Detroit doesn’t stop. Even after numerous challenges and relentless doubt from naysayers, the city just keeps coming back.
To the outside eye, Detroit may be just a go-to for special events, but those at Daily Detroit know better. Franco hosted Media Matters with special guests Jeremiah Staes and Sven Gustafson of Daily Detroit. Together, we picked the brains of the two local podcasters about all things Detroit…with a few media relations tips thrown into the mix. 
Develop Focused Content
Though the Daily Detroit team is small, the content it produces is authentically Detroit. After all, Daily Detroit covers just that: Detroit, and only Detroit. This includes new business, business development, local restaurants, arts and culture and more. (Daily Detroit includes a 15-minute-a-day podcast, weekly eblast and website that collectively reach the city far and wide.)
Daily Detroit discussions never reach outside of the city, allowing the podcast to move Detroit’s conversation forward in a very niche way, telling listeners what to know and where to go in the city. By using only exclusive Detroit news, analysis and interviews, they are able to take detours from the norm and go where others can’t.
Find Something No One Is Doing
According to Jeremiah and Sven, “if everyone is talking about something and we can’t contribute anything new, we won’t contribute to the noise.”
The average Daily Detroit podcast length is only 15 minutes long, so the content it includes is focused on a particular audience. One example of this is the podcast’s success with the Detroit City F.C. coverage. Before Daily Detroit, no one else covered soccer in the city. Because this was a previously nonexistent market, this simple content strategy gave the team a whole new market, which brought a ton of new email subscribers.
In the world of public relations, it is important to remember that one size does not fit all. When pitching to the media, particularly those smaller, more local stations and publications, keep in mind they may have different criteria for what constitutes as newsworthy.
For this reason, press releases and stories should be crafted with a purpose and sent out only to relevant media, not simply cut-and-pasted to every newsroom in the city. To truly be heard, tell a story that already fits the recipient’s conversation.
As Jeremiah and Sven say, Detroit is a big city surrounded by suburbs, but it’s changing now. Though the Daily Detroit team works to eliminate fear, uncertainty and doubt for Detroiters and metro Detroiters, there are plenty of other stories that need to be told.
Interested in learning more about storytelling and media relations? Contact us to start building strategies for tomorrow, today.
Tracy Sanfilippo is one of our PR Coordinators here at Franco. Reach out to her at [email protected] or on Twitter @TracySanfilippo.
