Media partners: Choosing the right ones to play the game
When handling the corporate communication of a company or an organization, the communications team is frequently approached about partnering with online publications, participating in panels and awards, conducting interviews. And choosing the right one to partner is not an easy job and it takes a lot of thinking and arguing. Which are the significant factors to consider on deciding who to spend time and budget on?
The communications and PR team cultivates and maintains the public image of an organization/company, making sure that the distinctive personality of the company brand is known in a controlled and positive manner for the company. A good reputation is essential in any competitive marketplace and the creation and maintenance of a good and concrete corporate image doesn’t happen by chance, but with successful and meticulous planning.
This planning clarifies the necessary attributes for a future partnership aiming at enhancing the corporate image. Awards, online publications, interviews, events, affiliations etc. should be examined thoroughly before any time or budget is allocated. This procedure is not only due to possible time and budget losses directly connected with a specific event for example but rather to the long-term effect on the corporate reputation and image; if a negative one, the consequences would be far deeper than any direct financial loss.
With that in mind, as with any potential partners, one should do their homework before engaging in any partnership. In practical terms, this means learning more on:
the mission,
the vision,
the people involved and their background and beliefs, as well as
the past and current partnerships.
For a proposition on an award for example, one should look at why it is happening, since when it is organised, who is organising and why that who is involved, who are the other members, its audience, its reputation and its competition etc. Having this knowledge (it doesn’t need to be very thorough, thus spending time on it, a quick online, website and social media search can give us an idea), we can then examine if this partnership is aligned to the corporate and communication strategic plan and how.
This will help us also decide the time and budget we can allocate to this event/award. When it comes to online publications, it is crucial to examine the owners, the editing committee, the mission and the vision of the publication, its previous articles, possible political implications, the views expressed etc. In any case of a potential partnership of this nature, the communication department should create an idea for the relationship during the partnership and the possible outcomes while not forgetting the future steps of the collaboration.
Lila is a committed, multilingual and visionary communications professional, with an expertise in social media management, patient advocacy, digital health and business development. Lila is on a mission to help start-ups and organisations in getting their voice heard using digital marketing tools. For Lila, an effective communication strategy shouldn’t start with thinking about channels, but with thinking about people, how and why they interact, engage with organizations and with each other.
