Session 6
October 27, 2013
3:30 p.m. – 4:30 p.m.

Our last and final session for the Conference was looking into Entertainment PR with the Senior VP (Tammy Golihew) and the Director, Publicity Initiatives (Jeff Tobler). The two oversee more than 50 shows. Safe to say, their days are never the same and are never boring.

They start off saying to give reporters a good hook when pitching a show. Tell them a name and what that person is extremely important.

Also – press releases are key when pitching a show. They should be under 40 characters and the headline should sing to the audience. It needs to stand out; if the audience doesn’t want to read the headline, they won’t want to read the entire press release.

Social media is another important aspect. WBTV adapted Twitter early and it has evolved and changed their company in the last couple of years. It is a great way to engage with their fans and creates a fan experience online. It is part of their PR Plan, but it isn’t the whole thing. Digital reputation is really important today. You do not trash talk your competitors, but you should talk about other shows on other TV networks on your twitter.

Then they told us what they look for in a candidate. They have to like TV, love popular culture, are savvy about the business, like a lot of diversity, love technology, and they must be on social media.

Tammy also stated that we should pick our boss, not our job. We will learn a lot more because we will be willing to work harder for that person. We must also be relentless, not annoying. And the main point I got from this session was… “No” means the start of your negotiation. Find a way to change “no” into a “yes”.

I really saw a different view of PR during this session. I never realized how much work went into the Entertainment side. I could definitely see myself working at a TV network when I’m older.

Also – follow me on twitter (@TEAdv) to follow along with my experience at the conference!