EEPPKKss WHY YOU NEED AN ELECTRONIC PRESS KIT & WHAT THE MEDIA EXPECTS TO SEE IN IT

A W. R. MEADOWS MARKETING MINUTE eBOOK By: DENISE M. DORMAN E P K s W H Y D O P R ? The most recent study by Social Media Examiner found that only 33% of the public trust paid messages.

Conversely, Nielsen found that two-thirds of the public trusted reviews, online opinions, and editorial content from newspapers and magazines. And that's the space where influencers and thought leaders focus their efforts . . . where YOU want to focus yours.

But here's the catch: there's some prep involved.

You need to be ready for PR. That means having a solid EPK, or electronic press kit. It's pivotal. It means understanding how to pitch the media (always asking yourself, "So what? Who cares?" whenever you think you have a hot story to share with the press). Once you get a bite, your prep also includes being media trained so you can deliver what they want to satisfy their audience and consider you for future media opportunities. This eBook is designed to teach you the first part: how to create a respectable EPK. D O R M A N W H Y D O P R ?

Done right, media coverage will benefit your company in 3 ways: Persuasion. Convincing someone to buy from you needs a little nudge from social proof. (Admit it - you read Amazon reviews before you hit the "BUY NOW" button.) Getting quoted in a newspaper or magazine article builds your credibility. It's a third- party endorsement. If it's a glowing feature article, radio, or TV interview, look out -- you're too legit to quit!

Establishing Your Thought Leadership. When you write a column for a respected industry newsletter or magazine, or you get quoted as a subject matter expert on a relevant topic, you're establishing yourself and/or your corporate brand as an industry thought leader.

Search Engine Optimization. When your company's URL gets published on a heavily trafficked like Forbes.com or WSJ.com, it boosts your SERP. If you're a fan of gritty, '70s cop flicks, you might think that I meant to type SERPICO just now, but no . . . SERP is shorthand for your Results Page position. E P K s WHY DO PR?

SERP refers to where you appear on a web page when someone searches for your company name or a relevant keyword, like "construction supplies." Pray that you made the first page, because studies show that 88% of searchers won't venture past Page 1 of their search results.

(Yes, we really are that lazy.) For the purpose of this discussion, Google still has 89.43%* of the market share, so you should be monitoring your Google-searched SERPs. , Yahoo, , Yandex, DuckDuckGo, Ask.com, Ecosia, AOL, and Internet Archive fill out the Top 10.

*(Source: Reliablesoft.net) D O R M A N W H Y D O P R ? Not to get all meta on you, but I just Googled "SERP," and the Supplemental Executive Retirement Plan (SERP) people must be furious! The tech geeks have hijacked their acronym and page position! Don't let that happen to you. Create enough content so you appear on Page 1. E P K s WHAT DO THE MEDIA WANT?

The best quality you Now imagine you are a can have when dealing booker for a podcast. with the media is You need to promote empathy. Newspapers an interview with a are circling the drain. guest. What would you They're stripped down need to post that to skeleton crews with promo on your website freelancers filling in. and social media? Magazines, too. They You'd need a photo of saw a 43% decline your guest, an image (Source: Statista), of their product or although they are book, their company starting to recover logo, and an alluring (Cannabis magazines write-up to interest are saving the your listeners in industry). When you hearing their interview. can walk a mile in Right? Wouldn't be their LeBrons, you can understand why being nice if that was all their path of least buttoned up in one resistance for relevant place? information is THIS is where your invaluable to them. EPK comes into play. DORMAN

Y O U R E P K : V ol Multi-Purpose To T H E S W I S S A R M Y K N I F E O F P R O M O S

User-friendly, media-ready assets make reporters' and producers' lives easier. Anticipate their needs. This will enhance your relationship with the media. Creating a lasting, positive user experience and impression will increase your likelihood of being quoted or featured again in the future. EPKs

EPK CONTENTS: #1. DOWNLOADABLE IMAGES

Meet THE DEFT DOZEN. This is your list of 12 EPK assets to keep updated in either a Dropbox folder (or similar cloud-based storage) or, ideally, on their own separate page of your website.

