Local PR Can Extend National Efforts, But Do Your Homework!
Tuesday, 08 June 2010 08:53
Articles - Sales and Marketing
Back in 2000, I told my father – who was 70 at the time – that I had just signed on to help the National Reverse Mortgage Lenders Association create and launch a consumer education campaign. His predictable reaction (to industry veterans) could be described as abject horror tinged with paternal disappointment. He was stunned that I would work with such a disreputable industry and pitch products that “scam” vulnerable seniors, and he was consequently dismissive.
Sometime later, while discussing his retirement options – and, of course, forgetting that I was working with the reverse mortgage industry – my father told me that if he needed to, he could always take out a reverse mortgage! You see – he told me – he’d just read an article about reverse mortgages in The Wall Street Journal…
Yes, that’s a true story, and one I often tell when asked about the role of public relations in reaching seniors because it underscores the power of press coverage to influence opinion and behavior. Unfortunately, negative stories arguably have an even more palpable effect. In consecutive years, negative press cast a pall over the industry, starting with the media barrage in 2008, following the December 2007 Senate Committee Hearing on Aging, and proceeded by last year’s scathing reviews by Consumer Reports.
Despite some terrific gains in educating consumers and the media, negative bursts such as these keep the industry head to the wind. To regain forward momentum with the press, all industry participants can play a role, from the largest lenders and servicers to individual originators. The effort needs to include top tier media as well as grassroots efforts. Everyone needs to be an ambassador for the industry, particularly in relation to press.
However, working with the press is a unique communications process, from the creation of messaging to outreach tactics to interacting with reporters. Media relations require specific skills and a significant time commitment. Also, unlike other forms of marketing communications such as advertising or direct marketing, there is little control over the final product, which is ultimately at the editor’s mercy. Reporters and editors publish based on an interview or press release without providing the finished product for any form of approval to their sources.
Positive exposure in the press is obviously a critical component of consumer and influencer education and an important aspect of improving the overall image of the industry. And, of course, participants who raise positive awareness improve their visibility and credibility, which assists with business development. Positive press offers value beyond the brand awareness you get from advertising. It reinforces your credibility and expertise to clients because they perceive sources as “vetted” through an objective media outlet.
Fortunately, NRMLA will be implementing a new comprehensive public affairs program in the near future. While much of this program will undoubtedly focus on national, top tier press, industry participants can extend the reach of this global program by supporting it with local efforts. No doubt, the program will provide guidance on the message and tactics that industry participants can employ to support the effort. So let’s take a look at some current messaging challenges and start thinking about the kinds of tactics to use locally.
Develop a fresh, effective message & value proposition
The basic message on reverse mortgages hasn’t needed to evolve much over the last decade and even if it does, the focus on consumer benefits and safeguards will remain. NRMLA’s new public affairs effort should yield a freshened message on reverse mortgages that will need to provide a strategy and content for addressing the most common criticisms and stigmas, including:
Scams
The industry has done a solid job of shaking much of the “scam” stigma by reinforcing and continually improving consumer safeguards. However, additional financial data will be crucial to solidify reverse mortgages’ place as a mainstream product that should be considered alongside other staples of retirement planning such as 401k plans, IRAs and company pensions. Also, it’s likely that the industry will continue to see lawsuits erroneously claiming fraud or other abuses in the future. To combat the impact, the industry needs to tell a proactive story that incorporates new satisfaction data and responds more aggressively to the inaccurate allegations. Local ideas to strengthen your message on this issue include:
⎫ Know your facts about lawsuits, allegations, and the outcome of any litigation, especially in your market;
⎫ Arm yourself with existing data, e.g. AARP study revealed of borrowers reported that they were satisfied with their experiences with lenders, and 95 percent reported that they were satisfied with the counselors that they were required to see; and
⎫ Gather testimonials and endorsements that confirm you follow the NRMLA code of ethics.
High Cost
Cost remains a tough issue. The recent New York Times piece on the elimination of origination fees and other cost reductions, while generally positive, still dinged reverse mortgages for their high cost. To address this, it’s critical to bring to life a stronger value proposition. Among other things, this will require new data and more creative solutions for illustrating the cost-to-value relationship, particularly in relation to other options available to seniors. Tips to use locally on this issue include:
⎫ Don’t hide from a fee discussion; always be prepared to disclose and explain the different fees, especially as they are required by HUD;
⎫ MIP is a major driver of upfront costs; explain the value of this HUD requirement back to the borrower as outlined by NRMLA:
o The MIP guarantees that if the company managing your account – commonly called the loan “servicer” – goes out of business, the government will step in and make sure you have continued access to your loan funds. Furthermore, the MIP guarantees that you will never owe more than the value of your home when the HECM must be repaid.
⎫ Discuss reverse mortgages in the proper text of the options to seniors and seniors’ desire to remain in their homes; use real borrower stories to illustrate.
The Shame of the “Need-to Product” Scenario
Home ownership – particularly having a home paid off – is of course deeply meaningful to many seniors. Consequently, mortgage debt is often viewed as embarrassing, especially to the depression era seniors. In addition, many seniors have a strong desire to leave the home as a legacy to their heirs. Changing attitudes will require continuing to showcase borrowers who made a choice to include a reverse mortgage in their retirement planning after reviewing all the options. Until a secondary market returns making proprietary jumbos viable, the industry will need to focus on the home as a retirement asset and change the nature of the discussion around retirement options. Local tips here might include:
⎫ Emphasize ownership and control, and dignity is arguably retained with a reverse mortgage;
⎫ Arm yourself with survey data illustrating that boomer kids would prefer their parents use their home to enhance the quality of life; and
⎫ Prepare real borrower stories from your market that illustrate seniors’ choice to use a reverse mortgage and their decision making process.
