Public relations professionals are always being encouraged to “build relationships” with the media in order to help them get stories placed. While that is good advice, it’s a lot bigger on the “what to do” than the “how to do it.” And it’s the latter that’s often the tough part.

As part of its quarterly Tech Breakfast Club meetings with key marketing executives from a broad range of technology companies, Tech Image addressed this very topic in an open forum facilitated by our Director of Media Relations, Tim Boivin. The lively discussion that ensued offers great advice for everyone from the novice to the grizzled veteran.

The first question posed to the group was “How are you developing relationships with key media?”

“Be creative” was the answer of one panelist, who went on to talk about how they tied in a 7/11/2006 press release regarding their improved broadband services with the 7-11 Big Gulp drink. The fun built into the release, especially compared to the more technical nature of the product offering, made it more easily noticeable and helped gain more play.

Another panelist suggested a daily care and feeding program for the media. Staying in front of key media members on a daily basis, when you can, goes a long way toward keeping them on track.

Staying out ahead of the story was another suggestion. Structuring a campaign to connect the dots with all media and influencers who will impact the development process will help lead the coverage when the big days arrives.

Finally, one person, whose group who offers a service rather than a product, said for them issues-based marketing is the key. It can make a story relevant to a writer even when there is no prior relationship. This company’s thought leadership program has been the key to its visibility in the national business media.

With the proliferation of both old and new media these days, the question “How do you stay on top of what your media targets are writing about?” was particularly important to the group.

Traditional subscriptions, Google alerts, “Media Insight,” PR Newswire’s “Media Atlas” and Magenta.News.com were cited as sources that help PR pros monitor mainstream media. According to the group, however, firms that are only monitoring media activity are missing the real opportunity to shape public opinion through alternatives such as blogs and other social media.

Of course, that’s a huge task. So one panel member suggested figuring out where a PR pro’s firm knows it wants to be in the next 18-24 months and then creating a plan to connect the dots with the influencers that impact product and market development. Focus is critical, he said, when resources are spread thin.

Take a position on key issues that impact the business and reinforce it with offerings such as white papers on the company’s Web site that will generate leads for sales, suggested another. A third reminded everyone that the 80/20 rule applies to media as much as anything else. Stay on top of the core media, no matter what form it takes, and they will help you drive coverage.

The final question for the panel was “How are you positioning key people in your organization as subject matter experts?” The group was unanimous in saying that ALL spokespeople need to be trained, and most won’t allow the expert to speak to the press, regardless of how knowledgeable he/she is, without someone from their media relations team on the line or in the interview. If possible, trained spokespersons should be on-site at every location.

One tip to help the trainees take the training more seriously is to mention things that went wrong for the last spokesperson. There’s nothing like a little dose of reality to help the training hit home.