Any images representing your spokesperson or your company need to be downloadable in your EPK. This includes your corporate logos, branded event logos, product images, infographics, and professionally done headshots. Include a branding guide, like this one from Mail Chimp, that identifies your font, corporate PMS colors, and preferences for how your branding can be used in articles or promos. D O R M A N EPK CONTENTS: #2. The "BACKGROUNDER" a.k.a. THE "ONE SHEET"

This page describes your company's information and includes the following:

Your Positioning Statement (what is your unique selling proposition, how do you compare in the marketplace vs. your competitors) Your Mission Statement (your company's purpose, the customers you serve, the problems you solve, the solutions you provide, the products or services you provide) Your Corporate History Timeline (when your company was founded, key dates like patents or awards granted, new addresses, key investments, mergers, or partnerships, product, service and innovation launches) Key Facts (your locations, warehouse sizes, product lines sold, general customer info) Your Leadership (names of CEO, COO, CIO, CFO and other C-suite staff) Notable Executives (board members, investors, advisors) EPKs EPK CONTENTS: #3. SELL/SALES SHEETS The sell sheet (as I call it) is something you would give a prospective customer as a leave- behind glossy. It would include the features and benefits of your products, some mini-case studies, and images.

This example of a construction-centric sell sheet is from StockLayouts.com. (I am hyperlinking their site for you as a helpful resource.) D O R M A N EPK CONTENTS: #4. SERVICES PAGE

This is the "services version" of the sell sheet. Here is an example of an architectural firm's services flyer, also from StockLayouts.com. EPKs EPK CONTENTS: #5. PRESS/NEWS RELEASES & MEDIA ALERTS/ADVISORIES A PRESS RELEASE, a.k.a. NEWS RELEASE, is a written announcement of newsworthy information sent to media outlets (e.g., newspapers, magazines, radio, TV, podcasts, newsletters, trade publications) to garner publicity for you or your company. The key is newsworthiness. Whenever you're writing a release, always answer, "So what? Who cares?" If you end up in the Wayne's World "we're-not-worthy" stance, reconsider. Reasons for writing releases: New business or product launches, new product features, key anniversaries and company milestones, new hires, new investors, contests, awards given or received, announcing events like webinars or trade shows, public speaking or appearance events, new certifications received, published case studies or thought leadership pieces, promotions, and new partner collaborations. You may be unfamiliar with the MEDIA ALERT, a.k.a., MEDIA ADVISORY. These are deployed in situations where visual coverage is appropriate. They are shortened to almost the point of a party invitation, e.g., a strong opening paragraph, who, what, where, when, why, a strong image, the media booking contact, and a brief boilerplate on your company.

SOME PRESS RELEASE EXAMPLES: TESLA ZOOM eBay

A FUN MEDIA ALERT EXAMPLE DORMAN EPK CONTENTS: #6. MEDIA MENTIONS This is the page that includes links to every time you've ever been quoted in the press, as well as any print, podcast, radio, or TV interviews you've done, plus any articles you've authored. A well- populated press coverage page is what really establishes your company and/or your leader- ship's credibility as thought leaders. (If you employ an outside PR firm that has been on retainer with you for at least six months, this page will prove their worth, too.)

When a radio or TV producer considers having you on, your past performances in public speaking, or radio and TV interviews are your "audition." I like to see the print interviews separated from radio, podcasts, and TV. If you have TV appearances demonstrating you handled yourself well on camera, put those first; they are your trump card for landing media interviews in any medium.

Pro Tip: Always download every media interview so you have a PDF (if print media), audio, or video file in the event that the online link gets broken. Always double-check for broken media links.

EPK CONTENTS: EPKs #7. BIOs & BLURBs

Each spokesperson for your company should have a bio, short for "biography," ready to share with the media in addition to a readymade blurb written about your company. Pro Tip: Include the person's preferred personal pronouns (she/her or he/him) since journalists now look for that. If someone’s last name is hard to pronounce, include a phonetic explainer saying their name. For example, I once had a client with the last name of Shih-Hsieh, so I always included the explainer, (“pronounced as Shi-sha”) following his name. Blurb Example DORMAN #7. BIOS & BLURBS, CONT'D.

