hamilton house
public relations agency

Here we look at the different media that can be used when promoting educational products and services via press releases.

National press

The national press themselves divide into those that will cover educational stories seriously because their readership will themselves have a professional or significant personal interest.  These include the Guardian, Telegraph, Times and Independent.   The other papers are more likely to cover educational stories from a more sensational point of view, typically suggesting something is seriously wrong rather than interesting new approaches that might make matters better.   If you are contemplating writing your own press releases for these publications, do study them in detail first, rather than assume that you know what they are likely to take.

There are of course occasions when both types of national publication will take a story, but do be aware that their treatment of the piece could be quite different in each case.  And of course you never get to answer back.

Local press

Local newspapers are unlikely to cover stories that relate to the release of a new product or service unless there is a local angle.  A local school spending £20,000 on some new technology that only a handful of schools have introduced anywhere across the country could be an interesting story.  And it could then be used as an introduction to the local authority, and a way of encouraging other schools in the area to look at the development.  No one likes to be left out.

The local press includes not only the regional daily paper but may also include a monthly glossy magazine which itself has occasional education supplements in which schools advertise.   Such publications are often desperate for genuinely local educational stories.

Educational Magazines

Although everyone will be familiar with the Times Educational Supplement and its regional variations, there are many other magazines on the market, each specialising in a specific element of education, be it special needs to music education.   Some of these magazines will charge for the inclusion of a story - and indeed this is how they make most of their money - while others will take the story without charging, and gain their income from advertising.

National radio

It certainly is possible to get an educational story onto Radio 4 and Radio Five Live, but do remember that you may well lose control of the story as it develops.  If you are to be interviewed on radio, and you have no experience of this, you might find it better to start with local stations.  It can be unnerving, the interviewers are often there to develop a controversial point, and if you mess up, you mess up in front of a large number of people!   Few direct sales will result from such exposure, but it can help as part of the overall mix.

Local radio

Most commercial stations don't carry much news other than within the limited hourly bulletins, and their view is anything more than that is going to detract from their music format.  However the BBC local stations do tend to feature local issues more, and a campaign that takes in both the local radio station and the local newspaper can do well as a focus for then getting other schools in the region to buy your product or service.