Have Your Cake

A book PR stunt fell flat, author was furious, now I promise nothing, but effort to PR clients. When I was the publicist for a coffee table and cookbook imprint, I devised a plan to have a birthday lunch and a cake—made by the well-regarded NYC author of a new cookbook—delivered on the book's publication day to a prominent WNYC/NPR host who frequently discussed food on his show. The delivery went as planned, but the host neither mentioned it on air nor thanked the author, as we had hoped. While I never promised the author this would happen, I thought it was worth a try. (You don’t ask, you don’t get.) The author, however, was suffocatingly passive-aggressive at the book party that evening.

Since that experience, I’ve made it a priority to explain to clients that I cannot control how the media responds to a pitch, no matter how much time and effort is invested. I now include a clear statement in my written client agreements: “I promise nothing but 110% effort.”