Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc'

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Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc.

• The Power of Public Relations A Basic Guide to
  Getting Noticed
• Presenter/Facilitator
• Soror H. Leigh Toney, Asst. Program Chair Ivy
  Business AKAdemy Chair
• Gamma Zeta Omega Chapter Transition Workshop
• Saturday, Dec. 8, 2007, 930 a.m.

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The Power of Public Relations A Basic Guide to
Getting Noticed

• Developing the media materials There are a number
  of formats to consider when developing the
  materials destined for the media (please see
  Appendix A for examples). Here is a list of the
  more common approaches Press release The press
  release, or news release, is the most common way
  to disseminate your news to the media. The
  following are elements that should always be
  included in the release
• Contact information - make sure you include a
  name and phone number for the media to contact
  with questions. If you are the contact, make sure
  you do not have plans to be out of the office
  over an extended period of time
• Who - includes the organization name, performers,
  executive directors, etc.
• What - the name of the project, what the project
  is about
• When - includes day, date and times
• Where - includes the physical address and
  directions on how to get there
• Why - this information may not always be
  relevant, but it will be important if you are
  putting together an arts education program or
  fund-raising event
• How - this may include the cost for the public to
  attend a performance or event and how to get
  tickets (including who to contact, phone numbers
  or web site information, times to purchase and
  where the box office is)

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Basic P.R. Getting Noticed

• Headline - the brief title of the story
• Dateline - this is the date you send the release
  and from where you sent it
• Lead paragraph - this is the very first paragraph
  of the release and includes the most important
  information
• Boilerplate - this is the paragraph at the end of
  the release and it generally describes your
  organization the paragraph may contain the name
  of the organization, when and why it was founded
  and any ongoing initiatives
• Sponsors - always include any corporate or
  individual sponsors who helped make your project,
  event or announcement possible
• Editor notation - these elements, including "For
  immediate release" at the top of the release,
  "more" at the bottom of each page which let's a
  reporter know there is more than one page, page
  numbers at the top of subsequent pages and ""
  at the end of the release to signify the end of
  the release are all useful for the reporter

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Basic P.R. Getting Noticed

• Pitch letter -- These letters are designed to
  "sell" a story to a specific reporter and give
  her story ideas. The letter will contain a brief
  introductory paragraph, followed by background
  information on the organization. The last
  paragraph will speak directly to the reporter and
  suggest why you think this would make a great
  story, i.e. "I think your readers/viewers/listene
  rs would be highly interested to know about XX
  because...." Always offer to help a reporter
  conduct research, coordinate interviews and photo
  opportunities, and answer any questions she might
  have.
• Media alert -- A media alert, also known as a
  media advisory, serves as a follow-up to, or a
  replacement for, press releases. They are
  condensed versions of press releases limited to
  one page that spell out the details of the news.
  They are usually formatted with headings like
  "who," "what," "when," "why," "where," "visuals,"
  "contact," etc. And often follow a press release
  by being sent a day or two before your event to
  serve as a reminder to the media. same
  information they already received.
• Calendar listing -- Sometimes you may want to get
  included on calendars nonetheless. Formatted
  almost identically to media alerts, calendar
  listings are brief, detail-rich media documents.
  A minimum of two weeks noticed, before the
  event, is required.
• Photo opportunity alert -- Also formatted like a
  media alert, these advisories spell out a unique
  visual for print and broadcast media outlets.
• Fact sheet -- These one- to two- page documents
  provide the media with a quick reference about
  your organization. In addition, fact sheets are
  used to supplement a press release by including
  statistical information, such as how many
  volunteers you have, how long your
  production/exhibit/performance will run, etc.

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Basic P.R. Getting Noticed

• Bios It is important that the media get as much
  background information as possible to help them
  craft their story without having to do
  time-intensive research. Help them out by
  including key biographical information about
  important people within your organization,
  especially executive directors, spokespeople,
  performers, directors, artists, etc. Biographical
  information might include areas of expertise and
  formal education, how long they have been at your
  organization or working on their trade, related
  experience and any extremely unique information.
• Backgrounder Backgrounders are just what the word
  implies, documents that provide background
  information about your organization or a
  particular issue you are addressing, such as arts
  education, cultural tourism, funding for the arts
  and your organization, local support of the arts,
  etc.
• Press kit Depending on the type of announcement,
  the type of media being addressed and your
  budget, you may want to consider including all
  the above information into a full press kit.
  Press kits come in all shapes and sizes - from
  custom-made folders to stapled pages - and can
  include any number of documents. In addition to
  the items listed above, good press kits include
  the following
• Photos - of people or past events/performances
  (provide both horizontal and vertical photos so
  that the media have options based on the layout
  of the story) in addition, include captions of
  the photos with the organization's name, date and
  a brief description on the subject matter - since
  you are providing the photo, no credit as to who
  took the photo is needed
• Artwork examples - if you are promoting an art
  exhibit, include color copies or printouts to
  peak the interest of the reporter
• Logo pages - provide reproduction-quality logos
  in color and black and white for the media an
  even better option is provide the media with
  logos on disk, but make sure you have the logo
  available in a variety of formats, like .eps and
  .jpg, for both PC- and Macintosh-compatible
  computers so that the recipient will be able to
  download at least one version of the logo
• List of sponsors - although the media rarely care
  about which sponsor is helping you with your
  event the list should be ranked by the amount of
  money or in-kind value the company brought to
  your organization
• Organization and/or event brochures
• Business cards
• Source http//www.arts.state.tx.us/news/prpower/m
  aterials.htm