Earning Good Media Coverage

We all know that in public relations it is crucial to maintain mutually beneficial relationships between the organization and it's clients, but what about maintaining good relationships with reporters. To have a successful media strategy in this constantly changing industry of public relations, you must have good relationships with your media contacts.Though it make take several years for the relationship to evolve, once you obtain that connection, you have the ability to reach numerous media outlets. In order to find the appropriate reporter for the topic you are covering, be sure to read their previous articles so you know what interests them. This idea is especially useful for nonprofit organizations, since they are usually promoting a main cause, like Safe Harbor and domestic violence. Safe Harbor should maintain press lists that are up to date, as well as finding reporters who specialize in specific areas like, women health and issues.

To ensure that information is readily available to reporters, every nonprofit organization should have a Web site that includes a  press room section. I've noticed that on the contact page of Safe Harbor's website there are no links for visiting press or reporters. Safe Harbor would benefit by making a press room section, and adding the following:

• Contact information
• Press releases
• Fact sheets
• Photos, charts, graphs, and video clips

For example, I found this YouTube video on another domestic violence awareness website. This video allows the audience to become emotionally involved with the situation, and hopefully be memorable in the future when someone mentions domestic violence.

Another influential way the media can cover your story is by developing an interview. Whether the interview is on print or online, television or video, this is a great way to get a spokesperson involved and tell their story. The following video clip is an example of a domestic violence survivor sharing her story with the news program, "20/20":

Obviously, this interview probably had great results at getting the word out on domestic violence, but there are a few things you need to follow to ensure a successful interview. Be sure to participate in pre-interview briefing where you rehearse answers, review past stories, review message points, and brief reporter on organization goals.

I know in class we have talked about organizing a big event, such as the homecoming event, for Safe Harbor. First, we will need to produce the Safe Harbor event. If we were planning a huge event, it would be valuable to hire an event planning organization, but with our class has more than the knowledge and experience needed. After the producing is done, we need to use all the media options we have available, such as press conferences, interviews, and media briefings. Here is an example of a town press conference that was geared toward domestic violence:

We need to be able to have the appropriate amount of time to create a memorable event, as well. Everything needs to be planned out and given great effort in order to build a professional-quality event. Even though I have only mentioned a few options of media outlets, there are many more one could choose from. Just know that when choosing a media outlet, be sure that it will be advantageous to the organization, as well as their audience.