Overselling Your Story
Bill and Hillary Clinton appear to have made a major miscalculation last week. They oversold their “feud” with Barack Obama. And they did it in a way that didn’t play well with their audience.
That’s my take on the lopsided results for Saturday’s vote in South Carolina. Will it hurt Hillary’s campaign beyond South Carolina? I have no idea.
Here’s the bottom line for you and me. We all want to sell our stories. But “overselling” them is a mistake that can actually do you harm.
Push too hard on a story that doesn’t interest reporters and they’ll see you as a nuisance. Push too hard on a story that doesn’t interest reporters and that they don’t believe is true and they’ll see you as dishonest. And that means you’ll lose their trust.
The Clintons oversold a story that made them look dishonest. Don’t replicate their mistake.
That’s my two cents’ worth. What’s yours? — Jerry Brown
Tags: Barack Obama, bill clinton, hillary clinton, media minute, media relations, monday morning media minute, pr counsel