Some of the best opportunities in PR aren’t announcements at all.
They’re empty seats.
An Expert Vacuum is a topic reporters keep covering where nobody has become the obvious expert to call yet. The coverage is there. The demand for a smart source is there. The seat is empty.
When a company steps into that seat early, with real expertise, it can become the go-to source on the topic for years.
What it looks like
In May 2023, the U.S. Surgeon General issued an advisory calling loneliness an epidemic. Overnight, every newsroom was covering loneliness… and very few companies were positioned to speak to it with real data and real experience.
One of our clients, a health tech company, was. It had been working on loneliness and social health for years, with real programs and real data behind it.
We helped them step into that vacuum with expert commentary and op-eds, and the coverage followed: op-eds in Fortune and The Hill, plus a Fast Company story on how the company was helping curb the epidemic.
They didn’t invent the story. They were just the best-qualified voice in a conversation that didn’t have one yet.
How to find one
- Read the last 90 days of coverage on your topic. Who’s being quoted? If it’s a different person every time, or the same two academics, there’s room.
- Watch for stories that quote nobody from industry. That usually means the reporter couldn’t find the right person. Not that they didn’t want one.
- Listen for the question reporters keep asking. If the same question shows up across outlets and nobody answers it well, that’s your opening.
- Check what’s coming. A new regulation, a big report, a hearing, an anniversary. Being ready the day a vacuum opens is the whole game.
What it takes to fill one
Being available isn’t enough. (I wish it were!) Reporters need a source who says something specific, backs it up with data or experience, and gets back to them on deadline.
And you have to stick with it. Authority comes from being the useful voice again and again, not once.
The payoff? You stop chasing the news cycle. The reporters start coming to you. We have a name for that part too -- the Callback.
Want a second set of eyes on your next announcement? Book a call with us. We’ll tell you exactly what we’d dig for.
FAQ
What is an Expert Vacuum?
An Expert Vacuum is Notably’s term for a topic reporters keep covering where nobody has become the obvious expert to call yet. A company with real expertise that steps into it early can become the go-to source on the topic.
How do you become the go-to expert journalists quote?
Find a topic reporters cover repeatedly without a consistent expert source, then show up with specific, data-backed points of view and respond fast on deadline. Authority builds from being useful again and again, not from one placement.
How do you find an Expert Vacuum?
Read the last 90 days of coverage on your topic and look at who’s quoted. If sources change every story, if stories quote no one from industry, or if reporters keep asking the same unanswered question, there’s likely a vacuum. Upcoming regulations, reports and hearings can open new ones.
Why do journalists need expert sources?
Reporters need people who can explain what a development means, back it up with data or experience, and do it on deadline. When they can’t find that person, they either quote no one from industry or rotate through whoever is available.