Don’t wait for PR folks to call; check the wires yourself

By Rosland Gammon on Jan 14, 2010 in Best Practices, Featured, Health care, Story ideas

Medicinal marijuana has been grabbing headlines lately, and CNNMoney.com contributor Geoff Williams found a business angle to pursue: a company that offers support systems to help sellers deal with “new challenges: Taxes. Invoices. Supply-chain management. Regulatory compliance.”

Today’s Tip: Watch the PR wires.

Although we all hear from PR folks, don’t forget to check the PR news wires such as Marketwire, Business Wire and PR Newswire. They can help you generate story ideas by seeing what’s happening in other parts of the country.

Geoff Williams

PlainView Systems, the subject of Geoff’s story, issued a press release in September when it launched. A small California start-up wouldn’t necessarily catch your eye, but pairing it with the legal issues related to medical marijuana made for a business story that told many readers something they didn’t know.

About the Author

Rosland Gammon is a former business journalist turned college instructor. Her newsroom experience includes reporting for The Philadelphia Inquirer, and reporting and editing at Bloomberg News. Gammon currently teaches communications at Alverno College in Milwaukee. Follow her daily posts. | E-mail: Rosland Gammon