Being quirky or humorous or both is a helpful way of cutting through the clutter of press releases sent to journalists every day. Even TV news broadcasts like to finish having a humorous piece-and getting on TV is certainly the Holy Grail of PR. Being quirky isn't something that can be achieved to order, and it's the reason why so many PR individuals are paid inordinate amounts of money, but if it can be done it is certainly worth doing.
PR guru Arlo Guthrie of Consult the Guru gives an example of a quirky idea that paid off. He established National Flea Awareness Minute to promote a flea treatment. This contrasted with the plethora of Awareness Weeks that crop up continually, and played towards the smallness of the subject under consideration-fleas.
The story made the national news, with media coverage that would equate to hundreds of thousands of pounds of advertising. This unusual idea was humorous at the time, but it has since been superseded by a genuine National Flea Awareness Week, fronted by celebrity Anthea Turner.
Interest in the biggest, the smallest, the fastest, the slowest, and also the silliest will usually attract people's attention ("most" is another good word). Such stories are automatically interesting, and are almost usually sure-fire winners with the media simply because they lend themselves to eye-catching headlines.
This preoccupation with extremes is what makes people buy Guinness World Records, and is also a driver for people buying newspapers. Such stories frequently make the TV news as well, and there have even been several TV shows devoted to extremes of weight, height, and even silliness.
They also tend to generate lively photographs, which alone is really a great reason for using them, but it isn't usually obvious how to link the biggest, smallest, silliest thing to your company.
Arlo Guthrie of Consult the Guru tells the story of a competitors he once ran to find Britain's Most Destructive Dog. This was to promote a treatment for dogs that destroy things, and it provoked tremendous interest amongst the dog-owning public, who rushed to enter their pooches in the competition.
The hands-down winner, though, was a dog that destroyed its owner's car. The resulting headline, "My Dog Ate My Ford Fiesta," had reporters on the doorstep of the "lucky" winner straightaway. Using the word "most" or any word ending with "-est" automatically raises the stakes-but it may need to be engineered into the campaign.
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1. Know the journalist you work with and be controversial
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