PR Not ER: How to Get “Earned Media Coverage” And Elevate Your Organization (Without Elevating Your Blood Pressure!)

Amy McCallister Ethel, Resource Development Manager, Habitat for Humanity of the Tri-State

Track: Communication & Advocacy

Audience: Nonprofit Organizations, Grantmaking Organizations, Executive Directors, Marketing/Communications
Skill Level: Beginner, Intermediate, Advanced

Learning Objectives

• Identify what makes a nonprofit story newsworthy and timely, then use “earned” media coverage to strengthen donor engagement, community awareness, and organizational credibility.
• Build and maintain a basic media list for local and regional outreach.
• Write more effective press releases, media alerts, and pitch emails.

Brief Summary

Nonprofit leaders often know they have powerful stories to tell, but getting those stories in front of the right audience can feel overwhelming, intimidating or downright stressful. Between press releases, media lists, interviews, events, social media and limited staff capacity, public relations can start to feel more like a trip to the ER than a strategic tool for mission growth. This practical and engaging breakout session will help nonprofit professionals understand how to secure earned media coverage without panic, pressure or a large marketing budget. Participants will learn how to identify newsworthy stories within their organization, build relationships with local reporters, write stronger pitches and press materials and prepare spokespeople for interviews with confidence.

Using real-world nonprofit examples, this session will break down the earned media process into manageable steps that any organization can use to increase visibility, strengthen credibility, attract donors and engage the community. Attendees will leave with simple tools, templates and story-framing strategies they can immediately apply to their own mission.

Detailed Summary

This workshop will provide nonprofit leaders with a practical, low-stress framework for using earned media to increase visibility, strengthen credibility and elevate their organization’s mission. Through interactive discussion and real-world examples participants will explore how to identify compelling stories within their organizations, determine what makes those stories newsworthy and develop media outreach strategies that are realistic for small or resource-limited nonprofit teams.

The session will move beyond theory by giving learners opportunities to apply the concepts in real time. Participants will take part in an “Is This News?” group exercise where they review common nonprofit scenarios such as events, grant awards, program milestones, volunteer projects, success stories and community partnerships, then work together to identify which angles are most likely to earn media interest. Attendees will also discuss common barriers to media outreach, including lack of confidence, limited staff time, fear of saying the wrong thing and uncertainty about what reporters actually need.

Specific outcomes for learners will include:

• A clearer understanding of the difference between paid, owned and earned media
• The ability to identify newsworthy stories within their own organization
• A practical process for developing stronger story angles for events, campaigns, programs and impact stories
• Increased confidence in reaching out to reporters, editors and assignment desks
• A better understanding of when to use a press release, media alert or direct pitch
• Strategies for preparing staff, volunteers, board members and clients for media interviews
• Ideas for using earned media coverage after publication to support fundraising, donor stewardship, advocacy and community engagement
• A peer-informed list of story ideas participants can adapt for their own organizations

Learners will leave with actionable tools and resources they can immediately implement, including a nonprofit media outreach checklist, a basic media list-building guide, a press release template, a media alert template, a pitch email framework, a spokesperson preparation checklist and a simple story-mining worksheet to help staff and board members recognize media-worthy moments throughout the year.

The session is designed to be highly practical and discussion based. Participants will be encouraged to share examples from their own organizations, troubleshoot outreach challenges with peers and leave with at least one earned media idea they can pitch within 30 days of the conference.