New Resources: PR Toolkit and Free Stock Images

I’ve created a couple of new partnerships recently to help nonprofit communicators.

Free and Discounted Services from PR Newswire

First, Nonprofit Marketing Guide has teamed up with PR Newswire to provide you with some outstanding discounts, free services and resources. Join PR Newswire today and receive a free annual membership (normally $195) and access to more than $2,000 in free and discounted services. They’ve created a special Nonprofit Toolkit just for you.

If you are really serious about getting far and wide distribution of your press releases, PR Newswire is the way to go. PR Newswire’s powerful, targeted online distribution reaches thousands of websites where millions of media, bloggers and consumers are. It’s not cheap, but it does work. And they do offer some great discounts from time to time and in this Nonprofit Toolkit, so take advantage of the free membership for a year and see what happens.

Free and Inexpensive Stock Photography from BigStockPhoto

Next, BigStockPhoto.com has made 500 stock photos available for free. You can download them from the Nonprofit Marketing Guide Stock Photography Image Search Page. You can use these images on your own website, in newsletters, etc.

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The News Business is Changing and So Should Your Media Strategy

By Nonprofit Marketing Guide’s Media Maven, Claire Meyerhoff

Extra! Extra! Read all about it!

Once upon a time, in the Olden Days we now refer to as “the ’90’s,” if you wanted to get the word out about your good cause, you “did some press.” You slaved over a press release, made copies on something called “paper” and sent them to news editors by way of the U.S. Mail (gosh, things were so complicated back then). You followed up with a phone call, speaking to an editor, and hopefully, the Newspaper/TV Station/Radio Station would send a reporter to cover your story.

That was Grandma’s strategy for getting media attention when Grandpa manned the city desk phones at “The Olden Days News and Record.” Well, I have a NewsFlash for you, my friends in the nonprofit world . . .

. . . that’s old news.

Today, a newspaper’s staff is shrinking daily as advertising revenues dry up. Check your local paper’s bylines and you’ll see more stories from the Associated Press and other news services. TV stations and radio stations are feeling it, too. To top it off, a news organization’s shrunken staff also has to feed a beast called “the website.”

What does that mean for you, and how you go about getting media attention for your fine organization?

It means that you can get media coverage, if you know what’s going in your local media and how to pitch your story in a real-world way.

The #1 Rule is . . .

. . . always know what’s in it for them.

What’s in it for the harried assignment editor at WBIG-TV? What’s in it for the busy beat reporter at The Cutback Chronicle?

Find out “what’s in it for them.”  Then give it to them. Savvy nonprofit communicators tap the trends and feed the beast, when the beast needs to be fed.

At Nonprofit Marketing Guide, we believe you should be your own media mogul. At the same time, mainstream media can still play an important role in getting the word out. But the rules of the game are different now.

Want to learn more about what you need to do in today’s environment to get press coverage? Join Kivi and Claire on Thursday, February 19 at Noon Eastern for a webinar on Getting Media Attention for Your Good Cause. We’ll look at the kinds of stories that are hot right now and how savvy nonprofits are tapping into those trends. We’ll also explain how to give the media what they need, when they need it, so you maximize your chances of getting coverage for your good cause. Learn more and register.

Tags: nonprofit PR
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Why Your Nonprofit Should Build Its Own Media Empire

Last week I gave a short talk at a statewide conference for the United Way. If I had to pick one slide that summed up my talk, it would be this one:

As Claire Meyerhoff, who was also on the panel, put it, you can spend a whole day writing a press release and trying to get a reporter to use it, and get nothing. Or you can spend that time creating your own content, using it in several different places, and having it work for you for months to come.

Nonprofits are no longer dependent on the media to get their messages out beyond their inner circles, and yet so many groups are still fretting about whether to double-space a press release. Traditional media still plays an important role, but it’s not what it used to be.

Instead of thousands of newspapers landing in the driveways of your potential supporters, you should be looking at ways to generate thousands of messages from members of your inner circle to their own inner circles, talking about your cause, using everything from email to social media to do it. The tools to make that happen are now easy and inexpensive. Anyone, or any nonprofit, can be a publisher, broadcaster, and media mogul.

I’ll be talking a lot more about this on Wednesday, February 11, during the webinar called “Online Marketing Basics for Nonprofits: From Email to Social Media.” During the webinar, I’ll help you sort through your online marketing options, emphasizing how they all fit together, and helping you see how they can help you form your own media empire.

For those of you who are really ready to dive into the social media components of this in particular, check out NTEN’s We Are Media wiki.

You might also find two additional webinars helpful: Blogging for Nonprofits on February 12 and Creating Online Evangelists on February 17 March 20. Single webinars are $35 and the All-Access Pass for 12 weeks is $97 (attend as many live webinars as you want and watch the rest as recordings).

