Welcome> Page 3. Best Practices> Page 5 Community Outreach Media Outreach Media Advisory Press Release Social Media Spokesperson 101

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1 PR Toolkit 2018

2 TABLE OF CONTENTS Welcome> Page 3 Best Practices> Page 5 Community Outreach Media Outreach Media Advisory Press Release Social Media Spokesperson 101 Checklists> Page 14 Pre-Event PR Checklist Day-of PR Checklist Post-Event PR Checklist Appendix> Page 16 Logos PR Samples 2

3 Welcome to the Drive 4 UR School/ Drive 4 UR Community PR Toolkit

4 Learning to Promote Your Event While paid advertisements may alert people to your product shipments, sales and, in this case, Drive 4 UR School/Drive 4 UR Community event, a news story in local media outlets or the presence of influential people from your community at your event can help spread the word. This further aids in building your credibility as a trusted neighbor and local expert on vehicles in today s fast-evolving consumer marketplace. This tool kit is here to help you in promoting your event. Let s get started! 4

5 Best Practices What you need to know to successfully promote your event

6 Community Outreach Consider inviting individuals who are of interest to media and the general public. Here are some suggestions to consider when determining who to invite to your event. Identify leaders within the community, such as: Elected officials (the mayor, members of the school board or charity) Members of the local chamber of commerce or other business organizations Community police and fire departments When thinking of who to invite, consider: Who may have a vested interest in the school or organization Which community members have children or who can relate to the organization s cause Who might be interested in Ford s business story Leverage your own relationships with people in your community. If you or your employees belong to any community groups (e.g., volunteer fire department, school board) invite those contacts to your event. Highlight why these invitees will benefit from attending this event, further emphasizing how much their presence would mean to the school or organization. Put your invitation on dealership letterhead Include photos from past D4URS/C events Add a handwritten note at the bottom of the invitation Follow up invitations with personal phone calls. Consider having your student ambassador or organization contact person reach out to emphasize the community nature of the event. 6

7 Media Outreach Selecting Media Contacts If you are already purchasing ad space or air time at a local news outlet, send press materials to your ad contact. If you do not have a specific contact at any given radio, television or print outlet, contact the news desk (found on the outlet s website) Pay special attention to local parenting or charity magazines, newsletters or other outlets, since they may be especially interested in the story. Invite local bloggers or influencers. More and more consumers turn to blogs as trusted sources of news, and blogs may be more receptive to covering your event. Be strategic. A fashion blogger probably won t cover your event, but blogs that are specifically interested in community and family happenings, education and cars might happily attend Use the following timeline for contacting media markets: Radio or television public service announcement - 3 weeks in advance Weekly newspapers - 2 weeks in advance Radio and television - 1 week in advance Daily newspapers and online outlets like blogs - 1 week in advance 7

8 Media Outreach Once you have selected your media outlets and gathered their contact information, you are ready to pitch! Before the event (3-5 weeks prior): Send your customized pre-event advisory OR press release to media contacts Copy and paste the content of the advisory or release into the body of an At the top, include a few sentences personally inviting the contact to your event, emphasizing what will be unique about it Include a short but compelling subject in the subject line Follow up with a phone call to ensure that the reporter received the information and to answer any questions The best time to call media is in the mornings or early afternoon. Media will be working on other story deadlines in the afternoons/evenings and will probably not be as receptive to your pitch After the event (1-5 days after): Send your customized post-event release to each media contact in much the same way as the pre-event materials: Copy and paste the content of the release into the body of an At the top of the , include a few sentences emphasizing the success of the event. Highlight the amount of money raised, the turnout, any key community leaders in attendance or other notable details Include an eye-catching headline in the subject line Attach a few of your best photos from the event. Let the reporter know if there are more available Follow up with a phone call to ensure that the contact received the information and to answer any questions Additional Tips: Remember that you should treat all media inquiries as high priority Media may not commit to covering your event. Don t be offended if a news team backs out last-minute simply provide follow-up materials, like a press release and photos, to continue the positive relationship and possibly garner coverage. 8

9 Media Outreach Media Advisory vs. Press Release A MEDIA ADVISORY provides newsworthy and timely information to the media. They serve as invitations for journalists to attend an event, and are meant to be highly specific (use as FEW words as possible). They are NOT meant for public eyes. A PRESS RELEASE typically provides media with more information than the general details provided in an advisory. It gives reporters the basics needed to develop a story. To find templates like the ones above, visit 9

10 Media Advisory Print the advisory on your dealership or high school letterhead. Add a Ford and Drive 4 UR School or Drive 4 UR Community logo. Create a catchy headline that grabs the contact s attention and accurately conveys the event s main idea. Use strong verbs and avoid filler words. Cover all the important details of the event (the Who? What? Where? Why? When? And how?) Explain whether there will be photo opportunities available or interviews with local community leaders or dealership staff. Type ### at the end of your completed advisory but above the Ford boilerplate (the blurb that explains what Ford is and does). The ### notation is how journalists mark the end of copy. Follow the suggested timeline provided above on the Media Outreach Best Practices page, since different media outlets may require more notice than others. In any case, make sure to send your advisory to your selected outlet no less than three days before the scheduled event date. If your region or area has a daybook (contact the news desk of your largest local newspaper), submit your advisory. A daybook lists all news events that are scheduled to take place in your region on a particular day. 10

