July 08, 2005
Feedback, We Need Feedback... Media Kits Training Manual
Over the years we've seen lots of material on the subject of how to create media kits and online press kits. Most of it's pretty bad. The rest is really bad...
So we've decided to solve that problem by creating a manual of our own.
It's been a long and arduous process, but we've finally just about completed what we consider to be the best training manual on how to create media kits and online press kits available in the marketplace.
We've worked hard to include the information that our key advisors have told us is important to have in a manual of this type. But today I realized that we had never asked YOU for your input.
So, before we actually release it, I wanted to give you the chance to weigh in, to tell me what you need to know on this subject.
If you could spend two minutes to visit http://101PublicRelations.com/mediakitquestions.html and fill out the 4-questions there, I would really appreciate it! It will help to make a great product even better!
Posted by Don Crowther at 04:07 PM | TrackBack
July 01, 2004
Three Reasons Why You NEED An Electronic Media Kit
I just got done listening again to one of our best-selling audiotape/CD programs "Electronic Media Kits - How To Create Them, Deliver Them, and See INSTANT Results" and I can't tell you how cool the information Bev Harris supplies in it!
Rather than rave about it, here's three quick reasons she brought up, why you need a media kit on your web site:
- They save you lots of money.
Think about all the times that you've sent out media kits to reporters, knowing full well that they're going to dump every piece of that kit into the garbage except one piece of paper - and that's if you're lucky and your whole kit doesn't hit the round file un-perused. If a reporter calls and says "send me your media kit," you can simply say "I'll have that out tonight, but you can find exactly what you're looking for at (and you give them the exact URL to that page)". They'll be thrilled and you'll save yourself the money required not only to produce the media kit, but to overnight it out.
- They are used by reporters as a pre-screening tool to check you out before calling for information.
If it's not there, you may never get the call.
- They are increasingly being used by the media as a replacement for paper media kits.
Let's face it, filing is not a required pre-hiring skill for a reporter. Lots of reporters have a filing system that consists of stacks on their desk, floor and cadenza. So lots of media outlets have a single file system that all the reporters use. Finding something in that system is a pain, requiring a request, or a walk across the room, and figuring out where someone may have filed it. So reporters are increasingly turning to typing your name into a search engine, and working with what they see there. Again, if you're not there, you're missing out!
This is one CD you will profit from hearing, even if you already have an online media kit, because there's so many great ideas inside not only on how to structure your online media kit, but there's lots of stuff here about the process of working with reporters. Here's the info: Electronic Media Kits: How to Create Them, Deliver Them and See INSTANT Results
Posted by Angie at 06:11 PM | TrackBack
June 23, 2004
Electronic Media Kits: How to Create Them, Deliver Them and See INSTANT Results
One of the most powerful tools you can have today to help build your media presence is an online media kit. In fact, just last week I was talking to a reporter from USA Today who told me that he "never" even looks at USA Today's internal files until after he's checked the company out on the web.
I'm sure he's not alone.
A big piece of getting written up the way you want to be is to make sure that the media has quick and easy online access to your media kit and the information that you want them to see.
This CD seminar gives you the tools to do just that. In this one-hour telephone seminar, Joan Stewart interviews publicist Bev Harris on exactly how to set up an online media kit. Plus, you'll get a ton of tips on some other subjects besides just online media kits.
In it you will learn:
- The difference between a media kit and a press kit
- What you must include in your media kit to lend credibility to your statistics
- What dailies, weeklies and radio bookers want to find in your media kit
- What Bev Harris learned when she asked the media to "review" a boxful of paper media kits
- Why you MUST offer the media sources other than yourself
- The 7 major items in a media kit
- What to include if you're using testimonials
- Recommendations for photos
- How to lure the media to the electronic media kit at your web site
- The most difficult task you face when e-mailing reporters
- Tips for compelling headlines and enticing leads on your news releases
- What you MUST do when contacting editors at IT trade publications
- The ONE item that bigger papers view as worthless in your media kit
- The 3 best ways to deliver your electronic media kit
- The difference between a topic and an angle
- Where to find the ideal layout for a media kit that you can copy for your own site
- What to post at your site regarding your experts
- Exactly WHAT constitutes an expert?
