Description

Three Ways to Love Your Media Kit
By Stacey J. Miller

Effective media kits are something that you must help to create. And you can do it, even if you've never written a media kit or even seen one. A publicist will take the lead, but you should take an active part in the media kit creation process -- whether or not your publicist explicitly invites your participation. That will ensure that you'll be satisfied with the results, and you'll have the winning media kit that you can stand behind. A media release focuses on a particular angle rather than on your product or service, and only you know for certain what you'd like that focus to be. Your publicist will have an idea or two, but your vision (and your goals about how you want the media to perceive you) is what matters most. The media kit represents your company and you, and it helps to shape your image and build your brand. Your reputation is at stake every time someone reads it, and that ultimately makes it your responsibility.

Your publicist may have a great track record in the publicity business, but he or she is unlikely to create the perfect media kit for you without your thoughtful input. Although you might want to let your publicist get the ball rolling by creating a competent first media kit draft, your participation really should kick in even before your publicist begins to conceptualize the release. Here are a few of the key contributions you can offer:

1. Media hooks. Your publicist tunes into the media's news sources and knows what's going on in the world. But you know which current events are most likely to resonate with you, and which news stories you feel the most passionate about. If there's something going on in the news (or there's an event that's about to take place) that you'd like to emphasize in your promotion campaign, then let your publicist know. Your publicist can incorporate that news hook into your media kit, and you can offer quotations (which can take the form of comments on the news story) that will work well for the release, too.

2. Language and concepts. Are there key phrases and ideas that come up frequently in your line of work or your area of expertise? Don't make your publicist figure them out. Instead, provide a list of the words and ideas that should make their way into the media kit.

3. Questions. Publicists often include suggested interview questions in media kits for the journalists' benefit. You know what you'd like Conan O'Brien to ask you if you're sitting on his couch .... your publicist can only guess what those questions might be. Imagine that Conan (or your favorite talk show host) is asking the questions most likely to elicit the information you want to provide, and deliver those questions to your publicist. Good questions, your publicist can create. The questions you want the media to ask you, your publicist can only guess at -- unless you make them clear.

Yes, a publicist potentially could create a decent media kit alone. But that shouldn't be good enough. And that doesn't reflect the way that the best publicists prefer to work, nor does it reflect the way you'd want them to work. When you participate in the media kit creation process, everyone involved will be thrilled with the results. So provide your publicist with your ideas before, and during, the promotion campaign. You'll love the results, and your promotion campaign's success will reflect your efforts.

Stacey J. Miller is a book promotion specialist and founder of S. J. Miller Communications which is based in Massachusetts. Visit her online at www.bookpr.com/.