So very quickly, it is 2014! I'll start by wishing everyone a very Happy New Year!
I'm into my last month at Brand Incorporated as an intern and I just cannot believe just how quickly everything has been flying by!
This time round, I would like very much to share my experience on my first media event in Brand Inc.
Our client, Pioneer Seafood, is in the food business, so the event was a tasting session.
There were 3 days dedicated for the tasting in mid November. Before the days arrive, there were quite a fair bit of things to prepare. My supervisor was the media liaison between the client and media so what I had to was to assist her and ensure that items for the media were all packed into what I then identified; a press kit.
The items that went in the press kit included a press release, question & answer sheet, history of the business and a menu stating their signature dishes the media would be having for lunch/ dinner, depending on the timing of the tasting session.
When that day arrived, I have to admit I was actually really excited. My role was really simple, registering the media when they arrived before joining the tasting session. There were two sessions; lunch and dinner. The lunch session was arranged for print media and the dinner one was for online media, mainly bloggers.
The media whom were present for lunch on the first day represented: The Business Times, Singapore's Child, Square Rooms, 8 days.
Knowing who was going to turn up, I was excited. It's mostly because I was curious about the kind of questions they were going to ask our client. The kind of questions only journalists/ editors would be capable of asking.
The lunch proceeded smoothly, with our client, Mr Lee introducing every single dish very enthusiastically to the media. He was so excited about the media coming down that he gave each of them a fresh fish of their choice to bring back. That was a really funny moment. The media were very polite in trying to turn down as they were heading back to their respective offices after lunch but he didn't take no for an answer.
This is Mr Lee holding a parrot fish. It is just 1 out of the many different breeds of fish available for customers to choose in the restaurant (that's the one he made sure each media packed back!).
At the end of the 3 days, we all were glad that everything went really well. Not only was our client happy, but the media were as well and nothing is more important than that! Up to date, clippings of our client have been featured in the respective platforms. We are still awaiting the feature on The Business Times as the editor cannot confirm the date she will publish it due to many other pending articles on her side.
Something that I have observed and learnt? The characteristics of the different media. Taking the print media as a comparison, representatives of the online media platforms are not as afraid to speak their minds. After every session, Mr Lee would open himself for feedback from the media. Bloggers would bluntly speak their mind as to how they feel regarding the different dishes without even polishing their words. Some bloggers try, but most are very straightforward, as they like to be as honest as possible to their readers in order to be able to relate to them. Editors on the other hand, are more conscious of how they speak, stringing words to sound as diplomatic as possible without offending another.
Very interesting!
