It's easy to think that public relations are only about making a lot of the news you have or 'creating' news stories that will attract the press and media. If you're able to respond quickly and provide helpful comments then breaking news is an excellent opportunity to boost your profile. Here are some handy tips to have you consider making probably the most of breaking news.

Monitor the news - it's essential to record the press and media for the stories which are being covered. It's unlikely that the week should go by without some type of story appearing you could contribute to. Which means being on top of the news and stories as they appear and develop through the day. It's not so difficult to begin to see the stories that will probably get coverage over a couple of days.

Act quickly - the important thing is to spot an account and then act on it. The quicker you are in contacting the relevant journalist with useful comments or material than the more likely it is going to be that the efforts will probably pay off. The planet of press and media moves quickly which means you should do the same. You'll also need to think about the deadlines that journalists work to. The 24-hour news channels News Articles mean that there's now a great deal more scope for providing expert comments on the trunk of a news story. They've air time and energy to fill and is going to be grateful when you can make them do that. Also, don't forget that most of the stories that come in the Sunday newspapers will be the week's stories in more detail by having an additional comment - that offers you a great opportunity.

Help push on the story - make sure that what you contribute provides useful information, can go through the story from an alternative perspective, help to maneuver the story on, etc. The audience desires to be informed and your job is to greatly help achieve that. It's no good approaching a journalist about a business story by saying that you will be a business coach - you need to be very specific, in terms of the story, about what you can contribute.

Get yourself available - if you want to raise your profile on the trunk of someone else's news then you definitely need to put time aside to do that. It may be disruptive because it's not planned. Before approaching any journalist be clear that you could contribute time to follow through. If you should be successful in your efforts, that could include visiting a business, doing interviews, etc., and that most takes some time and effort. Prior to an interview, you may even desire to seek the services of a media trainer to assist you prepare. This is advisable especially if you haven't done much press and media work.

Build relationships - approaching journalists on the trunk of breaking news also provides you with a great opportunity to construct relationships with journalists covering your interest area. Learn the sort of stories they are enthusiastic about and whether you are able to make them with other accounts. Also, if you do an excellent job then it gives you scope for getting them to put you in their 'little black book' of contacts for future stories - that's what you really should achieve.

Become a specialist - you will find two approaches to generate opportunities for comment and interviews on the trunk of news stories. One way is to make contact with journalists. The other is for them to contact you. In a great world, you need to probably do both. You can find databases such as Expert Sources where you are able to list your details for a paid-for subscription. Journalists utilize it to locate experts to offer comments for the stories they are working on.

Commenting on the trunk of other people's news is a superb way to construct your profile and get in contact with key audiences. It can be an essential way to construct your profile while keeping your costs down. If you're able to build a reputation for providing useful and insightful comments then you definitely will begin to find that journalists will get back to you time and again.