Talking Donald Trump: From Obscurity to Dozens of Newspapers in the Speed of HARO

I had the opportunity to appear in an article by the Associated Press about Donald Trump’s unusual, product-oriented press conference on Tuesday.  This came as a result of Help a Reporter Out (HARO), the three-times-daily e-mail blast that seeks to connect reporters working on stories with expert sources to help. 

I wrote here before that if you’re not using HARO to generate publicity for your organization, you just don’t give a damn.  It’s a very easy way to find out what’s on journalists’ mind, then jump in with relevant information highlighting your experience and expertise and, thus, your business’ value proposition.  If done right, it can be almost too easy, like shooting fish in a barrel.  I offered some of my best tips in that prior column.  But the most important thing is to just do it.  

Here’s how I wound up today in The Washington Post, The Miami Herald, The Houston Chronicle, The St. Louis Post Dispatch, The Fresno Bee, The San Francisco Chronicle, ABC News, Yahoo, and over 75 other newspapers, media websites, and TV station websites, and counting:

12:39 p.m.:

The HARO mid-day e-mail arrives in my inbox.

12:41 p.m.:

I drop what I’m doing and scan through the story listings, looking for a fit for a client or myself.  I notice one from Beth Harpaz of the Associated Press, asking “What do you think of Trump putting his products on display?”

I recalled seeing some of Mitt Romney’s presser calling out Trump’s business failures, including Trump Magazine, Trump Ice Water, and Trump Steaks.  I hadn’t yet seen the GOP leader’s response, but I find it quickly online.  As this involved an implied PR issue – using your campaign to promote products with your name on it – it feels like a good fit.

I notice the deadline of 2 p.m. EST the same day (Wednesday), and know I have to jump into action. I also know that with a short deadline, chances are the reporter will get fewer responses, which gives mine a better chance to stand out.

12:47 p.m.:

I click the reply link and begin writing down my thoughts on the subject, with a bit of urgency.  Apologies to my wife and marketing colleague for shushing her when she walks into the office and launches into an unrelated topic.  “I’m deep in thought, responding to a HARO on a very tight deadline,” I tell her.

I give a short sentence on top noting my credentials.  Then, thinking in terms of sound bites, I pound out some thoughts, trying to be at least a little clever.  I throw in the word “showman” and note this wasn’t too far off-base for someone who mocked a disabled reporter, and boasted of his sexual prowess during a presidential debate. I also point out that highlighting one’s entrepreneurial failures doesn’t mean that individual is a failure.  I suggest that the same risk-taking thinking that lead to those failed ideas are what spurred some of Trump’s biggest successes…and his candidacy for president.

I close with a pithy observation about having tried Trump Ice at one of his clubs, and not being impressed.  Finally, I wish the reporter luck and say I look forward to reading the article.

1:35 p.m.:

I hit Send, always a scary but exhilarating moment.

2:30 p.m.:

I wait, checking my new e-mails frequently in the hope of a response.

2:45 p.m.:

Still waiting.  Why isn’t she replying to my e-mail? I ask myself.

3:51 p.m.:

My work phone rings. The ID says Associated Press.  My heart leaps.  It’s the reporter, thanking me for my response and confirming that I am a real person and not a “12-year-old kid playing games.”  She says my comments were a little on the “subtle” side, but she would be including some of them.  I get off the phone, and, I think, fist pump the air. Not sure.

4:48 p.m.:

Much sooner than I expect, I get a Linkedin “You appeared in” alert, with a link to Harpaz’s article at ABC News Online.  She works fast, I think to myself.  I read the article, and find my comments near the bottom, along with those of five other sources.

6:16 p.m.:

The reporter e-mails me with the link to the story on the AP website, and encourages me to share it socially as I please.  She thanks me for my input, and I thank her right back.

*****

Less than six hours from reading an e-mail to being splashed across the Internet, with newspapers to follow the next morning.  This experience illustrates that when it comes to exploiting HARO, responding fast and responding well trumps all.  If only public relations was always this easy.

Gary Frisch is founder and president of Swordfish Communications, a full-service public relations agency in Laurel Springs, N.J. He was selected as a Linkedin Top Voice for 2015.