What do they want with media pack?
July 3, 2011 8:50 AM Subscribe
I run a small website for a sport I enjoy and am passionate about - traffic is good (at least I'm happy) and in the last few weeks I've been starting to get some press coverage. All good so far...
A PR company have asked me to submit a 'media pack' - I have no idea what that is, or what might be included in there - I have asked the contact, but I'm thinking I should try and get ahead of the game.
What sort of information should I include? I guess I should include something about site traffic, UU's, PV's etc - which I can get from Google Analytics - is there anything else I should include? Should I compile this as a .pdf or something else?
What sort of information should I include? I guess I should include something about site traffic, UU's, PV's etc - which I can get from Google Analytics - is there anything else I should include? Should I compile this as a .pdf or something else?
Check out mefi's 'about' page. There's some good stuff there too.
posted by jourman2 at 9:25 AM on July 3, 2011
posted by jourman2 at 9:25 AM on July 3, 2011
If it's a PR company, it may be looking at you as a potential client.
"See here, mattr, we think you have a really good site. But do you know what could make it better? Publicity.
"If you decide to hire us, we can get your name out there, drive up your numbers and increase your profile."
At that point you have to decide if what the PR firm is going to offer you is worth your money. If it's a well-connected firm that has the resources to put your name in front of TV producers and editors, it might be worth your time to listen to the pitch. That is, of course, that you want to see your name in bigger and farther-reaching lights.
On the flip side, if it's a small firm with no contacts and just the desire to prepare a basic media kit for you, you likely don't need the help.
posted by sardonyx at 6:41 PM on July 3, 2011
"See here, mattr, we think you have a really good site. But do you know what could make it better? Publicity.
"If you decide to hire us, we can get your name out there, drive up your numbers and increase your profile."
At that point you have to decide if what the PR firm is going to offer you is worth your money. If it's a well-connected firm that has the resources to put your name in front of TV producers and editors, it might be worth your time to listen to the pitch. That is, of course, that you want to see your name in bigger and farther-reaching lights.
On the flip side, if it's a small firm with no contacts and just the desire to prepare a basic media kit for you, you likely don't need the help.
posted by sardonyx at 6:41 PM on July 3, 2011
Best answer: I think sardonyx's explanation sounds unlikey - that's not an approach I've ever seen from PRs. If they want you to hire them, they are more likely to offer to write you a media pack, than ask you to.
They are probably thinking 'Is this site something I can use to raise my client's profile?' They want to find out if your site reaches an audience that they want to communicate with. So the basics would be:
• your hits / unique visitors
• age, gender and location of web visitors
• specialisms – why are you better than the other sites, eg respected gear reviews, lively debate, funniest game commentary, incisive team critiques?
• history – how well established are you?
• future – have you got any exciting developments planned?
If they like what they read, they’ll start to make an approach. This might be sending you gear to review, inviting you to events, making sure you have the latest photos, etc.
Then you have to make a tricky decision about how far you allow the PRs to dictate your content. Enjoy!
posted by sleepy boy at 3:12 AM on July 4, 2011
They are probably thinking 'Is this site something I can use to raise my client's profile?' They want to find out if your site reaches an audience that they want to communicate with. So the basics would be:
• your hits / unique visitors
• age, gender and location of web visitors
• specialisms – why are you better than the other sites, eg respected gear reviews, lively debate, funniest game commentary, incisive team critiques?
• history – how well established are you?
• future – have you got any exciting developments planned?
If they like what they read, they’ll start to make an approach. This might be sending you gear to review, inviting you to events, making sure you have the latest photos, etc.
Then you have to make a tricky decision about how far you allow the PRs to dictate your content. Enjoy!
posted by sleepy boy at 3:12 AM on July 4, 2011
Speaking as a PR professional, I would agree with sleepy boy, not sardonyx.
If you've got an up-and-coming site, they want information about you so that they can pitch you stories, or get you involved with their client's campaigns in some way.
If they have access to the information that sleepy boy and holgate suggest you include, then they can turn around and sell you to their clients. ("We should have an event and invite mattr to it, because his site is influential for your target audience.")
If I was going to pursue your business (the way sardonyx implies), I'd have my new business director invite you out for a cup of coffee to talk about your business goals and how we can help you meet them. There's no reason to be sneaky about approaching a potential client.
posted by CRM114 at 4:36 AM on July 4, 2011
If you've got an up-and-coming site, they want information about you so that they can pitch you stories, or get you involved with their client's campaigns in some way.
If they have access to the information that sleepy boy and holgate suggest you include, then they can turn around and sell you to their clients. ("We should have an event and invite mattr to it, because his site is influential for your target audience.")
If I was going to pursue your business (the way sardonyx implies), I'd have my new business director invite you out for a cup of coffee to talk about your business goals and how we can help you meet them. There's no reason to be sneaky about approaching a potential client.
posted by CRM114 at 4:36 AM on July 4, 2011
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A good way to think about it is to imagine a news story you'd like written about your site, then provide all the components that allow that story to be written without any additional work. (I won't fall into the "journalist as stenographer" swipe, but for that kind of story, a lot of the work really is just rewriting promotional copy.)
So you need a backgrounder, fact sheet, bios and quotables from the founder/s, and some representative screenshots, ideally in formats that for both web and print use. And perhaps something written in press-releasese as a cover sheet.
posted by holgate at 9:20 AM on July 3, 2011