Catriona Pollard, Author at CP Communications

Media release template

MEDIA RELEASE
Date

Headline
The headline of a media release should summarise the key points but catchy, interesting and strong. It is designed to catch the attention and encourage further reading. Ensure you bold it.

Lead
Start with your town/city (ie Grafton). The lead paragraph is the key part of your media release. It is essential that your lead is punchy and has the story hook. Check that is includes:
WHO did it?, WHAT did they do?, WHERE did they do it?, WHEN did they do it?, WHY did they do it?, HOW did they do it?

Body
The paragraph under the lead should expand on the lead and be the point where you start telling the story. The body of the media release it is important to prioritise messages from the most important to the least important. Use short sentences and short paragraphs with vigorous, active language. Always write in the third person.

Use quotes to make your writing more interesting but remember all assertions opinions must be attributed to a particular person, or the organisation. The media are unable to use newsworthy assertions unless sourced, and they will often call to check on the quotes.

End
The last paragraph is the least important information and can include background information or summarises the essential background information about the organisation, event or person.
Always finish the release with –ends- so the journalist knows it has finished.

Contact information
Add for further media information contact: include a contact name, email, phone number.

Boiler plate (About)
Include background information about the business, art or exhibition. This information will give the journalist an overview and isn’t necessarily needed in the release.
See a media release

NAME

Attention: NAME FIELD,
PUBLICATION FIELD

Media Release
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
11 August 2008

Minister for Housing launches Homelessness Information Clearinghouse website

Energetica, an IT consultancy specialist in the not-for profit sector has developed an innovative homelessness website to be launched today in Newcastle, by the Minister for Housing, Tanya Plibersek. The site provides information on various aspects of homelessness in order to help tackle this priority social issue in Australia.

The Homelessness Information Clearinghouse www.homelessnessinfo.net.au, offers opportunities for people to participate in an online community, comment on articles, generate debate, participate in discussions, share information, ideas, expertise, and discuss issues online.

Ms Plibersek said: “The launch of the National Homelessness Information Clearinghouse will make it much easier for the homelessness sector to work together and share ideas.”

“Sharing research through this new facility will help government, researchers, service providers and the community to determine if our responses to homelessness are working.”

“It will also provide links to all levels of government and homelessness organisations websites. This will help to strengthen our ability to address the complex and very real problem of homelessness in Australia,” said Ms Plibersek.

Energetica’s Director Lisa Harvey said the launch of the new Clearinghouse website will provide a central place for agencies and workers in the field to find and share information about good practice, issue management, research and case studies on homelessness in Australia.

Ms Harvey said: “Many organisations in the sector work in isolation and a single source of information will provide an efficient way to increase their capacity to deliver services to homeless people, and to connect with others working in their field.”

“The Clearinghouse website has been designed to cope with large amounts of content and includes files for download in the document library, forums, events, and hundreds of articles and documents covering 150 categories of information.”

“The site also includes several of the submissions to the Federal Government’s green paper on homelessness,” said Ms Harvey.

Energetica’s experience in working with the community sector and their expertise in building online communities will contribute to a strong and focused information clearing house, allowing people to communicate with each other, work through issues and collaborate on shared resources and new ideas.
The Clearinghouse site is an initiative of the Supported Accommodation Assistance Program (SAAP), National Coordination and Development Committee (CAD).

-ends-

Enter your contact details
Name:
Phone:

Sydney Public Relations Agency, CP Communications provides specialist media, traditional and online PR strategies that get amazing results. Contact us today. For more PR tips see www.PublicRelationsSydney.com.au

by Catriona Pollard

Key tips for managing a media interview

Answer plus one: To ensure you maintain control of the interview, don’t just answer the question. Your objective must always be to communicate your key messages. Use the questions as an opportunity to make your points. This is called ‘answer plus one’. In other words, answer the question then add one of your key messages or key issues outlined in your game plan.

Answer in your own time: The journalist is interested in what you have to say, so don’t get flustered if you can’t think of an answer immediately. Just take your time, collect your thoughts and take a deep breath before you answer.

Don’t be afraid of silence: Some journalists use it as a technique in the hope you will fill the silence with unplanned information. Silence can be powerful and there is no need to fill it.

The “no comment” rule: Don’t say “no comment” as it implies confirmation of the question. The audience will interpret it as guilt or a cover up. The rule of thumb for responding is to explain why you can’t respond and use one of your key messages. For example, “I can’t respond directly to that for legal reasons, however, what I can tell you is…”

However, never allow wrongful allegations to stand. If the journalist says something wrong, correct them immediately. Do not repeat the incorrect information or question. If you do, it will only reinforce it.

Don’t use jargon: Every industry has its own jargon. Remember who your target audience is and communicate in language they will understand. Also, don’t assume that the journalist is trained in your specific area of expertise, and as a result, they may not understand your jargon.

