Getting Press Coverage

Getting a story in the local press is easier than you think - local papers like to report what's happening in their area, particularly if it's new, unusual or good for a cause.

Publicity can help increase membership in your group, and it's good for Freegle overall, so you have a valuable role to play. These guidelines should help you get started, and cover the following topics.

(For a condensed version see Getting media coverage)

Potential stories

Journalists and PR people talk about news angles and news hooks - here are some examples of things that could be reasons to contact the media.

• The launch of a new group
• When membership of a local group hits a good number, e.g. 500
• If a local celebrity, MP or councillor joins your group and is willing to help promote Freegle
• Unusual wants or gifts which could make a quirky story for the local paper - keep a note of examples
• Facts and figures: journalists like fascinating facts - the most popular gifted item, largest item, smallest item, etc.
• Photo opportunities: would the gifting make a good photograph (assuming the participants agree)?

Have a look at Quote Bank to see some examples of items offered, stories and statistics.

Occasionally you'll be sent template releases from Freegle which you can adapt for papers in your area by inserting local details.

Creating a media list for your area

If you already know the names of your local papers, a web search will link you to their websites and give you email addresses and phone numbers (or you can look in the paper itself).

This research is a bit time-consuming, but you only have to do it once. Add reporters' names, phone numbers and email addresses to your media list as you learn them - it's valuable information.

Prepare your story - write a press release

Writing a press release is quite easy - the trick is to keep it simple.

Remember the purpose: to publicise your Freegle group, and increase membership by telling a story that will get people interested.

Writing style

Use plain English. Keep your sentences short and to the point. Keep paragraphs punchy, and start a new paragraph every time you make a new point.

Jot down the key facts you want to include - it's easy to get tied up with the words and forget to include basics like the website address.

The text of a press release shouldn't be longer than one and a half pages of A4.

If you have further information, add it at the end in a section called Notes to Editors.

Type the release in 1.5 spacing, and use the Freegle template release without altering the design.

What to include

The first paragraph of a press release should answer questions like who, what, where, when, why: who is doing what and why, where are they doing it and when.

"Freegle Trafford is celebrating its 500th Freegle recruit, Dave Dynamo, who gifted six sacks of donkey manure to Joe Bloggs for his Kingsbury allotment on Saturday."

The headline is a shorter version of the first paragraph:

"Freegle Brent celebrates its 500th member - with a gift of manure"

(Sometimes it's easier to write the headline after the release, and sometimes the headline is obvious.)

Subsequent paragraphs can be used to give more information. There are some standard paragraphs about Freegle for you to use (see end).

Include any interesting facts about your group: when it was formed, how many members you have, unusual gifts that have been made, etc.

Quotes

Include quotes from people that the paper can use, as if the journalist had asked the question. When writing quotes, give the full name and any title, e.g. Alison Smith, Brent Freegle group organiser, or Joe Bloggs, founder member of Freegle.

Lay the quote out like this:

Newest recruit to Freegle, Dave Dynamo, owner of Dave's Donkeys, said: "bla bla bla."

If the quote continues into a second paragraph, omit the closing quotation mark (above) but put it at the end of this quote (below).

Dave added: "bla bla bla."

The quotes can reinforce points already made in the press release, but in a 'spoken' way, expressing personal opinions in support of the press release content. Quotes shouldn't veer away from the subject of the press release.

Contact details

At the end of the release, include your contact name, telephone number and email address for the journalist if they have any questions.

In Notes to Editors, include contact details you're happy to have published: the website address or phone number for enquiries.

A sample press release can be found here.

Getting your story to the papers

Make a note of publication dates and copy deadlines for the newspapers you're targeting.

Time your press release to fit newspaper deadlines - a paper published on Thursday will have a copy deadline on Tuesday, so don't ring up at the last minute; get the information to the reporter by Monday, or preferably the end of the week before, so they have time to write the piece.

• The most efficient approach is to phone the news desk and briefly explain the story - the response is almost always "have you got some information you can email me?" At that point, ask the reporter's name, direct line if they have one, and check the email address.

You can also explain any photo opportunities there may be, or mention if you have a picture.

• Alternatively, you can email your press release to all the news desk addresses on your contact list. But you really need to follow up with a phone call to check it's been received, and find out if they're interested in the story.

