Client-Agency-Media Process Brings Success

Urgent Client Issues

To handle an urgent client issue, such as scheduling an interview with a reporter or editor, call Becky at 770/642-2080, x214 or email Becky@MediaFirst.net

Your Interview Opportunity

For interview scheduling, please let us offer reporters up to three alternate time slots on at least two different days. Expect the reporter to call your spokesperson. That spokesperson is responsible to meet the reporter’s need for valuable commentary and unique perspective.

Emergency, Quality, or Contractual Issues

Call Jim at (mobile) 404/788-0188 at any hour or email Jim@MediaFirst.net

Note: Specify a new additional project, ongoing or one-off, on a copy of Schedule “C” attached to our Agreement.

Digital PR Core and Related Services

Most clients have a mix of services including media relations, press releases, blog posts, byline articles, and social media posting of a curated stream of client and non-competitive industry news.

• Media Relations, better known as Public Relations (PR): Become newsworthy and get the most press coverage for your company and spokespersons from media relations. Help reporters create a significant story.

• Press Releases: A consistent release of news you control. We write these targeting prospects and investors as the primary audience. You have news about industry issues, product releases, events, customer wins, partners, key hires, etc.

• Content Marketing: Blog content useful and interesting to your audience; delivered regularly.

• Award Opportunity Management: Win awards and notoriety for your firm and your customers

• Speaking Engagement Management: Find speaking engagements in front of target audiences

• Industry Analyst Relations: Convey your value proposition, market influence, and position

• Digital Marketing: marketing plans define strategy, tactics, and a timeline for changing the game.

• Brand: Brand (brand image, brand experience), Brand Management, Corporate Identity, and Brand ID: Create and organize your corporate identity

• Fixing Your Website: You know it doesn’t do what you need, like capture leads or build an email list. We can fix it.

• Web Hosting: Fast, secure hosting with backup and recovery. Yours is slow, fix it.

• Collaterals: Let us define the scope, budget, content, and then produce and print - or better, PDF - your brochure, tip sheet, etc.

• Events: Organizing a venue to generate leads, impart knowledge and sell

• Social Media strategy, tactics, and implementation for LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook, Foursquare, etc.

Reporting: Jointly, we agree upon the scope, success factors, metrics, and review frequency.

Our Consistent PR Process Completely Accomplishes Client Goals

We get your spokespersons many media coverage opportunities and quotes. We tee you up for the interview; you execute by helping the reporter fill the story. Part of your interview success is being available and timely, and part is being interesting, informative, and quotable.

You are the expert, so help reporters and bloggers understand the latest industry issues, industry developments, and developing business challenges.

Reporters, editors, influencers, and bloggers are influential conduits to your audience. Together, we help them write splendid stories and, in return, our clients get great press. MediaFirst documents this process and our progress towards your goals.

We document Qualitative & Quantitative Measurement through:

• Results/Status Report: listing interviews for the month, forecasting media coverage for the coming months, naming the byline article release date, and identifying awards or speaking engagements for the future.

• Strategic & Tactical PR Plans document target media outlets (publications), proposed and actual press releases, the blog calendar and briefs, byline article opportunities, opportunities to win awards, speaking engagements, trade shows and conferences, and the spokespersons for your venture and their expertise.

• Press Kits, packaged as PDFs for download from your website, sending by email, or in the online press room of a trade show. Rarely, in a presentation folder for a physical press room. We assemble a press kit is for your media audience. Typically, a press kit includes a few relevant current press releases, product sheets, and spokesperson bios. You might include a list of company backgrounder, list of board members, list of advisory board members, etc.

• Pitch Matrix: bite-sized story pitch ideas for media relations

• Story Pitches: responses to reporter needs with our pitch, and responsive e-mail communications with the media, analysts, influences, and bloggers.

• Press Releases show your success. We like to weave in changes in company positioning with an evolution of the press releases. These serve a primary audience of prospective customers. The second key audience is investors. We prove and increase your valuation to investors, noting expansive markets, sound value proposition, complete management team, and excellent execution against corporate goals.

• News wires: effective distribution of news online, in print, and to the news desks of major media outlets. We save you money on wire services.

• Leverage press coverage via Web links of Press Releases and media coverage

Our Agency Work Builds Awareness & Informs Buyers

Select the mix of services you want. MediaFirst guides clients to earn press coverage through media relations, gain industry analyst praise, inform your audience through bylined articles, announce and distribute press releases, win significant industry awards, attract readers via blog content, garner speaking opportunities, and engage with a curated stream of social media posts.

