Outreach
Media kit
press kit
Definition
Media kit is the pack a reporter can use without another email: bio, headshots, product shots, boilerplate, fact sheet, and the newsroom URL. It is owned media. It does not create coverage. It removes excuses.
Keep it short. A 40MB zip of every event photo is how kits get ignored. A page with downloadable stills and a contact beats a PDF deck.
How it works
Host the kit on a stable newsroom URL. Update headshots when leadership changes. Include the methods link if the story is a study. Do not make people fill a form to see facts that belong on the record.
Worked example
A launch kit: three photos, CEO bio, one-page fact sheet, embargo time, PI phone. Reporters who file at 10:01 have what they need. A 72-page brand book is for agencies, not a night desk.
How it differs
A press release is the announcement. A backgrounder is context. A fact sheet is numbers. The kit holds them. A pitch is still required.
Common errors
Gating the kit behind “work email.” Watermarking every image. Letting the CEO headshot stay five years out of date.
Sources
- Spin Sucks PESO model — Channel types
- What is Digital PR? — Mentions, links, campaigns
- Britopian earned media glossary — Briefings and materials