One of our mantras at PR For Artists is that effective PR is effective storytelling. It’s not about a hard sell, it’s about creating compelling stories with strong narratives.
The trouble is that most artists are too close to their work (and their careers) to be able to see their stories. Or they don’t realize what makes a compelling story or how to present their stories in ways that will interest the media and the public.
Often they simply go for the obvious, such as a new work, or a new exhibit. That’s a good starting place, but in fact that’s all it is, a starting place. The most compelling stories aren’t always the most obvious ones. Sometimes it takes a bit of digging to come up with the gems.
We start an artist’s public relations campaign with what we call our Brainstorming Session. The name pretty much describes it. Here we look to find out about all facets of an artist’s life, work, journey, etc.
Whether you’re working with a PR firm or not, this is an important exercise that can help you uncover your stories. Find someone who can work as an interviewer, block out at least ninety minutes and let that person help find your stories. Don’t lead the conversation. Don’t try and control the interview. Don’t limit the topics to be discussed. Cover everything. Simply follow and see where it leads.
For example, when galleries publicize an artist’s exhibit, they focus on the works being displayed. That makes sense. That’s what they’re exhibiting and hoping to sell. But when we launch a media relations campaign for an artist we take a broader approach. We focus on the artist not on any particular work. That’s not to say that a specific work or exhibit might not be the emphasis of a particular pitch or outreach, but it will not be solely what we concentrate on. Our focus is on building our client’s identity and persona long term.
Also by broadening our approach we create a larger media bulls-eye. What I mean by that is that we not only look for stories that revolve around an artist’s work, but also his or her life, journey as an artist, etc. Different media outlets will react to different story ideas. There is no one-size-fits all PR pitch or press release. The more compelling stories you can develop, the greater your chance of landing media coverage.
So, set up your own Brainstorming Session.
give it a try.
You might be surprised.
Copyright © PR FOR ARTISTS / Anthony Mora / Aubrie Wienholt 2016
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