Why Events, Pop-ups & Workshops Are Your Secret Weapons to Securing News Coverage
- editorial team
- 2 hours ago
- 3 min read
Got an event coming up? Here is how to turn pop-ups, workshops and other events into your brand's next media and press opportunity.
By: MMM Editorial Team, Keirah Chen
Events are a fun way to activate your brand and provide a 3D space for people to interact with it – especially if you operate primarily online. With curated menus, agendas and audiences, you can easily influence how your brand is seen with a tasteful and well-attended event.
And did you know you can also use your next event as an easy, and incredibly accessible, way to secure news coverage?
As a team of former journalists, we'll let you in on something most PR firms won't tell you: events are one of the easiest ways to get a reporter to actually show up. Interest in events and time-sensitive gatherings piques interest at a much higher rate. And in a landscape where brands and new businesses are created every second online, in-person gatherings offer:
1.) Immediate credibility
2.) A literal access point for journalists so they can easily place on their schedule
3.) Media and content for your online profiles
Win-win...win.
[Related] Event coming up? Use our top-selling workbook to drive real growth, sell out and get news coverage!
"In coming years, we'll see a growing need for real-life connection and news can be a great way to drive that. I think many companies and brands are sitting on an easy news story: their next event." - Tianna Manon, CEO
In a landscape where audiences are now trying to retreat and take a break from screens and detox from social media, the most successful brands are taking a groundbreaking step: pursuing PR by offering more real-life gathering: press conferences, red carpets, premieres, community events and drives.
While your competitors fight for the same crowded ad slots on Instagram or Facebook, the brands taking the press by storm right now are showing up in the real world. From building relationships with your community, pop-up events, or strategic live moments, the act of showing up is now the ultimate sign of your brand's credibility and authority.
Now, let's talk about securing press coverage and what every event needs before hiring a PR team or pitching a journalist:
Must-Haves for Securing Event News Coverage:
Don't just pitch an event, pitch the "why": a party is not news, but a partnership that solves community problems is news. Is the focus National Gun Violence Awareness Month? Spiking heat in the summer? Is this back-to-school (one of the most popular segments for TV news). Take that what and then tell us "why" you're doing this. We take an additional step of saying what audiences and communties are impacted as well which drives up newsworthiness.
News-Ready Activation: Design one element of your space specifically for the press. For example, an art installation, a live demo, or a discussion panel. This allows them to capture all key moments in one fell swoop. With a lot of newsrooms reduced to 1- and 2-person teams on weekends, this can be all the difference in securing coverage. BONUS: a quiet space where they can interview people that's still visual in nature.
Keep in mind that the smartest brands and visionaries do not choose between being offline or online; they combine their strengths in both to get the best of both worlds. So set up your camera and go live, ask people to share insight as they're heading out the door, get content!
You may not be the only one using this video of the press becomes interested.
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