The Essential Guide To Property PR-Speak


The best property PRs do great jobs, essential for journalists and clients alike.

The less good ones (like not-so-good journalists who churn out cut-and-paste press releases) rattle off cliches which have to be decoded by the rest of us.

So for those of you fortunate enough to be neither a journalist nor a public relations professional, enjoying this April Fool’s Day, here is a little help with definitions:


1. PR SPEAK: “My client really wants to meet you”
- REAL SPEAK: The contract is coming up for renewal...I need to wheel out a journalist;

2. “Where is convenient for lunch?”
- Anywhere within a 200 yard radius of my office even if it’s 200 miles from your home;

3. “My client was thrilled to be mentioned in your story”
- I’m telling my client the six word quote was the equivalent of £3,000 of advertising;

4. “It’s an exclusive”
- perhaps... I’ve sent it exclusively to everyone on my 120-journo contact list...
- or... it’s such a turkey of a story, I’ll see if an exclusive tag makes it interesting...
- or, very rarely... it’s a genuinely good story and it really is just for you;

5. “I’ve got a fascinating new client”
- Yes, it’s yet another buying agency dealing in London and the Home Counties;

6. “Luxury development”
- Like most others these days;

7. “Uber-luxury development”
- Like most others these days, with Phillippe Starck taps;

8. “I’ve got the perfect case study”
- Someone who will say nice things about new homes in return for a box of cheap wine;

9. “It’s a long-haul press trip, you’re only there 24 hours, so you must fly business class”
- It’s economy and we’ll tell the journo at check-in that the client wanted to cut costs;

10. “Yes, social media is SO important these days”
- I’m on Twitter occasionally, only within office hours, to make it look like I use it a lot.

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