By Becky Frost
In a recent opinion column in Searchstorage.com, Christine Cignoli made a wonderful point: in briefings, many vendors spend too much time setting up the industry landscape rather than actually discussing what it is that they do.
She gave the example of data expansion. Of course data is growing at a rapid rate, so while vendors may feel compelled to mention it, she makes one simple suggestion; don’t overstate the obvious. I call this the “too-long setup,” and no industry is immune to it. I’ve heard it used for years in markets as different as security and telco.
PR people can take a lesson from Christine’s suggestion. When sending a pitch to reporters, sometimes we can take too long getting to the point. A good reminder is that if the reporter doesn’t know what you are offering in the first sentence, the pitch is off. It’s best to include everything up front, with minimal setup – I do concede that some is required, but there’s no need to tell security reporters why security is important. I’m pretty sure they know by now.
So during this time of year when people look to trim their waistlines and their budgets, let’s resolve to trim the fat from our pitches – and make the New Year a little easier for our friends on the other side.
Comments