What Does a Publicist Do?

What a publicist does is earn attention for a person or business from the journalists and producers who decide what their audiences see. Day to day, the work is finding story angles, pitching the right reporters, preparing clients for interviews, and handling the press when news turns difficult. A publicist cannot buy coverage or promise it, because the reporter always makes the final call.

I am a publicist, and since starting my firm in 2018 I have worked with founders in food, construction, logistics, gaming, and technology. Whether you need one is a question my press coverage guide answers.

What is a publicist?

Publicists are PR professionals who manage how a person or business appears in the media, although government job data files the work under other titles. Public relations specialists “create and maintain a positive public image for the clients they represent,” according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). O*NET, a database sponsored by the federal Department of Labor, adds sample job titles such as Media Relations Specialist and Public Information Officer.

In everyday use, the meaning of publicist is narrower: the person who handles the press for a named client. Public relations is the wider field, which PRSA, its professional association, defines as “a strategic communication process that builds mutually beneficial relationships between organizations and their publics.”

What does a publicist do day to day?

The BLS list of duties is a fair starting point for a publicist job description. Two of those duties are writing press releases and drafting speeches for a client’s top executives, and in practice a week splits into six tasks:

• Story angles come first, since client news interests a reporter only once it connects to something their target audiences care about.
• Reporter research means pitching only people who have covered the topic recently.
• Pitches are short personal emails that test a publicist’s writing skills, with full samples in how to write a media pitch.
• Interview preparation covers key messages and practice answers, as I explain in what is media training.
• Follow-through means sending promised photos and figures the same day, then thanking the reporter once the story runs.
• Reputation work is the part clients see least, such as advising a founder before they return a reporter’s call about a complaint.

Breaking news in a client’s industry can bring a reporter’s call that afternoon, and how to make talking points shows how to prepare for it.

Media coverage keeps working long after the publish date. For The Dirty Cookie, that includes a 2019 Daily Pilot story (the paper is part of the Los Angeles Times) and a 2022 Katie Couric Media feature. When someone asks ChatGPT about a business, its answer can draw on pages outside that business’s website, as my post on ChatGPT’s sources explains.

A month of publicist work, hour by hour

Harbor Street Bookkeeping is a five-person firm I made up, whose founder wants local business press. With 12 hours a month for the account, the publicist could spend the first month like this:

• Reading three months of local business coverage and building a list of 20 reporters (three hours).
• Writing 10 personal pitches around one angle, the firm’s own count of clients who filed late last year (three hours).
• Answering replies and sending one follow-up to each reporter who stayed silent (two hours).
• Preparing the founder for an interview that one reporter booked (two hours).
• Reporting on the month and planning the next angle on a call with the founder (two hours).

Say three of the 10 reporters reply, and one books the interview. Those seven silent reporters still teach the publicist something about the angle, and the other 10 names on the list wait for next month’s story.

Some months produce no interviews at all, and good publicists tell you so before you start. A monthly report that lists pitches, replies, and the reason the angle changed lets you judge the work even in a quiet month.

What a publicist cannot promise

No publicist controls what a journalist writes, so my rule for every first call is a line from PRSA’s Code of Ethics: “Accurately define what public relations activities can accomplish.”

If someone promises a story in a named publication, ask how, since a guaranteed placement can mean a paid one. My post on how much a publicist costs explains how to read a pay-per-placement contract.

PRSA’s code also asks members to disclose conflicts of interest promptly and to protect the confidences of present, former, and prospective clients. A publicist who shares another client’s private plans with you would share yours too.

Publicist vs public relations: Who does what

Founders weighing publicist vs PR are deciding whether to hire one person or one of the PR firms that spread an account across a team.

O*NET’s entry for agents says they “May handle contract negotiation” for artists, performers, and athletes, and it places business managers in the same occupation. A performer can have an agent, a manager, and a publicist at once. For that kind of public figure, a celebrity publicist does the same work described above. In a service business, your publicist brings the right people to a sales conversation that you or your team close.

A brief to fill in before you talk to a publicist

Copy this brief and fill it in this week, since a publicist will typically ask for these answers on the first call.

• My business in one sentence: [what you do] for [who you serve] in [where].
• The story I think is news: [one sentence a reporter could repeat].
• Proof behind it: [a number from your own work, a result a client agreed to share, or a date].
• Past coverage: [outlet, date, and link], or “none yet.”
• Where my buyers read or listen: [publications, newsletters, or shows].
• Spokesperson: [name], available [days and times], comfortable on [video, phone, or in person].
• Topics I will not discuss: [topic], and the reason I can give: [reason].
• Photos I can send today: [links to headshots, product, or team photos].
• Goal for the next 90 days: [what should change, such as more inquiries from one type of client].

Story and proof lines that are hard to fill put you in good company, because finding that story is the first job a publicist does with you. My Substack post on creating a press kit lists the photos to gather.

Frequently asked questions

What is the difference between a publicist and a PR agency?

A publicist handles your press personally, and a PR agency gives the account to a team that can cover more markets at once. Before you sign with either, ask who will write and send your pitches.

What services do publicists typically offer for tech startups?

Startup publicists generate publicity around launch news, funding announcements, founder interviews, and data stories from the product’s own numbers. In my work with technology and gaming founders, a trend in their data can interest a reporter more than a feature list.

Can a publicist help with social media brand management?

Yes, since the BLS lists evaluating “public opinion of clients through social media” among the duties. Ask up front, because some publicists focus on press alone.

What is the difference between a publicist and an agent?

An agent finds and negotiates paid work such as acting roles, book deals, or endorsements, and collects payment under the contract terms. Publicists earn media attention and leave those negotiations to the agent.

What does a publicist do for an author?

For an author, the work centers on the book’s release, with pitches to reviewers, interview bookings, and events. If your publisher has a publicity team, ask what it covers so two people do not pitch the same reporters.