Pain free publicity: getting your launch noticed.

Love it or hate it, a big part of getting your agency known and remembered when the dream client is picking their next agency is being featured in the media.

Here are five fundamentals that’ll lead you to consistent press coverage.

#1 Building a launches calendar

I hate inefficiency, and so many of the techniques I help agencies are designed to simplify and save time. This is a perfect example. Keeping a simple spreadsheet of upcoming project launches is a way to see at a glance what stories you have coming up that you might want to talk about. I recommend Google Sheets for this so that everyone on the team can share the load by adding their projects in. 

Each month, discuss as a team what projects are due to launch in the next quarter and pick a maximum of 1 per month that you would like to share with the press. If you don’t have 1 per month, that’s fine. Don’t share a project you’re not proud of. The one a month threshold is to stop you from bombarding journalists, rather than a target to aim for. 

Consider other kinds of news too: have you got an exciting new team member? Received investment? Speaking at an industry event? Won a prestigious award? In short, anything that is “new news” is worth considering. 

#2 Client sign off

Once you have a shortlist, four weeks out from the launch date, contact the client to get permission to seek your own press coverage of this project. On that client call/ email, aim to get:

• approval to share before the launch date (then the story is more newsworthy)

• a quote about how you were invaluable to the success of the project 

• and a copy of their press release that you can use to align your message with.

#3 Get writing

How many times have you sat in front of a blank page with no idea where to start? If you are wondering how to structure your press release, save this list as a document template, and aim to get your first draft completed in 20 mins flat. Then leave it overnight and review. Dumping content and then editing thoroughly is the key to making the press release as interesting as it can be.

• Make sure you include the essentials: date and locations of launch.

• A sentence or two each about: the project background/challenge, the brief, agency approach, and resulting output

• A quote from your agency leader

• One from the client, as senior as possible!

• Any further information the client has asked you to include should be added under the titles ‘Editor’s Notes’ at the end of the release. 

• Be sure to make it clear who the journalist can contact for more information

#4 Create the right imagery

In my experience, you’re 100% more likely to get good media coverage for your project if you create 1-5 compelling visuals, and supply them with the press release. Ensure that you provide them in the right formats (RGB for screen and CMYK for print, landscape and portrait etc.) and offer a variety appropriate to the span of the project. I.e. for a food portfolio rebrand, an image of the logo, a line up of a few hero SKUs from across ranges, a close up of a single pack with details picked out, an in-situ visual of the range in store. 

#5 Building a media contact database 

Make a note of 5 competitor projects that you’ve been impressed by within the last year. Google the name of the agency and the project name.

In the first column of a spreadsheet (preferably another tab of the calendar in the first step), note the publications that this project was featured in. Repeat for all of the tasks you listed.

Then start fleshing out the tab, with the following columns and useful info: title, link, genre, type (print, blog, website etc.), circulation (this can often be found in the ‘advertise with us’ link), contact name (choose the news editor or a junior reporter more likely to answer the phone), contact email, contact phone number.

You should have around 20 publications following this method, and a ready database of media contacts to share your press release with.

It’s likely caused you pain or fear in the past, but getting media coverage doesn’t have to be hard work. And indeed once you’re on a roll, it’ll take up a tiny proportion of time each month. Plus it gives you an excellent basis for case studies, award entries, and many other valuable marketing materials.

So don’t down tools once the project leaves the studio, make you get the recognition you deserve before you hide it on the server forever!