Local Media Plan Template
An important part of being designated a Dozen Distinctive Destination is informing the press and public of your achievement. Although this designation is embargoed until the date of the announcement, the advice and documents below and enclosed in the toolkit are designed to make it easier for you to spread the word around your community once the time is right. Feel free to adapt these documents to your needs.
- Designate a media coordinator as the primary contact for press inquiries. Your organization benefits from having one person develop relationships with the press.
- Prepare a complete list of all radio and television stations in your community (including cable), daily and weekly newspapers, magazines, online news forums and community newsletters. Include community news and feature writers, history reporters, and assignment editors. You may also wish to reach out to appropriate national media and travel writers.
- Prepare a media advisory about your event to announce the designation, identifying "who, what, when, where and why." Send it to media at least one week in advance. Follow up your advisory with a personal phone call to each reporter or editor. Please see the template media advisory located in the Dozen Distinctive Destinations toolkit.
- Consider preparing a news release to distribute at your event and to send to press that cannot attend. Include a headline, release date, contact name and phone number, and boilerplate description of your organization. Releases should be concise and factual, and should appear on your organization's stationery. Please see the template press release located in this toolkit.
- Set up an interview for your spokesperson with local radio or television talk shows. Many broadcast stations have programs that focus on community and public affairs issues; they are often taped in advance to air on Saturday and Sunday mornings. Ask whether there will be other guests and how long the segment will last so you can be well prepared.
- Consider drafting talking points for spokespeople and event speakers to accurately highlight why your destination was designated a Dozen Distinctive Destination.
Below you will find a sample timeline you can follow which will help you reach your communications goals surrounding your designation. This timetable can be adapted to meet your needs.
Three Weeks Before Announcement
Winners are notified they have been selected as a Dozen Distinctive Destination.
Winners encouraged to begin making arrangements for an event on or surrounding the day of the national announcement, to celebrate the designation with their community, and inform the National Trust of their event so we may arrange for a Trust representative to attend.
Winners encouraged to identify appropriate spokes people, develop media lists and draft media advisories announcing a special event concerning their community (See the template media advisory in the Dozen Distinctive Destinations Toolkit).
Winners receive draft press releases developed by the National Trust for Historic Preservation for review, which the Trust will send to statewide and local media, and appropriate national media on the day of the announcement.
Two Weeks Before Announcement
Winners send National Trust press release back to Communications Office with edits to text. If there are no edits/changes to the press release, winners will e-mail Communications Office to let them know this as well.
At least One Week Before Announcement
Winners send media advisories to local media regarding their event. Local media to contact include: Community news reporters, history reporters, travel writers, state news reporters, local television and radio news station assignment and planning editors, and local travel and community shows, etc. Follow up with a phone call.
Day of the Announcement
Sites may distribute their press releases to local media announcing their Dozen Distinctive Destinations designation. Local media to contact include: Community news reporters, history reporters, travel writers, state news reporters, local television and radio news station assignment and planning editors, and local travel and community shows, etc.
Sites begin holding events to celebrate their Dozen Distinctive Destinations designation.
