Public Relations Guide for Rural Housing Organizations (manual

Media AdvisoryA media advisory tells press outlets about an event in advance so reporters can plan to be thereand editors can plan for a story. Do not assume that the media will pick up on news of yourevent by word-of-mouth or general knowledge. Think of the advisory as being a simple factsheet that will communicate all of the essential information, much like an invitation.It is very important to follow the standard format for a media advisory. Use, in bold, thefollowing headings for your information.- What (event)- Where (place)- Who (speakers, organization)- When (time)Beneath each heading should be a brief summary giving only the facts. The format should notbe a narrative.The advisory should be on your organization’s letterhead with the words “Media Advisory”prominently displayed near the top. The media advisory may be distributed via e-mail or fax.It should be sent out well before the event.Include contact information – for example, “Jane Doe, 123-456-7890,jdoe@communityorg.org.” End with one of the traditional ways to end a press release oradvisory: “-30-“ or “###.” An advisory should never be more than one page. (See the samplein Appendix A.)Be sure that the advisory goes to all news organizations in your area; do not second-guesswhich media will give you coverage. This is not the time to alienate one news organization infavor of another. If appropriate, include any news services that cover your community.CameraDigital cameras facilitate the transmission of photographs electronically as attachments to e-mail messages. This is especially helpful to the media and is by far the fastest way of gettingphotographs to the press. Note standard format preferences and that the quality must be highfor the photo to be published.Offer photos to your media contacts, perhaps especially to those who did not attend an event.A reporter can write an article based on a press release and an interview, sounding as if s/heattended the event and using a photo you provided.According to Sharon Walden of Welch, W. Va., you should always have your camera ready, anduse it often. Sharon believed that the representative of a foundation lifted a five-year limit onthe length of a current grant because she spontaneously used her camera. Sharon took aphotograph of the representative during his visit to her organization and then used it to write a20 Public Relations Guide