Free publicity. It’s the dream of every small business owner. But sadly, it’s not the goal of every small business owner. We can dream in our sleep, but to achieve a goal we need to be fully awake, alert, and working hard at it. A media kit (also called a press kit) takes some work upfront to create, but once you have it pulled together, it will help you gain publicity for your business.

How do you create a media kit?

The first question to ask yourself is: do you have the writing, graphic, photography, web design and layout skills to do it yourself? When you create your media kit, it’s an exercise most small business owners are going to do twice — once on paper and once online. You’ll want to include your media kit when you send out press releases through email marketing and you’ll also want to have it on hand when you attend trade shows or go virtually any place in public with your small business. Having your media kit online makes it much easier for writers, bloggers and editors to cite your business and include it in articles because your information is easily accessible. Now let’s review the basic elements to include when you create a media kit for your small business:

1. Artwork

You should include your company’s logo along with professional photographs of you, your product, service and location. You want editors to be able to pull from these pieces of art to create comprehensive articles about your business. Even if they are including your business as one among many in an article, they will choose the best photographs to run with their articles — so make sure yours are the best. Hire professionals to create these elements if you need to.

2. Introduction/pitch and company background

Think of your introduction as your elevator pitch. You want to “put your best foot forward” and make the case for doing business with you. This is a marketing piece without making it too “salesy.” The company background should cover its founding and short — but compelling —biographies of founders and key personnel.

3. Concise fact sheet

Many won’t take the time to read your full introduction and background papers, so provide an overview organized as a list.

4. Product or service information

Tell readers exactly what it is that you make or the services you perform. Describe in detail what makes them different from others in your industry.

5. Press clippings and press releases

Collect mentions of your business in the press and include these when you create your media kit. For online kits, they can be links to articles, as long as you provide a sufficient overview. You can also include significant press releases that you have distributed over the years.

6. A sample, or “model” news story

Some editors are looking to fill space and if you give them a good article written about your business that is factual and not just a “puff piece” they will run it — sometimes verbatim. Be sure to also include photographs that properly illustrate your news story.

7. Contact information

Include up-to-date contact information. If possible, break it down to the right people to contact for different kinds of information, but also let those people know what you’re doing and how they should handle media contacts. For the print version of your media kit, have the folder designed so you can slip your business card into it.

Don’t cut corners with your media kit.

A media kit is often the first in-depth look people will have into your business or organization. If you don’t have the design and writing skills within your small business, hand off creating your media kit to professionals. Contact a local photographer, go to an online freelancing site, and find professionals with experience creating media kits and press releases. With a comprehensive and quality media kit, you’re making it easy for editors and journalists to feature your business. Then it’s their turn to return the favor. For more small business marketing tips, read 10 Ways to Market Your Small Business on a Shoestring Budget. The post How to Create a Media Kit for Free Publicity appeared first on Constant Contact Blogs.