The document discusses changes in traditional media consumption and the rise of new media technologies. It notes a decline in viewership of local TV news, network news, radio, and newspapers. Meanwhile, social media use is climbing, with many getting news online or through mobile devices. Younger audiences in particular are active in online communities. The document provides strategic recommendations for organizations to understand the changing media landscape, master traditional outreach techniques, and capitalize on no- and low-cost online resources like blogs, social media, and free tools. It stresses identifying the right audience, creating relevant messaging, and being prepared to leverage unexpected media opportunities.

1. The Communications Atmosphere: A Changing World Picking Paths that Maximize Resources

2. Strategic Approaches Understand the communications landscape Master the basics Capitalize on no- and low-cost resources Piggyback where possible Be prepared for success

3. Traditional Channels Losing Power Landscape changing with advent of satellite radio 77% spend “a lot of time” reading health and medicine stories Local health news still popular BUT Explosion in new vehicles such as blogging, texting, social networking Understanding the Landscape Local TV News Down 30% Regular viewership is 54% Nightly Network News Down 53% Regular viewership is 28% Regular listenership is 36% Radio Down 23% Regular readership is 40% Papers Down 31%

4. Social Media Use Climbing 31% go online for news – up from 2% News aggregators, large sites dominate (MSNBC, Yahoo, CNN) Valued for headlines, convenience Accessibility and speed are key Online audience is aging – almost all growth among those age 25-64 Younger audience knows the Internet as a community New technology expanding news consumption 45% of adult internet users have created online content 13% of young people get news from cell phone, PDA, iPod Social Utilities Facebook users age 35+ increased 98% from May ’06 – May ‘07 Blogs Over the past 5 years, the number of times blogs and bloggers have been mentioned in major newspapers and magazines has increased 16 fold. 57 percent of surveyed journalists read blogs at least 2-3 times per week

5. Media Sources Reporters and bloggers are like you and me 1 st stop for information is the Internet Blogs, Internet chatter provide validation and relevancy Creates a wide world of experts Online outlets act as “farm teams” Opportunity to develop relationships with future media stars

6. Master the Basics: Targeted Messaging/Audience Segmentation Identify and target appropriate audience Create relevance Understandable message Credible Breakthrough hurdles Relevance to their daily life Resonance = emotional response Offer the solution in an accessible forum

7. The Basics Still Work: Not Much Pixie Dust in Today’s PR Press releases and press kits remain relevant Cultivate relationships with top-tier media – they value 1:1 interaction Create content for the communications channels – nuance and style differ for Internet, print, broadcast Know how to tailor your pitch – make it big, make it local or forget about it

8. Capitalize on No- and Low-Cost Resources Harness the power of your members and advocates Provide them with tools needed to amplify message Messaging Training Communications kits For community, chapter creation For media outreach For event organization For blogging Post downloadable, template tools

9. Other No- and Low-Cost Tools Use free tools to cultivate news hooks, relevance and access to media opportunities Surveymonkey – quick turnaround insights, support your point-of-view from findings, uncover potential news-making opportunities HARO, ProfNet – free intelligence on media seeking comment, expertise Facebook, MySpace cause pages slideshare – put your knowledge base here and let information seekers find you Open-source content management systems for static or community-based sites (e.g. Drupal, Joomla) Google Adwords, Grants, Checkout

10. Piggyback Where Possible Use existing gatherings, travel to leverage opportunities Survey membership for people willing to share their story Conduct training sessions at annual or regional meetings When traveling for one purpose, book media interviews in local areas Leverage local outlets around national events PSA distribution Ad placement Local news carry-through Offer experts or local spokespeople to speak to related trends, news coverage

11. Be Prepared for Success Congratulations – you’ve landed a piece on an evening news magazine show…are you ready? What does the Web site look like? Can you handle the traffic? Is there a call-to-action, pull-through, and donation mechanism? Can you capture data on interested public? Have you alerted your local teams or spokespeople? Have you negotiated use of the piece for future promotion? Can you turn this into a fundraising event? Viewing parties, email blitz, ad or PSA during program, Web banner, Adwords

12. Thank You SPECTRUM SCIENCE COMMUNICATIONS 2000 K STREET NW SECOND FLOOR WASHINGTON, DC 20006-1890 T 202 955 6222 F 202 955 0044 SPECTRUMSCIENCE.COM