Truly Nolen's PR and Communications Manager Toby Srebnik shared with PCT how pest control owners can build trustworthy and meaningful relationships with news reporters, media personnel to promote business operations and support customer growth to a larger market.
PCT Digital Editor Amanda Donchatz also weighed in on the value of building relationships with reporters, and the best information to provide when pitching to the media from her years of experience as a television news reporter.
Amanda: When you started your in-house relationship with Truly Nolen, what was your approach in building connections with television reporters?
Toby: At that point, I had been in the public relations industry for 14 years, and having worked with so many companies, I had been blessed to obtained so many contacts of building relationships with email, phone calls and social media. Social media took my contact list way up here because it allowed us to reach out to reporters and producers on things like Twitter and create a new type of relationship. If a reporter is posting something about an insect, I would comment on it. I would also say that I had already developed some contacts in Florida markets. I basically would go through the station websites and gain contacts and try to establish who is the current contact, introduce myself and time out when I think it's appropriate to send something of interest to them. I have been fortunate that we have been able to be consistent with being in the news, enough where I feel my contact list is working for us.
Amanda: This topic definitely hits home for me because my background is in television and working as a T.V. reporter at different stations in Ohio like Youngtown and Columbus, I learned very early how important the relationship companies and professionals have with reporters is. I started to learn how we gathered our information, what was the most useful and helpful way for us to tell the story and really look for the ‘why’ within a story and why our viewers would want to hear about it, and if it would be directly impacting them or having a direct effect on their lives. That’s really the connection we are always looking for: Why it matters and who it matters to. I think almost all the time a reporter will relate and want to work with you if you have a motive and reason behind a story.
Now what information and details do you provide when pitching to stations?
Toby: There are times where I am putting together a pitch and I can't do my job without our branch managers, sales people, technicians because they are the experts. I am just the one who provides the information. I'll give you a current example. We had a situation where we had a unique insect, a white fly, that was making it's way into Southwest Florida in the Naples area. I always tell my managers if you have a unique pest in your area, you need to let me know because it's something we could let the media know about it. This manager at the time, Joe Jayne, told me we got this white fly causing issues and we are going to a home next week to get rid of it and do treatment for it. I then will turn around and put it into a format that I try very hard to give as much information as possible to stations, your magazine, so all they have to do is if they want more information to call or email me. In that case we needed up on the local news a couple days later.
The other thing is that we always get media that just reach out. Sometimes it's not even our story. They just want to lean on us to get an expert opinion. I will do everything I can to get somebody to the media, and if we don't have anyone, I will follow-up with them and let them know because I would want them to do the same for me. We had a situation in San Diego at the end of February where they had a bed bug issue at a local hotel and wanted to speak to one of our managers about bed bugs. I got on the phone immediately and contacted one of our managers who would be great to speak about it. The reporter wanted to go to the branch so they went and at the end of the night, I was watching the broadcast on T.V.
Amanda: Being in the media, when we get those types of press releases or tips, already having the "who, what, when, where and whys" answered for us is a big deal so you are already answering our questions up front. Giving the bare minimum sometimes isn't super ideal, so having all of the information and being able to get the information right on the spot really makes for a good relationship.
Toby: Absolutely, and one thing I want to add, when I was in Nashville, I put on my out of office email message that I am in transit, and if this is media on deadline, contact this person. Something I would stress to pest control companies is you don't want to miss a media opportunity because they were unable to get ahold of you. Make sure when you are out of office, you give clear direction as to who the next person up would be to help with a story.
Amanda: That is a great point because timing is everything, especially in T.V., normally when a reporter emails you at 3:00 PM, it needs to be done by 6:00 PM.
Toby: Yep, and I would consider from an east coast standpoint, 10:00 AM to 11:30 AM and 1:30 PM to 3:30 PM, those are two windows when if we are getting any media coverage, I know those are times when our employees need to be available.
Amanda: Now what are some times that you can recall when Truly Nolen has been on T.V. and you have seen growth come from that opportunity?
Toby: The Truly Spooktacular has taken on a life of it's own. As a company, we are very into doing community events. We want to take every opportunity we can to connect with people and potentially get a lead out of it, but that's not the reason why we are there. My former boss, Michelle Nolen, whose one of Truly Nolen's children, in 2014, decided she wanted to do something special for Halloween for children who are in hospitals because children are always remembered at Thanksgiving and Christmas during the holiday season, but she felt that Halloween wasn't one that they were remembered. She just bought some plastic pumpkins and stickers and brought them to the local Tucson Hospital for Children and with that, the next year, she brought it to five more hospitals. I continued doing this work and it dawned on me, why can't we visit as many hospitals as we can in the seven corporate states, and now a ton of franchise operations. This past year was our ninth year doing it, and we hit 30 hospitals in 11 states. The best part of it is our employees love doing this. It's such an easy giveback to give smiles to a children's face. What happens is the T.V. stations [all over the country] pick up on it because of this activity and news stations are always looking for good news stories around holiday season.
We do a local Facebook live segment with our El Paso area manager Emily Cruz and a local NBC reporter doing a once a month segment on pest problems in the area and Emily has said many times that they have gotten calls for services. If you are able to demonstrate expertise and knowing what you're talking about at all times when on the news.
If you are doing good work around the community, there is a tendency to want to use that company. We have big yellow mouse cars, so we already know we have some personality and be a little different. When we are able to establish in people's heads that we are a feel-good brand, then it allows us to grow our business.
Amanda: Doing feel good stories are really good opportunities for reporters because they always like to show the feel good events and stories. There is a lot that happens out in the world, but if one out of five stories is going to be impactful and put a smile on a persons face, that is normally what they like to share.