This Sunday, this blessed Sunday, is my favorite day of the year. This blog entry might be atypical for a woman, but I was raised on the Washington Redskins and Baltimore Orioles as much as I was politics and history (I’m a DC native). Sports are in my blood. I served as the sports editor at BYU’s newspaper for several years, shocking most of the men reporters under me as I rattled them with statistics, facts and figures that most women roll their eyes at. I can’t throw a football to save my life, but when playoffs and the Super Bowl rolls around… Let’s just say that my life revolves around that magical day. 

The Super Bowl has taken on a life of its own during its unique history. I personally find it appalling that the majority of the watchers now tune in exclusively for the ads, which have a track record of being more uneventful than the game itself. Seldom do you see one ad, or a series of ads, that is worthy of the hype associated with the price point of that :30 spot. 

What is especially noteworthy to me as a PR practitioner — besides the fact that Peyton Manning is getting his well-earned and much deserved chance to wear the ring — is how everyone seems to jump on the Super Bowl bandwagon in order to get some extra publicity. My grocery store and even my bank are offering football related specials. Does it work? Only for the select few who are doing something incredibly different.  After practicing PR for the past five years, I’ve learned that one of the best ways to get PR is to be where the cameras are. Election Day, the post office on Tax Day, the Super Bowl, 4^th of July Events …

The local media consistently covers these stories, and I am shocked that more companies don’t take advantage of these opportunities. For example, we had a spa client and wanted to generate publicity for them around Valentine’s Day, another PRable event. Rather than simply creating a Valentine’s Day package, we partnered with a women’s shelter and provided pampering services and chocolates to the residents leading into the holiday. We were covered by three of the local TV stations and garnered a major newspaper feature. 

The key element to all of this is to be creative and tell a compelling story. If the news is going to be covering it any way, give them a unique angle that no one else will have. Take advantage of big stories – make them work for you. If the media is going to be there, you should be there too. Just be there with something VALUABLE and NEWSWORTHY to say. And if you’re not sure what that is, call and ask a professional who does. 

But don’t call this Sunday. I have a game to watch.