Everything you should know about EPK and where to get it!
PK often referred to as Press Kit or as a media kit in business environments, is a pre-packaged set of promotional materials that provide information about a person, company, organization, product or cause and which is distributed to members of the media for promotional use. Press kits are often distributed to announce a release or for a news conference. Traditionally the term, “press kit”, referred to a set of documents, photographs and other relevant materials packaged together, and designed to be sent to a newspaper or magazine as part of an organisations Public relations or promotional program. Recently, as print media circulation and readership levels have been declining, marketing and PR people have begun using the broader term, “media kit”, so that it now refers to any promotional material distributed to any media outlet.
ELECTRICAL PRESS KIT (EPK)
An electronic press kit (EPK) is a press kit equivalent in electronic form. An EPK usually takes the form of a website or e-mail, though they are also known to exist in CD and DVD form. The first known EPK, as we know it today, premiered live on the web on January 8, 1995, and was invented and given the exact name electronic press kit or EPK by Andre Gray, the inventor of online music sales certifications and winner of The Johannes Gutenberg Inventor Prize. Gray’s EPK featured a bio, audio clips, videos, photos, press, set list, basic technical requirements, and a calendar and featured R&B singer and songwriter Aaron Hall as the first artist ever to have an EPK created on their behalf.
USES
You might be wondering how it then applies to your business or what you stand to get from it should you choose to get one, well, the press kit or media kit is a Public Relations (PR) staple, and an integral part of a company’s media relations activities.
Press kits are typically used for:
- Product launches
- New company launch
- Mergers and acquisitions
- News conferences
- Announcements of special events, industry trade shows or exhibitions
- Accompany a press release or media release
- Notify the media of any newsworthy event within a company’s sphere of activities
GENERAL COMPONENTS
There is no universal guide to the elements that should be included in a press kit or media kit, but the following are common components:
- Backgrounder with historical information on the company or individual.
- Fact sheet listing specific features, statistics, or benefits.
- Biographies of key executives, individuals, artists, etc.
- Past press coverage
- Photos or other images (high resolution) of key executives, logos, products, etc.
- A press release detailing the current news the media kit is sent in reference to
- Media contact information (usually of a public relations department or spokesperson)
- A CD, DVD, software title, video, etc. as appropriate for the sender of the release
- Collateral advertising material, such as: postcard, flier, newspaper ad, etc.
Band press kits
Press
kits are a common promotional tool used by musicians when launching a new
album. Band press kits often have their own unique set of components,
including:
Band biography / History of the band
CD
Color photos (many corporate photos are done in black and white
for newspaper print purposes)
Contact information for the band’s label, manager, publicist, or
other representative
Discography (all previous albums released by the band)
Equipment list (if the kit is being sent to live music venue)
Sports media guides
Main article: Media guide
Distribution formats
An electronic press kit can be distributed via the following media:
CD
DVD
Video or audio cassette
The Internet (e.g. E-mail, WWW, newsgroups, etc.)
USB flash drive
Electronic press kits are also available on corporate websites, where kits are offered in
PDF format.
Contents
The contents of an EPK media kit are similar to other types of media kit, but are likely to include a range of audio-visual material. Decisions about what to include in the EPK media kit will depend on the industry and target audience. As a general guide, an EPK in the music industry might contain the following:
Biography
Music clips
High resolution press photos
Tour dates
Promotional videos
Offline website or website links
Press reviews and interviews
“RIYL” or “recommended if you like” list
(list of artists in similar styles or genres)
Contact information
High resolution photos or images of key executives, the company
logo, products, etc.
Source: WIKIPEDIA
WHERE CAN I GET ONE?
So you might be wondering how to get your hands on one of these for your business, company or product launch, well there are couple ways to get it done and that includes getting it done in any website offering goto templates, this could be an option for you if you have extremely low (i mean next to nothing) budget at hand and the downside to it is that, you need at least have a basic level of knowledge in design as this will give you the flexibility to know what to go for when it comes to picking colors, content arrangement and at the very least, pay a token amount to be able to download it without the website’s logo on it as a watermark, and trust me, it can be very tiring to take your time to design a good EPK only to realize that you have to pay to get it when you’ve basically done all the heavy lifting (design).
Alternatively, you can give the job out to a designer, but before we go into details of whether you should go for a designer over using a goto template, i want you do yourself a little favor for me, imagine a scenario where you have a big product launch, a project launch so big that if it goes well, that product could be your chance at getting the audience you deserve for life, then maybe, you get the chance to run an ad with your product’s EPK design, you end up investing an enormous time into creating one and then it ends up not converting simply because the design quality doesn’t fit the purpose or maybe you’re just missing something you don’t know yet, believe it when i say this, you will feel bad. But then imagine the situation where you have given out the design job to a designer who has done the proper research and knows what works and what doesn’t, well that’s just the major advantage of giving the job to a designer rather than doing it yourself.
So to save you the whole headache of trial and error, i have created a gig on fiverr where i can work with you to create a stunning and an industry leading EPKs for your brand, product launch and many more at a very reasonable and pocket friendly price, I have over 3 years of experience in the design industry with certification from some of the industry leading designers. So be rest assure that you will get the best quality in my gigs.
Click Here for more details about my gig on fiver.
These are the 2 major ways to get an EPK done and i hope you find this article helpful. You can also reach me on thepeakdesigns1@gmail.com for more inquires
