PR

So, you pre-briefed a group of reporters on an upcoming announcement, with the expectation that they’re going to post a story shortly after your embargo lifts. You and the client worked closely together to make sure the reporter had all assets they’d need for a story.

“This week I’ve had a record number of people tell me they cannot talk to me because their PR department has blackballed me for no clear reason,” Chrissy Farr Tweeted on Apr. 6. “So glad you opened this door,” Tweeted CNBC editorial director Matt Rosoff the next day. “Every week I am stunned anew by how some PRs assume our business works, vs how it actually works.”

I’d love to say that every single time I’ve worked on a major announcement or campaign, things went perfectly - but that’s unfortunately not exactly how things go in PR. One of the most crushing let-downs is when an exclusive falls through. How do you react? What do you tell your client?

Occasionally a client may ask, "What's the big picture in B2B tech editorial?" If you're lucky, that is. Usually they're waiting for your deliverables. But every now and then it helps the client-agency relationship to go have the proverbial beer and discuss what's happening in B2B edit, in the seams where it's hard to notice.

If you’ve worked less than five years in tech PR, you might not remember Jason Kincaid. The East Bay native was 22 when he walked into founder Michael Arrington’s TechCrunch and onto the tech world stage. Four years later, in 2012, Jason walked away.