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Positioning Your Nonprofit as an Expert Source

Be the One They Call. “How to Position Your Nonprofit as an Expert Source” Webinar on Thursday, January 22 at Noon Eastern. Registration is just $35. Learn more and register

If you are interested in how you can increase your organization’s visibility and credibility — and position your staff as expert sources for the media, policymakers and others — you’ll want to check out these three new resources.

First, we’ll be talking about how to be a credible source for the news media this Friday on our first edition of Magic Keys Radio & Podcast in 2009. Join Claire Meyerhoff and me from 1:00 - 1:30 p.m. Eastern (10:00 a.m. Pacific) on Friday for the live show, where you can call in your questions over the phone or send them in via online chat.

We’ll be joined by special guest Irina Lallemand, who is a long-time broadcast news director who launched WLRN-Miami Herald News on South Florida’s NPR station and headed the news department at XM Satellite Radio. Her twenty-five years in journalism includes 17 years as Assistant News Director at WCBS 880 News in New York, managing one of the busiest newsrooms in the nation. If anyone is an expert on expert sources, it’s Irina.  Join us for Magic Keys Radio live and ask Irina your questions about how to become the media source that always get the calls when a reporter is covering your issue.

Magic Keys is part of my free “Friday Office Hours” program, so feel free to call in with any nonprofit marketing questions you have, whether they relate to our discussion topic or not. Claire, Irina, and I will do our best to answer them! The podcast is available for download immediately after the live show. Here’s the link to this week’s show where you can listen online, find the call-in number and chat window, and subscribe to the podcast.

Second, I’m offering a live webinar on How to Position Your Nonprofit as an Expert Source on Thursday, January 22 at Noon Eastern (9:00 a.m. Pacific). During the webinar, I’ll explain what people are looking for in experts and why most nonprofits are already well-positioned to become expert sources, if they’d only take just a few more steps. We’ll examine five characteristics of a good expert source and explore a handful of strategies your nonprofit can use to promote your expertise. As usual, it’s $35 for as many people as can fit around one computer and it’s included with the All-Access Pass.  Learn more and register.

Third, I’ve posted a new article on Nonprofit Marketing Guide.com called “Five Qualities That Will Make You a Good Expert Source.” It explains how good sources have a well-understood niche and solid track record and are trustworthy, accessible, and cooperative, with examples of what those words mean in this context.

Have questions about how to raise your nonprofit’s crediblity as a source?

Do reporters call you all the time? If so, share your tips.

Click on the comments bubble by the post title on the blog to add your comment to the discussion.

More Goodies: Get Kivi's Nonprofit Marketing Tips E-Newsletter (2-3 times per month)

Nonprofit Publicity 101 - Get Some Free Advice for Your Group

Learn How to Light a Fire That Spreads and Gets Your Good Work Noticed with Kivi’s and Claire’s Creative and Effective Publicity Tips.  Get the Detail on This Thursday’s Webinar.

OK, it’s not totally free advice - you do have to register for this week’s webinar –  Nonprofit Publicity 101: Great PR Ideas that Get Attention – but in addition to some PR Basic Training by yours truly, several registrants will also get free advice from Nonprofit Marketing Guide’s media maven and all-around Big Idea Gal, Claire Meyerhoff, during the webinar. 

What will we be covering this week? All kinds of cool ideas to get your organization noticed, whether you are working online or offline, nationwide or in a community setting. You can get a little taste of some of the tips by listening to last Friday’s “Magic Keys Radio” show now available as a podcast.

After going over our tips, we’ll take your questions and we’ll also ask several participants to share their publicity conundrums, so you can see how Claire and I apply the advice to real-world situations.

Get the details and register now.

More Goodies: Get Kivi's Nonprofit Marketing Tips E-Newsletter (2-3 times per month)

What Talking Points Do We Use and What’s Our Lead?

It’s the fourth and final day of Media Relations Week here at Nonprofit Communications. Since I skipped Monday, I’m answering two reader questions today.

But before I do that, I have a little favor to ask. Can you please help me decide what I should put on the webinar schedule this winter? If you haven’t weighed in already, please tell me which nonprofit marketing topics you are most interested in via this quick survey. Five free webinar passes are up for grabs for completing the survey.

Here’s question #1:

“How do you decide on ‘talking points’ when talking to the media?”

~ Alesha Mathis, Middle Georgia Community Action Agency, Inc.

It all goes back to “what’s news.”

Figure out your main point - What is the one thing you want people to know? How would you like the headline to read? Then support that statement with important details. Your talking points are really just your pitch, with some details added in. Put your talking points in order of importance, so you get the most critical information out there first.

