An Overnight News Success? Not So Fast
- jessie545
- Dec 16, 2025
- 2 min read
Expertise is important, but so is being available to comment at a moment’s notice.
When it comes to a winning PR strategy, you have to bring your A game and be ready to deliver what reporters and producers are really looking for. Not sure how to play by their rules or where to start? No stress—we have you covered.
The voice of authority
There is no way around it; the bigger your name or the more recognized you are as an expert in your industry, the more appealing you will be to producers and bookers.
Building your name and your brand takes time, so remember the old adage: The one way to become an overnight success is 10 years of hard work. You must be strategic and allocate your time wisely, first and foremost focusing on your craft and building a business that validates your credibility. You could be incredibly talented or one of the most brilliant people in your field, but if the numbers, awards, and accomplishments don’t tell the same story, no one can verify your abilities.
No accidents
Building your public-facing brand should also be addressed intentionally. Networking, writing and publishing thoughtful content, submitting op-eds, and interviewing with regional and local news are seemingly small but important steps to growing your reputation and making you the “biggest name.” A publicist and a PR team play a strategic role in achieving some of these goals, from empowering you to make those network connections to fine-tuning your talking points to be more media-friendly. Before partnering with a publicist, ensure you’ve done your due diligence and have solid communication foundations in place; otherwise, your investment may not yield the desired results.
Despite doing all of this work to make yourself the biggest name, it’s important to remember that you seldom, if ever, will be the story. For example, a supply chain disruption, a sinking stock, or a regional wildfire are all examples of “the story” itself. Hopefully, you didn’t personally cause that supply chain disruption, sinking stock, or regional wildfire, but reporters will still want to talk to experts to make sense of the story for their readers, listeners, and viewers. When you establish yourself as the expert in your field or industry, it makes it a no-brainer for producers to invite you for commentary.
Tap into the trends
It’s critical to understand that reporters and journalists are constantly trying to feed the 24-hour news cycle with new content, ideally the hottest topic. If you read or hear about something in the news and think, “I could comment on that in my local news. I’ll work on a pitch next week,” don’t bother. You must be ready to respond in the moment. After reporting on it once, they may move on altogether.
In an era of breaking news, it’s not uncommon for the hottest topic to change within the hour. So, that means you need to have your talking points ready, be able to schedule an interview quickly, and respond to your publicist promptly. Otherwise, I can almost guarantee that you will miss your moment.
