Be Ready With Data & Advice

It is a Public Information Officer's (PIO) job to have information and a prepared strategy for their chief executive at any moment.

Don't wait to be asked! A practical way to boost your credibility as a communicator is to build a daily or weekly media report that you provide up the chain of command.

In addition to this report, be ready to provide data from any social media or website analytics you can find. This way, you’ll be a PIO who knows what topics are being covered by journalists locally and nationally.

The samples below are headings you could add to your media report. Be sure to create a complete and easy-to-use report using links and screenshots:

·      Media Inquiries We Received This Week

·      News Articles Mentioning Our Agency

·      Social Media Attention

·      Trending Topics In Our Industry

·      Proactive News Stories The PIO Is Pitching

Once you gather the data and know what news topics are gaining traction, you will be able to develop a communications plan and provide an advisable direction for a response. Think about the questions you could be asked and prepare draft statements – be sure to consider the easy questions as well as the difficult ones.

Pro Tip: If current news trends are not controversial or if they don’t involve your organization you could offer up a subject matter expert from your department who can provide insight for forthcoming stories. Choose someone from your agency who is confident and charismatic on camera or in an interview. This is a quick way to gain favor with your local reporters as you help them package their story together.

Wrapping Up

The role of a PIO can take many forms depending on your department leadership. In some cases, a PIO might be planning community events or teaching risk reduction classes in addition to their other responsibilities. With all of those “other duties as assigned”, be sure to spend time setting yourself up to become the advisor that everyone looks to when a controversy arises.