It's highly likely that the person who picks up the phone won't have seen your press release, and you may be asked to re-send it. Be prepared to talk about the story and have access to a computer so you can email the release to them.

Photographs

A good photograph can increase the chances of your story getting coverage. Sometimes an interesting photograph, a caption, plus the Freegle website address will be all you need.

Local newspapers like photographs but have tight budgets. They'll be interested in seeing your pictures if you have some to accompany the release. You can take the photographs in advance and have one or two ready to send.

Ideally taken with a digital camera or phone, the image will need to be a jpeg with a resolution of 300 dpi, but the file shouldn't be too large, e.g. over 1 meg. (If this doesn't mean much to you, perhaps there's someone in your group who'd like the role of photographer to help you out.)

Any picture you send must be captioned. For example, the jpeg file name could read "Brent Freegle manure", with an email saying who or what is in the picture:

"Retired teacher Joe Bloggs (r) from Kilburn, receiving his gift of manure from new member Dave Dynamo (l), who runs Dave's Donkeys in Willesden, pictured at Kingsbury allotments with Dobbin, who did all the hard work."

The journalist may ask if the paper can take their own photograph, which might involve you (in the example above) getting Joe, Dave and Dobbin back to the allotment.

Photo call

Alternatively, you could decide in advance to organise a photo call for all your local media rather than issue a release; these are a bit more complicated but worth it for a one-off event like a launch. This involves sending out a photo call notice - basically an invitation - to papers in advance, and having a press release prepared for the day. You'll need to contact the papers' news desks and get it 'in the diary' the week before, by providing enough information to sound tempting. There's a sample photo call notice here.

Things to do on the day:

• Nominate someone to meet any press or photographers who arrive, who can make introductions and explain what's going on. They should have spare copies of the press release.
• Make time for a press photographer - they'll know what makes a good picture and will ask people to pose.
• Have a variety of props (typical gifted items) handy.
• Photographers always prefer to take pictures outside in natural light.
• Don't be offended if only two or three people are included in the shot - large group photographs don't work well in newspapers.

Talking to the press

Everyone involved in the event should read your press release, and be clear what the key messages are, so they can talk about what's happening without waffling.

Have your spokesperson practise explaining what the event is all about. If you're the spokesperson, get someone to ask you questions: rehearsing out loud will feel odd but it really helps.

After the event

Take pictures yourselves so that if the local papers don't show up (it can happen), you have a picture to send them, with a short caption explaining what happened and who's in the picture. They may still use it.

Sharing your press coverage

When you get a story in the local paper, please share it with everyone in Freegle. We want to increase the number of cuttings that get into the Media Archive, so if you have a scanner, please email a jpeg of the press cutting(s) to media@ilovefreegle.org, or if it appeared online, send a link.

If you have a newspaper cutting but no scanner, contact media@ilovefreegle.org and we can arrange for it to be scanned.

Giving interviews on radio or TV

Radio interviews can be done in the studio, 'down the line' (i.e. with you on the telephone), or on location. Interviews can be live or pre-recorded.

When accepting an invitation to do an interview, ask if it'll be live or not, whether anyone else is being interviewed on the same topic, and if there are any specific questions the interviewer wants to cover.

If radio comes to you, it'll usually involve one, possibly two, people, with a recorder in a shoulder bag and a microphone.

If you go to them, radio studios tend to be small, cluttered, windowless and air-conditioned, and interviewees sit round a table with a microphone each.

Pre-recorded interviews are easier, because if you make a hash of an answer you can ask to do it again - they'll edit what you say anyway.

You won't get much air time - maybe a couple of minutes - which is why planning your answers is so important.

TV will be on location or in the studio, and requires more forward planning than radio. If TV is coming to you, expect a minimum of three people - camera, sound and producer/director - plus possibly a reporter, and there'll be a certain amount of disruption. TV prefers to work outside in natural light, and may still use additional lighting.

If filming must be indoors, clear some space before the crew arrive.

Keep a selection of props (gifts) handy.

Once the crew has set up, take a final look around to make sure there are no empty mugs, cardigans on the backs of chairs, silly photos on the wall, etc.

In most cases filming will be recorded and edited. (Live TV involves an outside broadcast unit - a truck with a satellite dish - these are valuable resources, usually used for breaking news.)

