In public relations, it’s important to make interactions with journalists seamless, especially when you’re interested in securing earned media coverage. In order to do this, you need to learn the answer to the question, “what is a press kit?” Press kits are an essential PR basic that provides journalists with essential information about a company, brand or person in one place, making it easier for journalists to then cover your story.

So What Is a Press Kit?

A press kit, or media kit, is a package of promotional material that is shared with the media to accompany an announcement, product launch or event. An effective press kit compiles relevant media materials, like photographs, documents and other key information, to inform the media quickly and easily, but what’s inside a press kit can vary based on the target media and the event.

The Essentials of a Press Kit

Although the content of a press kit can vary for PR professionals, it should contain information that will effectively supplement a story. For example, if a journalist is covering a company’s executive team, the press kit should include quality headshots and in-depth descriptions of the executives or attributed quotes. Press kits should also include a press release, fact sheets about products or services, a boilerplate, logos, images, contact information, social media links and videos, if applicable to the story. It should serve as a reference point for the brand and the key messages of the company. The goal is to make research and writing as easy as possible for the journalist.

The Press Kit Evolution

As the media industry has evolved, so has the press kit. The traditional press kit has evolved digitally to include press materials, such as a brand’s pdf files, videos, company websites, online newsroom and web pages. Using a digital press kit, which can be viewed online or shared as a PDF, ensures information can be shared and stored easily and updated at any time. Digital press kits are used throughout all facets of public relations to inform the media.

For example, an electronic press kit, or EPK, is used in the music industry to promote musical acts to agents, promoters, venues, reporters, etc. EPKs include videos of performances, interviews, bios, images, press releases as well as previous media coverage. A digital media kit can be adapted to any channel of communication which is why they’ve grown in popularity, but physical press kits are still a great way to share information with journalists and the media. A physical press kit contains some of the same material as digital press kits — fact sheets, contact information, headshots and descriptions, images and promotional material — but they also allow journalists to experience your product or service before writing about it. Physical press kits can be personalized and creative, which is essential for securing coverage.

How To Build a Press Kit

When building a press kit, it’s important to identify the brand image, key messages and how the content will represent the brand. A key factor to your media relations strategy, each piece of the press materials, from the images and videos to the press release and business cards, contributes to the journalist’s impression of the brand and, consequently, their readers. In addition to the theme and concept for the press kit, digital or physically, you should put yourself in the journalist’s shoes to ensure all the information they need to write a story is included and accessible.

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