Use your customers as testimonials: Depending on the topic of the interview, it may be effective to use one of your valued customers to validate your key messages. You would have to ensure that they are comfortable speaking to the media. Often this is an effective way of illustrating your point and helps your audiences understand and identify with you.

Most importantly – have fun: The interview is a wonderful opportunity to promote your business, product or yourself. Take control, prepare and enjoy every moment.

by Catriona Pollard

How to write an article that will get published

Feature articles, case studies, analysis, user stories, opinion pieces are useful PR tools to project an individual’s or company’s thoughts, services, activities, philosophy and expertise.

Before putting pen to paper have a think about how it will be sold or used. Your writing, research or thoughts will be published if they are pertinent, entertaining, informative and well written. It is critical to adopt an external and objective perspective.

Articles will not be published if the writing is padded, inconsequential, boring, uses too much jargon, or is overlong, theoretical or irrelevant. In short, it must pass the “So What” test if it is ever going to achieve a wider circulation than a sub-editor’s bin.

Articles have a better chance of passing the “So What” test if they:

Refer to issues and organisations everyone knows about. How your new business process works in theory is dull - how it will measurably benefit BHP is fascinating.
Apply to this market. A case study on Telstra is more interesting to Australian readers than one on Hong Kong Telecom.
Give a clear business benefit. How your company’s new system could be used to enhance shareholder value in many (unidentified) companies is inconsequential; how it could cause Coles Myers shares to increase in value by 25% is compelling.
Are relevant and timely -How a law or judgement could be applied in a hypothetical situation is irrelevant and idle speculation; how it could be applied in the Hunter Valley dispute is topical.

Part 2

It is worth remembering that every media is merely a conduit to an audience. Who are the people you would most like to read your article and what is the best media to reach them?

Using lots of jargon in your article will lose you a lot of readers, and detracts from the quality of your message. If an article cannot be understood by a reasonably intelligent person who is not involved in the sector, it is likely to be overly¬ jargoned. This is particularly so for technical and information technology subjects.

It is important that the article is factual. Your views alone on where the stock exchange may be heading are of little interest or value outside your office or telephone circle. Research which factually supports your position or conclusion is valuable.

If you are offering opinions or arguing a controversial or adversarial position, you’ll need to back it with facts, preferably new ones or make sure you pass the “so what” test in capitals.

To gain attention and enhance credibility your opinion must be intellectually sound. If your opinion contributes a genuinely fresh and different perspective to a topical issue, then it has a better chance of receiving the prominence it deserves.

Some time-tested approaches for putting together or structuring your article:

Identify a problem, give a solution
Suggest a new approach
Develop the pool of knowledge on a subject
Describe the lessons learnt from a project/transaction/ruling/issue and their applications to other areas
Conflict the majority view or “perceived wisdom” Chronological
Give the “inside” story - new information about an already well known event, activity or undertaking.

Your article can generally be improved by:

Using another source. Your article is about showcasing you and your firm’s competency/brilliance. It has a lot more authority if your customer or client is saying this, and is an active part of the story. If your new product/service is brilliant, get a buyer or user to say it.

Want more tips? Download this FREE ebook:

by Catriona Pollard

How to write a media release

Developing and distributing a media release is one of the most effective ones of telling your story to the media. A media release can contain information such as the work your business is doing, a new product release, the signing of a new contract or commenting on industry issues and trends.

The main rule is that all releases have to be newsworthy. If a release isn’t newsworthy, then it simply won’t get picked up. What makes items newsworthy differs greatly from one publication to the next or even from one section to the next. News is something new, up-to-the minute and of interest to the readers. Following are some guidelines for good press releases:

The lead paragraph is the most important and should provide a ‘hook’ for the journalist. It should contain who, what, when, where, why, and how.
Write in the inverted pyramid style. After the lead paragraph, each remaining paragraph should be less important that the one preceding it. That way the editor can trim your release from the bottom.
Write in short sentences, short paragraphs and use keep the information simple and to the point. Try to keep the release to one page.
If you read an article in the paper, you will see they always include quotes. So you should give them the quotes to use. Attribute them to a particular person in the organisation and ensure they are newsworthy.
A good press release has no typographical or grammatical errors.
Head the release with “Media Release” and date it clearly.
Use a catchy headline. Editors receive hundreds of releases a day and a good headline catches their eye and ensures they realise the contents quickly.
At the end of the release add “For further information, contact. . . ” The contact details should include name, telephone number including an after hours number. The editor must have somebody to call to answer questions or to be interviewed.

by Catriona Pollard

How to deal with different types of media interviews

Each medium – radio, TV and print – have specific requirements you should understand before the interview.

Radio
The main feature of radio is that it is a personal medium. Radio gives the illusion of a one-to-one relationship, which means that you should adopt an appropriate style when you go on radio programs.

You should adopt a friendly approach in interviews on programs such as talkback. In radio you are talking to or with people, not at them.

The radio message is a fleeting moment of sound. It is not the medium for complex explanations or lists of facts and statistics. The listeners have to be able to grasp your point at one pass of the information, as there is no visual reinforcement and no hard copy to check back for verifications.

