WHAT MAKES A STORY?

Most news items in trade and industry mags are of general interest in a ‘what’s-happening-in-the-industry’ kind of way, and are largely provided by way of press releases sent in by outfits just like yours. It certainly doesn’t have to be an earth-shattering event which will have readers sitting on the edge of their seats – which is just as well for editors because there aren’t many stories like this coming in to him regularly.

Here’s a checklist of story categories for you to consider. A bit later on we’ll look at how you would write each of them up.

Orders and installations

This could be a fairly large order you’ve just received, or an interesting one (first order for a new product you announced recently, your first ever export order, or a big-name customer like a multinational oil company or airline). This category would also embrace post-order ‘installation’ or ‘delivery’ stories.

Some organisations (and particularly some government departments) are extremely fussy about confidentiality, and some have policies forbidding them from endorsing another company’s products or services. If you come up against any of these, don’t risk upsetting a customer by arguing with them. Better to bow out gracefully and find another story.

New products

This is a popular type of story with editors, especially if you can describe the product as what a journalist thinks of as ‘new, free or amazing’. Also announce significant enhancements or redesigns to existing products – now more powerful, faster, reduced price, whatever.

Personnel appointments

Known in the trade as ‘body shots’, these are popular especially if they are customer-facing, e.g. area representative, sales/marketing manager, or senior folk such as CEOs and Board directors. Always try to send a captioned picture (‘mug-shot’) of the subject with body shots.

Similarly, local newspapers will usually welcome information about your society’s new chairperson, the new footie team manager, or the new minister recently appointed to your local church.

Exhibition attendance

If you will be showing at some well-known trade fair or exhibition, here’s a story. A number of magazines run show features about a month beforehand, so send out a release about what you will be showing. Don’t send out up-beat releases afterwards, saying how many people came on to your stand and how much interest was shown; it’s not news. But if you grabbed a decent order or contract at the show – that’s news!

General news

A loose category, this one, but not to be overlooked. For example, if you have appointed a new distributor in this country or overseas (or been appointed as one yourself), moved into new premises, seen your sales go up by a hefty percentage during a period when others are struggling, sponsored a well-known charitable event or sports team – that’s news, too! And good upbeat stories about your church’s forthcoming fund-raiser, your school’s recent academic or sporting successes, or your society’s celebrity guest speaker at its recent meeting, are the stuff on which local papers thrive.

Beware, however, of putting out stories with a negative slant. ‘A member of staff is leaving’ (unless he/she is retiring after many years’ service); ‘we have withdrawn our sponsorship of X’; ‘contrary to any rumours you may have heard, our financial position is sound’. Anything with a whiff of failure about it is open to be treated as bad news. A Cromwellian desire to paint yourself ‘warts and all’ may sound like a bold, open corporate policy; unfortunately, warts are bad news.