What PR pros need to know about working with faculty, scientists and academic experts

Chelsea Stein is the founder of Circulate PR and a research + science comms pro.

Let’s face it: faculty, scientists and academic experts are often skeptical about working with PR and comms professionals. Whether they’re worried about their research being oversimplified and misrepresented or they don’t see the benefits of publicizing their work in non-academic realms, their apprehension can pose an uphill battle.

Despite these challenges, the key to gaining the trust of academics and achieving successful outcomes is something PR pros know exceptionally well. It all comes down to building relationships.

In this article, explore five straightforward tips that have been proven to foster lasting relationships between PR pros and academics.

• Start by asking for 15 minutes of their time.

Between teaching and research obligations, academics maintain full schedules. My recommendation? Ask for 15 minutes of their time for an initial meeting to get to know their work in a casual setting.

For you, it’ll be enough time to hear about their expertise, jot down their recent or upcoming work and ask a bit about their past media experience, for example. For them, it’ll be a chance to talk about their work in their own words with minimal time commitment.

It’s important to not only share your goals during this meeting but also to ask what their goals are for publicizing their work and expertise. Some academics might be focused on public engagement, others will want high-priority media coverage, or they may expect these efforts to lead to future research collaborations and funding. Regardless, remind them that you’re here to support them and then be sure to seek opportunities that align with everyone’s goals.

Be prepared in case the academic you’re chatting with is uncertain about promoting their work or has had a negative experience with the media. Listen to their points and then offer words of encouragement for the future. Pro tip: Have a few examples ready in your back pocket that showcase your past successes. This will help you earn some credibility and reassure them that it’ll be a positive experience going forward.

• Communicate on a regular basis — not just when you need something.

After the initial meeting, keep the conversation going. If they mentioned an upcoming research paper or project, follow up and ask about the status and timing of publication. If something comes up in the news that’s relevant to their field, see if they have anything to add to the commentary that you can pitch to relevant media outlets. This approach is proactive and demonstrates how you’re allocating time to position their expertise when it’s timely and relevant.

Reconnect on what was discussed in the initial meeting and start to get a feel for the kinds of opportunities they’re up for. Eventually you’ll begin to understand their availability and responsiveness. And after you get a few media placements under your belt, more often than not, the academic will bring their own ideas to you too.

Be sure to put a recurring reminder on your calendar to meet with them every six months or so. This will guarantee you have time to reassess goals and stay aligned with the latest research and news topics.

• Take the time to read their research.

Yes, you should read beyond the abstract. Dive all the way into their research and do your best to understand the findings and real-world implications. Ultimately this is a chance for you to learn about a domain that’s (most likely) totally new to you, so have fun with it! Be curious. Take good notes and write down your questions as you’re going.

Set up another meeting with them to ask your clarifying questions. Trust me, it’s fine if you don’t understand everything. It’s been my experience that when an academic sees that you took the time to dig into the nitty gritty of their work — instead of expecting them to explain it all — they’re happy to help fill in the gaps.

Make sure you ask the kinds of questions that will give you the details you’re looking for. Here are a few you’ll want to keep in mind:

• What inspired this research?
• What is one thing that (target audience) can take away from your research?
• How can your findings apply to the real world today?
• How can future research build off your findings?
• Anything else you want me to know?
• Go to bat for them when corrections are needed.

It happens. People are misquoted, their names are spelled wrong, their titles listed incorrectly. I’ve even had a quote from a faculty member mistakenly removed from a press release altogether.

When these things happen, go to bat for the academic you’ve been working with. Take on the “fight” proactively — and keep it off their plate. Reach out to the institution, journalist or colleague responsible and ask for the correction.

Taking this action can go a long way to earn trust with an academic. You’re proving that you’re here to support them every step of the way, especially when things go a little bit sideways.

• Personally thank them for their involvement and time.

Gratitude is powerful and a small gesture can go a long way. Thank the academic for taking the time out of their busy schedule to work with you. It’s helpful to do this with each opportunity they take on with you, but I also found that an annual thank you email can be a chance to provide them with some data. It’s like Spotify Wrapped but for PR!

Consider sending an email at the end of your fiscal year that captures how many times they were quoted or their research cited. Maybe give a round-up of their top media outlets, if they’re noteworthy enough. And bring it all home with any metrics you have access to, including engagements, impressions, pageviews and shares. Go back to the goals set in your initial meeting and see how everything stacked up.

By sharing this end-of-year feedback, the academic can begin to see the impact of their efforts and feel appreciated for taking this extra work on. And hopefully that motivates them to keep investing in their partnership with you.

The need to embrace the academic community for credible information is pressing. These tips will help get you started and emphasize how our work as PR pros — as it always has — all comes down to building relationships.