Okay, I don’t know about you, but I was a bit relieved when Oprah announced the end of her long-running show. If I had a nickel for every client who thought their company, story or product, was “Oprah worthy”, I’d be a rich woman by now.
One of the dreaded first questions a PR person gets in a new business pitch is, “Can you get us on Oprah?” It’s even worse when it’s a new contact at an existing client company who thinks the show is the be-all and end-all of a company’s existence. Never mind if your product is targeted to business executives who don’t watch the program…everyone wants to be on Oprah, right? After all, it’ll make or break your company, right? Wrong! Sometimes a front page story in the Wall Street Journal might do the trick. Many clients forget that it’s about finding the right media vehicle to reach their audience.
Many PR people forget it too. I used to work for a guy that would promise prospects he could get them on anything, and it drove me nuts. I actually kicked the guy under the table in a meeting…so hard that he yelped. He actually had the balls to tell a client we could get his line of ashtrays on Good Morning America just to nail the account. I later took him aside and told him if he ever put me in that position again I’d have to take him down in front of the prospect. He actually blanched.
Anyway, I like Oprah, and I like her show. I’m glad she’s the first black woman to become a billionaire and show the good ole boys network how it’s done. That said, I’m also glad she’s moving on to new ventures so I can stop saying to clients and prospects, “You’re kidding, right?”
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