A Few Bad Apples.....

Can ruin an otherwise useful profession.

The Bad Pitch Blog details something they are calling, rightly, Steamroller PR. The way it works is to ignore the editor you are trying to pitch, even when they tell you that they do not cover the beat that you're trying to pitch. It is a pedal to the metal full-on assault style PR that will fail damned near everytime.

I understand deadlines, I understand that everyone has a job to do and the Flack's job is to get their client into magazines, get their products reviewed and to increase exposure and profile.

But this is beyond stupid, this is steamroller PR style will inevitably get the Flack blacklisted and the company ignored, intentionally. You see, editors hate to be bullied by lazy PR folks. Just like everyone else who hates to be attacked.

Do your homework and become a PR sniper who selects his/her targets carefully. Read up on what the editor in question has been writing, learn what your quarry is up to before you pick up the phone and attack them. If they aren't in your sphere, then don't bother them. Especially don't get into an argument with them about it.

What Not To Do here is to overlook the longer term picture and to burn your bridges before they've even been built.

Rule #9 is Do not undertake Steamroller PR, its a tactic destined for failure and it really pisses off editors who the rest of us still need to work with once you've been fired from your pr job for being woefully bad at it. So quit making our jobs harder because you are unable to do yours with due diligence.