It isn’t often that I come across best practices in one of the more shadowy sides of management: corporate communications. Last week, I was pleasantly surprised to discover not one, but three practices that are worthy of emulation. It happened when I was working on a news story that urgently needed some data from Apple Computers. I didn’t have a clue about who to call in the company and, as usual, turned to the Net for help. A little bit of drilling at www.apple.com, and I was soon heaving a huge sigh of relief. Not only had Apple listed a media contact on its website — smart companies do that nowadays — but it had also provided a whole team of people. Each of them was a media specialist in a category: products and technology, education, corporate, and Apple retail stores. Products and technology queries could be sub-directed to media specialists in hardware and software and even specific products like iPod.
Apple is not the only company doing this; Microsoft also has an impressive list of media specialists listed on its website. Such trendsetters indicate that it is a good idea to build a decentralised model for managing media relations. It is certainly a very effective way of managing media relations for any company that has a widely diversified portfolio in terms of businesses, divisions, or even product lines.
To test the usefulness of the listing — more selfishly, my query related to Apple stores — I tried calling the person in-charge of retailing. With just one hour left for my deadline, I was desperately feeling the pressure of time, and was frustrated to find myself connected to voicemail. However, Apple’s second smart idea came to the rescue. In the media contacts menu, it also lists a Media Helpline — a catchall number to call if all other media contacts fail. For a journalist, I assure you, that’s like laying out a red carpet.
When I called that number, I came across another excellent innovation. Instead of the usual onerous automatic routing messages, here was something designed with a journalist’s needs in mind. I was asked to press (1) if my deadline was today, and press (2) if the deadline was not. In other words, not only was Apple automatically sifting the immediate from the urgent, it also seemed determined to help me. Sure enough, on pressing (1), I wasn’t directed to yet another voicemail, but actually got to speak to a human being! With 45 minutes to go to my deadline, you can’t imagine what a relief that was.
Anyways, I asked the media contact my question, she took down my number and e-mail address; promised to search for the right person to answer my question — and get back to me ASAP. In 15 minutes, the media specialist responsible for Apple stores had called me from her mobile, armed with the data I needed as well as a determination to get me whatever she did not immediately have. Even if I hadn’t got the information in time, I would still have been left with a feeling of wellness. Apple’s media contact system had ensured that my moment of truth with the company was positive.
That’s a core lesson that is important for all companies big or small: offering true customer satisfaction means treating everyone who contacts the company as a valued visitor, including the media. Even if you are a start-up, consider appointing a media contact in the company. Think of it this way: if you are big enough to have a website, or print a marketing brochure, you are big enough to have a media contact listed on the website and company literature. That does not mean you need to hire someone specifically for media relations. Make it a dual responsibility for someone in your company whom you trust as a spokesperson, and list that person’s 24/7 contact number.
Empower that person with data so that he or she is able to respond to media with something less maddening than “No comments.” At worst, that number will never ring. At best, the number of people contacting your company for quotes, ideas, and data will pleasantly surprise you. Soon, for the price of a phone-number, you will find your brand salience rising.
One word of caution: don’t confuse media relations with good press. The same contact number will also be used when journalists are chasing stories you don’t want to see in print. However, by setting up an efficient media relations management system, you can help control the damage and ensure your voice gets heard. After all, Apple will be the first to admit it has had more than its share of bad press.
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