Media relations is all about the “relations”

With the Colorado Garden & Home Show kicking off this Saturday (Feb. 13 at 10 a.m.), it only seems appropriate to give a shout out to Denver’s media outlets. Recently, much of my work at GroundFloor Media has been handling crisis communication, social media and national media relations. But, I must admit that I have enjoyed rekindling my relationships with some of Denver’s long-time reporters and producers. In January, PRSA Colorado hosted an event called “A Media Roundtable: Breaking the News in 2010.” It was the perfect event to kick off 2010 and really helped our team get a jump start on the local media relations opportunities for this show. If you missed the event and are interested in learning “the most important thing PR people need to know about the media in 2010,” watch these videos.

We all witnessed social media hitting the mainstream in 2009; however, traditional media still plays an important role in communicating our clients’ news and events. While we developed a Twitter and Facebook strategy for the show and created a hashtag (#garden2010), we knew we needed to execute a strong local media relations campaign. Even with all the changes we have read about at The Denver Post and the merging of KDVR FOX31 and KWGN The Deuce, it was very refreshing to work with reporters/producers who are passionate about their work and most importantly, are committed to our community – as I have witnessed in working with so many of them over the years.

As the media landscape continues to change, my advice to any local business is to read and watch your local media. Follow the news outlet on Twitter. Become a fan on Facebook. Listen to the reporters/producers. Invite them to coffee for a “get to know you” session. Understand their interests and passions. And be aware of the beats/topics they like to cover. Then pitch story ideas that you know they will want to report on because it is the perfect fit. Media relations is all about the “relations” part. Start here and you are sure to have better success at garnering media coverage!

~ Jennifer Wills