This website uses cookies so that we can provide you with the best user experience possible. Cookie information is stored in your browser and performs functions such as recognising you when you return to our website and helping our team to understand which sections of the website you find most interesting and useful.
Pro bono pr reminds me what’s really important in comms
September 23, 2020
With Covid taking away my commute for a while, I decided to make the most of the extra few hours in my day and volunteer. Having worked in communications for almost five years, it made sense to offer up my PR skillset.
Most recently, I’ve been doing some work for Michelle who’s been fundraising for her local hospital in Wales – much like Captain Tom at the start of lockdown. Michelle is bouncing 11.8 miles a day on her trampoline. Her aim is to bounce 1,711 miles in 145 days, the equivalent of the distance from Aberystwyth to Albufeira in Portugal where she was due to holiday in September for her 40th wedding anniversary.
Interestingly, helping with this cause has really highlighted some of the lessons I’ve found useful throughout my career – the pitch can make or break your media outreach and it’s all about who you target.
The What
Working full time meant I had to pass the media relations baton for this project to the friend who got me involved. While she’s used to pitching from her years working in TV development, reaching out to the press was new to her.
This is why it was so important for me to draft the best pitch possible, to support her in making phone calls and sending emails and getting the media hooked. Even someone completely new to PR can get media interest if they can tell the right story.
The Who
Our goal was to raise enough awareness nationally to help Michelle hit her fundraising target and telling the right story only works if the person at the end of the phone listens. Which is where the other lesson comes in – it’s all about who you target. For a regional story like this, the first port of call was the local press who would already be looking for this type of news.
But while charity starts at home, it doesn’t necessarily end there. As Captain Tom’s fundraising efforts proved, the nation can really pull together when needed. To do this, I also found media targets in the national press covering similar stories and, knowing this story would be perfect for them, these journalists also went onto the target list.
The Result
The targeted approach really struck a chord with the media, with interview requests from BBC Wales and Huff Post, articles in Cambrian News and The EGO, Aberystwyth. We’ve just seen our first piece of coverage and we’re still going. It goes to show that a well-written pitch and the right media targets can really make a difference when it comes to PR.
But the real hard work has been from Michelle herself, who has so far bounced on her trampoline over 2 million times and raised £375 for her local hospital. Keep jumping Michelle!
You can follow Michelle’s fundraising efforts here.
Pia Jensen