What’s in your Marcom and Corporate media toolkit? 

published 2003

Gaining good media coverage and earning the respect of journalists requires the use of a variety of media tools.  And, like any tools, some of those in your Media Toolkit require regular maintenance if you want them to do their job properly.

Here’s a rundown on the main items that should be in a regular Media Toolkit.

Media List

A good media list is not a single collection of all the media that might be targets for your communication.  A good media list is a database of contacts that can be tailored for specific tactical use. 

If you operate in a B2B environment, then you will probably have relatively few publications, but quite a number of journalists at each.  This type of list should be organised to reflect the special interests of individual journalists within each publication.

For Marcom people, the list will be quite extensive and cover print, radio, television and online media.  The more ‘media rich’ the list is, the more there is a case for a sophisticated searchable database.  Software products are available that not only allow you to search by publication, journalist or keyword, but also allow you to record a history of contact with every journalist on your list.

Whatever the size of your media list, it requires constant maintenance to keep it current.

Press Releases

Generally, press releases are announcement documents.  They deal with news, be it about a new product, a new CEO, a name change or a corporate milestone.  Press releases are crafted, not just written.  They must have a strong headline and an engaging lead paragraph.  The body of the release should be tightly written and be free of hyperbole and  contain minimal acronyms.  They can be accompanied by photos and/or fact sheets.  Check out the release writing tips we published earlier by clicking here.

All too often, press releases are mistaken for a similar looking tool, the Media Alert.

Media Alert

These are exactly what they are called.  They alert media to something that is about to happen.  They are often used to announce a forthcoming a press conference or similar event.

Editors and journalists receive dozens of media alerts every day, so make sure yours stands out.  The headline should be challenging and, wherever possible, should contain a superlative - biggest, fastest, most expensive, etc.  Headlines should also be used as subject lines if being distributed via e-mail.

The body of the media alert should be brief.  It should contain mainly facts and figures relating to the event and, where possible, should be graphically appealing.

E-mail Pitches

An e-mail pitch is probably the least liked tool of journalists, simply because they get so many of them.  Used properly though, it can be a very effective tool.  So when should this tool be used?

• When you’re pitching a trend story. 
• When you want to keep a journalist up-to-date with a fluid issue.
• When you want to pitch interviews with corporate spokespeople.

But don’t mass mail.  Use your Media List first to identify your more desirable or most likely journalists for what you are pitching.  When you’ve identified your shortlist, send personal e-mails to each journalist.

Press Kits

This is an essential tool for corporate communicators.  By its very nature, though, it is also a high maintenance tool. 

Press kits should contain relevant and current information on the company, its corporate structure, its milestones, its products and services and its key financial figures.  Press Kits should also contain brief biographies on key management.  If you want your Press Kit to work for you, it should contain high quality images of corporate and product logos, product shots and photos of key people.

Press kits should be available in hard copy format, on CD and should also be downloadable from company web sites.

Web Sites

Increasing numbers of companies are realising the power of their corporate web sites when it comes to presenting media with relevant information.  They know that many journalists will search a web site to confirm facts or gain background information before contacting the company.

If you are in an industry that attracts a lot of media attention, then your corporate web site homepage should have a navigation button called ‘Media’ or ‘News’.  Once clicked through, journalists should be presented with a clear list of options on the index page.  Common indexes include:

• Latest News
• Press Releases
• Fast Facts
• Financial Information
• Executive Biographies
• Media Kit
• Logos & Photos
• Contacts

Obviously there are more tools than the six discussed here, but these are amongst the most commonly used by media-savvy organisations.

The trend today is for organisations to concentrate on the tools required for core functions, and to use outside consultants for the specialist or less frequently used (but still critical) media tools.

• Media tools commonly sourced externally include:
• Message development
• Technical writing (for case studies)
• Media database development and maintenance
• Crisis management plans
• Media training