If youve ever wandered around a companys web page in search for an address to send a press release or article off to, chances are youve stumbled across the elusive Media Kit link. "Whats a media kit?" you might inquire of . Good question.

A media kit is a kind of prepackaged PR tool that most large corporations use, but that can come in handy for small businesses as well. The materials within a media kit are standardized, prewritten documents that can be printed up or pulled out of a file for those inquiries that happen along when you least expect it.

There are a few essential items that should be included in your media kit: the media kit cover, a set of press releases about many aspects of the business (including individual products), short biographies of key individuals, copies of articles, photos, and some types of item literature, such a data sheets or brochures. You may put whatever else you think is relevent, but these are some of the most common items.

A media kit cover is really just a pocketed folder for you to put the rest of the understanding inside of. However, it is commonly a glossy, colorful folder with your company name or logo printed on the front. Embossing the logo is another effect that could be a dazzling attention grabber. The standard size for the media kit cover is 9" by 12", so that 8 1/2 by 11 inch documents might easily be stored inside.

Your media kit should incorporate more than one press release. One should be focused on the companys background, furnishing an overview of the history, accomplishments, markets, products and services offered. Do not overly dramatize your story. Most editors will only make use of the data found here as a reference for articles written about other aspects of your business . You should also add a press release for each individual item that you market, unless you produce an abundance of different items. In which case, three or four of your main products should get individual releases. If you think its necessary, a combination release may be written about the others.

If youre not sure how to write a press release, check out http://www.InternetWriters.com for their free of cost press release builder. There are also examples of what a press release should look like. If youre still wary of the world of press releases, find a service to write one for you professionally.

Individual biographies should be focused on those all the people that would most definately be interviewed by the media as a resource for articles. Include their full name, job title, responsibilities, and some personal information, such as their educational background, about their families, and certain accomplishments.

Large, black and white photos of these individuals should be included, along with photos of products, facilities, or anything else that might be of interest to the media. Typed captions should be affixed to the back with a non damaging adhesive.

Including archive articles in your media kit shows that the press has found you newsworthy before, and also gives them a dazzling example of how they could base their own article. Any other literature you add should be very important, and not too intimidating. Many editors avoid media kits that are too full of data , or too heavy.

Public relations can sometimes depend on how well your media kit is put together. If you send off your initial press release and an editor requests additonal acquired skill , you should get your media kit to them immediately, in order to help them meet their deadlines. Also, if the data they positive need is not in your media kit, they might decide to pass the story up all together. Having a media kit is probably not going to be the life or death or your business, but it will save a lot of time when youre dealing with media people.

Ana Ventura specializes in helping businesses, organizations, and individuals get media coverage. She is a PR expert at DrNunleys http://FullServicePR.com , a page specializing in affordable publicity services. Reach Ana at mailto:ana@fullservicepr.com or 801-328-9006.