Well, you probably shouldn’t. During those handshakes, look your clients in the eye and let them know it’s your job not to believe everything they tell you. If you don’t want to lie or mislead the media or your clients’ stakeholders, then be sure you’re doing what you can do to understand all aspects of your clients’ agenda.
When I was a rookie PR guy, I had a quick turnaround project for a client who was introducing a new product. I was told it was the world’s greatest product, and I believed them. We introduced it, and I was pleased to have attracted all the top trade media to a major unveiling. I’ll never forget the headline in an article that appeared in the leading trade pub: Client X Takes A Giant Leap Into The Present!” Ouch! I got blamed for the bad headline, which I dismissed at the time, but quickly realized the client was right.
As outside PR counsel, I wasn’t being paid to take everything my client told me at face value. I was being paid to understand the broader context and deliver their news in a way that was credible to its stakeholders. Was my client lying to me or just overly enthusiastic? The product was a big deal for them, it just didn’t exceed the efforts of its competitors.
Believing and listening (only) to your clients can be a recipe for disaster. If you want to practice PR ethically and provide your clients with excellent client service, then start by taking everything they say with a grain of salt. Be sure to seek the views of others. And then have the courage to tell your clients the truth. If you don’t, then somebody will.
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