HOW TO APPROACH THE MEDIA TO PROMOTE YOUR SUCCESS IN THE AWARDS
Zoe Hiljemark has collaborated with us to create a four part, step-by-step guide to approaching the media for promoting your success in the awards. Below is one section of the guide to help get you started.
Whether your pet portrait has been shortlisted as one of the top 100 or the top 25 in its category, or you have been announced as one of our four Category winners or even as the Overall winner – the International Pet Photographer of the Year - there is every reason to celebrate!
The sample press release outline below is just one section from the Four-Part Guide
It really works..
We used Zoe Hiljemark’s press release to contact the media - the exact one that you can grab below.
It landed us an article in both The Daily Mail and The Telegraph!
What does this mean for us?
Super proud moment
A way to show appreciation to our judges
Credibility for approaching prize sponsors
What could it mean for you?
You can access that exact press release, below.
The full four-part guide includes an example press release, an example pitch email and so much more.
Here is the included Release Outline..
SAMPLE PRESS RELEASE OUTLINE
ATTENTION-GRABBING HEADLINE
Aim to hook the reader in!
A clear, simple summary of the story (maximum 10 words). Highlight the 'news' value.
OPENING PARAGRAPH
Your chance to get the reader interested
[Date, Month, Year] - Summarise the story (maximum 2-3 sentences). Include all the important information here (in case they don't read on); the who, what, when, where and why of the story.
SECONDARY PARAGRAPH
Give more useful & relevant information
Provide more details to entice them to continue reading. Emphasise what's interesting/unusual about the story. Use bullet points and headings to break up the text and make it easier to read.
QUOTATION
Add a human touch and personal perspective
Don't repeat what's been said already. It should be a natural-sounding quote (not overly corporate in style), adding further insight. Try to focus on just one key message in the quote. Two quotes may be relevant if there are two parties involved in the story.
FINAL PARAGRAPH
Last chance to mention any further details
Include more background information that's relevant to the story and is useful for the journalist to know such as a call-to-action, website link or resource.
Add ‘[ENDS]’ at the bottom – this tells the reader that this is the end of the press release
NOTES TO EDITORS
Reference information for the journalist
Further information goes here that isn't critical to the story but provides background about the people and organisations involved. For example, about you/your photography business, any organisations or competitions mentioned, or a link to data referenced in the main press release.
CONTACT INFORMATION
Including your name, number and email are vital!
Include your contact details, and mention if you are available for interview and if you can provide additional comment/ images on request. Also include your website URL here.
Pro Tip: Do ensure that you ARE available to promptly provide the additional information/images that may be needed and take calls from unknown numbers after sending out the release just in case it is a journalist contacting you!
IMAGES
While all journalists have different preferences on how to be contacted, most prefer a simple email with the information laid out in the format above, along with a few (no more than 3) low-resolution images attached to your email or pasted into the body of the email itself. This helps them to understand what supporting imagery you have available.
Except for broadcast media (radio and podcasts) who may not have a need for imagery, professional images can help to boost your chances of securing press coverage, as most publications want to include engaging quality images.
If there are further images relevant to the story that you could supply if required, you can also send a link to an online folder where they can access more if they wish to (a Dropbox folder works well).
The full four-part guide includes an example press release, an example pitch email and so much more.
THE FULL GUIDE IS CURRENTLY AVAILABLE
GRAB IT NOW FOR JUST $24 AND RECEIVE
PART 1: HOW TO SECURE PRESS COVERAGE
PART 2: PRESS RELEASE TEMPLATE & EXAMPLE
PART 3: HOW TO FIND JOURNALIST CONTACT DETAILS
PART 4: HOW TO CONTACT JOURNALISTS & PUBLICATIONS WITH YOUR STORY
ABOUT ZOE HILJEMARK
Zoe Hiljemark is a PR and content consultant based on the south coast of England who works exclusively with professional photographers.
Day-to-day, Zoe helps her photography clients to secure valuable, profile-raising media publicity and to consistently create marketing content that helps them attract their dream clients and stand out from the crowd. Her mission is to help photographers become 'PR-Savvy', gain visibility, grow a loyal audience and build thriving photography businesses.
For more PR tips, follow Zoe Hiljemark on Instagram, join her ‘PR-Savvy Photographers’ Facebook group and subscribe to her free resource library.
You can also listen to our interview with her on the podcast – in Series 9 Episode 6, she shared lots more tips on pitching, publicity and all-things PR!
Disclaimer: The information contained herein is general in nature and is for informative purposes only. It’s based on the author’s personal experience and the author assumes no responsibility whatsoever, under any circumstances, for any actions taken as a result of the information contained herein. Copyright ©2021 Zoe Hiljemark.
All rights reserved. No part of this document may be reproduced or shared without express written consent from the author.