Television
Television is demanding in the sense that the audience see you as well as hear you. Your body language, dress, background and movement all contribute to communication with the audience.

To appear credible on television, you must sound and look credible. Sit rather than stand, as you need controlled movement and remember to use slow, controlled gestures. Review your appearance before the interview, ensuring your dress, hair and facial expression come across credible.

The power of television is its visual impact; you must be brief, to the point and get the key message across in a limited time. Allow yourself time to think, look away and think about the question (look down to the floor not to the ceiling). Use silence instead of filler words such as ‘um’ while thinking.

Print
Press interviews have similar requirements as electronic media in terms of news value and brevity.

The apparent relaxed nature of press interviews should not lull you into a false sense of security. Ensure you get your key messages in early, be careful of rambling and place tonal emphasis on key messages. A trick for press interviews over the phone is to stand up while doing the interview - it will give you a lot more confidence.

by Catriona Pollard

How to contact journalists

Once you have written your media release you need to share it with the media. Journalists rely on people giving them stories and they do want to know what is going on in their community and industry. They want your news.

Finding the right journalists to send your media release to can be as simple as looking through the publications you want it to be published in. You should also think about the type of people you want reading about you and think about which media outlets your target audience get their information from.

Put a targeted media list together. This should include the name of the journalist, their position (ie editor, arts editor), email address and their phone number. If you can’t find their contact details in their publication, call the publication directly and ask for them. Try to get direct email addresses so the release doesn’t go to a general publication email address and get lost.
Ask your industry association for a list of journalists that they send media releases to, or have shown an interest in your industry. Add these to your media list.
Email the media release in the body of an email including only low resolution images. It is important to send the information before calling, so when you do call the journalists know what you are talking about.
Make the subject heading: Media Release – and title of the media release.
Wait two days and call all the journalists on the media list. Don’t ask them if they are going to publish the media release. Simply ask if they received the release and if they would like further information or high resolution images. Be prepared to answer questions so highlight key points on the release you want to get across.
“No I didn’t get the release”. You will hear that often as journalists receive hundreds of releases a day. If they don’t remember the release, just resend it to them.
If you don’t get any media interest, that is OK. You have started the journey of building relationships with journalists and this can take time. Keep sending newsworthy media releases and you will eventually get results.

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by Catriona Pollard

Features of a PR campaign

Every business owner understands that developing an effective communication channel between their business and their customers is an essential element to the success of their business.

A PR program means to communicate with your target audience and it doesn’t need to be complicated or expensive. You can choose from a variety of simple and inexpensive activities that will help you achieve your business objectives.

Some common features of a PR campaign can include:

The foundations

Key messages - Key messages are designed to ensure that the target audience hear and remember the most important aspects of your business. Key messages are, in essence, a description of your competitive advantage and are commonly known as elevator statements.

It is best to have no more than seven key messages. Once developed, they should be incorporated into all oral and written business communications.

Target audience - Knowing your target audience is one of the simplest ways to achieve your marketing communications goals and to save money.

When defining your audiences, really drill down to specifics. For example, rather than “all small businesses in the north shore area” it should be, “businesses employing up to 10 staff, located in the suburbs of Neutral Bay and Mosman etc, in the industry areas of marketing and business consulting etc”. Study the various segments of your particular market and develop strategies to reach each one.

Media program

Although developing a comprehensive media plan can be difficult, you can start with a few easy steps. Think about which media outlets your target audience gets their information from. Make a list of the media outlet and journalist and start reading/watching. A well-defined target media which reflects the target market and includes realistic activities will be more likely to succeed.

Media releases

The most important element about media releases is not so much the quantity of them, but the quality of the stories and ensuring they are written for target media. Media release topics can include the work your business is doing, issues and trends in your industry, launch of new product, new office opening or a new contract win.

Contributed articles and editorials

Many publications are stretched for resources and welcome contributed articles as long as they aren’t heavily branded. They are also a very effective generation of sales leads as they position your business as an industry expert.

Customer case studies

Case studies provide ideal opportunities to leverage business successes and reinforce your business’ key messages through “story telling”. They provide audiences, including journalists, an idea of how your business products actually work through the perspective of your customers.

Sponsorships

Targeted sponsorships are an excellent way of building brand awareness in key markets. It is recommended that any sponsorship is very targeted. Two of the most effective opportunities are sponsoring industry awards and conferences.

Advertising

Advertising can be one of the most effective ways of generating sales leads and building brand awareness. It also can be the most expensive! One way of avoiding dedicating huge budgets to advertising is using vertical market publications such as industry association and trade publications. In many of these publications, it is possible to negotiate free editorial if paying for an advertisement.

These are just a few of the many ways to improve the communication channels between your business and your customers using marketing communications. They will increase sales leads, improve brand awareness and ultimately lead to business success.

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by Catriona Pollard

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