How to Organize a Successful Press Conference

Do you or your company have a hot piece of news that needs to be immediately distributed to as many news sources as possible? If so, organizing a press conference is a convenient way to get your news into the hands of the local media in one shot.

Instructions

Difficulty: Moderate

Things You’ll Need:

• A strong media alert or press release announcing the conference.
• A newsworthy topic that will spark the interest of local journalists.
• Telephone and email contacts for media outlets in your targeted area.

1. Before you begin, a breaking news topic is absolutely essential. Without it, there is no need to hold a press conference. Holding a press conference on a topic that has no news value to journalists will likely yield a very lackluster attendance. An example of a good breaking news topic would be the capturing of a notorious criminal.
2. Now that you have your topic, you must figure out what kind of media attention your story ultimately warrants. Is it just local newspapers that you would like to see your news appear in or do you need to call television and radio stations as well?
3. Once you have figured out your media target, issue a media alert or press release announcing your conference. Be sure to include a definite date, time and location. Changing any of these details after the alert has been issued may cause confusion among journalists that decide to attend. Journalists are very busy people and often do not have the time to check for updates.
4. It would be helpful to arrange for multiple speakers to participate in your press conference. Many reporters and journalists require numerous sources when writing stories, so having several people addressing the same issue would prove to be very convenient for them. Three is an ideal number, but you can always try for more.

Tips & Warnings

• It is okay to follow-up a media alert with an additional phone call or email, but don't harass reporters. If for some reason they cannot attend your event, thank them anyway for their time.
• If a media outlet chooses not to cover your event or news item, ask them why and what type of news they prefer to print. Knowing what type of information a publication covers will help you when similar situations arise in the future.
• Consider inviting local bloggers to attend you news conference as well. Although not an official media outlet, blogs are attracting a growing readership and could help to spread your message.