Chapter Ten:
Public Relations
Tactics
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Overview
Media Relations
 Printed Materials
 Broadcast Materials
 Personal Appearances
 Product Placements
 Podcasts and Blogs
 Interviews and News Conferences
 Press Parties and Media Tours

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News Release

Most common tactic

Answer basic questions

Follow a format

Content standards and rules
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Photographs

Photographs draw attention and are
“read”

Make photos appealing to gatekeepers
 Consider:
Quality, Subject, Composition,
Action, Scale, Angle, Lighting, Color
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Advisories and Fact Sheets
Media advisories or “alerts” are memos to
let the press know about something they
may want to cover
 Fact sheets provide more detail and
background

 Contain
pertinent information about an
organization and its products/services

FAQs are a version of a fact sheet
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Media Kits and Pitch Letters

Media kits contain
 News
release, news feature, fact sheet,
background info, graphics, executive bios, and
brochures
Electronic press kits
 Pitch letters are short notes or letters sent
to journalists to draw their attention to a
story.

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Newsletters, Magazines, Brochures
Organizational versus subscription
newsletters
 Print newsletter format

 4-8
pp, 8.5 x 11 page
Electronic newsletters and e-zines
 Tips on how to create print materials

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Radio

Audio News Releases
 Indicate
length, conversational style, all caps
Public Service Announcements
 Radio Media Tours

Guidelines for writing for radio news
Be concise
Time by reading aloud
Remember it’s spoken journalism
Use simple language
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Television

Video News Releases



Expensive
Controversial
Guidelines
Allow maximum flexibility for use
 Keep soundbites short
 Never use a “reporter”
 Never superimpose your written info
 Provide a true news angle


Satellite Media Tours
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Personal Appearances
Talk shows on radio and television
 Topics should be newsworthy or trendy.
 Coach guests
 Placing a client requires knowing the show
format and audience.
 Shows book guests weeks in advance.

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Product and Issue Placement

Product placement
 Using

products in films and on television
Issue Placement
 Health
issues are often written into plots
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The Internet

Podcasts
 Began
as digital radio broadcasts
 Allow PR to reach highly targeted audiences

Blogs
 Growing
rapidly
 Pitching to bloggers

No spam, know their likes/dislikes, e-mail contact,
disclose affiliation, keep pitches short, link related
published item(s)
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Media Interviews
Prepare interviewees
 Know your message objectives
 Know your interviewer’s style
 Print and broadcast styles differ

 Be
concise for broadcast
 Print interviews may take an hour or so
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News Conferences
Two-way communication
 Do not call a conference for routine news
 Different types of news conferences
 When scheduling, be aware of deadlines

 Both

print and broadcast
Location must accommodate technical
needs
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Press Parties and Media Tours
Press party is a social gathering that ends
with a pitch
 Types of media tours

 Journalists
are invited to visit companies, etc.
 Familiarization trips are used to promote
tourist destinations
 Company reps travel to talk person-to-person
with journalists
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