How to use segmentation, targeting and positioning for media relations

Earlier this year the marketing professor Mark Ritson revealed that two-thirds of marketers would fail a basic undergraduate test on the fundamentals of their own discipline. His research, in partnership with Ipsos, found that many couldn’t even define segmentation, targeting and positioning (STP), the bedrock framework every first-year student learns.

Why this is happening is open for debate. (My view is that we have commoditised our own expertise by allowing anyone to set themselves up as a PR consultant or media relations expert.) A profession that claims to be the authority in framing, signalling, and positioning has failed itself by not understanding how supply and demand works, and particularly how the intentional restriction of the former impacts the latter. That self-disrespect fuels mediocrity, ethical slippage and public cynicism.

One way to start reclaiming that respect is by applying STP directly to media relations. Earned media stops being a volume game; free publicity is no longer about getting as much coverage as possible. Instead, it’s about carefully choosing the right coverage to impress investors, build partnerships faster, and improve your brand’s reputation.

I built this framework while leading communications for Begin, an Emirati streaming platform disrupting South Asia’s sports and entertainment market. The results were measurable: high-prestige coverage that spoke directly to rights holders (Premier League, NBCUniversal, Sony Pictures, Pakistan Super League) and investors, without wasting energy on mass-market consumer outlets.

Here’s how to do it – and stick to it:

1. Segment the media landscape with surgical clarity

Segment it as you would any market: by audience, influence and strategic relevance. Ask yourself these questions:

1. Who are the primary stakeholders that must earned media influence. Investors? Rights owners? Potential partners? Regulators?
2. What outlet categories reach them? (Trade publications read by C-suite decision-makers versus general consumer titles read by end-users?)
3. Which segments carry prestige weight? Does that create a halo effect?

We split the universe into two clear segments:

1. Business of media trade publications which are read by studio executives, content investors and Hollywood dealmakers, such as Variety and Deadline Hollywood.
2. Business of sports trade publications, such as Sportcal, SportsPro and SportBusiness, which are read by league rights teams, sponsors and sports-business analysts.

Consumer titles, local newspapers and broad entertainment portals were deliberately excluded from earned outreach. The segmentation exercise took one afternoon with a spreadsheet and a media database. It changed everything.

2. Target only the high-prestige outlets that matter

Once segmented, target ruthlessly because volume is the enemy of prestige. While 10 pieces in mid-tier outlets create noise, one authoritative byline in a top-tier trade creates belief. The criteria determining the selection of targets should be non-negotiable.

Does the outlet reach the exact decision-makers you need to impress?

1. Does it send a meaningful message that rights holders and investors notice and respect?
2. Is the editorial tone aligned with premium, strategic storytelling rather than clickbait?

We focused exclusively on the five outlets mentioned above. Announcements were embargoed, pitched with exclusivity where possible, and timed to coincide with industry events. The result was better coverage. A single Sportcal exclusive on our Pakistan Super League (PSL) rights deal carried more weight with the Pakistan Cricket Board and international leagues than dozens of generic pick-ups ever could.

My advice is that before you send any pitch, ask yourself: “If this lands in the target outlet, will our most important external stakeholder forward it internally with a note saying, ‘this is who we should be partnering with’.” If the answer is no, do not pitch.

3. Position every announcement around shared strategic themes

Positioning is where STP moves from analysis to narrative power. Do not announce what you did. Announce what the market needs to hear. It must be framed in language the target outlet and its readers already value.

We anchored every earned announcement around three recurring themes that mirrored both our internal strategy and the editorial obsessions of our target trades:

1. Rights innovation: new models for digital distribution, free-to-air windows, multi-territory bundling.
2. Emerging-market disruption: how a nimble Asian streamer was rewriting the rules in markets long dominated by legacy broadcasters.
3. Premium content strategy: investment in quality over quantity, ad-free experiences, and cultural relevance.

Create a one-page positioning map for your organisation. List your three core strategic pillars on the left, your target media segments across the top, and pre-draft one sample angle per intersection. It becomes your pitching bible.

4. Ring-fence earned media for signalling

STP forces discipline on channel choice. Earned media is expensive in time and reputation capital. Paid media is scalable and useful for end customer reach and conversion.

For us this separation was absolute:

The halo effect was immediate. The positive effect on our reputation happened straight away. Rights owners noticed us appearing in the publications that they read for their deal intelligence.

Investors saw consistent proof that we understood premium positioning. Larger competitors chasing blanket coverage looked scattered whereas we looked deliberate.

Measure what matters: don’t count how many media mentions you get, instead pay attention to what important people say about them. For example, did a rights owner mention your article in a call? Did an investor bring up your profile? That’s your ROI.

Why does this work every single time

This STP-driven approach does three things at once. It imposes internal rigour (you cannot wing segmentation), it creates external scarcity (selective targeting signals confidence), and it generates prestige through association (high-prestige outlets confer halo).

The playbook is not theoretical. It was battle-tested in one of the world’s most competitive, fast-moving streaming markets and delivered accelerated partnerships, stronger valuation perception and a competitive moat larger players struggled to replicate. And it was successfully deployed to help a no-name streaming business gain global stardom.

Self-respect in our profession starts with the choices we make every day. Apply STP to media relations and you stop broadcasting to everyone. You start signalling to the right people, at the right level, with the right prestige. That is how PR finally earns the seat it has always deserved.

Chartered PR professional Babar Khan Javed is the co-founder of Aberrant, a Brooklyn-based boutique consulting firm that crafts investor narratives focused on maximising pricing and post-IPO stability and meet regulatory requirements.

New this week

7 big reasons to review your comms team and the benefits it brings

Why speed alone is no longer enough in crisis communications

What it takes to support a private member’s bill in the House of Lords

Backgammon is back! Five of the best places to play