|
|
|
|
PR Guide |
Washington Convention Center, Washington,
DC May 23-25, 2001 |
|
Welcome to
online Communications Solutions EXPO Spring 2001 PR Guide. It was emailed to
the show contact database. But in case you missed it...its below |
|
|
|
Bob |
|
|
February
2001 |
|
Dear
Public Relations Colleague: Thank
you for participating in the upcoming show. This year's event will be the
largest 100% pure communications solutions business trade show. Based on
location and interest, we expect the excitement surrounding the show to
attract hundreds of working media. This
guide contains many important details about public relations activities at
the show. To help you better target those journalists who will pre-register
for the show, we have asked them to specify areas of interest and their
affiliations' URLs. We hope this information will be useful. Your
public relations team is always ready to help you in making this show a very
successful event. Call us
any time. Have a great show! |
|
|
|
Bob Miko |
|
|
Director of Public Relations |
|
|
Communications Solutions EXPO Spring 2001 |
|
|
203-378-2803 |
|
|
Table of Contents
(Clicking
on the diamond goes to the specific topic or returns here)
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Table of Contents
|
Designing Your PR Campaign for the show Establish
Your Trade Show Publicity Objectives First and
foremost, establish your campaign objectives. This show will be the leading
forum for publicizing new products and services, meeting with members of the
media to discuss your company's position, promoting new alliances and
announcing company restructuring. Determine your objectives and develop a
plan to reach them. |
|||||
|
After
setting your objectives, decide which media you should target. Review
computer, trade and business publications to learn who covers your company's
beat. You may want to purchase an editorial directory or editorial contact
management software to develop a comprehensive list of reporters. Your
list of reporters should be continually updated. Establish a good working
relationship with them, and ensure they receive your press releases, are
familiar with your organization's top management, and promptly honor their
requests for more information or interviews. Find out how each reporter
prefers to be contacted (phone, fax, e-mail or postal mail). As we
post the show's pre-registered press lists to you, determine the press you
should target. Many reporters will register on site, so we will not have
these names prior to the show. It is usually inappropriate to send your news
to the entire press list. Most
reporters have specific beats. Please be sure to research the reporters and
publications on the list we send you. We have included the media's URLs to
make it easier for you to find out information, and have asked journalists to
include their specific beats, which should help you target them more
effectively. We
recommend you inform other reporters on your targeted media list about the
show and invite them to attend. Remember,
the working press is competitive. Journalists compete internally for space in
their publications, on the wire and for airtime and, now, for Web space. You
have to earn the journalist's interest and support for your efforts.
Journalists have to become your advocates with their editors and employers.
You cannot influence all of them, not even all of them at one show. So select
a list of journalists that you can enlist to become your advocates and get to
know them.
Increase
Your Visibility Using Key Communications Tools Press
Releases - If you will have a significant news announcement or are
demonstrating a new product, inform the media about it with a press release
before the show. (Let us know so we can help publicize it as well). This
allows reporters to plan on attending your press conference or product
demonstration, and they may even cover your news in show previews. Media
Advisory - A brief, one-page "who, what, where, when, and why"
about your show activities, is an effective last-minute reminder to the
press. Press
Conferences - See below for detailed information. Follow-up
Press Release - After you've announced your key product, service or industry
news, we encourage you to send out a press release during the show.
Representatives of Business Wire will be on site to assist with wire service
distribution. Press
Interviews or One-on-Ones - To meet with specific members of the press for
informal one-on-one meetings, you can use the speaker/press room. After
the Show - Follow-up with the media you met by sending requested information
or a simple thank you. Also, send information to the media whom you did not
meet. IMPORTANT:
Contact the Media before the Show To
ensure that reporters are aware of your show activities, contact them before
the event. Reaching reporters before the show increases your exposure, and
makes it easier for the reporter to learn about your product, review your
idea, and schedule an on-site meeting.
