PR Hot Seat: Why CEOs score interviews but not coverage
The following Q&A is from PR Hot Seat, our new advice newsletter. The questions we’re answering are real—we’ve been collecting them for a while—but for obvious reasons, the questioners are anonymous.
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“My CEO has had several interviews but no stories have resulted. He’s getting frustrated and thinks we’re not targeting the right journalists. What can we do?”
Sandra: A number of issues could be at play when a CEO (or any expert source) scores interviews but not coverage. One is that the CEO is not fully answering the interview questions or is not giving answers that journalists find interesting. Interesting meaning they lend a new perspective, they’re provocative, they make people think, or they express a distinctive opinion.
Other possibilities that could apply to particular interviews: The reporter thought the interview was going to be different somehow—the PR pro framed it up in a certain way and the CEO wasn’t prepared to deliver that, or the journalist misunderstood it. Or if there wasn’t a PR pro involved and the journalist went directly to the CEO or the CEO’s assistant, there wasn’t a full exchange of information that would clarify what the interview was about.
Sarah: A lot can get lost in translation. Another problem that happens is the CEO doesn’t have the facts needed to bring home the coverage. Say, for example, the very good pitch that landed the interview was about a trend and the reporter is expecting some data to anchor it. But when push comes to shove, the data isn’t convincing or impressive enough in the reporter’s eyes. The reporter was interested, but then there was no there there.
You have to ferret it out. What is not happening or going well? Are reporters telling the CEO what they’re looking for, or does the CEO have no idea? This is a good reason to sit in on the interviews, in listening mode. If you’re not on the call and you’re relying on others to report back to you, it’s hard to figure out what the problem is.
Sandra: Exactly. But whether you have real intel or just a vague idea about what’s going on, consider the prep you’re doing with your CEO for interviews. Does he know what the reporters are likely to ask? Does he have data and examples on hand? If he’s commenting on a news story, does he have a strong point of view?
Sarah: The other thing to do is to talk with the CEO about, OK, well who are the journalists that you want us to target? Maybe it’s time to go back to that fundamental and look at what his expectations are regarding the “right” journalists and whether those expectations are realistic. This takes you having the agency, the moxie, to say, “Here’s where we’re seeing the disconnect” and having a hard conversation with the CEO.
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