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today's special guest is actually very  special to me because for 10 years she   was my business partner and she's the  one who taught me everything that i know   about public relations for non-profits now she  is currently the director of communications and   media relations for the Calgary food bank so  with that I’m going to introduce Shawna Ogston   who is going to talk to us all about media  relations for non-profit organizations well i have missed you dearly over the last  couple of years and I’m very excited because   i learned everything that i know about media  relations for nonprofits from you taught me   everything that i know and i'm probably still  guilty of doing a lot of the stuff that we did   20 years ago so i'm looking forward to  hearing what's new what's happening how   can non-profits connect with the media in  this day and age oh right well you know   working with you is so much fun i can't believe  i've been doing pr for over 30 years i kind of   kept it at that date because then it just sounds  really old and you know when you say what's new   it's what's old is new again it's we have great  tools and great platforms but it all comes down   to relationships and we call it communications  pr marketing ultimately it's media relations   you taught me that too that it's okay to pick  up the phone it's okay to call and say you know   i'm working on this you know can what would make  it newsworthy it just talk to them they're just   people just people and the great thing is because  nobody's picking up the phone when you do it's   alarming and you actually get a response much  better than you did years ago as a journalist i   can see it i would rather have a conversation so  that you can send a release that i'm looking for   rather than just flinging me off something that  you think that i'd want to i'd want to report   on well and developing those relationships are  so key because you get to know the reporters   the journalists you know what their beat is  you know what they're covering so that you can   actually position yourself as the trusted advisor  information provider because then if there's   something that's in the arena and that's timely  they'll pick up the phone and call you and you'll   be surprised that wow my first point of contact  with most media that i've developed relationships   with are phone calls and it's simply a discussion  not um i find that a lot of the relationship piece   people get quite conscious about oh i'm going to  say the wrong thing i'm going to say too much and   no it's just a relationship you're having  that sort of pre-interview on the phone   so how do you nurture these relationships  aside from just making that introduction   how do you on an ongoing basis nurturer you know  i tell clients and i tell people i work with when   the media calls pick up the phone and now i know  that sounds pretty basic and pretty elementary   we'd be surprised how many people will not pick up  the phone they'll let it go to voicemail they'll   see a text and they'll just leave it for a while  when it comes to media relations understanding   that the newsroom is moving at such a speed the  resources have been just cut they're probably   working on three or four stories whoever's  answering the phone is going to get the story   and then you'll become the trusted advisor because  you're the one who picks it up you're the one   who gives them the information then you'll get  the quotes and the testimonial and it's key to   developing those relationships by simply picking  up the phone and answering them in the media calls   i've had anxiety i've received calls and i'm  trying to get the executive director to respond   and she's in back-to-back meetings and you know  it's just because i know you've got to move quick   you want that call returned immediately yes well  you know and honesty goes a long way in developing   those media relationships so you pick up the phone  right away and you find out what their story is   and you find out what their deadline is and you're  honest you say i could be the spokesperson this   person could be our ed is the spokesperson but  they're not available and now you're suddenly   negotiating some time frames and the media at any  forum appreciates that and they're willing to work   with you too well how do we find the right people  to connect to oh yes who do you send what and uh   you know it's just keeping your ear to the ground  uh there's so many times that people will just   pitch to all of the news outlets we'll just  send out the release and like spaghetti against   the wall and hope it hits but if you do your  research and develop your media list beforehand   you find out who covers what beat is that person  still there and updating your uh media list it's   key have they moved on to from city reporting  to city hall reporting there's it makes such   a difference to know who's doing what pick up  that magazine go online and read their blogs   find out what they're covering and then create  your pitch to match what will help them do   their job yeah i'm guilty of that throwing  spaghetti against the wall just creating my   list of what are the different news desks and  not really targeting as much as i should be   yeah well you're also targeting um not only what  their audience is looking for but you all should   be targeting what they will need to do their job  better because so many times um the news release   could actually be the story that they would just  publish because it'd say oh i'd love that idea i'd   love to cover it i don't have time you send them a  news release and then you'll open the paper and go   well that's everything i've written verbatim and  as a pr professional you think oh i've achieved it   i've had that happen it's fantastic when it  does it's just like that is exactly what i wrote   it's so true i mean some of the great  stuff that i get to do at the food bank   is sure i get to stand in front of the camera  and explain the our vulnerable populations and   the need for food but the work that goes  into that developing those relationships   making sure those are key messages that  can be disseminated through the media   and that audiences will digest is all part  and parcel of your media relations process   and is sending backgrounders and pictures and  things like that still relevant to help spoon feed   the journalists on the articles yes but timing  is everything because you could send them a   news release that has visuals and videos and  