Helping someone who is favorably disposed towards your company look good or achieve a more powerful job can only work in your favor. Paul Buttrose of the new Treasure Coast Brewing Company in Stuart, Florida takes time within 24 hours of any media coverage to write a note to the editor or reporter, even if the news item about their McCoy beer only involved a one or two-line mention. And you can bet that every time Paul calls that media source, as well as the others he has dealt with, they respond. When you've reached out to the media, be prepared to handle the response efficiently. You wouldn't go bass fishing, then fall asleep on the job and not reel in the fish when he tugs on the line.
Return calls from the media promptly.
Depending on varying deadline requirements, you may have anywhere from 10 minutes to a day to return a call before the reporter finds someone else or loses interest. Instruct your staff to be especially responsive and professional on the telephone when somes from the media calls. If the person answering doesn't sound like he or she is too sharp, it doesn't leave a particularly good impression on the caller. If you expect media calls and are going to be out of the office, be sure someone else can answer questions or you can be located quickly. There's nothing more annoying to a reporter than having to nag a source to return calls.