I would like to explore the question of how journalists perceive our industry: Are PR agencies a curse or a blessing? To discuss this, I met with Werner Grundlehner. He has been working as a journalist for almost thirty years and is currently a freelance writer. In the past, he worked as a business editor for the „NZZ“ and „Finanz und Wirtschaft“. Today, for this interview, he’s switching sides for once.

Werner, first of all, I would be interested to hear how you experience daily collaboration with PR agencies.

The most noticeable sign of life from a PR agency is probably the journalist’s overflowing email inbox. PR agencies send out press releases on behalf of their clients – in my case, mainly financial firms and some tech companies. Occasionally, I also receive phone calls from PR offices suggesting interview partners for specific topics. In addition, PR agencies invite me to industry and corporate events – although given today’s workload, it’s increasingly difficult to attend.

How would you describe a successful collaboration with a PR agency?

As I just mentioned, time is a crucial factor – and journalists are always somewhat under pressure, with little time to read lengthy texts and a tendency to lose interest quickly. That’s why we appreciate it when we don’t receive mass mailings but rather communications tailored to our areas of focus. This requires the PR person to know the journalist a little.

For example, during my time at the NZZ, I was the right recipient for releases concerning private equity, biotech stocks, IT, and crypto/blockchain topics. Given the time constraints, it’s also very helpful when a PR professional highlights a particular aspect of a release that could be of specific interest – something that might not be immediately obvious from the headline or introduction.

A PR consultant who knows me well might follow up by phone after sending out an important message. It may well be that something important is overlooked in the whirlwind of news, editorial meetings and a flood of emails.

Do you also proactively reach out to PR agencies?

Yes, definitely – especially if I know the agency a little better and am familiar with their client base. Some agencies specialising in financial services, for instance, have a pool of strategists who can provide quick commentary when there’s significant market movement. If the agency can provide a relevant quote before my deadline, it allows me to focus on other aspects of the research.

Sometimes there’s less pressure, and you ask the agency if they could place the request for a CEO interview or something similar.

Which aspects of working with PR agencies do you find frustrating?

Some agencies send out multiple broad mailings daily. Over time, I simply ignore these. Important announcements and exclusives might then also be overlooked – or even end up in the spam folder.

It’s also unpleasant when interviews sent back for approval are not returned on time – articles always have deadlines, usually very tight ones.

Even worse are interviews that are so heavily edited upon return that they are unrecognisable, have nothing to do with the original conversation, and have lost all their edge. This might comply with corporate guidelines, but it’s not in the company’s interest because such sanitised texts won’t be read – and might not even be published.

So sometimes PR efforts completely miss the mark with you?

I find it rather sweet when agencies or companies write their own articles and send them with a note saying, “This can be published from XX.YY, please let us know when it will appear.” No newspaper works like that.

It’s also not well received when PR people call up journalists and try to “correct” them, implying they don’t understand the topic properly. They might even be right – but no journalist wants to be lectured.

And sometimes you just wonder how a PR agency you’ve never heard of got your contact details – for example, when you suddenly receive a press release from a wellness hotel in the Black Forest.

Finally, what would your appeal to PR agencies be? Are there any points you haven’t mentioned yet that you consider important for successful collaboration?

First, I’d like to clarify, in case I sound too negative: it’s clear that PR agencies are important players in the news business. They serve as vital intermediaries between journalists and companies, who naturally have different interests. I’m well aware of that, even though I can get rather grumpy at times (laughs).

To sum it up: quality over quantity – and speed is essential. Ideally, we would only receive press materials and information that are genuinely relevant to us and could potentially fit into our portfolio. However, that doesn’t mean we will always use them – they might not fit our current research focus.

Generally, I’m amazed by the sheer number of PR agencies out there – there now seem to be more agencies than journalists. That said, I’ve been working with the same trusted agencies for years.