The
Press Kit A
typical press kit contains press releases, a company profile, executive bios,
product photos, a business card, and even a diskette. Often, the typical
press kit contains too much information. With
100+ exhibitors at the show, a journalist would have to hire a caddie to cart
around the entire contents of every press kit. Reporters need to find the
"hard" news quickly and easily. It is imperative your press kits be
concise and include the most important information on top. The
foundation of a press kit is a well-written press release, which should
include the following:
Dateline
information. For example, a press announcement being released at the show
should read, "May 24, 2001, Communications Solutions EXPO Spring 2001,
Washington, DC." We encourage the use of the the show dateline on your
press releases. It makes it easier for editors to identify the event,
location, and timeframe of your press release. The
most important information should be in the first paragraph. Ask
the following:
Make
sure that your press kit folder has your company name on the front. Place a
sticker on the kit with your booth number. Business
Wire and the Virtual Press Office will post Electronic Media Kits (EMKs) on
their Trade Show site (www.businesswire.com/tradeshow). These electronic media kits may contain
news releases, photos, graphics, audio, and more. The Business Wire Trade
Show Web site will be bookmarked and promoted to media prior to and during
the show in the Press Center. How
many press kits for the show and where to ship them? There
will be over 100 working press at the show. The press kit library will have
space for your kits. You will be able to restock the supply of press kits
through the show. We recommend 50 to 100 kits shipped (for the largest shows
we recommend up to 200, seldom more) to the show. You should have them
delivered to your booth and then bring them to the press center. Journalists
who pick up your kits in the press center are a prime goal. You should keep a
significant percentage of kits at your booth. And, most important, you should
have a handful in your briefcase to personally hand out to the working press.
The kits that you give out yourself are the ones that really count.
Show
Graphics and Dateline Show
logos, ads and other graphic files along with instructions on how to download
them are available on our Web site at http://www.pacificdialogue.com. (Go to the press registration page and
copy the logos at the top or bottom of the page...if you need directions on
how-to, call. The logos are also in the "exhibitor only" section of
tmcnet.com. Again, if you need help, call.)
Press
releases should be datelined with the show name. These
logos include images with the words "See Us at (show name)" that
you can display on your Web site, along with banners that can be used in your
press kits or other printed material.
Every
publicist's main objective is to help journalists cover and write about the
products of your client/company. The goal is to convince journalists to be
your advocate with their organization. Only they can fight their boss for
air, space and ink. This comes with long-term
relationships and real "news."
Press
Releases Too
many press releases are pure advertising. Stick to the basics, remembering
the purpose of the press release is to present "news," not to
advertise. Journalists are not going to believe that your product is
"going to revolutionize the field." Keep
press releases to no more than one page in length. Journalists are always
pressed for time. You must get their attention quickly, or risk not getting
any at all. They want facts, not a short story. E-mail releases are a growing
trend, keep them short. Keep your press releases in a simple format, don't
send them as attachments (what you can read on your machine will be computer
code on someone else's, especially when they are on deadline). Do not
send large GIF files that will take forever to download. (Always be aware of
the size of the file you send. Some systems won't accept it, some won't
accept more than one attached file at a time. You can ask me what it felt
like to shut down the email system of Mecklermedia by sending out the press
list for Fall Internet World '97. The CIO at the time wanted to strangle me,
fortunately senior management thought it was funny). When
you are announcing a new product for the first time, include a white paper
detailing the product. This serves as a reference guide so journalists can
understand how it works. Always
provide a name, address, phone number, and e-mail address on all your press
materials. This will make it easier for journalists to get in contact with
you. Include
a bulleted fact sheet, especially, if you are announcing the release of a new
product:
Press Kits Send
press kits to those reporters and freelance writers who request them. It can
become very expensive for you to send press kits to every journalist on your
list! A press release can be compared to an "appetizer," while the
press kits are the "entree." Journalists may not be ready for the
main course in the beginning - they need to warm up to it.
Correspondence Never
call journalists to ask if they received your press release. Remember that
they receive dozens and one press release can be hard to distinguish from
another. You might send an e-mail reminder, but be ready to be tagged for
"spamming." Call only if there are errors in your press releases.
So far many reporters regard e-mails as friendly, phone calls as intrusive
and faxes as acts of war.
