Media alerts can be sent via fee-based wire services or by mail, email or fax. The beginning of any media relations program is a customized database that includes all reporters, editors and producers that may be interested in your company news. To be useful, media databases must be maintained and updated regularly since media outlets come and go and the individuals who work there are even more transient. Some are related to geography, others to topic. Some are in books or pamphlets, others are on CD or are accessed through the Internet.
Some guides cost thousands of dollars, others are cheap.
Sending everything to everyone is costly, inefficient and may actually serve to alienate media representatives. The materials should be written in a factual manner rather than with a promotional tone. The better the media kit, the better your chances of being written about accurately and being of interest to the media in the first place. Some popular items in a media kit include corporate backgrounder, industry backgrounder, executive bios, corporate fact sheet, FAQs, recent press releases, company brochure, product data sheets, annual report, etc. An organized effort to meet with multiple media outlets during a designated time period.