Your Public Best - Lillian Brown [78]
If you are releasing a statement slated for the evening news, time your press conference so that reporters have time to attend, then get back to their stations in time to edit their material for the newscast. Timing is important.
It is customary after the formal part of a press conference for reporters to gather around the speaker or speakers. They want to ask their own questions and are seeking material for special articles or an individual sound bite for the evening news.
Presidential press conferences are very, very carefully prepared and rehearsed in advance. The staff maintains an up-to-date briefing book on all questions it anticipates the press might ask. The president has a seating chart for the regular, senior members of the press corps and may scan the room in advance on a closed-circuit television screen in order to become familiar with the press seating arrangements.
THE PRESS KIT
Putting together a professional press kit is a real art. The kit is designed to accomplish a definite purpose, such as obtaining news coverage of a public event, generating interest in a project or a new product, or releasing pertinent information.
The overall look of your press kit is important, and the artwork and design have to be chosen carefully. Even the quality and color of the paper can make a difference.
The press kit might contain several of the following:
• A well-written press release on your official letterhead or printed on specially designed press release paper containing all pertinent information—who, what, when, where, why, and the “gee whiz” factor explaining why the reader should cover your event (or whatever else is revealed in the press release) and not throw it in the trash. Be sure to include a contact name (as in, “For more information, contact Fred Howe”), complete address (including suite number and zip code), and a daytime telephone number where that person can be reached. Also include a phrase at the top stating, “For release on ________” (the date you want your news released to the public).
• Biographical material.
• A list of photo opportunities for radio, TV, and other media.
• Black-and-white glossy photographs (not color photos—except for special subjects where color is deemed necessary) with captions (usually 5"X7" or 8"X10").
• Supplementary lists of key or specialized contact persons with names, addresses, and phone numbers.
• Press invitations or one-event press passes with instructions on parking, how to enter secured buildings, etc.
• Pamphlets stating your organization’s goal, activities, and history.
All of this should be enclosed in an attractive cover. The type with two pockets inside is often used.
Some press kits are very serious and almost “stodgy” in appearance. Some are very forward looking, with zippy graphics, lots of color used in brochures and on the press releases, and modernistic logos, etc.
Other press kits that I have seen are original to the point of being clever, such as those that use objects—not just printed materials—to get your attention and make sure you will not throw the kit away unopened.
For example, I once saw a press kit from the Philippines when Imelda Marcos was the first lady during the 1970s. She was about to make an official visit to the United States, and the Philippine government sent out press kits enclosed in handmade baskets.
Another unusual press kit that I saw was sent out during the 1988 presidential campaign. It consisted of a colorful press release tucked into a shoebox sent out by a manufacturer of athletic gear and other types of clothing. The shoebox contained a pair of limited edition sneakers “dedicated to campaign ’88,” according to the press release. The shoes were red, white, and blue, of course, and on the tongue was printed “Exercise Your Right to Vote.” On the anklebone-area of each shoe was space to put your choice of stickers (which came loose inside the shoebox) saying either “Vote for Bush” or “Vote for Dukakis.”
Did the shoe company really have much to do with the campaign?