Home
>
Public Relations
>
Make Sure Your Media Room Rocks

Make Sure Your Media Room Rocks

If a reporter was writing a story about you and your company and she visited your website, could she find anything useful and interesting about you to use in her story? And could she find it quickly? Or would she immediately abandon your site and look for one of your competitors to write about?

Make it Easy for the Reporter
Every website today should have a "Media Room" (also known as an online press room) with everything a reporter needs to write a story quickly. Not only should you include information about your company history, the management team and owners, your products and services, and so on, but today you should also provide links to industry trade groups, information about industry trends, and maybe even a list of your competitors.

Why would you include your competitors, you ask?

Because just like you, a reporter is very busy and often overwhelmed. If you were the reporter and you visited a website that handed you the perfect story and all the sources to write an objective article about widgets (which just happened to be something your publication's readers, and more importantly your boss, would love to read), wouldn't you be thrilled? Of course you would. And so would I.

Besides, every time a prospect searches for your competitors' products and services, your website will come up in the search, too. Maybe the prospect will click on your website link instead of your competitor's.

The Top 20
So let's consider what you should include in your new website Media Room. Here's a list to get you started; each of these would be a separate "sublink" within your Media Room:

Owners and management team bios (one short and one long bio for each person)
Photos: downloadable, scalable, in 300 dpi (suitable for print publications) and 72 dpi (for online outlets), named/labeled, one for each member of the management team and any products you promote
Company description and history, including dates, facts and sales figures (or percentage of growth by year)
A list of products or services and brief descriptions of each one
Customer demographics
List and description of any awards you or your company have won
List of story ideas with 4 to 6 talking points for each one
Audio and video clips with sound bytes about important issues
List of media experience for key company players
Issues and opinions page, including position papers, articles you have written, White Papers, links to industry resources for both sides of the opinions (all opening in a new browser window, of course)
Statements or quotes by key personnel regarding your business philosophy, hot industry topics, or comments about community issues.
Industry trends and news
Calendar of relevant trade shows and industry events
List of your key competitors and links to outside sites that may contain opposing or even negative views (opening in new browser windows, of course!)
Company and product news (with all your releases listed/summarized and linking to the full story)
In the News section (links to actual published articles, opening in new browser windows)
Contact information for key company players: day, night, cell phone, pager, fax, email (make it easy for the reporter to get in touch with you!)
Email alert service to notify reporters of news
Forms for reporters to order videos, photos, samples
Ability to search the site for information, keywords, topics, etc.

And don't forget to put an obvious link to your Media Room, right on your home page ... and every page. Don't worry if you can't do all of this immediately. Just keep chipping away at it, and soon you'll have a terrific Media Room. Then watch how your publicity grows.

Lois Carter Fay's brainy ideas and resources can help you get better results from your marketing. She is the author of marketing plan essentials: online & off and co-author with Jim Wilson of marketing plan essentials: online & off. Her free "BRAINY Tidbits" email newsletter is filled with tons of marketing ideas and resources and is distributed weekly to a growing list of subscribers. Learn more and subscribe at marketing plan essentials: online & off and receive "67 Ways to Promote Your Business" free by return email.

scheduled cleaning services Winnetka ..

In The News:

New iPhone replacement scam uses pressure tactics and fake carrier calls to steal devices from buyers. Criminals claim shipping errors and demand urgent returns.

Amazon Ring's new facial recognition feature sparks privacy controversy as Electronic Frontier Foundation critics argue the AI upgrade expands surveillance risks.

New Android banking trojan Sturnus steals credentials, reads encrypted messages and controls devices.

Denmark's 3D-printed student village proves automation builds 36 apartments faster than traditional methods. Skovsporet project shows housing future.

Discover Android's new Sound Notifications feature that alerts you to smoke alarms, doorbells, and baby cries even when wearing headphones.

New SantaStealer malware reportedly threatens holiday shoppers with password theft. This Christmas-themed info-stealer targets browsers and crypto wallets.

The Christmas season brings a surge in Netflix phishing scams targeting shoppers with fake emails. Stacey P received convincing scam but verified account first.

San Francisco Giants invite Jamie Grohsong to throw ceremonial first pitch at Oracle Park after he learned to play baseball with a bionic hand following an injury.

FBI warns cybercriminals are stealing family photos from social media to create fake proof of life images in virtual kidnapping scams targeting victims.

Instagram's new 'Your Algorithm' tool lets you control your Reels feed in real time. The app now gives you power to customize what videos you see.

Major Marquis fintech breach exposes 400,000-plus Americans' data through unpatched SonicWall vulnerability, with Texas hardest hit at 354,000 affected.

Free up iPhone storage fast by clearing large photos and videos from Messages app. Simple steps for iOS users to delete attachments without losing chats.

Scammers are flooding inboxes with fake tracking alerts that mimic real carriers, exploiting the holiday rush to steal logins and personal data.

The Fox News AI Newsletter brings you the latest news on AI technology advancements and the challenges and opportunities AI presents now and for the future.

Texas family reunites with missing 11-year-old cat Grayson after 103 days using Petco Love Lost's AI photo matching technology and community help.

Tired of AI customer service loops? These insider tricks help you escape "frustration AI" and get real human help when you need it most for urgent issues.

Unlock richer audio from your streaming apps with simple tweaks to volume normalization, equalizer settings, and quality preferences for cleaner sound.

Scammers are sending fake Facebook settlement payout emails that mimic legitimate notices from the privacy settlement administrator to deceive users.

Holiday shopping scams surge as fake refund emails target distracted consumers during Black Friday and holiday seasons, costing Americans billions annually.

The AI-powered IRMO M1 exoskeleton features four modes, including turbo, eco, training and rest for hiking, running, cycling and sports with eight-hour battery life.

OpenAI announced upgrades for its ChatGPT Images platform on Tuesday, saying the program can now make more precise edits and produce images more quickly.

Chrome for Android now turns web articles into AI-powered podcast conversations. Get hands-free browsing with Google Gemini's natural audio summaries.

LastPass faces $1.6 million fine from U.K. regulators after 2022 data breach exposed 1.6 million users. Password manager failed proper security controls.

Petco disclosed a data breach exposing customer Social Security numbers, financial account details, and driver's license information due to a software error.

Baseball teams can now analyze complete swing mechanics in normal training environments using Theia's markerless AI system that processes standard high-speed footage.

Make Sure Your Media Room Rocks

Public Relations