The
worst situation is a press conference without any press. Even if you've
called, faxed and e-mailed all pertinent information to your targeted media,
there is so much to see at the show that journalists will not have the time
to attend each and every conference. Remember the following in
deciding whether or not to hold a press conference:
If, after reviewing the above
criteria, you decide to hold a press conference, remember:
Areas
will be assigned on a first-come, first-served basis. We cannot guarantee
exclusivity. Press conferences will be scheduled in overlapping times. Two
companies who want to hold press conferences first on Wednesday morning may
be scheduled "against" each other. Time
slots are 45 minutes in length. No
conferences will be scheduled during the keynote addresses Wednesday (9:00
a.m. - 10:00 a.m.), Thursday (9:00 a.m. - 10:30 a.m.) and Friday (9:00 a.m. -
10:00 a. m.). We
provide a schedule and overview of press conferences to the media, so when
reserving the room, please include a brief description as to the nature of
the announcement. Press
conferences should be used to break news. Please
note: There are a limited number of press conference areas available on a
first-come, first-served basis. We cannot guarantee area availability for the
time and date you request, and we reserve the right to change your press
conference area (if that happens, and it might, we will make sure the word
gets out about the shift). Although
we make every effort to inform journalists about your press conference, it is
your responsibility to ensure attendance. The
deadline for reserving press conference rooms for inclusion in the tip sheet
is Monday, January 17th. The tip sheet is sent to all pre-registered press. To
reserve a press conference room, please contact: |
|||||
|
|
Bob Miko |
||||
|
|
(203) 378-2803 |
||||
|
|
|||||
|
Tips
for a Successful Press Conference
We
provide press conference areas free of charge to exhibitors.
Banners
and Signage All
areas are decorated with show banners, including show logo on the podium.
These cannot be removed. Individual corporate signage is welcome. The signs
must be set up immediately before and taken down immediately after your press
conference. GES Exposition Services can make signs for your press conference.
Orders should be placed before the show (see GES Expo contact information
below.)
Each
press conference area will be set with the front half of the room school room
style, and rear half in theater style (capacity varies with each room from 40
to 125 seats). Along the rear walls will be tables for press kit distribution
and catering. We will also provide a table immediately outside the room for
press registration. Additional
tables are available (i.e., for demonstrations) on request. For assistance in
room set-up and specific furniture requests, contact GES Expo in advance of
the show. Order forms are in the Exhibitor Service Manual. GES
Expo can accommodate most requests on site (but they need more than 10
minutes before a press conference starts). Be aware you are taking a chance
not only on timing, but also on supply. Much of GES's furniture and equipment
is brought in from outside warehouses and takes a business day to arrive at
the show. Contact
Freeman by February 4th for discount orders on decorating and furniture
reservations. |
|||||
|
Contact: |
Exhibitor Services |
||||
|
|
GES Exposition Services |
||||
|
|
301-583-5000 |
||||
|
|
301-583-5077 |
||||
|
|
URL:www.gesexpo.com |
||||
|
Catering Catering is available from WCC's house caterers. You must contact them directly with your catering needs. Be aware of the limitations of these press conference rooms and the need to be able to change the room from one company to another. In the 50 minutes we allow for presentations, a full-course dinner might seem like a good idea, but its execution in a press conference room in the time allotted is not possible. |
|||||
|
All food and beverage must be arranged through: |
|
||||
|
|
|
||||
|
|
|
||||
|
|
|
||||
|
The Press
Center In the
Press Center located in the Washington Cenvention Center we have computers,
printers, copiers, fax machines, telephones and refreshments for the working
press. This area is reserved for registered press ONLY. We will have an area
just outside the Working Press Room for exhibitors and press to meet for
interviews in a "neutral" location, away from other reporters who
have to file stories on deadline. The Center contains a "library"
so exhibitors can present their press kits and other information directly to
the press. The press uses these kits for background information on your
company, to find a contact for interviews, product information, etc. Again,
access to the library is available to working press only. When you deliver
your kits to the Press Kit Library, staffers will place them alphabetically
in press kit bins. The Public Relations department strives to provide working
journalists with all the tools required to obtain, review and disseminate
news from the show.
The
PressRoom and its facilities are provided exclusively for the working press.
This area is used by journalists to review materials and write and file
reports from the show. To provide comfortable working conditions with a
minimum of distractions, exhibitors and other attendees are not permitted in
this area. To
assist the media in filing stories from the show, we provide the following: |
|||||
|
|
Telephones, Fax Machines, Copier. |
||||
|
|
Workstations with word-processing. |
||||
|
|
Dedicated T1 Internet access, and phone lines for dial-up access from laptops. |
||||
|
Press Kit
Library Located
in the Press Center is the Press Library. It is the resource for working
journalists to obtain exhibitors' press kits. They are arranged
alphabetically by company name. The
Library is limited to working press only. Be
prepared to bring 75+ kits to the show. Do not ship them to the Library.
