Part One of Two
The press are coming, the press are coming! Now what? The way you manage your media contacts before and during major events such as trade shows or grand openings may influence
coverage more than your executives' speeches or any flashy photo opp with J. Lo and her camera-shy derriere.
Both you and the media should know up front what to expect from an event, when to expect it, and from whom. Plus, since events usually are not hard news, getting your story
into the press often requires that you provide reporters with the angles and assets that they ordinarily would develop themselves.
In this first of two parts, we bring you, your company, and the media to the front door of the event, while in Part Two, we get down and dirty on the event floor.
No Secrets: The best way to get press to an event is to be very detailed and explicit about what the media can expect, and what they will walk away with, says Iana Dealey,
director of PR for Brogan & Partners, who ran a segment of the PR for the grand opening of NFL football venue Ford Field in Detroit.
"It is as much for their editors as for them," she says, because it is the assignment editor who usually makes the final call whether to send someone out. Tell them precisely
what photo opps, meet-and-greets and announcements they will get. Just as important, let them know how long they will be there and give an exact itinerary if possible.
Send the Book First: Give media the heavy-duty background material on an event at least one month before the event itself so that they aren't starting the learning curve at the
door.
Give them the skeleton of their story, angles, story ideas, opportunities for exclusives, before they get there so they can focus on the event and use their time there to
complete, not start, the story. Make use of the Web site to help you accomplish this step ahead of time. Tracy Quan, executive director, corporate public relations, Kerzner
International, represents an Atlantis luxury resort in the Bahamas. Before any major PR events for the resort, she stocks the corporate site with all of the relevant releases,
photos, schedules, etc. so media "get the lay of the land" before arriving.
Dress Codes: If you want the media to experience an event, whether it is the clear water at Quan's tropical Bahaman resort or a camel ride at a zoo opening, offer appropriate
dress suggestions so the media are suited up to get involved, says Lesley Bellus, VP, O'Connell and Goldberg, which also works Atlantis resort events.
No Encyclopedias, Please: Don't hand press a phone book of material at the door, because most of them are thinking about making deadlines, not doing library research. Dealey
finds that CD-ROMS are widely accepted now as a compact way to amend a print kit with the denser media assets, especially reproducible hi-res images.
Dealey also provides print versions for press who prefer them.
Just the Facts: Lead with the easily scanned fact sheets, bulleted points that convey the key messages you intend and provide and some raw data (numbers surrounding the event
or the venue).
Target Your Kits: Make multiple kits or fact sheets that segment the media audience, be it by platform (TV, print) or by focus (trade, business, general). For the Ford Field
opening, Dealey had a "smorgasbord of media" coming from many angles, so she made discrete fact sheets, including sheets that addressed political, feature, food, and tourism
angles.
Speaker Prep: If you yourself aren't directing speakers at an event about the key points to get across, make sure that you know in advance what they are going to say.
The only news you want made at a press event is what you are there to announce. Respect media's limited attention span; make sure time limits with speakers are agreed upon up
front and in the case of multiple speakers have a production crew that signals speakers when to cut things short.
Prep for Access: Be precise with speakers up front about their obligations to interact with the press after a presentation: where, when and for how long.
Star Treatment: Quan, who deals with celebrities such as Gloria Estefan, Michael Jordan, and N Sync at Atlantis, recommends a lot of advance work with a VIP's "people" about
what is expected of them, the kind of access press will have, and what the celebs will be saying.
Equally important for stars is knowing when they are "off"--when and where the press has been asked to leave them alone. A press line is the easiest way to ensure photo opps
for all and quick interviews, but always have an alternative entrance away from the media so celebs can opt out of the line at the last minute. Finally, says Bellus, who handled
J. Lo and Estefan, among others, meet with the celeb at the beginning of the event, and give an overview of the press in house to make sure they are comfortable before putting
them in front of the media." It is better to pull a star from press access than risk getting a hostile exchange or peeved star.
Quiet Time: Post-speech interviews, whether one-on-one or conference-style, should take place in a separate, quieter conference, says Scott. This makes taping/filming, hearing
Q&As and managing the press much easier than doing it in a poorly lit, noisy main hall.
Talk to Marketing: Linda Lyon, Gelphman Associates, warns that at trade shows, "PR normally invites media and analysts, while marketing invites current or potential customers."
Avoid scheduling clashes and any embarrassing client encounters with the press by having PR control the meeting schedules.
(Contacts: Lesley Bellus, 954/964-9098; Iana Dealey, 313/874-8586; Linda Lyon, 510/487-8672; Merichelli Heredia and Jodi Paradise, 305/446-2700; Tracy Quan, 954/713-2633; Mark
Scott, 404/459-7452)
Never, Ever, Ever
...Be unavailable or say no comment, warns Dealey. It is your job to be available and have a comment.
...Make promises. Tell the press you will try to get them what they need (i.e. exclusives, interviews, etc.) but don't set both of you up for disappointment because situations
and people are fluid at events.
...Demand or expect coverage. Sometimes, there's just no story to write, but you've started a relationship with a reporter that could lead to future coverage.