Simple fact: If you can turn a standard belief on it\’s head, you can get press.
Not just any press but great press.
I love it when a prospective client tells me the opposite of what I think I already know. I almost always accept the job because it\’s one of my favorite ways to court the media – and frankly, one of the easiest.
This kind of buck-a-myth story winds up on the local news all the time:
“Think you need a bunch of shots to go to Africa? Not any more!”
“Think Aspirin is harmless? We tell you why it isn\’t…”
“Believe the Earth is round? We have someone here who can prove it\’s square…”
Okay, that last one may be hard to sell but you get my drift.
Busting a myth is a genius tool for media because not only does it take up plenty of airtime but also gives the outlets a chance to explore the subject by bringing in a bunch of experts to argue about it.
It’s a fail-safe and entertaining way to keep a subject that’s been talked about thousands of times in the public eye alive – think about the global warming debate, or issues such as, ‘Should kids have cell phones?’ You\’ve heard them time and again but someone with the opposite view will always be granted a soundbite. It\’s win-win for both you and them.
So what’s the standard belief that YOU can turn upside down?
Because if you can do that, you’ve just found the holy grail of marketing and PR.
And that\’s no myth.