When the press release just isn't enough

A press release is a great way to convey your announcement or news item, but it's often not enough to do the job. There are often other resources that reporters will need and want in order for them to effectively tell your story.

VISUALS

Let's start with visuals, which can be anything from head shots of your CEO to shots of the factory floor to graphs depicting your latest quarterly results. Images are more powerful today than ever because most everything gets posted to media websites or Facebook. Even radio reporters who never had to worry about visuals in the past are now asked to snap photos and shoot video of the events they cover.

Think ahead to what images will help make your story more compelling. What parts of your announcement can be told in pictures? Can you supply the images or allow photographers access to key places where they can get their own?

Think ahead to what images will help make your story 
more compelling.

FAQs

Frequently asked questions are a great way to help reporters gain a quick overview of your event. If a reporter does not cover your industry or field very often, he or she will appreciate the added background and detail. 

No need to make it more than a page of five or so FAQs. Make sure you explain any acronyms or industry terms that may not be common knowledge.

This is another opportunity to drive home your message with questions such as, "Why is this issue important?" or "How will this impact area residents?"

FACT SHEET

Similar to FAQs, a fact sheet is simply a series of facts about your organization or the topic that's being discussed at the press conference. Unlike FAQs, a fact sheet doesn't seek to answer specific questions as much as highlight details a reporter would like to add to the story. Examples could include how many customers you serve on a daily, weekly or monthly basis or how many employees you have.

BIOS

Short biographies of the people who are speaking at the press event can be helpful to the media. Again, some reporters may have never covered your business or topic and could use a score card to keep everyone straight.

ADDITIONAL RESOURCES

Additional resources can include the text of the remarks made during the press conference, previous press releases on the same topic or clips from previous stories that have been written about your organization or the issue.

All of these can be combined into a formal press kit and also placed online where they can be accessed by members of the media who could not attend your event. The goal is to be as helpful as possible in order to make it as easy as possible for the media to tell your story.

Mack Communications | Twitter: @mack_comm