Jessica Sharp 
Keeping information from your public relations team is a bad idea.
As PR practitioners, we’ve heard the gamut of reasons from clients about why they do it:
“We’re not quite ready to inform the PR team yet because we haven’t shored up all the details.”
“We just want to tell the PR folks the story that we want to get out there.”
“What happened in the past isn’t important, let’s focus on the future.”
“I just don’t think it’s relevant information.”
Here are two words of advice: tell us. Even if it ends up being irrelevant, it’s still better for your PR team to know the entire background and all the details.
PR is an information-driven service. Practitioners need all the information to do the best job possible, even if not all of it is appropriate to tell your story.
Your PR team should be one of the first groups to know about new announcements, partnerships, developments, etc. Letting them know early will ensure they have enough time to craft the most effective communications strategy. It will allow you to have a proactive approach to handling stakeholders, rather than a reactive or defensive one.
Presumably you’ve hired a PR team because you realize there is value in having specialized experts involved in your communications and marketing campaigns. That means that you must trust that they know how best to use the information. I’ve run across clients who are nervous about telling their PR team something negative because they’re afraid the press or public will find out. Please remember, your PR team works for you. It’s their job to ensure the messages of your company and executives are communicated appropriately and effectively.
Information sharing doesn’t apply to just negative information. Historical information can also be extremely useful, such as past initiatives (successful or not), former industries, organizations, association, etc. the company has a history with. All this information helps your PR team craft a campaign that is as informed as possible.
The bottom line is, the more time your PR team has with new information, the better the outcome will be for everyone. No one produces their best work when they’re scrambling against a deadline. Even if you think it may not be relevant – let your PR folks know. The more they know, the more they can help.
Posted In Public Relations