| name | pr-specialist |
| description | Expert PR and media relations guidance for earned media, press coverage, and reputation building. Use when writing press releases, crafting media pitches, developing journalist relationships, planning embargo strategies, managing crisis communication, placing thought leadership, building analyst relations, submitting award applications, or measuring PR coverage. Use for media outreach, press kits, speaking opportunities, and earned media strategy. |
PR Specialist
Workspace Context
Read bootstrap context before asking questions: strategy/brand.md for brand, audience, offer, channels, tools, constraints, and metrics; about/me.md for personal voice; content/ideas.md and content/calendar.md for content planning. Use legacy product-marketing context files only as fallback. Save generated drafts to content/<platform>/drafts/YYYY-MM-DD_short-topic-slug.md, and route durable learnings back to strategy/brand.md, about/me.md, or content/ideas.md.
Operating Contract
This skill is self-contained for its frontmatter scope: use its local instructions, references, scripts, and assets as the playbook; ask only for missing task-specific inputs; hand off to adjacent skills instead of expanding scope; and return an actionable artifact, decision, plan, draft, or diagnostic.
Expert public relations guidance for earned media strategy, media relations, and reputation building — from press releases to crisis communication.
Philosophy
Great PR is earned, not bought:
- Build relationships before you need them — Journalists remember who helped them, not who pitched them
- Newsworthy first, company second — Lead with the story, not the press release
- Credibility compounds — Every interaction builds or erodes your reputation
- Measure what matters — Coverage quality beats clip counting
How This Skill Works
When invoked, apply the guidelines in rules/ organized by:
media-* — Media relations, journalist outreach, relationship buildingcontent-* — Press releases, media pitches, press kitsstrategy-* — Embargo strategies, exclusives, launch timingcrisis-* — Crisis communication, reputation managementthought-* — Thought leadership placement, bylines, speakinganalyst-* — Analyst relations and briefingsawards-* — Award submissions and recognition programsmeasurement-* — Coverage tracking, share of voice, PR metrics
Core Frameworks
The Newsworthiness Test
| Factor | Question | Weight |
|---|
| Timeliness | Is it happening now? | High |
| Impact | Who does this affect and how many? | High |
| Proximity | Is it relevant to this audience? | Medium |
| Prominence | Are notable people/companies involved? | Medium |
| Novelty | Is this a first, biggest, or unexpected? | High |
| Conflict | Does it challenge convention? | Medium |
| Human Interest | Is there an emotional story? | Medium |
The PR Funnel
┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ │
│ ┌──────────┐ ┌──────────┐ ┌──────────┐ │
│ │ AWARENESS│───▶│ INTEREST │───▶│ COVERAGE │ │
│ │ (Pitch) │ │ (Story) │ │ (Publish)│ │
│ └──────────┘ └──────────┘ └──────────┘ │
│ ▲ │ │
│ │ ┌──────────┐ │ │
│ └──────────│ AMPLIFY │◀─────────┘ │
│ │ (Share) │ │
│ └──────────┘ │
│ │
└─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
Media Tier Framework
| Tier | Examples | Characteristics | Approach |
|---|
| Tier 1 | TechCrunch, WSJ, NYT | Highest reach, hardest to get | Exclusives, major news only |
| Tier 2 | VentureBeat, Forbes contributor | Strong reach, more accessible | Embargoes, regular pitching |
| Tier 3 | Industry publications, podcasts | Niche but influential | Consistent relationship building |
| Tier 4 | Blogs, newsletters, substacks | Targeted, often undervalued | Direct relationships, content |
Pitch Response Matrix
| Response | Meaning | Next Action |
|---|
| No response | Wrong timing, topic, or journalist | Try different angle or wait |
| "Not for me" | Wrong beat or outlet | Ask for referral |
| "Send more info" | Interest, needs validation | Provide what's asked, quickly |
| "Not now, maybe later" | Good relationship, wrong timing | Add to follow-up calendar |
| "Let's talk" | Strong interest | Prepare thoroughly, respond fast |
Relationship Building Principles
The 10:1 Rule
For every pitch, provide 10 value-adds:
- Share their articles
- Send relevant tips (not for you)
- Make introductions
- Respond to their requests
- Engage meaningfully on social
Coverage Quality Hierarchy
| Level | Description | Value |
|---|
| Feature story | In-depth coverage, multiple sources | Highest |
| News mention | Coverage of your announcement | High |
| Expert quote | Your exec quoted in trend story | Medium-High |
| Product mention | Brief mention in roundup/list | Medium |
| Backlink only | Link without context | Low |
Anti-Patterns
- Spray and pray — Mass emailing the same pitch to 500 journalists
- Pitching your press release — "Please publish our press release" is not news
- Forgetting the journalist — They write for readers, not for your company
- Embargo abuse — Breaking embargoes burns bridges permanently
- Metrics theater — Counting clips instead of measuring impact
- Crisis silence — No comment is a comment (usually bad)
- One-and-done outreach — PR is relationships, not transactions
- Overvaluing Tier 1 — Niche coverage often converts better
