No “Spin” Needed

I’ve worked with the media for more than 30 years, helping companies and organizations share information with their respective audiences. Here at Asher Agency, public relations and media relations planning and execution are just two of the services we provide our clients.

A recent media event we completed for Habitat for Humanity here in Fort Wayne reaffirmed my belief that good media coverage is accomplished most successfully when the activity includes the simple basics of a solid news story. This particular event, a ribbon cutting (we did a “board cutting”) garnered exceptional news coverage—before it was held and after.

Why the success? First, we worked hard on the project, and certainly the folks from Habitat for Humanity and the ReStore worked hard getting things ready. But hard work, a good plan, networking and a strong knowledge of good public relations practices aren’t always enough.

The basics of a good news story with several hooks helped propel this seemingly simple event into the success category.

Habitat for Humanity by itself is an organization with a mission that is good for people and good for the environment. Habitat’s ReStore furthers these efforts by reselling donations of building materials and used items that normally would go to the landfill and recycles them into new lives with purpose. And Habitat invests the proceeds from the sale of donated items into new housing for deserving families.

Those elements comprise news stories with several possibilities: a feature on the environment, a positive economics story in difficult times and a human-interest piece.

No spin was needed!

The word “spin” is often associated with public relations and PR activities. Some stories need more than spin; others, like this new Habitat for Humanity ReStore in Fort Wayne, carry themselves.

The term “spin” has a negative connotation in my mind. I’m not sure why. I’m curious what others think about the term and its application. Let me know what you think.

--Mike B.