Setting Expectations for a PR Campaign with Whoa That’s Fresh PR
Imagine…you’re a striving musician who started as a DIY entrepreneurial powerhouse and you are slowly and steadily climbing the ladder to success. You are finally adding new members to your team and realize the moment has come to hire a publicist. You can see it now: the cover of Vogue, a feature in Rolling Stone Magazine, and a late-night performance on Jimmy Fallon.
*record scratch* then there’s reality.
There is nothing we love more than dreaming big with our clients and this blog post isn’t to crush your goals. We would be head over heels if the above narrative became a reality for all of our clients and we fervently pitch for those opportunities for our artists. All of the publicists at WTF PR are ambitious and shoot for the best of the best, however, we also have the responsibility to manage our client’s expectations throughout the campaign so they aren’t disappointed when they haven’t graced 100 magazine covers in a year. We provide our honest feedback on what is feasible in the immediate future versus a few months/years down the road.
What to expect depends on many factors:
Where are you at?
The current level of your career plays a role when we’re anticipating the kind of coverage we can secure for you. If it’s your first time doing PR and your first release ever, your experience with press coverage may start with smaller publications to gain experience and progressively build up to larger ones over time. This helps fresh (pun intended) artists get used to the flow of scheduling interviews, talking to the press, and receiving reviews. On the other hand, if you’ve already done an NPR Tiny Desk and a feature in Rolling Stone, we can more confidently aim our sights on those publications early on in the campaign.
And remember - you cannot compare your campaign to anyone else’s, it is simply a reference point for ideas. Every artist is an individual and results vary greatly depending on a multitude of factors.
Where have you been?
When we start a press campaign, we consider all of your previous coverage to determine our future goals and targets. For example, new artists should have practice doing interviews with smaller publications before getting thrown to the big dogs. The same goes for live sessions, radio interviews, podcasts, etc. We offer media training as an additional service to help artists feel prepared for all kinds of press opportunities too.
How much time do we have?
We cannot stress this enough: good PR takes time. The more time we have to prepare, research, write, and pitch - the better chance we have of a positive outcome. If you give us three weeks to work before a release date, expect less than optimal results. On the other hand, if you give us all of your promotional materials months in advance and we are doing a long-haul campaign, we have a higher probability of success. A longer timeline allows us to secure spots in editorial calendars and gives journalists more time to consider you for coverage. It also gives us adequate time to be detail-oriented and persistent with our follow-ups. More time is always better.
What is your story?
Press is not just “clickbait” to gain attention, you need a good story. That story needs to be as eye-catching and newsworthy as your competitors while maintaining integrity. The good news about having a story is - even if an artist doesn’t have a stacked list of previous coverage or a massive fanbase yet, we can leverage a timely story or relevant topic about your project to bring it to the attention of publications! That is why we do an artist questionnaire at the beginning of every campaign; to dig deeper into the stories that make you unique from other artists and learn how your message overlaps with current events and discussions.
What genre is your music?
Needless to say, the genre of your music greatly determines the kinds of publications that will want to work with you. For example, an indie electro-pop artist probably won’t be on the cover of Metal Hammer any time soon (but never say never). We take your target demographic and style into consideration when setting expectations.
Results are not guaranteed until they happen.
Publicity is not advertising. Quality editorial coverage is individually curated and cannot be paid for or guaranteed. PR results are never a given, no matter what your campaign budget is. That is the nature of the business.
We are on your side to tell your story in the most compelling way possible and to distribute it to our best contacts for consideration. However, press coverage is reliant on journalists saying yes and they are at the mercy of editors, competitive news landscapes, breaking stories, and other countless considerations. The best publicity firms are paid for their time, hard work, and contacts. Be wary of any publicists who “guarantee” anything.
This may seem like a lot, which is why we are hands-on with our clients to guide them along the way. If you want to know what a PR campaign would look like for you, we’d love to set up a consultation to chat more! You can contact us here to arrange a time to ask questions, learn more, and brainstorm ideas on how publicity can benefit you!