Disreputable Brokers
This is perhaps the most frustrating and difficult issue to address for the industry. Despite an increase in consumer safeguards, HUD requirements and additional regulations to protect seniors, key influencers continue to harp on isolated bad behavior, which ultimately paints the entire industry with a negative brush. Again, the industry needs to aggressively educate the press on NRMLA’s Code of Ethics and Advisory Opinions and efforts to censure or ban violators. Local tips could include:
⎫ Be fluent in the many consumer safeguards that protect seniors;
⎫ Be fluent in NRMLA Ethics Advisories; and
⎫ Associate yourself with other reputable, respected businesses in your market.
Once the new NRMLA public affairs program is developed, all industry participants should plan to infuse the new messaging in their own local efforts for consumer and media education efforts.
Overview of Working with the Media
Whether or not you are part of a large firm that has a professional PR team, it’s helpful to have a basic understanding of media relations and it’s crucial if you plan on engaging local press.
For starters, have a healthy but not paralyzing fear of the press. Media relations require specific skills, a significant time commitment, and the ROI can be difficult to track. The upside, of course, is that effective use of the media can improve seniors’ opinions about reverse mortgages and contribute to your business growth to boot. Understand that newspapers are in business too – the business of delivering information. By helping to make the reporter or editor’s job of gathering useful information easier, you can generate positive coverage. Such coverage offers several benefits to your business and the industry as a whole:
⎫ Credibility: The de facto third-party endorsement of a non-paid media outlet lends credibility to the reverse mortgages and your business. If seniors hear or read about you and perceive you to be a reputable resource, you and the industry benefit over the long term.
⎫ Cost Efficiency: The best part about media or public relations: it’s free (if you’re doing it yourself of course)! However, because news coverage is not paid for, there is no guarantee that a reporter will use the information you provide or use it in the way you desire.
⎫ Change Attitudes: By touching broad audiences through as many different channels as possible – press is just one of those – the industry can reinforce its positive message and begin to change attitudes and build awareness.
Identifying Your Target Media
The first step to begin media outreach is to identify your target media. There are likely anywhere from a handful to over a dozen print publications that are potential targets for the kinds of information you will provide. What you are looking for are editorials that cover senior issues, personal finance, retirement planning, real estate, or local business activity. Some publication categories include:
⎫ Local Daily Papers
⎫ Community Business Papers
⎫ Community Senior Papers
⎫ Weekly Community Papers
⎫ Community News Websites
Often, it can be difficult to evaluate the reach of a media outlet. Of course, we have tricks for determining which publications are worth reaching:
Review Their Advertising – By reviewing their advertising you can make an initial assessment of the audience the publication reaches. For example, if many of the ads target seniors, you are probably on the right track.
Call the Advertising Department – Another well-practiced PR trick is to view the advertising media kit online or contact the advertising department at the publication to ask questions and request a media kit. Since publications sell and price advertising based on whom they reach, they are the keepers of important information for you. The media kit will provide detailed information about the publication’s distribution, upcoming editorial, and audience.
Develop a Media List – Once you have identified your target media, you will want to develop a media contact list of local reporters and editors. This will be the list to which you distribute press releases and other materials to generate coverage.
The list should consist of editors or reporters who:
⎫ Write about personal finance, retirement, real estate or senior issues; OR
⎫ Edit an appropriate section of the publication, e.g., any editorial section that reports on the achievements of local business people; OR
⎫ You have contacted to confirm they wish to receive information from you.
With very small publications, the editorial staff may be limited to an editor and a few freelance writers. If contact details are not listed in the media kit or on the masthead (listing of employees, editorial staff, advertising information usually found in the first few pages), you will want to contact the publication and ask for the best method of delivering press releases.
Reaching Out – Outreach is, for all practical purposes, essentially a cold call. Approached properly, you will provide something of value to the reporter. If you have done your homework and can connect the right reporter with the right information, the process should be smooth.
The goal is to build a relationship with the reporter so that you are seen as an expert and valuable source. By becoming a trusted source, your comments and content will likely find its way into many articles over time. Some additional tips for outreach include:
⎫ Stay focused on what is of value to the reporter, not valuable to you;
⎫ Be cognizant of their news cycle – don’t expect to reach reporters at deadline time;
⎫ Be conscientious about returning calls, following through, and providing promised content;
⎫ Learn reporters’ preferred method of interaction, which might even include LinkedIn or Facebook; and
⎫ Be patient – it takes time to build relationships, and it can take weeks or even months to see press coverage.
The Press Kit – As you begin reaching out to the media, you will likely be asked for more information on reverse mortgages, your company, or the industry as a whole. Be prepared by organizing a press kit, either on your website or in a format that can be easily shared. A good press kit will include:
⎫ Fact sheet on your business;
⎫ Fact sheet on reverse mortgages;
⎫ Fact sheet on NRMLA;
⎫ Sample sales literature on products and services; and
⎫ Your bio.
Working with the press locally can be a valuable enhancement to the industry’s continuing efforts to improve perceptions about reverse mortgages – but poor preparation, ill-chosen phrases, or a lack of respect for the media can create disastrous results. Take your time to study the local media, prepare, educate yourself on best practices for media relations and, of course, stay in synch with NRMLA’s efforts. NRMLA’s national program will provide excellent guidance on how to address key issues locally and be effective with your local media.
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