Part A - Society for Public Health Education

with the kinds of editorials and columns that appear in the paper), (4) present theissues as persuasively as possible in no more than 10 minutes and be prepared toanswer questions, either then or soon thereafter, (5) leave behind some printed materialsreinforcing the points made, (6) send a note of thanks to the editor, (7) makea follow-up phone call to the editor if an editorial does not appear within a few daysof the meeting, and (8) ask the paper to print an op-ed or letter to the editor if theeditor decided not to write about the issues of the coalition.Paid AdvertisingPaid advertising appears in newspapers and newsletters and on radio and television.Often it does not require a large media budget to reach the public with paid advertisingmessages. If you have built a strong relationship with various media outlets,asking them for support may open cost-effective avenues to you for advertising. Forexample, media outlets may be open to “matching” their paid ads with public serviceannouncements (PSAs) about your coalition at no charge. If you are planning acommunity event, you may want to explore various sponsorship opportunities withlocal media. In return for helping to publicize the event, you could offer media outletsthe opportunity to become an in-kind sponsor. This arrangement would benefitthe local media by providing name recognition and community goodwill and byattracting more customers to their newspaper, radio station, or television station.Opportunities you could offer include displaying the outlet’s logo on event signageand various print materials, featuring the outlet’s reporters or on-air personalities atcommunity events, or presenting awards or special recognition to the outlets thathave been supportive of your coalition.© 2007 Society for Public Health EducationWhen considering paid ads, it is also advantageous to reach out to for-profit organizationsthat share your coalition’s mission. Such organizations may be open tosponsoring air time or space for public awareness messages. These partnerships canbroaden the reach of your message and benefit the for-profit organization by fosteringcommunity goodwill, bolstering name recognition, and attracting potentialcustomers.Please see this toolkit’s resource directory for links to Web sites that provide additionalinformation about media outreach.Part A: An Educational Toolkit for Health Educators79