Press kits should be delivered to your booth and carried to the Library
drop-off point (located at the entrance to The Press Kit Library.) Call
Center staffers will place your kits in the bins we provide. Deliver 50 kits
to the Library. Keep 25 at your booth for journalists who visit you there,
and keep some kits in reserve. Check with Press Kit Library staff regularly
to determine if you need to resupply your kits.
Independent
Press Centers Exhibitors
may rent an entire facility outside the Exhibit Hall, either with us or in
another building or hotel to serve as a "nerve center" for media
relations, as a working press room, to hold press interviews, or to stage
product demos. If you
are setting up an independent press center, whether it's in your booth, the
Hall set aside for meeting rooms, another room in the Center or offsite at
your hotel, we need to know in advance about where your location will be for
show. Journalists will be caught up in the brisk pace of the show and need to
find your space without a hassle or coming back up to the PressCenter in
confusion. It would not look good for you if journalists miss appointments in
a large convention center because they cannot find where you are!
Message
Boards Message
boards for the exclusive use of exhibiting companies will be available inside
the Press Center. These
boards can be used to post information (no larger than 8 1/2" x
11") regarding press conferences, special events and for leaving
messages for journalists. They
are not intended for posting press releases.
Media List The
list of pre-registered press for show will be posted on a bi-weekly basis
beginning Friday, March 3rdt. The final list will be sent on Thursday, April
20th. The
list will be posted as a tab-delimited text file for you to download www.pacificdialogue.com/comsols2001_plist.htm. This text file can then be imported into
the database or word processing program of your choice. There will be no hard
copy of this list available. (I have said that I would not fax one to my
mother if she was exhibiting, and as an alumna of ATT she took offense to the
suggestion that I would waste paper sending a fax). For questions about the list,
please contact: |
|||||
|
Bob Miko |
|||||
|
|
(203) 378-2803 |
||||
|
|
|||||
|
Press
Parties and Events Tip Sheets Immediately
prior to the opening of the show, a series of "Tip Sheets" will be
sent to all pre-registered press containing a complete listing of press
conferences, keynote addresses, special events, and highlights of new
products and services being introduced at the show. The
deadline for this information is Monday, April 17th. If you are planning a
special event (i.e., cocktail party, dinner, reception, etc.) and are
planning to invite the press, please notify Bob Miko (see contact information
below). In addition, make sure invitations are available in the Press Kit
Library - deliver these when you deliver your press kits. (See "Press
Kit Library" for additional information). Also, you can post invitations
on the message boards. To ensure that we have your information for consideration, please send a brief description (no more than 50 words) of your event or your new product to: |
|||||
|
Bob Miko |
|||||
|
|
(203) 378-2803 |
||||
|
|
|||||
|
Deadline for information is Monday, April 17th. |
|
||||
|
BusinessWire Business Wire and Virtual Press
Office are the official international media relations wire services for the
show. All news, photos, video, audio and spreadsheets issued via Business
Wire will be posted to the news site, available inside the Press Center and
on the World Wide Web, at www.tradeshownews.com. Show headlines will also be issued to
registered show journalists. (Business Wire's Trade Show and Conference News
Site now has its own URL, www.tradeshownews.com). Business Wire provides the
following services in advance of and during show: Exhibitor Previews - You will be
contacted directly by Business Wire, requesting a 100-word profile of your
company and/or products by e-mail. All profiles will be sent out over
Business Wire's Trade Show Global Circuit, high-tech trades and the IDG World
Circuit at no charge, one week prior to the show. News Dissemination Services -
Business Wire's news dissemination services will be available on site in the
Press Center to exhibitors at the show. News can be disseminated via fax,
modem, e-mail or the Internet. Business Wire will also offer special Trade
Show circuits to exhibitors should you want to issue releases, Electronic
Media Kit, video, audio or photos before, during and/or after the show. NEW SHOW PRODUCT INFO: Smart News Release - For a true
multimedia news release, you may include streaming video, streaming audio,
photos/graphics and/or spreadsheets with your news release. Smart News
Releases are posted to the BW/ show news site, with recaps e-mailed to
registered show journalists. The text releases are issued on BW's wire
circuits to media and posted to more than 700+ databases. PhotoWire - Business Wire is able
to issue photos alongside your news releases via the Associated Press photo
network. In addition, all photos are posted on the Business Wire Web site,
linked to your show news. Photos may be issued prior to or during the show. |
|||||
|
For more information please contact: |
Jim Liebenau |
||||
|
|
Business Wire Trade Show Services |
||||
|
|
|||||
|
|
310-820-9473 |
||||
|
|
800-237-8212 |
||||
|
Virtual
Press Office For just $400, VPO will upload up to six
documents on any length, link to your home page, email press release
headlines to the pre-registered media, archive the press kit for one year and
provide a post show usage report. To be included in the show Virtual Press
Office please contact the VPO sales team on 973 783 7787 or
sales@virtualpressoffice.com.
