Online press conferences as an effective PR tool

How do I get into dialogue with the media or with journalists of the business press, the trade press, with editors of political and socially relevant magazines?

How do I get radio and television stations to report on my company, its strategy, product innovations, technological developments or economic successes? Not an easy task, because almost all editorial offices – whether classic print media, online editorial offices or news platforms – are flooded daily with company news of all kinds. Out of this news jungle, it is necessary to stand out, to generate and receive special attention. Public relations have one of the most effective methods of media relations for this purpose: the press conference.

What makes it difficult to penetrate with a press conference, and many companies suffer from this, is: The publishing houses have thinned out their editorial offices considerably. Editors hardly have any time left to edit all the company press releases, let alone travel to media events such as press conferences. Furthermore, budgets are released less and less frequently.

The result is predominantly desk work for journalists, and journalists weigh up extremely carefully which media event is being covered. This puts enormous pressure on companies and their marketing managers or press spokesmen. Under the influence of these changes in the editorial departments of specialist publishers and industry media, as well as those of the business media and the daily press (which has come under even more pressure due to dwindling subscribers), the genre of the press conference as a means of public relations has changed and has become the focus of modern content marketing as an online press conference.

The web press conference has developed into an excellent means of attracting journalists to relevant press topics. The Corona crisis has fuelled this and has begun to develop something like a digital post-press-conference era. Virtual press conferences are a digital format that will prove their worth in the future not only in times of crisis. They are also destined to become an important means of media communication in established publishing houses against the background of economic constraints. They also offers advantages over the classic press conference: It is a fast, time and place independent, and therefore flexible and comparatively inexpensive alternative to achieve the greatest possible effect with state-of-the-art measures. Journalists all over the world can follow the online press conference from their PC and take part despite ever increasing budget cuts at the publishing houses – after all, time and money for on-site appointments are limited in most editorial offices.

It doesn’t matter whether the press conference via Internet is designed for print or online editorial offices. It is important to have solid anchoring in the company’s content marketing, to have the right strategy with us as a public relations agency, a well-chosen and elaborated occasion, the appropriate selection and preparation of topics, the selection of the right media representatives, as well as professional planning and execution of the press conference.

The web press conference not only saves travel time, but also overall personnel resources on both sides – in the company and with journalists.

Another advantage is: With on-demand services, editors can also view them with a time delay and are independent of time in their daily work. This creates a greater openness towards media events of medium-sized companies, which otherwise would not be in focus due to their company size. With the help of well-timed online press conferences, press spokespersons and marketing managers can avoid competing events that are usually held at trade fairs, for example. On-demand press services are also a possible source of research for journalists. Excerpts of the video recording can then be used for posts in social media or for other moving image applications. The additional budgetary expenditure is small compared to the benefits of such a multiple use of PR content.

Transmitted via live stream, the online press conference does not have to be anonymous and impersonal (which is always the concern). The decisive factors are a clear concept, meticulous planning and the design of the conference as a facilitated, interactive event for the press. It is important to name the right speakers on the company side, to give them a good script and prepare them accordingly for camera statements. The right ambience is also important, because not only the occasion, the appropriate topics, the relevance of the press conference are decisive to the credibility of an effective live streaming.

Even if a web press conference is flexible and efficient, preparation is extremely important.

This begins with considerations on the setting, the use of professional technology for seamless transmission all over the world, with strategic positioning of cameras, the support of camera teams, outdoor circuitry, etc. Even a well-functioning chat and the facilitation of the press event should not be left to chance. With all this in mind, we as a public relations agency are the right partner for successful online press conferences.