THEY USED TO CALL IT PAYOLA
BY ALAN GOLDFARB
Jan. 9, 2023
One of my winery clients, obviously seeking my advice, sent this email: “I’ve been getting a lot these lately. What do you think?”
The missive, a new kind of PR ploy, came from the UK. It went like this:
“I know we reached out to you a month ago with an admiration for what you’re doing at “winery” (quotes mine) in the food production industry (bolding mine) - can my team share details of the editors / publications that are interested in covering you (already?)? We only charge after you are published so we are investing our resources in you; not the other way around. Can I shoot over some examples of the publications that could publish you?”
Then, literally as I’m writing this, comes a message from a writer I had reached out to, and who I assumed a bona fide journalist (silly me): “I would be interested to do an article on “winery” and their vision. As you know I work on a freelance basis. Assuming an article would be in the area of 1200-2000 words, my fee would be $350, $ .25/word if you wanted something more in depth.”
350 shekels? A quarter a word? You’re selling yourself short, my man. So, later for you. If I’m going to pay you to write about my client, naturally I’d expect you to write glowing goop about my client. Only, I don’t deal in goop.
Call it what you will, “Play-Then Pay”, ”Pay-to-Play”, or Pay-and-Pay Some More”, my work here as a longtime wine journalist, who knows how the game within the game is played; and now as a wine media relations consultant, my integrity, relationships and transparency are all I’ve got left to my name. That, along with my 35 years of experience as a writer and a flack, I’m incredulous that I’m even entertaining the notion that my contribution is in jeopardy. I cite the above-mentioned predators as among a litany of examples as evidence that our value system is in peril.
A look inside the website of that neo-PR agency -- which incidentally, currently lists no winery clients --offers my winery (which is not in the “food production” business as the obvious fishing email presumes), what amounts to a grift-like contingency plan.
It goes on to say on its “About Us” page: “We do not work like a traditional PR agency, we believe our clients deserve complete “transparency” (quotes mine). Here at “PR agency” we work on a pay on results model. What that means is you will not pay anything until we actually get you published in a Top Tier outlet. We generally get you published within a week, so you will have results incredibly quickly.”
What that assumes is that I – and all other legitimate media relations agencies – are not transparent. Further in what is complete bullshit, is that this fake flack will get one “published within a week”. As with the wine business itself – which by nature, takes a long time to see the literal fruits of its labor – getting an substantive article published takes anywhere from a couple of weeks at best, to six months.
If my clients have any trust in my experienced and intimate knowledge of the wine and media business – which is my competitive asset – they’ll realize that in all the time it takes me get them a placement and a “media hit”, I’m working my behind off to the best I know how, to bring the results home. Which is why I’m paid a retainer – not after I deliver. I know my fees are fair. I work alone. I’m not a big agency. And a preponderance of my clients don’t have much in their budgets for what I offer them.
I don’t know what those buy now/pay later folks charge, but I’m guessing it’s a shipload more than what I get.
Pay-to-Play? Homie don’t play that. What I give (forgive me Beatles) is more than equal to what I receive.