"Before Mexia, I did not believe in PR, but now I am a staunch supporter!"
"The quality of service delivered by Mexia has been of the highest standard"
"Mexia Communications have provided The Event Wall with an inspirational service"
"Mexia points you in all the right directions and thinks of ways to enhance your business"
By Chris Penfold
A successful and effective case study should be a practical example of how a product or service was used to solve a number of problems or challenges. This is done by liaising with a customer or client and producing a detailed insight in to their experience. The ultimate goal is to give the reader a better understanding of what exactly is being offered and what the product or service can achieve.
By Imogen Eaton
Having just started out in the world of PR, I have been looking at the key components of what makes a good press release. As part of my journalism studies, we looked at what makes a good news story and essentially a good press release should cover the same key points. Below are a few points that might be helpful if you are new to PR and looking for a little guidance.
What is a press release?
Without wishing to state the obvious, a press release is a formal company announcement, similar to a news piece, designed to bring new information to the attention of the editor or reporter of your targeted press. It generally publicises company news relating to anything from new products or services to recent surveys or statistics and accomplishments, sponsorships and new partnerships (see our SPACEMAP for ideas on what can make a good news story). Press releases tend to be short, punchy and to the point, although writing styles can vary across industries just as they can across various newspapers.
Use your head, use your headline
The editor reading a press release will need the key information as quickly as possible. This means that the headline is imperative. Here at Mexia, we believe the headline should be the hook. Tailoring the headline to suit the targeted publication or type of media is very important. It should immediately provoke interest and draw the reader in.
The five W’s
The lead is an introductory paragraph of the press release or news story. This should be no more than two or three lines long (as brief as possible) and should contain the reputable journalistic ‘five W’s’. This means your release should contain the who, what, where, when and why of your story immediately in the first few lines.
Check out our six tips in the form of our ‘Press Release Pirate’
P otential- each release should ideally have the potential to be developed further, be that into a feature or opinion piece or simply another update to the initial piece of news.
I nterest- the information must capture the interest of not only the readership but most importantly the editor of your targeted publication. It will need to immediately catch his/her attention.
R elevant- always prepare with a specific publication in mind, making sure that the information you convey is relevant to them and be sure to choose an appropriate angle.
A ccurate- make sure every piece of information is 100% accurate, always verify quotes and statistics.
T imely- ensure that the press release is sent at the optimum time, meaning it will be most beneficial and produce the greatest coverage for your company or client.
E ssential- only include the essential information and nothing more, keep it short, sweet and to the point.
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Meetings industry specialist PR firm Mexia Communications has appointed two new recruits to its expanding business. Chris Penfold joins as Account Executive while Imogen Eaton is the company’s first graduate recruit, starting in the role of Junior Account Executive.
Chris joins Mexia with a background in music and entertainment PR, having previously run campaigns for numerous artists and musicians including Leona Lewis, Joss Stone, Natasha Bedingfield, Joe Brown and Joe Longthorne. Imogen, a graduate from the University of Kent, begins her career in the PR world having studied English Language and Linguistics, including modules in journalism and a dissertation in creative writing.
Commenting on the new appointments, Mexia Communications Managing Director Kursha Woodgate said: “I am delighted that we are able to offer these roles at a time when there is such doom and gloom regarding the economy and in particular for graduate opportunities. There were a lot of applicants for these roles and the calibre of candidates was extremely high. With the addition of Chris and Imogen, we have injected fresh ideas and new thinking into our creative team and are looking forward to developing the team further.”
Imogen Eaton added: “I was thrilled to be offered the position at Mexia Communications which was the one role I really wanted out of all my applications.”
Mexia Communications provides PR and social media services to a range of business-to-business clients, with a focus on the meetings and events sector. Its client experience includes the Association of British Professional Conference Organisers (ABPCO), Twickenham Experience, UniSpace Sunderland and London City Selection.
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Have you ever been stuck with ideas for news stories and concerned about how you will keep your PR pipeline going? Unearthing potential news material is our bread and butter here at Mexia and we have developed a number of tools to help you think in terms of news, most notably our SPACEMAP model. Not all of the news is worthy of a press release as it will need to be a significant announcement to gain media interest, but press releases aren’t your only news outlet. With newsletters, email or print, web news, blogs and social media channels, you need a lot of news content to maintain your profile and stay current. Try our SPACEMAP and see if you can identify news stories that you had never thought of! (more…)
- by Kursha Woodgate
With the explosion in social media and other digital marketing techniques, marketing and communications professionals are increasingly challenged to become technology specialists to stay ahead of the game. No problem for us, we love technology at Mexia and get very excited by the possibilities of new tools and techniques. The Mexia office has been buzzing lately with the possibilities around a range of mobile marketing, in particular the little black and white square barcodes you may have seen, known as QR codes.
Meetings and events specialist PR and marketing consultancy Mexia Communications has expanded operations following a successful 2010. The firm has recruited two new team members and taken new office space in Henley-on-Thames. Nickie Gray joins the marketing team while Jon MacPhie expands the firm’s social media services.
Nickie brings a wealth of marketing and events experience, having previously run distributor marketing initiatives and events at Microsoft and other marketing roles. Jon brings an injection of new blood into the firm, with experience in the hospitality sector at leading caterers Heathcotes and hotel brand Crowne Plaza. Jon fortifies the team with a strong technical ability in a range of social media platforms.
Commenting on the move, Mexia MD Kursha Woodgate said: ‘We are delighted to welcome on board Nickie and Jon at this exciting time in the company’s development. We are proud of our achievements in expanding our client portfolio in what is undoubtedly a difficult economic climate and look forward to strengthening the team further in 2011.’ (more…)
Article published in EventIQ on Planet Planit:
If you are running an event that will attract delegates and sponsors within a specific geographical reach, whether consumer or business, then regional media will be a primary focus for your PR efforts. Requirements for a successful regional PR campaign can vary significantly from, for example, a trade press campaign, so it’s worth noting a few tips:
Local angles – is it on our patch? – the first thing a regional journalist will check is whether there is a specific local angle they can use for their paper. A journalist is sure to get it in the neck from his/her editor if they spend time covering a story that turns out to be ‘off their patch’ so make sure your event is in an area covered by the paper or there is another local connection before you strike up a conversation. Read more…
Tweet Mexia Communications has been appointed by leading London venue collective London City Selection (LCS) to manage its trade and [...]
Winning Formula for Award Entries
Wednesday, November 7th, 2012Article by Kursha Woodgate, published on PlanetPlanit
Everyone loves to be recognised for their achievements, which is probably why industry awards are so popular across many sectors.
As a PR company, we regularly prepare award entries for clients (including a few for ourselves, most recently scooping a Gold award at the MIMAs for our work on ABPCO’s Conference Cloud campaign!) and have picked up a few tips over the years which might be useful when you are next considering entering for an award. Read more
Tags: Awards, Mexia, PR
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