(And congratulations, Alesha, you won the drawing for a free webinar pass for submitting a question this week! I’ll email you the details.)

Here’s question #2:

“I know there should be the standard boilerplate about my organization at the end, if anyone wants more information, but when we are a relatively unknown organization (with little or no brand recognition) and we launch a program in a new state, it seems like more background has to be in the body of the press release or it doesn’t make sense. Also do people want to hear more about who we are helping, or who worked so hard to make it happen in the new state?”

~ Andrea Umbreit, Smiles Change Lives

And my answer:

Always lead with the news angle, regardless of how well-known you are. The new things you are doing are going to be more interesting than the details about your organization. Talk about the good work, then introduce yourself. As for who should be the focus, I’d lean toward the people you are helping. If some volunteers brought about the new program and they have really good stories to tell, you could lead with them. But you want to stay away from anything that sounds like you are just trying to publicly thank people for their hard work or to pat your own organization on the back. That’s not a good news angle.

More Goodies: Get Kivi's Nonprofit Marketing Tips E-Newsletter (2-3 times per month)

What Do I Say to a Reporter When Pitching a Story?

It’s Day 3 of Media Relations Week.

Claire Meyerhoff and I hosted a press release writing webinar with tons of tips and some great real-world examples today, including advice on pitching your stories to the press. If you have the Nonprofit Marketing Guide All-Access Pass, you can listen to it right now or whenever you want.

Photo by Michael (mx5tx) on Flickr How’s Your Pitching?

On to today’s question:

“Can you give an example of how a media pitch call might sound? Perhaps you could provide what might be a “typical” script. Assume it’s an annual event-related pitch you are making to more than one media outlet, and that you don’t know the reporter personally.”

~ Matt Davis, Kids Help Phone

My answer:

Let’s start with some pitching prep first, then we’ll get down to the actual conversation.

Before you call any reporter, you need to have a few things very clear in your mind:

1) A “newsy” hook — why should your story be covered now? The Oregonian newspaper has what I think is one of the most helpful definitions of what’s news. You’ll see at the very bottom that hosting a fundraising event is probably considered news - but that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t work on the elements in this list to really make your event standout. The bigger your media market, the harder you’ll need to work to make your event sound special.

2) Why should this particular reporter care? Sometimes you end up calling a general assignment reporter and that’s fine. You can go with a more straight-forward pitch. But if you want your story in the Business Section, you need to pitch a business reporter and your story should have a clear business angle. Fundraisers could appear in virtually every section of the paper with the right angle and press release content (include quotes from elected officials if you are trying for the “Local” section or talking to the government beat reporter, or quotes from business leaders if you are trying for Business Section, etc.) If the reporter has previously written about your topic or organization, definitely mention that (i.e., You wrote a great story about this in May, and I think this would be an excellent followup . . .)

3) What else you can offer, besides the press release? Will there be good photo opportunities? Can you put the reporter in touch with several people to interview (people who donated to your silent auction, people who will benefit from the work that the fundraiser will help pay for — whoever can provide quotes that will support the story angle)? Any behind-the-scenes tours of particularly cool venues or backstage interviews with big keynote speakers or high-profile guests?

Now, practice getting your pitch down to 30 seconds, with the first sentence being the most important. Most reporters will have no problem interrupting you and telling you they aren’t interested if you don’t grab them fast. (You’ll hear something like “It’s not right for us,” “Timing isn’t good,” flat out “No thanks,” or “I don’t know. I’ll call you back.” - which usually means no.)

So what the heck do you actually say to a reporter you’ve never met?

Getting started is this easy:

Reporter Named John Smith: “Hello, John Smith”

You: “Hi John. My name is Bob Evans with Save the Squirrels. I have a story for you.” (Note, you aren’t saying, “I have the best story ever” or “a story you’d be an idiot to pass up” — keep it as a straightforward suggestion.)

OR: Hi John. My name is Bob Evans with Save the Squirrels. I’d like to pitch a story to you really quickly if you have a minute.”   (Yes, it’s OK to call what you are doing pitching. That’s the term for it. The reporters know that’s what you are doing, so it’s no big deal to say it).

Reporter: OK. (Or I’m right in the middle of something . . .)

You: (If they say something like OK, launch right into it! If they say they are busy, but don’t blow you off entirely, say, “I’ll make it really quick, I promise” — which you’ll be able to do because you’ve practiced your pitch!)

Then go for it — no need for small talk or a bunch of background, just get to the point:

Our local squirrel population has been decimated, and on Saturday, we are holding a special Dog Walk & Festival at City Park to raise money for a breeding program. Dogs love to chase squirrels and dog owners all over town are reporting high levels of depression since the dogs have nothing to chase now. We are expecting at least 100 people and dogs at the festival and we’ll have all kinds of fun contests, including a Dog/Owner Look-a-Like Contest and an American Idol-style howling contest where the fire department will sound the truck sirens to get the dogs going. It’s going to be lots of fun, with great photo opps, and all of the money will go directly to solving our local squirrel problem.

