Empathy: The Hidden Superpower of Introverts in Public Relations
It cannot be stressed enough how being an introvert in the communications industry is actually a superpower. You may have spent much of your professional life believing and living out your fantasy of being an extrovert, mostly because it was drilled into you that extroversion is the norm in this wonderful field. They do not tell you that empathy is what separates the great communicators from the bad ones.
Your ability to quickly tap into the human interest element of your client’s story is often the deciding factor in whether or not your pitch will matter to your media contact.
We’ve all seen it: endless lists from editors and journalists on how to gain their favour. The “rules” vary wildly; do your research, call only after 10 am on Mondays, never follow up, always follow up, avoid social media, only pitch via social media. For anyone trying to build genuine media relationships, it can feel confusing and contradictory.
What many of them want to say but often do not is that your efforts must show that you care about them. That’s it. That is all. Have you really taken the time to read their work and show genuine interest in what they put out, beyond just ticking a box for your job? Does your story speak to not only your audience’s pain points but also those of your media contact’s audience? This is where your superpower of empathy makes all the difference. When your client says, “I want to be in all tier one media,” what they are really saying is, “I want people to see how important and special our products or services are.” When your media contact says, they might actually be saying, “The newsroom is chaotic, and I do not have the mental space for phone calls. Please make my life easier by emailing me.”
You have what it takes to put yourself in anyone’s shoes. Lean into it and do not run away from it. It is not cringe to care. It is not weird to be considerate. It is in fact a necessary and slowly dying practice in the communications and PR landscape.