Ink and relationships – in public relations it doesn’t get much better than that. And one way to get both is by hosting a media tour when, for example, a B2B client is launching a new product.

Most editors like the idea of getting out and meeting with a manufacturer, touring their facility, talking to engineers and seeing the product. The benefit of a media tour to the client is two-fold. First, they’re more likely to receive better coverage. Whereas a simple press release might get a client 100 words and a photo, editors attending a media tour generally write a larger story (400 – 800 words) on the client and their product. That’s because they’ve invested two days of their time attending the tour and need something to show from their investment of time and effort.

Secondly, and more importantly, are the relationships created from the media tour. The editors have a chance to meet and talk with product managers, engineers and company leadership. They receive more of the behind-the-scenes story on the product’s development, have the opportunity to swap stories and build a sense of camaraderie. This can lead to additional interaction at trade shows and industry forums from the common bonds formed at the media tour.

These relationships also can help secure coverage on other allied/related topics in the future. When the editor is writing a story 10 months later on a topic that pertains to the manufacturer, who are they more likely to call for information – an engineer they met at the media tour or cold-call another supplier? Editors are a busy bunch and don’t have time to call around looking for information. If they have a relationship with a manufacturer that will help them finish their story on deadline, they’ll call them first.

So why don’t more B2B manufacturers host media tours? In talking with editors, they say very few companies hold them. Is it a matter that they’re too large a task to organize, don’t have the budget to do one or a media tour just isn’t on their radar?

Clearly, the benefits of hosting a media tour will continue to pay dividends long after the editors head home. The ink in the short term is good, but the relationships that are formed long term are best.