PR Tips for the Philippine agencies

I sideline as a PR connoseur. Hah!

In truth, I’ve attended about a hundred PR events, big and small since the year 2003. Here are some tips I offer PR agencies when organizing events for the press, especially for the tightly knit technology industry:

Lose the hard copy but never the soft copy
People in PR should understand that the press do not live in the dark ages, where a hard copy of a product press release goes into a drawing board to be cut apart and pasted to fit a magazine page. Though it may sound too basic to even mention, PR material should always have an accompanying digital format available.

Never hold an event before 11:00 AM
I’ve talked to several people in the publishing industry and they say that their typical day begins at around 11:00 AM. Journalists and print media people usually begin their day late because they have been up the previous night covering the breaking news.

For the rainy season, umbrellas are useful for giveaways. Do not give them out during summer.
This one is self explanatory.

Know what’s out there
If you have friends in the press or with other competing brands, ask around if they have product launches on that same day. By hierarcy, Apple product launches are usually top priority.