Why newspapers publish some stories and not others? How is an info-magazine homepage built? How do you prevent a press release from ending up in the trash?
Any company that has a press office service, or is considering activating one, is confronted with these questions. The answer is always the same: the difference is in the news.
What kind of news makes a news article?
The concept of news may appear elusive or subjective, but there is a very precise journalistic scheme to assess. Precise, but dynamic. What is considered noteworthy can change depending on the overall news cycle, the current scenario and a number of other factors. Journalism schools and media training courses teach to identify these factors, which can be declined in different ways, but in principle they can be summarized in the simple guidelines that we will see below.
Interesting. How does the story affect the audience? An example could be the implementation of a new law that substantially modifies a specific economic sector: telling the change is a way to enter the flow of news.
Fresh. How recent is the information? Journalists are hungry for content, as long as it is a fresh, last-minute content. In today’s world, which is instantaneous and hyper-connected, content risks aging prematurely, so news must be spent at the right time, otherwise they age and can no longer be spent.
Out of the ordinary. The most attractive news is an unpublished, unusual news, which goes beyond ordinary administration. In the case of a Company News, an anniversary or a restyling hardly meet this criterion. Unless we are dealing with top brands.
Competitive. In an increasingly polarized society, the ability to overtake competitors, to chart new paths, to accept confrontation is an excellent tool for visibility. Telling your business reality as a challenge or taking a counter-current position can allow you to increase interest in the press.
Human. Even good deeds have their audience, so stories of solidarity, success, overcoming difficulties can become attractive for the media.
Recognisable. Well-known brands and personalities always make the news. It is important for businesses and professional service providers to build a public profile over time and exploit, for example, commercial agreements with well-known brands.
Familiarising with these criteria is not always immediate, but a competent and proactive communication agency brings exactly this type of added value: making the life of a company “newsworthy”.
Stampa Finanziaria is an independent and flexible agency specialising in Financial and Corporate News. Our team of experienced media relations journalists makes all the difference in terms of competence and results. Come and meet us!
