Beware of Faux Journalists
Public relations firm warns business against solicitations by people falsely claiming to be reporters or editors seeking to cover their company.
Dallas, TX (PRWEB) June 15, 2005 -- At first it appears to be good news for
many business owners. A caller tells them their business has been selected to be
featured in a national business magazine or on a program that will air on a
national television network. The publications or programs usually have important
sounding names such as America’s Best Leading Business Innovators and Leaders or
Dynamic American Business Leaders of the 21st Century. The television programs
are sometimes hosted by well-known personalities. How could anybody pass up such
an opportunity?
Those calling use titles from the journalism profession –
producer (the off camera reporters and supervisors of television programs) or
editor. But these salespeople are not journalists. What they are selling is an
opportunity for a company or its suppliers to pay for an article in a magazine
or on a cable television program.
“Our business clients report receiving
dozens of calls each year from companies making this type of sales pitch,” said
David Margulies, president of the Margulies Communications Group a leading
public relations firm based in Dallas. “Their excitement usually fades pretty
quickly when we tell them that the publication will expect to be paid for the
story or wants to solicit the company’s vendors for advertising.”
The bottom line is that real journalists do not
charge companies they write about for the privilege of appearing in their
publications. Real journalists do not call a company and ask to speak to the CEO
so they can “learn more about the organization.” Business publications do not
ask for lists of an interview subjects vendors so they can solicit them to
advertise in the publication next to the article about their
customer.
“A salesperson for one of these publications
recently told me that she gets her leads from business directories and that
approximately three in 100 people solicited actually agree to an article,” says
Margulies.
The problem is that the publications are
“controlled circulation” meaning that they are sent to people who have not paid
to subscribe to them. The television programs often run in the middle of the
night as paid programming on cable channels.
“Business
people who are solicited for this type of publication should realize that
articles in obscure publications and programs that run in the middle of the
night on cable television have little or no credibility in the business
community,” says Margulies.
Companies that want
recognition that is unfiltered by journalists (who tend to ask tough questions
or sometimes profile competing companies) can purchase advertorials from
legitimate business magazines. These paid advertisements appear within respected
business publications that go to paid subscribers. They are also clearly labeled
as paid content and are presented in a different typeface and layout style to
separate them from the publication’s actual editorial content.
In addition, there are numerous opportunities for
positive media coverage in the thousands of legitimate trade publications,
newspapers, web sites and magazines that are published each year in the United
States and abroad. Business owners should consider all their options before
making a bad investment in an article or program of little or no real value.
The Margulies Communications Group is a Dallas-based
public relations firm that serves major corporations doing business around the
world. David Margulies is a former award winning investigative
reporter.
Contact:
David Margulies
2143680909
e-mail protected
from spam bots
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Source : http://www.prweb.com/releases/2005/6/prweb250823.htm