Earnings season can be a hectic and stressful time.
Pulling together the numbers, drafting the release, obtaining approvals, triple-checking data, scheduling the release, and monitoring pickup.
And that’s just on the company side of the equation.
On the other side, financial reporters are digging into page after page of statements, analyzing the numbers, and reporting on company results – all under a very tight deadline.
Last week, I took a group of PR Newswire clients to the Bloomberg News headquarters in New York, where Managing Editor Sonali Pathirana and her spot news team gave a detailed overview of their editorial operation and how they use PR Newswire.
The editors there never take their eyes off of PR Newswire: It’s monitored 24/7 by a team of US and UK editors. Moreover, company announcements of interest are read in their entirety, no matter the length of the press release.
Burying bad news rarely, if ever, works.
One editor recalled how an internet company issued a seemingly “good news” release about a new product, only to mention layoffs several pages down. In this case, Bloomberg caught what it considered the real news in the release, an editor said.
The Scoop on Bloomberg
Bloomberg’s busiest news days typically are Tuesday through Thursday; Mondays and Fridays are the slowest. Major announcements issued after-market hours still will get picked up, but there may be limited story development due to lighter staff during off-peak hours.
During an earnings period, Bloomberg can receive as many as 2,000 releases a day. A “slow day” is when only 1,000 releases come through.
Because every second counts, the process of dissecting thousands of releases daily can be made easier by considering these four tips:
1. Editors need your numbers: In recent years, some clients have elected to include a link in their earnings release to financial statements on company sites. This creates an additional step for spot news editors monitoring PR Newswire. Bloomberg editors recommend including all financials in the press release itself.
2. Highlight key bullet points: Clients can help wire editors by including key bullet points of financials at the top of the release. These include quarterly earnings, sales, and other contributing factors. This will assist Bloomberg editors with headline writing within seconds of receiving the release. (Don’t forget, though, to mind the SEC’s guidelines for the presentation of GAAP and non-GAAP measures when highlighting financials.)
3. Timing IS everything: Hundreds of releases are pouring in every millisecond. Avoid issuing a release at the top and bottom of the hour. Instead, schedule the release to move a few minutes before or after the hour, say 8:08am or 8:37am. This takes your news out of competition with other releases, and it allows editors to get to your release faster.
4. Skip the CEO video – or use it only as a supplement: Bells and whistles are nice to have, but they’re not a necessity. Multimedia like infographics and video create more work for editors, especially if they have to visit a link to a video and watch the CEO speak. A CEO video shouldn’t replace the financials in the release but be used more as a supplement. Or instead of a video, offer up an exclusive CEO interview instead.
How Social Media Fits into the Picture
Social media has become a big part of story sourcing, as more and more journalists use social to monitor conversations and interact with their audience.
Bloomberg is looking for tweets from company execs and other influencers about what’s coming. Company sites are another place editors go to check for the latest news.
However, their preference still is for companies to communicate financials in the news release.
Private Company? Here’s What You Can Do
While public companies mostly are Bloomberg’s main focus, private companies also can get on their radar.
- Research which reporters cover your particular industry and begin fostering a relationship with them.
- Exclusivity will go a long way when it comes to news coverage.
- If you’re in the early stages of exploring an IPO, mention the term “IPO” in your press releases. This alerts news organizations to what’s coming.
- Don’t issue a press release just for the sake of it. Provide real, actionable data in every announcement.
Earned media needs to be an integral piece of your communications mix. From working with media outlets like Bloomberg to seeking out influencers on social channels, you need to be focused on which press release and audience relations practices will land you coverage.
Download The Earned Media Domino Effect now and get more tips for optimizing your media outreach.
Brett Simon (@savsimon) is director of PR Newswire’s Audience Relations department, which works with members of the media to help them access custom news feeds, ProfNet subject matter experts and multimedia via PR Newswire for Journalists. Journalists, bloggers, and other content creators can sign up for free at prnmedia.prnewswire.com.
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