backgrounders and they're overwhelmed and a lot of   newsroom emails is how you could correspond  with the media and they can't actually get that   through their firewall so you're putting a lot  of energy into creating this electronic press kit   that they can't use but you should have those  things when you've established that contact   to be able to say okay what would you like and  they'll make they might say well we can't send out   a cameraman to your event but if you can send us  some video of it and now you're giving them what   they need so you sort of have to have a toolkit  on standby and i know you wanted to talk a little   bit about planning oh yes i mean it sounds so  easy just oh throw out a news release or call   to the newsroom and then stand in front of the  camera but it is planning you've got to be able to   look at your calendar and see what's going  on seasonally not only for your organization   but also what's going on in summer time for  example there's a lot of kids out in the   community so how can we relate to back to school  in august when it comes to the food bank what are   we dealing with summer hunger and children that  aren't involved in feeding programs so we can   look at our calendar from a cyclical point of  view and that way you're also ready for those   things that just drop whether it's a report about  inflation and if you're an organization that works   with vulnerable populations that are budgeting you  can be available to comment because you're ready   you've planned you've got all of your ducks in a  row for the things that are happening seasonally   but you're also forecasting and having key  messages ready and that is so important part of   the planning process and the differences because i  know with planning there's the public i see a cat and betty and veronica may  show her tales so let's enjoy   it's okay mike the puppy when he was  really little had to do an entire video   with me because he was running around  chewing on the cords so and there she is okay so in planning the differences between  when you send a media advisory because you've   got an event coming up or a public service  announcement for a program or a news release   do you want to talk a little bit about the  differences oh definitely i don't think there's   an appreciation for the different kind of media  materials that are created and this is part of the   planning and understanding the media's job so you  don't want to just throw them this news release   that doesn't give them the information that they  need if you are working with let's say planning   an event fundraiser you need to get those into the  community calendars six to eight weeks in advance   so you've got a plan and you have to create  material that they can easily digest simple 5ws   and you don't have to really debate about the who  what when where and how think about your audience   okay i'm doing a um something with babies now i'm  going to be doing it at this place at this time   now if i'm bringing my child do i have to bring  a coat because is it outside so just thinking it   from an audience point of view and then creating  the five w's that the media can just extract and   plunk into their community calendar fantastic  that's what i call event listing copy but then   there's also the public service announcement which  kind of sounds like an ad and those tend to go to   a lot of our uh radio or um blog type vlogs that  you see out there and that it sort of reads like   a commercial so that they can just pick it up and  talk about it on air oh this event is happening at   this time you should come down it's going to be  a sunny weekend bring your dogs and now there's   a conversation happening about your organization  news releases are news you need to be able to   follow the format with the most important  information in the headline having a quote   from your organization but news what is the news  to the audience not to your organization because   you're always quite passionate and thinking well  this is the greatest thing since sliced friends   it might not be to the audience so you've got to  look at what's that news and how can i write it   like i was a journalist and then they can pick it  up okay you've given me some really great ideas   because i did do a news release and now i have a  public service announcement to send out shortly   and i just haven't been getting any traction uh  at all on it like i'm okay to admit my failings   you know your news release is probably perfection  oh chef's kiss and it's all just about is that   media used to you speaking about that particular  topic or organization and it just comes down to   the relationships of oh they've got to get used to  it and you might have to send out a few pieces and   pitches and the emails for them to digest and it  might be just the timing is off going to say it's   also in a city that i am not in and i know that  a lot of organizations have offices in different   cities across the region and that's a big struggle  is the more the national coverage as well too   oh yes i mean 30 plus years in pr and  national coverage is still so difficult   because they've got their own little newsroom  nuances but a lot of times the reporters here   in the city you're working in will actually take  their story and make it national so you never know   when that little local story you suddenly sing on  CBC national or something and you think oh well i   guess that was a bigger news story anything else  that you'd like to add that we didn't cover i mean   i know there's so much to it there really is and i  know what's old is new again but also some of the   old practices that happened in the 80s and 90s oh  we'll send the media gift and they'll cover this   there is no time for that they don't  want another t-shirt for your event   they really want the information that's going to  get their job done quickly and succinctly so make   sure that your messages are clear then i don't  want you to go i want to talk forever on this   you know i'm so honored to chat with you the cause   uh works with so many non-profit organizations  i think there's so many great stories to get out   there so if anybody can take a snippet from today  and use it in their own planning and disseminating   their message whether it's through social or  traditional meeting media it's great because   that will generate the awareness and that will  generate the dollars and today we need that so   much for our social safety net so thank you  so much for the opportunity thank you Shawna