Media
Distribution Services Reach
the Media with PR Materials as Never Before! If you
need to reach the press in advance or during the show, April 26 - 28 in
Washington, DC, you should take advantage of a special arrangement we've made
with the nation's largest public relations printing, media mailing and fax
service - Media Distribution Services. MDS has agreed to give a substantial
discount for new clients. MDS is headquartered in New York City and has
service center in major markets nationwide. Most
important, MDS has the most comprehensive media database in the country with
more than 200,000 contacts at more than 50,000 print and broadcast media in
North America, plus all daily newspapers worldwide. It's the only daily
updated database in the PR field. MDS
can print or assemble your news releases, press kits and other information
and disseminate them without delay to editors and program producers by name,
editorial beat and other critical targeting criteria. MDS also has Fast-Fax,
the premier "blast" fax service that allows you to send handfuls or
hundreds of faxes to the press simultaneously in minutes. MDS's
database also covers the U.S. Congress and its staffs, and the country's
leading security analysts. For further information, call MDS at 800-637-3282 |
|||||
|
|
|
||||
|
|
Fax: 212-714-9092. |
||||
|
|
mds.ny.cs@worldnet.att.net. |
||||
|
|
|||||
|
Luce Press
Clippings Luce Press Clippings, one of the world's largest clipping services, will provide a unique benefit to exhibitors. We have arranged for Luce to give you a certificate worth $264 -- one month's reading fee. See us in the Press Room to obtain the certificate and also discuss your current and potential needs in media monitoring. Clipping service still is the most efficient means of monitoring the media, including ALL daily newspapers and thousands of weekly newspapers and consumer, business, trade and professional magazines and other publications, as well as radio and TV stations. You can obtain clippings about your company and products and also information about your competitors and other subjects of interest to you. |
|||||
|
Contact: |
Arnold Knepper |
||||
|
|
800-628-0376 |
||||
|
|
clip@lucepress.com |
||||
|
|
|||||
|
Exhibitors
are eligible to receive a special free offer from Press Access, the leading
provider of information and automation for public relations. They will
receive a FREE, two-week subscription to Press Files -- the only online
source for in-depth editorial information for PR. With
Press Files, exhibitors will have 24-hour access to detailed profiles on
thousands of editors, publications and editorial calendar opportunities.
Press Files provides inside information including editors' beats,
responsibilities, background, and working preferences -- the kind of detail
that makes PR efforts really pay off. This is a free trial of Press Files. E-mail forms are available from Bob Miko or from Press Access |
|||||
|
Contact: |
Brian Mahoney |
||||
|
|
617-350-3732 |
||||
|
|
bmahoney@pressaccess.com |
||||
|
The
show offers a diverse array of important promotional opportunities developed
to assist you in maximizing your exposure at the event. From print
advertising, display banners and event sponsorship, you have the opportunity
to attract thousands of attendees to your exhibit space and make a strong
corporate statement about your value to the industry. This is an
unprecedented opportunity to reach thousands of influential attendees. An
abbreviated list of the sponsorship items follows:
For a complete events marketing
kit or for rates on various sponsorships, |
|||||
|
Contact: |
Hilary Inman |
||||
|
|
203-852-6800 |
||||
|
|
hinman@tmcnet.com |
||||
|
If,
after reviewing the contents of this PR Guide, you find that you have
additional questions or need further information, please feel free to direct
your inquiries to any of the Public Relations contacts below. We look forward
to assisting you in your public relations efforts, and wish you the best of
luck. |
|||||
|
|
Bob Miko |
||||
|
|
Director of Public Relations |
||||
|
|
Show |
||||
|
|
203-378-2803 |
||||
|
|
|||||
Table of Contents
|
|
BusinessWire | Internet Wire | Luce | MDS | Press Access | TSNN | Virtual Press Office