What is a Media Tour and how can it positively impact my bottom line?
Many years ago, I was asking myself the same question. When our Public
Relations (PR) agency first mentioned this concept, I immediately
assumed it is something that authors and actors do when promoting their
latest, creative endeavourer! Whatever the term "media tour" might
mean to you, in the PR business - it's free money!

Media Tour Defined:
A media tour is simply a method for taking your message to a variety of
communication outlets with the end result of free placement. For
example, if your organization is hosting a food drive in the near
future, your best bet for free media coverage might include
"pitching" the local city paper to run a story on your event. In
this manner, your assured a certain percent of readership will not only
read the piece, but will attend in support of the food drive. This
process works well for both a single or yearly events. The use of a
media tour for developing and promoting a brand, however, is quite
another process.

Integrated Public Relations (IPR):
Whether you employ the services of an outside PR agency or utilize
internal talent, the question of how you plan and implement a media
tour can vary considerably. Most PR activities operate as a separate
entity (in most organizations) or under the umbrella of marketing. By
virtue of this separation, the PR department may be in pursuit of
unrelated goals. Whatever the functional composition, the question of
how PR operates to achieve strategic objectives and provides a
measurable return on investment lies in its organization and execution.
For these reasons, "integrating" PR into the overall business
strategy is crucial.

Media Kit:
Most organizations possess a "press kit" or a variation that
resembles one. In essence, a media kit contains the following
essentials: company binder or folder, biographies of key personnel, an
overview of the organization (single sheet), and a primary document or
brochure that contains your core intent. When visiting with editors,
keep the message your promoting and contents of your kit simple and
clear. Your PR representative will guide you through the presentation
of materials, responses to common questions, and how to obtain media
placement commitments.

How does it work?
The process of developing a media tour can be reduced to four
constituents: Strategic Intent, IPR Design, Execution, and ROI. Every
organization has some message, event, or offering they wish to promote.
In addition to other marketing activities, utilizing the "free
press" as a means to reach your end goal makes good business sense.

Strategic Intent: From your vision and mission statements, draw out
your core intent for the year. Next, distill a single message you want
to propagate throughout the organization and to your targeted audiences
(donors). In short, your rallying cry should be reduced to a few key
words.

IPR Design: Your strategic marketing plan details the promotional
components (advertising, billboards, radio, PR) you will employ for the
year and their specific roles. These "components" should be
harmoniously integrated and support the strategic intent noted above.
Your PR initiatives for the year, including a media tour, will be
"designed" into the overall fabric of your plan. The next step
includes how you will integrate free press into your business strategy.

Execution: The components of a media tour include a press kit,
presentation material, and a representative (internal or external)
schooled in interfacing with the press. The representative will set
appointments with key editors of select media vehicles (TV, radio,
trade magazines, newspapers, etc.) in advance and typically will
schedule this tour over several consecutive days. The goal for every
appointment is to reach an agreement on the free placement (editorial,
radio spot, etc.), when it will run, and the desired venue.

ROI: The return on investment for this undertaking lies in media
placements achieved minus your total expenses. After the tour
concludes, your PR representative must maintain contact with editors to
determine when the editorial will run and the equivalent cost for each
venue achieved. In the subsequent weeks or months that follow, a tally
of free placements and their associated costs constitute the variables
needed to calculate your ROI . The economic outcome should exceed two
to five times the initial investment. For example, I undertook a media
tour that cost $15,000 over a two week period, but the return in free
placement equated to over $200,000!

Conclusion:
A Media Tour is an effective tool under certain circumstances. A
business leader must weigh the financial benefit perceived by this
endeavor versus all associated costs. Once an assessment confirms this
approach makes good business sense, the next step includes defining
your strategic intent followed by an intelligent IPR design. Paramount
to achieving your objectives lies in the organization and execution of
the tour. If properly developed, the benefits of achieving your
strategic PR goals with minimal investment should yield a ROI that
would make most analysts on Wall Street blush!

Bill Nissim consults with nonprofit organizations on brand management
issues. His website www.ibranz.com contains reference materials, links,
and helpful articles on the many facets of branding.