also published on different sites.
13. How will you use Social Media in Public Relations?
Most of the organizations are now integrating Social Media to share their stories. They no longer wait for media to write about their stories. It allows you to communicate your message directly to your stakeholders. The bloggers and media person would like to connect with you for information proactively.
Here are a few ways in which you can use social media to support your public relations:
i.) In order to build creditability, the PR teams build customer case success stories. When writing about a case study pick up the important facts from the clients stories and highlight those across the board instead of the whole story as no one will invest time to read long articles.
ii.) You can offer an expert opinion which will help you to make an immediate impact on your audience. It is important for you to have a plan of how and when you will respond to certain situations.
iii.) If you want to have good professional networking, LinkedIn is a good place. It helps you to reach the right audience. Create content specifically for LinkedIn and also share company updates on LinkedIn which is much faster than waiting for media to publish your story.
iv.) Write a press release and identify ways to support and extend your message through social sharing.
14. How can a good PR team influence your online presence?
Digital Media helps to foster and maintain a strong online presence. In order to succeed in today's digital marketplace the websites need to focus towards producing effective and high-quality content. This is where the PR team plays an important role.
i.) A good PR team needs to craft relevant content which is keyword rich and drives the attention of the audience. The PR professionals need to work with reporters, bloggers, and influencers to create unique stories for the audience.
ii.) A PR team should know what the audience is searching for. Identify your target audience and presenting the content in the right medium will take you a long way.
iii.) Build links and place stories on a diverse set of sites which will give measurable traffic and eventually increase sales.
iv.) Encourage content sharing on social media.
15. What writing experience do you have?
As a PR professional you need to write engaging content in a magazine or case study or a press release. The employer would be looking for someone with excellent commandover grammar and someone who has written a wide range of content from presentations to essays.
To answer this question you can say something like: "I have done well with writing procedures and proposal plans. Also, I have written a few case studies for ABC brand which were published in XYZ magazine. I have also written content for the Facebook page of POQ Magazine. While writing compelling and engaging content, I also keep in mind the research required and ensure that I pay attention to the minute details that make the content effective."
16. Do you know about Google's Fight Ebola Campaign?
The interviewer may ask you questions about successful PR campaigns to know if you are aware of them and what you learnt from them. These campaign strategies range from donating to the affected community or running brand activation at mall. Google's Fight Ebola Campaign is an example of one of such campaigns.
To answer this question you can say that: "Yes, I know about it. The Ebola virus outbreak in 2014 was critical and many people had died suffering from this virus. To help people in need and be seen as some associated with social causes, Google started a donation campaign. It pledged to give $2 for every $1 donated for the cause through its website. This strategy was a huge success which attracted the media attention and raised $7.5 million."
