An exclusive report is news coverage that a single journalist or media outlet gets sole access to and first dibs on sharing. It’s a big deal because it requires a significant amount of time and effort to conduct thorough research, find a unique angle, provide relevant context, and edit the article before publishing. It also takes a commitment to only offer exclusives on those stories that truly deserve it — and to do so well in advance of the desired publication date so that journalists have enough time to report on them.
PR professionals should only use this tactic for announcements that are genuinely newsworthy and whose impact can be a catalyst for brand visibility. In addition, it’s important to choose journalists and outlets carefully and align them with the company’s target audience and goals, consider their reach and credibility and previous reporting on similar topics, and clearly communicate what an exclusivity strategy will entail – including how long it will last and any other specific requests that may be required for the story to be published as a quality exclusive.
Offering exclusives in batches or denying other journalists access is a fast way to burn a relationship and damage a PR team’s media relations reputation going forward. And, it can make it more difficult to secure future exclusives, too.