Like any relationship, the one between brands and media is a give and take deal. Maintaining a good affiliation with any media member – including those in the health and wellbeing industry – is down to going about things the right way. To help PRs and brands navigate the murky waters of proper protocol, BD spoke to health journalists and bloggers to shed light on what they believe to be best practice methods...
EVENTS
What is the ideal event time?
- “Breakfast or mid-morning. By the afternoon emails and meetings have taken over and I’m more likely to miss the event.” – The Fit Foodie’s Sally O’Neill
- “Breakfast (from 8.30am, means you can get to the gym beforehand) and lunch.” – Women’s Health fitness editor Ashleigh Austen
- “Having just had a baby as well as living interstate, early morning and lunchtime event times are key to now actually being able to attend. Evening routines take precedence with a baby now so when planning events it’s so important to think of the parents too.” – Clean Beauty Talk’s Yadira Galarza
- “Breakfast or after work hours. Also, remember a lot of guests won't be blogging full-time so keeping the events out of work hours can be handy for bloggers.” – Eat with Elle’s Ellie Parker
- “I love a morning event as it’s most often the only time of day that’s free of meetings. A breakfast is also a lovely way to start the day!” – Woman’s Day health and lifestyle writer Ashley Cameron
How long should an event run?
- “60-90 minutes depending on the event and any activities taking place. Roughly just 20-30 per cent of that time should be about the product itself and any key messages media need to be aware of. Longer than that can feel like a meeting with a sales person.” – Sally O’Neill
- “90 minutes tops – especially if it’s a lunch or an event mid-afternoon. If I know the event is going to last any longer, I’d rather just grab the info afterwards as there’s nothing worse than rushing to an event and having to rush back to work.” – Ashley Cameron
- “Two hours max even with an activity attached (such as a workout, or class).” – Ashleigh Austen
- “It depends on the scale of the event and launch of course, but under 90 minutes is the sweet spot for me! A percentage of bloggers still have a day job so they have to run back to work, and the full-time bloggers have to think of time as money.” – Fitness in the City’s Lee Sutherland
What should brands/PRs keep in mind when organising?
- “Pick locations which have parking. It is always tricky to get to events in the CBD but Bondi, Alexandria etc. are a lot easier.” – Ashleigh Austen
- “At least two weeks notice is handy! I can’t get to any events that don’t provide adequate notice. (The amount of times I get invited to things last minute is beyond a joke!) Also directions if the event is taking place somewhere a little random.” – Yadira Galarza
- “Ensure there’s not too much ‘downtime’ or mingle time. While it’s lovely to meet other journalists and PRs, it makes everyone feel more at ease if you arrive and take a seat so that you can get comfortable, have a chat with the people seated next to you and then take on the information for whatever product/service is being advertised.” – Ashley Cameron
- “Guests may not know each other, so a seating chart is always a great idea for making new contacts.” – Ellie Parker
- “Present information relevant to the product, a beautiful ‘instagrammable’ setting/goodie bag, and ways of ensuring attendees interact so that people mingle (they'll stay longer because they will feel more comfortable).” – Blogger Sami Bloom
PRESS RELEASES
What is the best form of contact?
- “Email, email, email! (Who knows where all my hard copy media releases disappear to?). When it comes to writing any stories I always refer back to my emails. It is handy to have both, but when you travel and work all over the place the way I do, I rely on my computer a lot.” – Yadira Galarza
- “Email – save paper and you have a digital copy forever.” – Ellie Parker
- “Email is always best.” – Ashley Cameron
- “I prefer everything emailed to me. I might not cover the event or product straight away but will come back to it in a few weeks when it fits with an appropriate story.” – Lee Sutherland
How can a press release best grab media’s attention?
- “[Keep it] short and sweet and if there are pics available, always send those as well. Often for health and lifestyle pages, we are looking to find products that work within an environment that we are already working on. So for instance, if you’re sending a press release about a new superfood range, send hi-res pics with the media release and it’s far more likely to grab my attention as I can instantly see in my mind if it’s something that would work on the page.” – Ashley Cameron
- “They should never be too long – I love one pages, two pages absolute max. The headline needs to be catchy or witty too. The hook needs to be fun. I love creativity. Also a press release always needs to be grammatically correct! It’s hard to take a release seriously when there are typos.” – Yadira Galarza
- “Keep the text brief.” – Ashleigh Austen
- “A good email subject line, no more than two pages, sub-headings with interesting captions. Good branding.” – Sami Bloom
- “Highlight the key benefits of the product e.g. how charcoal can clear skin and give story ideas that could easily feature the product.” – Ellie Parker
SEND-INS
What makes a send-in memorable?
- “Non-generic communication is key. A little more effort in these areas goes a long way! I find this helps build better business relationships as well.” – Yadira Galarza
- “Fun props that make social media posts easy.” – Ashleigh Austen
- “Stylish packaging, short and relevant information as to the benefits (so they can include them in a post), and ensuring there is product/brand alignment. Packaging is important – I’m more likely to get an early post if it is presented beautifully for a quick snap.” – Sami Bloom
- “It's the small things that grab attention, whether it's accompanied by a balloon, or something clever to go with the new product.” – Ellie Parker
What should brands be aware of?
- “Bloggers tend to want to trial the product for a few weeks before attesting to its effectiveness i.e. posting on channels.” – Sami Bloom
- “Sending a product doesn't always guarantee coverage, and asking for free press for a $10 cleanser isn't professional.” – Ellie Parker
- “Only send products if you know they are appropriate to things we are working on. While it’s lovely to be able to trial and test new things, as I cover health and food, I’m not going to be able to put a product mention about skin cream on my food page.” – Ashley Cameron
- “Be transparent when sending product (i.e. ‘we require a social post’) or ask to send products. I prefer the latter as I hate wasting product or getting things that aren’t a great fit and then being asked five times what I think or when I will post about it when I wasn’t asked to begin with.” – Lee Sutherland
- “Just because a product is sent in doesn’t mean it’ll be used so don’t expect it to be. So many products are sent in every day so a little personalisation goes a long way. Not only with the product, but with any accompanying comms/emails/letters as well. Generic emails aren’t that crash hot – follow-up emails also work! I never ignore emails and if a product isn’t the right fit I’ll normally let the PR know why/why not when they get in touch.” – Yadira Galarza
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