Bay of Plenty Business News June/July 2017

BAY OF PLENTY BUSINESS NEWS June/July 2017 15
The secret to becoming a newsmaker
Most people won’t tell you this, but there’s
one sure-fire way to ensure your story
makes it into the media. And it hasn’t got
anything to do with how well written your
media release is, or the strength of the
accompanying photo.
The secret recipe is having
something newsworthy
to say. That may sound
obvious. But as someone who
has been on both sides of the
fence, sending media releases
on behalf of clients and being
pitched to as a journalist, I
assure you that many fail this
important test.
So what makes something
newsworthy? It usually boils
down to a few key ingredients.
These include how unique the
story is, how it relates to topical
issues, whether there is
conflict or controversy, and
whether well-known personalities
are involved. The location
of the story and how timely
it is also matter. There’s no
point phoning a journalist in
Canterbury to pitch a story
about the amount of money
raised at a Tauranga school
fair a month after the event.
And of course, it’s critical
that you’re saying something
new - the clue is in the name,
“news”.
The weighting for each of
these factors will differ by
publication, radio station or
television programme, but the
primary consideration for any
editor deciding whether or not
to run your story is this: “Why
does this matter to my readers,
listeners or viewers? Do they
care?”
Of course, writing well
is important, as is providing
strong supporting photos or
videos, but the foundation for
any media release or pitch
should be the news value of
the story being told.
There are a few other
things you can do to give your
story pitch or media release
the best chance of success.
Make sure you get to the
point quickly and addresses
the “who”, “what”, “where”,
“when”, “why” and “how” of
your story in the first few
sentences. If you’re making
your pitch via a media release,
it’s important to grab attention
with a strong hook and
grabbing headline, but keep in
mind that a story that stands
on the merits of its facts will
also have the best chance of
success.
While some media releases
you send to a journalist
will run word for word, it’s
still critical to provide contact
details in case the recipient
wants to request an interview
or further information. Make
sure you are available for
interviews if anybody calls.
Don’t send your media release
on the day you are heading
away on holiday, or at the start
of a week when you are fully
booked up with high stakes
business meetings.
The way you distribute
your release matters too.
Make sure you are sending it
to the right journalists at the
media outlets that are likely to
have the most interest in what
you have to say. If you are
announcing a new smartphone
app for home owners, there’s
little point in sending it to the
chief photographer at Horse &
Pony Magazine. There are a
range of online services offering
databases of New Zealand
media and relevant contacts
at each.
Lastly, it can also be valuable
to follow up your media
releases or email pitches with
a phone call. Many newsrooms
are short staffed and a
lot of news gets missed due
to the sheer volume of emails
journalists receive. A polite
phone call that doesn’t start
with “I’m just calling to check
if you received my email” provides
an opportunity to develop
some rapport and explain
why your story is relevant and
should matter to the audience
the journalist is writing for.
Getting your story into the
media can make a major difference
to the success of your
business and how your reputation
and brand is perceived by
customers. With a few smarts
and the right approach, even
the smallest businesses can
compete with the big boys for
media space.
TELLING YOUR STORY
> BY JAMES HEFFIELD
Director of Bay of Plenty communications consultancy Last Word
Writing Services. To find out more visit lastwordwriting.co.nz or
email james@lastwordwriting.co.nz.
Simple systems for securing your internet borders
Like property, there are
three key elements to
consider in Information
Technology - security, security
and security. Considering
security as a separate entity
within IT, is like buying a car
and then discussing the locking
system. Would you buy a
new car and save a little on the
ticket price by not including
locks?
IT security and using tools
to manage and measure it, is
one part of securing your data.
However, a large part of security
is corporate governance
- the culture, policies and procedures
on how IT systems run
with people is crucially important
in today’s organisations.
A company we reviewed
recently had a social media
policy of “no social media at
work”, And yet, 72.3 percent
of their internet traffic was on
Facebook. It was great that
some IT governance was taking
place. But it wasn’t being
measured or adhered to.
Companies are taking IT
security seriously enough to
protect themselves effectively.
But previous security measures
may no longer be enough.
The recent WannaCry Cyber
Threat,
is just the latest in a long
line of cyber security threats
that infects your system by
somebody opening an attachment
or suspicious email with
a worm that digs through the
network.
A good example of the
lengths that the scamsters or
hacktivists will go to, was
revealed in 2016 when the New
Zealand construction industry
was targeted. A number of
companies lost thousands of
dollars each after email scammers
falsely claimed to be
legitimate suppliers and asked
the companies to pay invoices
to a new account, citing new
banking arrangements. But
the genuine suppliers never
received the payment.
So what measures can you
put in place to avoid potential
threats, scams, and reputation
damage, and reduce the risk
of financial loss from email
scams? Insurance companies
are no offering some level of
cyber security cover, but is the
ambulance at the bottom of the
cliff. It is estimated that up to
80 percent of security breaches
could be prevented by implementing
basic cyber security
practices. These include but
are not limited to:
• Email filtering and delivery
prevention. Take advantage
of modern email services
such as Office 365, which
have email filtering capabilities.
These allow you
to apply rules, such as to
not deliver certain emails,
or to warn senders that the
recipient cannot receive
them. You can add simple
rules such as preventing
emails with bank accounts
or credit card numbers to
be delivered, with relevant
notifications.
• Contract terms. Include
bank account details within
your contract and state that
if there are any changes,
either you will personally
call your client or they
must call you to confirm
changes before payments
are processed. It is common
practice to have automatic
payments, direct debits, or
to have bank account number
in the internet banking
list of payees. It can be
difficult or a big decision
for a company to change
bank accounts, so communication
is key if this does
occur.
• How are invoices and payments
processed? Provide
clear instructions and
explain the process both
internally and externally. It
may also be necessary to
ask your customers to call
and confirm any payments.
Do not always rely solely
on email communications.
To ensure your communication
channel has not been
interfered with, the best
practice is to agree to call
and confirm changes. “If
the email has the wrong
tone, pick up the phone.” A
number of spoofing emails
go to financial officers,
allegedly from senior managers
advising of bank
TECH TALK
> BY TONY SNOW
Director Stratus Blue Ltd. Tony@stratusblue.co.nz | Mobile
022 122 8669 T 07 777 0010.
account changes or special
donations or projects to be
paid. Check first and have
the correct policies in place,
as this may not be the case.
• Escrow agreement. Talk
to your legal and accounting
team about an escrow
agreement. This is a legal
agreement where one party
deposits cash with a third
party (escrow agent) who
makes delivery to another
party when specific conditions
of the agreement have
been met.
Setting up some of the
above policies and procedures
can reduce risk, damage to reputation,
operations and finances.
So talk to your relevant
professional departments to
make sure you and your staff
are not only looking after your
business, but also those of your
clients and your suppliers.
GET CONFIDENCE
BACK IN YOUR I.T.
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TECHNOLOGY
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