After a four year wait, England is once again in the midst of its World Cup campaign and the country is going crazy for it. It is the only time when outlandish patriotism is widely accepted and you can wear your England shirt proudly without being labelled a chav. So what if the team play badly and the irritation of the vuvuzelas is like having an angry swarm of bees over your head? People all over the country will still be glued to the TV set drinking their England Flag branded beer and their World Cup 2010 crisps, enthralled or appalled by the game. With such a wide audience, it is no wonder that PR companies tend to focus campaigns around it. The idea of ‘piggybacking’ on to the World Cup is a widely adopted strategy, with some PR people linking the footie to the most random products. For example, there was recently a press release promoting a hearing aid company, encouraging consumers to protect their hearing against the assault of the vuvuzelas and other noisy football antics. There are occasions where ‘piggybacking’ is essential to ensure coverage for the client by basing a story around a newsworthy event, for example targeting Easter/Christmas/Father’s Day gift guides with a suitable product for that occasion. However promoting a type of apple on Valentine’s Day to a journalist with the title ‘Apple of my eye’ could result in uncontrollable laughter in the newsroom, coupled with mockery of PR people generally and you in particular. This is unlikely to secure you any coverage. If you are going to base your press release on some newsworthy event, please ensure that there is a solid link between the event and the product/company/event you’re promoting. You want a journalist to remember you for the right reasons, not the wrong ones.
