A college campus is ripe with stories and good ones at that.
Take a walk through the halls of an academic building and you’ll encounter revolutionary ideas from a brilliant professor. The dorms may house incredible students breaking barriers while carving out their paths, and the campus grounds themselves could very well be a shining example of the future of higher education operations.
A good story offers ripe public relations opportunities for colleges and universities. Good stories bring together a college or university’s diverse audiences – students, faculty and staff, alumni, outside community members and more – and generate goodwill for the institution while adding points to its reputational bank.
Engaging stories find traction from a college or university’s existing audiences through owned media, such as its website, social media and newsletters. But many stories resonate with audiences far beyond existing subscribers and followers. By engaging with a media relations firm and telling stories through news outlets, colleges and universities earn valuable third-party credibility while reaching wider audiences.
Stories worth telling can be found at any college or university. But how do you find these stories? And how do you get the media to pick them up?
Mining for A Story with Media Value
Higher education institutions have wide networks to pull from when cultivating story ideas. Communications professionals across academic centers, athletics, student services and more should have a trained eye on the elements of a good story so that they know what stories have the greatest media potential.
The Elements of a Good Story
While every media outlet will look for elements specific to their publication, in general, there are several elements of a story that, when present, increase the chances of media relations success.
Any newsworthy story has a protagonist. While institutional messages and announcements can be substantial, framing a story through the experience of a student, faculty member, staff member, or alumnus helps build a three-dimensional story that is more likely to capture the attention of the media.
Today’s higher education landscape shows the high competition for students. Colleges and universities must differentiate themselves by illustrating how they are unique and offer a one-of-a-kind experience for prospective students. Similarly, a story that lands with media must be different. It shouldn’t be a story that could apply to any institution; it needs a flavor of eccentricity that sets it apart from the day’s headlines. An example is a story that AKCG helped secure with Neumann University students who cohabitate with sisters at a Catholic convent.
A story containing “news you can use” can also catch the attention of the media. Subject matter experts – like researchers and professors in higher ed – can serve as the expert voice and thought leader on a trending story in the news cycle. Similarly, if the story is about a university-sponsored program that is accessible to the wider community, the media may be interested in telling a story that can benefit their audiences.
Getting Your Story in Front of Media
There are several other elements for a worthwhile story, and when you have the right balance of these elements, you can try pitching the story to the media. Once you get to pitching, you can have the most packaged story but if you are not able to serve it to the right reporter at the right outlet at the right time, it can land with a thud.
- Target your pitch to the right reporters. Finding the right reporter at the right outlet who will cover this story takes time. Dig into the reporter and the outlet to make sure your story fits the reporter’s beat [their assigned area of coverage] and the outlet’s audience.
- Hook them in. You spent time finding the story to send to the reporter; now you need to hook them in and convince them to read your pitch. Reporters are sent hundreds of pitches per day. Break through the clutter by personalizing your pitch to the reporter, ensuring you are tailoring your pitch to their interests and outlet.
- Time it just right. Consider what else is going on in the reporter’s and outlet’s location. If a big event is taking place on the same day you are pitching, will your pitch be overlooked for the news of the day?
- Be persistent. Getting your story in front of the media requires a deal of creativity. If your story does not hook in media the first time, be nimble in your approach and find a new angle to serve up.
Engaging in media relations requires a nose for a good story paired with strategic insight into the media landscape. Colleges and universities have an abundance of stories on their campuses. By leveraging these stories in a media relations campaign, higher education institutions and their spokespeople can help bolster their reputations with their wide audiences.
Reach out to AKCG’s PR team to learn how our higher education media relations practitioners can help amplify your stories through an earned media campaign.