If you go to the studio, a researcher or the programme's PA will be your contact beforehand and on the day. Ask as many questions as you like about what to wear, what to bring, who else is being interviewed, what questions will be asked, and so on. The more you know, the better you can prepare.

With radio and especially TV, you may be dropped at the last minute if something more urgent happens. It's very annoying, but it happens.

Interviews

Tip one: Prepare. Faced with a microphone or camera, your mind could go completely blank. To avoid ums and errs as you try to marshal your thoughts, some prepared responses will help.

You won't be going head-to-head with a hard-hitting political interviewer. The questions you'll be asked will mostly be simple, open questions designed to get you talking, but it helps to think in advance how you'll communicate Freegle information in interesting, memorable soundbites.

"Tell me about Freegle in your area" is a huge question, and there are lots of things you could say. Planning an answer to questions like this - and practising them out loud - will make you feel confident and sound fluent.

Like a politician, you can use your rehearsed answers even if the question is slightly different!

Have facts, figures and your website address memorised. On radio you can have a card with a phone number and website address written down. But the general rule is: don't hold any papers which a) rustle and b) will shake visibly if you're even a bit nervous.

These are possible questions - put the answers into your own words and say them out loud to check how they sound:

• Tell me about Freegle in xxx?
• What is Freegle all about?
• So what should listeners do if they're interested in joining?
• What's the most unusual gift that's been offered?
• What sorts of things are offered on Freegle?
• So what impact is Freegle having on the environment?

Tip two: Give your answer, then stop talking. Wait for the next question rather than feeling you have to fill air time. This also makes editing easier.

Tip three: Smile, even on radio - it'll make your voice sound friendlier.

Tip four: Talk slowly, and remember to breathe!

Questions and answers

Q: Tell me about Freegle.

Freegle gives individuals, businesses and organisations like charities, schools or community groups a way to "recycle" unwanted household, office and other items, using our website and app. It was started in 2009, and there are now over 200 (check the website, as this number goes up all the time) groups in the UK, with over one million members.

Each month, members of Freegle in the UK prevent xxx tonnes of reusable goods from going into landfill.

Q: What is Freegle all about?

It's a nationwide 'gifting' movement which started in 2009. Freegle's aims are to reduce waste by reusing things, to save resources and ease the burden on landfill. This is done by giving people an easy way to give away items they no longer need, rather than throw them away.

Q: Tell me about your local group.

XXX Freegle group is run by volunteers. We were formed in xxx and now have xxx members. There's a website (and app) where our members can list 'offers' of items or 'wants' for items.

Freegle doesn't have many rules, but the main ones are:

• items must be given away for free, and collected from the giver
• everything must be legal
• it keeps something out of landfill

Q: So what should people do if they're interested in joining?

If you have something around the house, shed, attic or garage that you think might be useful to somebody else, and want to give it away for free, go to [your group's web address] and join us.

And if your area doesn't have a group yet, you could apply to start one - just visit www.ilovefreegle.org to find out more.

Q: What sorts of things are offered on Freegle?

It tends to be household goods - the things we all keep in our attics, sheds and garages, or need to get rid of when we buy something new: fridges and washing machines, sofas, tables and chairs, beds, computer equipment, books, toys and clothes. But people can make requests too, if there's something specific they'd like.

Q: What's the most unusual gift that's been offered?

We get all sorts of things, small and large: occasionally we get cars, and there's been a caravan, a stack of coat hangers and even hair clippers. Other things that spring to mind are an artificial Christmas tree, a rabbit hutch, a ceiling light and fan, a baby basket and even a small tool shed.

Q: So what impact is Freegle having on the environment?

Freegle is one of the easiest ways an individual can make a positive contribution to the environment, by helping reduce landfill.

Freegle members save 557 tonnes from landfill each month. With half a million members in the UK, the number of items being given an extended life each year is about 2.1 million - equivalent to 6,685 tonnes saved from landfill.

Recycling, including Freegle, has already helped tackle climate change by cutting the UK's carbon emissions from 25 million to 15 million tonnes a year. The recycling industry body WRAP says the benefit of keeping waste out of landfill has been equivalent to taking 3.5 million cars off the road.

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