For my latest column in University Business, “PR on the Web 101,” I’ve identified 7 must-have features for any effective online newsroom. I selected the following components after asking a few editors and reporters for their wish lists.
- A direct link from the home page
- 24/7 e-mail and phone (including the area code) contact information
- Mailing address (complete with town, state, and ZIP code)
- An academic experts online directory
- Searchable current and archived press releases with targeted RSS feeds or e-mail subscription (by category/by audience)
- Background information (fact sheets, statistics, relevant links in press releases)
- Downloadable, high-resolution photos (300 dpi)
If you want to know why these are important, just go read the column!
If you think I’ve missed something, let us know by posting a comment!
Related posts:
- The Brand (Brave?) New World Of Online Public Relations
- A step beyond simple “target” website pages for helicopter parents
- Special UB column on how to survive a website redesign: 5 tips from Lisa Cameron-Norfleet, Program Manager Developer Relations at Cornell University
- Public Relations: Make sure you monitor bloggers posting about your university
- Almost Live from EduWeb 2006: How Online Student Journals (Blogs) Can be an Effective Recruitment Tool
shane on 
Karine,
Excellent article. We’ve been talking about implementing a news blog at Mansfield. This gives us the direction and reasons in a succinct way.
Glad, I can help :-)