Press Relations

Press Relations are the backbone of your publicity machine. In return for handy news content for their media, you get public exposure for your event.

Tell the local newspaper, television and radio people that you are having a convention. Be nice to them, and maybe they'll be nice back. The media are not your enemy, but you cannot entirely trust them either. Remember that their primary goal is to find something that piques public interest, and they will run with whatever angle they find most likely to achieve that goal irrespective of whether or not it presents you in the best light. Be careful what you feed them.

First thing: give them plenty of warning and a useful description of the event (Press Release, phrased in a compact and friendly way), maybe as much as several weeks in advance, but don't pester them. Most likely your event will be treated as a fill in feature, not breaking news, so there is no guarantee about how extensive the coverage will be. See the Checklist for an outline.

They will need to know when to be there, who to talk to, and what they are likely to see. Do not leave this up to chance. Arrange for meetings with the ConChair, one or more Guest(s) of Honor, photography session at a live demomstation or with a high quality costumer, or with a FirstFandom member. Confirm all appointments and meetings the day before and be sure to escort the press guy to every one of them. Have someone prepared to do the job right and accurately answer questions as necessary, or know where to get the answers, then get them (quickly). Coordinate the on-site visit activity with the hotel or convention center management. If you are lucky, they've done this before.

Don't waste the press guy's time, they have lots of other things to do and they are giving you free publicity.

Don't do anything to embarass yourself, or you really will make the news, but not in a good way.