- Why mass-mailing paper media kits wastes thousands of dollars
- When you must get permission to reprint information from other publications in your media kit
- The correct way to follow up with reporters-and what to say when you get them on the phone
- What to ask reporters to get valuable feedback on your media kit
- Where to find information on how to work with individual media outlets
- How to get reporters' e-mail addresses
- Why you should pitch editors who create the op-ed pages
- The power of controversial and contrarian viewpoints in your media kit
- Why pitching trade publications is different than pitching bigger publications
- Why journalists want to bypass your PR Department
- How to search engine-optimize your media kits
To start profiting from your online media kit and to get your copy of this powerful seminar, click: Electronic Media Kits: How to Create Them, Deliver Them and See INSTANT Results
Posted by Angie at 05:03 PM | TrackBack
Media Kits On A Shoestring
Take a minute and think about what your local reporters have in their files about you right at this very moment...
Nothing?
You've got a ton of work to do.
A business card?
I'll tell you this much, I'm not basing my future on the information communicated on a 2" x 3.5" piece of cardboard!
If you're normal, that's probably all they have. But is it what you want them to have? Don't you want them to have information carefully chosen by you to accurately reflect your business and your specialties?
That's where a media kit comes in.
But don't media kits cost a mound of money and a ton of time to assemble?
Actually, not at all. You can literally put one together for very little money and just a couple of hours.
And the results can be incredible.
What exactly is required for a good media kit? Some may spend thousands of dollars on custom folders with incredible graphics, multimedia CD's, $10 apiece full color foldout brochures, coupons for free goodies, and on and on. Don't make the mistake of thinking that all of this stuff is going to bring the media in droves.
Remember, reporters want fast information, not a folder that could pass as new age art. With this in mind, here are some things that would go well in media kit:
- A simple, yet nice looking folder
- A writeup that clearly tells them what type of stories to which you can add value
- A history of your organization
- Professional photos
- Generic brochures
- Recent news releases
- Business cards
Yes, you can indeed construct a fabulous media kit with a minimum amount of money. We've compiled Special Report #8: Media Kits on a Shoestring: How to Create Them Without Spending a Bundle
Posted by Angie at 04:58 PM | TrackBack
How To Make Sure Your Web Site Works Effectively With The Media
Right now, while you're reading this, reporters might be at your company’s web site without you knowing it, snooping around to see if the company is interesting enough to warrant a story.
If they don't like what they see, they'll bail out, never to be heard from again.
Lots of people believe that one of the secrets of promoting yourself online is to have online media kit. That's true. But before you develop your online media kit, it's important to make sure that your base web site is ready for traffic. Only after that's done is it time to get the online media kit up and running.
Here are some of the most egregious sins at corporate web sites that confuse, offend and generally turn off visitors, including the media:
- Home pages with big, clunky photos that cause sites to load too slowly.
- "Wallpaper" backgrounds usually made up of the company’s logo repeated in row after row. Then type is slapped on top of it. It’s like reading print on top of as picture, and often it’s illegible.
- Hard-to-find addresses, phone and fax numbers and e-mail addresses. I once found a web site for a public relations company that had the phone number buried three layers into the site. Don't hide this information under a "Contact Us" key either. Post it right out there on the home page, or better yet, on the footer of every page of the site.
- Information that makes the site look outdated. For example, the phrase "We can deliver in time for Christmas!" should only be on your site during the last few days prior to Christmas, and certainly shouldn't be there after December 24th!
- Poor-quality electronic photos. You can post images to the web in other than the 72dpi format that most web-based image files are set at. However, because of the compression incorporated with the various formats for web-based images, they aren't ideal files for print media. If you want to make print-ready images available at your site you should link to a high-resolution version of the image that will only download to the visitor’s system once they've clicked the link.
- Things that flash, make noise, move back and forth and generally distract the reader. This technique was interesting when first introduced. But so many companies abuse it that their home pages look like a carnival midway. And it’s annoying.
Once your site is generically ready for the big time, then it's time to get your online media kit up and running.
Here's a special report that shows more information on how to prepare your site for media visits and how to create your own online media kit.
How To Create an Online Media Room- and Keep the Media Coming Back