11 Press Release A successful press release should include the following: Headline: Should grab the reader s attention and briefly summarize the news Dateline: Contains the release date and city Introduction: First paragraph provides the basic answers to the questions of Who? What? Where? Why? And When? And how? Body: Provides further explanation, including any statistics, event background and additional details relevant to the event. Customize quote provided in sample press release to fit your event Close: Similar to a media advisory, the ### symbol denotes the end of the text Boilerplate: Provides the background on the issuing company (in this case, Ford) Media contact information: Name, phone number, address, mailing address or other contact information for the necessary contact person(s) A few additional tips/best practices to consider when drafting your own press release: Write a strong headline and first paragraph - most reporters will only spend about 30 seconds looking over any given release, so you want to make sure that you select your words carefully Keep your sentences and paragraphs short! Sending a press release post-event is an opportunity to continue generating buzz and to showcase the success of your event. Some tips for post-event press releases: Include all statistics Build and send your release in the same manner you followed when drafting the pre-event release Always start with your most exciting news (emulate newspaper headlines) Follow up with each media contact after sending your final release. Make sure they have all the information they need, including a few photos from the event 11

12 Social Media Pre-Event: Create posts with photos (D4URS/D4URC logo, dealer and school logo, previous drives if applicable) to be shared on the dealership s and school s/organization s Facebook and/or Twitter on Twitter Create an event page! This can be a combined page for the dealer and school/organization Include full details on who, what where, why, when, and how? Make a short video promoting your event Utilize customizable website banner provided on Create an interactive post that helps engage people in the community For example What vehicle are you looking to test-drive? Share Drive 4 UR School/Community content to create excitement about the program and your event E.g.: Ford has raised more than $35 million for high schools through Drive 4 UR School. Take the program for a spin to find out how Ford can help your school Event Day: Post videos and pictures of participants test-driving.* Remind people that there is still time to attend the event E.g.: We will be at (location) until (time). You still have time to join us and support a great cause! Provide an update of the event E.g.: (School/Organization name) has reached (# of test-drives) so far! Only (# of test-drives) to go until we reach our goal! Come out and help us reach our goal for (school/organization)! Remind participants to hashtag the event if they post content on their own social pages Twitter Test-driving a Ford #(FordDealer) #(School) Helping raise Post-Event: Thank participants for attending and volunteering After confirming number with PHQ, announce how many test-drives were generated Show how the funds raised were used (e.g., purchased new team uniforms, school field trip, supplies for animal shelter, stocked food bank shelves) Create gallery of photos to share 12

13 Spokesperson 101 With the right preparation and a little know-how, you can ensure that your messaging is clear and positive to the media Before the event, review which media and key attendees you are expecting, and read over the media advisories and releases you provided Identify your key messages surrounding the event. Make sure you have clear and simple sound bites. Prepare for common media questions so that you can answer them quickly, accurately and confidently. Questions might include: Is this your dealership s first Drive 4 UR School/Community event? If not, how much money have you raised over the years? What is different this year? Why did you choose this particular school/organization? How did you first get involved with this program? At the event, make yourself easily available to answer questions. Speak candidly and honestly, but know that everything you say can be used in a story. Keep things brief, emphasizing key messages when appropriate. 13

14 Checklists Pre Event, Day-Of, Post-Event

15 PR Checklist Event Stage Pre-Event Day-Of Post-Event Task q Invite influential community leaders to the fundraiser to draw both media and public interest q Customize the pre-event press release or media advisory template and distribute to local newspaper, radio, television or digital outlets q Select a dealership team member to serve as the primary spokesperson to media q Begin promoting your event through social media q Throughout the day, take pictures that feature participants, signage and Ford vehicles. These pictures can be provided to local media to build their stories and can also be shared on your dealership s own social media platforms q Ask volunteers to work at the check-in table so your dealership team members are available to answer any questions from media and participants about the event and Ford s lineup q Offer product demonstrations to media and community leaders q Customize the post-event press release and send to local media outlets, including newspaper, radio and television q Formally thank your school or organization s contact person and anyone else who may have helped you organize the event q Send acknowledgment notes to any media and notable guests who may have attended 15

16 Appendix Samples and Examples

17 Logos The following logos are available for download on our website ( Ford/Go Further logo Drive 4 UR School logo Drive 4 UR Community Logo 17

18 PR Samples Sample documents of various PR materials mentioned in this tool kit can be found on the Drive 4 UR School/Drive 4 UR Community website for download and customization ( Community Leader Invitation Pre-Event Pitch Pre-Event Media Advisory Pre-Event Press Release Post-Event Pitch Post-Event Press Release 18