Depending on space allowance, media outlets will vary on how they need your bio, so the rule of thumb is to have at least three versions of your bio available in your EPK: The 50 to 100-Character Bio: Example: Denise Dorman is a content strategist for W. R. MEADOWS. (47 characters)

The 100 to 150-Character Bio: Example: Denise Dorman is a content strategist for W. R. MEADOWS with a focus on sales enablement, thought leadership, and public relations strategy. (140 characters)

The 500 to 900-Character Bio with a Call to Action: Example: Denise Dorman is a content strategist focused on B2B storytelling, sales enablement, thought leadership development, and public relations strategy for W. R. MEADOWS. W. R. MEADOWS specializes in premium construction and building materials for the concrete, highway construction, and building industries. For more on Denise Dorman and W.R. MEADOWS, visit https://wrmeadows.com and https://linkedin.com/in/writebrainmedia. (419 characters)

EPKs EPK CONTENTS: #8. CORPORATE VIDEO & B-ROLL When a journalist wants to tell a visual story, a talking head on screen is rarely enough, unless that person is wildly famous. Producers need quality footage they can cut to when you, as the interviewee, are emphasizing a point, or simply to support what you are saying. This makes the segment more dynamic.

Even a video tutorial on how to use your product can provide enough B-roll for the producer to augment the segment. Visual media want ratings, so anything you can do to help their agenda will be appreciated and remembered.

DORMAN EPK CONTENTS: #9. EXPERT SOURCE LIST

Include this page in your press kit so journalists know they can call on you when they need information or guests for topics unrelated whatsoever to the business you are in. These can be as random as: Lightning strike survivor Military brat Encyclopedic knowledge of airplanes Notre Dame Alumna You may be wondering why this matters. Here's an example: Let's say there's a breaking disaster story, like a pro golfer getting struck by lightning during a PGA tour. The 24/7 news journalist has air time to fill as they're waiting to get the status of the golfer, so they'll interview people with wide-ranging and tangential connections to the story. One interviewee might be a psychologist specializing in PTSD who explains how to care for people who witness disturbing s i t u a t i o n s f i r s t h a n d . The next interview might be a neurologist or cardiologist on how this impacts the body. And then the next person might be a lightning strike survivor, which is a nice end cap, giving hope to viewers during a potentially tragic story. EPKs EPK CONTENTS: #10. TEN QUESTIONS & ANSWERS

Once you've landed a TV, podcast, or radio interview, the producer will want a list of questions--and how you would answer those questions--to give their host. This does not mean the host won't come up with their own questions, but it helps to guide the conversation, in the same way as a meeting agenda would prepare you before a Zoom call.

Just to set your expectations, the host likely will not ask all 10 questions, unless it's a lengthy radio interview, or you're lucky enough to land The Joe Rogan Podcast (I hear the elk meat is delicious!). If someone canceled and you're a last-minute guest, it's entirely possible the host is being handed your questions just as you're about to go on air. Just roll with it and watch every YouTube video on media training to prep for your big moment. D O R M A N EPK CONTENTS: #11. SOCIAL MEDIA LINKS

Include links to all of your relevant media profiles, including your corporate LinkedIn page, your C-Suites' LinkedIn profiles, YouTube, Vimeo, Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, TikTok, Pinterest, etc. Create suggested Tweets and hashtags to make the media promoter’s life easier, e.g., this pre-written Tweet with hashtags: “Check out @WRMeadows on our show @(insert show name here) (insert date/time here). #manufacturer #constructionsupplies #buildingmaterials #concreteindustry

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#12. APPEARANCES & EVENTS CALENDAR Whether you're speaking at the local Rotary Club, participating in a trade show panel discussion, or giving a TEDx lecture, these events will further build your credibility and potentially create in-person meeting opportunities with the media. Once you delve into PR, I want you to be successful. I've included some EPK examples below to help you visualize how you can format your own. Square Space’s Clean, User-Friendly Navigation and Press Page TreehouseForKids.org’s Well-Designed EPK Now that you have a full understanding of EPKs, we can talk about the fine art of smilin' and dialin', er, MEDIA PITCHING, in an upcoming W. R. MEADOWS Marketing Minute eBook.

Thank you for reading. If you have questions about advertising, marketing, or PR, feel free to connect with me: [email protected]

Denise McDonald Dorman on LinkedIn