Big Lottery Fund 2009 Welcome to Publicising your grant workshop

Big Lottery Fund 2009 Communications Team East Midlands Regional Communications Manager Amanda Miller Tel: Press Officer James Nicholls Tel:

Big Lottery Fund 2009 What the regional teams do: –Publicise projects that have received Lottery funding from Big Lottery Fund and Awards for All –Organise events –E-bulletins and web pages –Support for projects – help with press releases, cheques, banners, merchandise –Work with MPs –Work with National Lottery Promotions Unit –Work with media partners such as BBC & ITV

Big Lottery Fund 2009 What the press office do: –Write press releases –Answer press enquiries/rebuttal –Write letters to editors –Devise media campaigns –Features –Write articles for magazines –Set up television and radio interviews –Organise photocalls

Big Lottery Fund 2009 Signposting –Press enquiries: BIG press team or out of hours –Branding & merchandise enquiries: BIG branding team –For leaflets and publications contact our BIG advice line –For information about getting a grant contact our BIG advice line, or your local funding advice worker –For information about your grant, contact your grant officer

Big Lottery Fund 2009 Generating publicity

Big Lottery Fund 2009 Generating Local Publicity Proactive Work BEFORE YOU START: Be clear on your aims: –Why are you doing this? –What do you want to achieve? –Have you got the capacity? –Who is your audience?

Big Lottery Fund 2009 Generating Local Publicity Proactive Work BEFORE YOU START: –Know the news agenda –Know how your organisation is viewed –Know what other groups are doing in the field

Big Lottery Fund 2009 Generating Local Publicity Proactive Work BE PREPARED: –Updated key facts and figures about your project –Case studies with contact details –Spokesperson available for interviews –Contact details for key members of your organisation

Big Lottery Fund 2009 Generating Local Publicity Proactive Work KNOW YOUR LOCAL MEDIA –Newspapers, magazines, radio, television, internet, including student or community-based stations –Read the publication, watch or listen to programmes –Identify key contacts –Consider new media such as social networking sites

Big Lottery Fund 2009 Generating Local Publicity Proactive Work LOCAL JOURNALISTS –Identify key interests for individual journalists –Build relationships by supplying relevant stories on deadline –Put information in context relevant to your contacts –Explain issues clearly –Return their calls

Big Lottery Fund 2009 Generating Local Publicity Proactive Work WHAT ARE JOURNALISTS LOOKING FOR? –News - a fact or event that hasn’t been made public before –News comment or feature – putting events into context, letters –Features – in-depth coverage of events or trends –Diary pieces – entertainment, possibly a charity event

Big Lottery Fund 2009 Exercise Working groups discuss: –What is the purpose of a press release? –What should a press release include?

Big Lottery Fund 2009 Generating Local Publicity Proactive Work PLANNING A PRESS RELEASE: –Identify your story –Find a hook –Have a clear message –Have case studies and images ready –Identify and brief your spokespeople –Obtain quotes from key spokespeople to include –Alert all relevant team members about your plans

Big Lottery Fund 2009 Generating Local Publicity Proactive Work WRITING A PRESS RELEASE: –Grab attention with a headline and first paragraph – keep it simple –Put your news in the first paragraph of the release, don’t bury it in the last paragraph! –Subsequent paragraphs should be in order of priority –Include what, when, where, why, who, how –Be concise

Big Lottery Fund 2009 Generating Local Publicity Proactive Work WRITING A PRESS RELEASE: –Use headed paper –Clearly mark ‘News Release’ at the top of the page –Add date and embargo date, or ‘For immediate release’ –Include your name, telephone (including an out-of-hours number), address at the bottom –Include Notes To Editors at the end –Don’t forget to credit Fair Share Trust/Big Lottery Fund if appropriate

Big Lottery Fund 2009 Generating Local Publicity Proactive Work SENDING OUT YOUR RELEASE: –Check how journalist would like to receive it – fax, post, –Follow up your release with a phone call –If you are holding an event, ask if they will send a photographer –Be there to meet the press & make sure you give them the key messages about the project –Monitor the results

Big Lottery Fund 2009 Exercise Working in groups: Read through the press release examples –What do you like about them? –What don’t you like?

Big Lottery Fund 2009 Generating Local Publicity Reactive Work When approached by the media consider the possible reasons for the enquiry: DON’T PANIC! IS IT A COLD CALL OR IS IT A FOLLOW UP TO YOUR PUBLICITY WORK?

Big Lottery Fund 2009 Generating Local Publicity Reactive Work WHEN APPROACHED FIND OUT: –Context of the enquiry –Nature of the enquiry –Name of the publication –Name and contact details for the journalist –Deadline for information

Big Lottery Fund 2009 Generating Local Publicity Reactive Work ACTION PLAN: –Exercise judgement – don’t open up too much –Alert all relevant members of your organisation –Agree and disseminate lines to take to all your spokespeople –Offer to supply statement in writing – it’s harder to take words out of context –Exercise your right of reply, if the information printed/broadcast by the journalist is factually incorrect

Big Lottery Fund 2009 Generating Local Publicity Reactive Work IF ENQUIRY RELATES TO BIG: MAKE SURE THAT YOU PASS THE DETAILS TO BIG LOTTERY FUND PRESS OFFICE ASAP on or out of hours

Big Lottery Fund 2009 Provide a snapshot of the benefits a project brings to the community and to local people. Follow this three step structure: -outline what the problem was -outline how the project tackled the problem -the results Case studies can either focus on an individual’s personal journey or on a project as a whole Case Studies

Big Lottery Fund 2009 Case studies - examples –Food for LifeFood for Life –New College Nottingham Learning BusNew College Nottingham Learning Bus –Sherwood Rangers YeomanrySherwood Rangers Yeomanry

Big Lottery Fund 2009 New Media - websites

Big Lottery Fund 2009 New Media – social networking –Facebook.com - has an older, professional user base –MySpace.com - focuses on fashion, music and film –Bebo.com - mainly a teenage following –LinkedIn.com - network for professional people to build contacts and do deals –YouTube.com - biggest video upload site. –Twitter.com – a micro blogging and messaging site

Big Lottery Fund 2009 New Media – social networking –Amanda’s Facebook pageAmanda’s Facebook page –Woodland TrustWoodland Trust –Breathing PlacesBreathing Places –Ambergate CarnivalAmbergate Carnival

Big Lottery Fund 2009 New Media – social networking Do –Give your group time to develop and grow –Make it interesting –Think about how to promote the site Don’t –Assume that people will join just because it’s there –Bombard your group members with frequent messages –Become impatient –Put up photos, unless you are happy for them to be used across the internet

Big Lottery Fund 2009 Any questions?