Reporter: Do you have any numbers on the problem?

You: Yes, a university study showed that our squirrel population is down by 50%.

Reporter: How do we know the dogs are depressed?

You: Dog owners can tell and vets across town are being asked for anti-depressants.

Reporter: Any vets actually giving out the pills?

You: Yeah, I can put you in touch with one or two. Do you want me to email you the press release for the festival and some vet contacts?

Reporter: Sure. I’ll see what I can do.

You: Thanks John. Let me give you my cell phone number . . . .

It’s really that simple. But notice how the reporter went off on a tangent with the dog depression? That happens all the time! Remember that THEY decide where the story really is. You can always try to steer them back to your angle, but ultimately the reporter will decide what to write about, or whether to cover it at all. Respect that, and don’t get pushy or critical about their decisions. A story about vets prescribing anti-depressants that mentions your festival is better than no story at all! And now you know the reporter a little better and can come back next time with an even more focused pitch for John Smith.

Reporters tend to be skeptical by nature, so don’t be put off if they quiz you or don’t seem particularly excited. Work your pitch and follow-up with whatever the reporter asks for. Remember, you need each other. Reporters need good stories, and you need the publicity. Build those relationships, give reporters what they need (good stories!) and you’ll get some great press in return.

Happy Pitching!

P.S. Check out the Bad Pitch Blog for lots of “don’ts” and some good “dos” too.

Tags: pitching, reporters
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How Far in Advance Do I Send an Event Press Release?

Photo by Peter Kaminski on Flickr We’ll answer all of your press release questions, including pesky timing issues, during Thursday’s webinar. Get the Details/Register.

It’s Media Relations Week, Day #2 (I skipped Labor Day, but will make it up with a bonus at the end of the week).

Here is today’s question:

“What kind of timeline should you follow when marketing a special event or fundraiser, especially with regards to press releases and community calendars?”

~Elizabeth Day, with For Every Mother and BirthNetwork of Northwest Arkansas

And my answer:

Before you can set your schedule for contacting the press about your event, you have to decide what kind of coverage you want and when you’d ideally like it to appear. Do you want coverage before the event so that people can read about it and buy tickets? Or do you want a reporter or photographer at the event and to write about what happened afterwards? Or both?

Coverage Before the Event

Newspapers often have community calendars in print and online, and radio and TV stations have calendars online. Some will also broadcast upcoming events at the end of their news programming. Find out how far in advance they will list your event and submit your details as early as possible.

If you are looking for more than an event listing and want a feature article in the newspaper, for example, think about what timing makes the most sense. Do you have a firm ticket sales deadline or can people get tickets at the door? Issue a press release 3-5 days before you’d like the coverage to appear. A deadline or the event date itself are timely, and therefore newsworthy.

You can’t just announce your event and expect to get coverage, however (unless you live in a really small media market and you don’t have lots of local competition). You need to come up with a “hook” that makes the event especially newsworthy. Will someone with celebrity status be there? Is there something really out of the ordinary in your silent auction? Pull out a couple of details that are really unusual or interesting and highlight those. A story about a single attendee, speaker, or beneficiary will be more interesting to the media that a general story about a fundraiser.

Coverage After the Event

If you want a reporter and/or photographer to come to the event and cover it as a news story, you can issue a media advisory 5-7 days before the event. A media advisory is not a press release; it’s more like an invitation. It includes a very brief (less than a paragraph) description of the event, followed by the basic logistics, often listed in a Who, What, When, Where format. Be sure to let the press know if they need to contact anyone in particular ahead of time to get a press pass (if not, they’ll assume they can just show up, which is usually fine). Also be sure to note any good photo opportunities. This is essential if you hope to get TV coverage.

You can also issue a press release right after your event, regardless of whether the media attended it or not. If they did attend, they’ll base their coverage on their own experience and only use any new facts or figures you provided in the release. Again, you can’t just say “we held a fundraiser” and expect to get coverage. How much did the event raise? Who won the drawing? Did anything funny or unusual happen at the event? Did you have a record-breaking turnout? Find the most memorable moment or interesting factoid about the event and base your post-event press release on it.

Get more tips during Thursday’s webinar “How to Write a Press Release Reporters Will Love.” It’s on September 4, 2008 at 1:00 p.m. Eastern (10:00 a.m. Pacific).

More Goodies: Get Kivi's Nonprofit Marketing Tips E-Newsletter (2-3 times per month)