Clients select MediaFirst PR–Atlanta to:

• Enable acquisition and exit for owners, shareholders, and investors 
• Start quickly—we already know the industry, technology, and business value
• Generate leads
• Run creative marketing campaigns
• Capture mind share, build a brand, and drive valuation
• Grow your firm’s position of visionary leadership and thought in your niche
• Conquer new market verticals and prospects
• Establish market standing versus the competition
• Teach, imparting knowledge about technologies, products, and services
• Communicate a complex offering with a clear value proposition
• Maintain a consistent work program from strategy to task details
• Leverage your resources, both staff and budgetary, within your constraints
• Conform to your requirements, creating results and deliverables of value

How MediaFirst [M1PR] Works With You

Public Relations / Media Relations: Consistent Process Creates Significant Results

Your business valuation increases via the third-party endorsement of business and technology media outlets. When national and trade media quote our clients, clients become the experts. We treat the media as a customer, creating stories that meet the editorial needs of both the media and our client. By creating the right story idea at the right time with the right target, you get great press.

Our clients are newsmakers in the media outlets that reach their audience. These may include: The Wall Street Journal, Investor’s Business Daily, FT, Economist, Business Week, Forbes, Fortune, CFO, InformationWeek, Wired, CIO, CNN, CNBC, trade publications in technology, the supply chain, software/IT/networks/Cloud Computing, and other business media outlets whether radio, television, podcast, print, and online. Every PR outreach is digital-first, with publishers using content across all channels.

We work together for your success, meeting your goals of:

• Targeting and reaching audiences for awareness

• Write in the authentic and in the language of your audience

• Teaching audiences about your hardware, software, or services

• Generating investor interest in your venture

• Crafting the value proposition of your offerings and firm

• Compel prospects to evaluate your offerings favorably

• Blend PR or marketing efforts and campaigns with your corporate strategy

• Reach your goals to create new customers, grow revenues, and raise valuation

We Have the Focus to Sustain PR Efforts

For best results, PR requires sustained effort and periodic contact. We document your messages and positioning. You determine your spokespersons. We prepare a Press Kit that explains why your spokespersons and firm are well qualified to comment to the press. Together, we select media outlets (magazines, radio shows, TV, and web news sites) with a readership (listener/viewer base) that reach your target audience. We write press releases on the subjects of your deals, new product or service offerings, personnel hiring, and office locations. In addition, our unique tactic of writing issue-based press releases positions you as an expert. These releases cite your vision of industry changes or reactions to breaking news. We use issue-based press releases to propose story ideas for reporters/editors. These provide them with a useful commentary on today’s issue.

We Tee You Up For Press Interview Opportunities

We contact reporters by the method they prefer. This usually means an e-mail. We get inquiries from reporters. Some call or want us to call. We should issue big news as a press release considering cost over a newswire. Our mutual aim is to get you in the story. Sometimes, the publication will use a quote from you or your press release. More often, your press release gets your foot in the door, but the reporter wants an interview. You are responsible to be helpful, responsive, interesting, and informative. The editor is hoping you offer expertise and insight. If you take a powerful position, that may make your quote more valuable. One of our jobs is to serve as the point of contact for interview scheduling between your spokespersons & reporters. We will coach you on what the reporter wants and give you ideas, but you must execute. 

Process Guarantees Delivery Of Results

The best measure of press coverage is seeing your firm’s name and spokesperson’s quote. Therefore, we concentrate on creating results, not reports. Do not pay for a clipping service. We know where you have when you interviewed, if the reporter includes your quote, and when it will go to press.

Measuring PR placements (hits) with a digital search clipping service might make you happy, but is unnecessary. Clipping services cover your targeted media outlets and search for the name of your firm and spokespersons. Clipping services start at about zero for Google News Alerts. Some clipping services only offer annual billing at more than $10000 per year.

More extensive tracking is one way to measure press coverage However, metrics like share of voice are rarely informative and are most often vanity metrics. Valuable share-of-voice statistics require that you have a complete list of competitors, understand the keywords you measure, and don’t have huge global competitors that overshadow your efforts.

Web-based search can provide a measure of press coverage found in larger publications but can be less effective in measuring trade press.

Forecasting Provides Confidence Of Success

We forecast your PR results by maintaining a list of reporters that expressed interest and the projected future date your name will show up in print. The forecast looks six months ahead, because of the long editorial lead times of monthly print publications.

If you understand the PR process and maintain realistic expectations, your PR initiatives will reward you with great press coverage.

M1PR CEO, Jim Caruso, quoted in Forbes

11. Look To Your Client’s Support Team For Guidance

"Support organizations hear customer issues, including the latest challenges. Hearing about these issues can provide insight for product positioning or new products, services or features. Speaking with your client’s support team can guide you to the problems that the client can solve for customers. Customers care about the issues they face. These issues are effective topics for blog content creation or advertising."

- Jim Caruso, M1PR, Inc. d/b/a MediaFirst PR - Atlanta

So, look to your customer-facing staff for some of the latest insights into the challenges your clients face, today.

Get more for your effort and budget