7 Tips for Picking the Right PR Media Database

1. Ability to Conduct Easy & Effective Searches

A database tool should be easy to navigate, so make sure you choose a media database service that is user-friendly. Searching for contacts should always be an effortless experience. A good media database provides users with multiple ways to search for contacts by a wide range of details. 

Users should be able to search contacts by:

• Source
• Outlet name
• Location
• Topics covered
• Media type
• Language
• Contact methods; address, email, phone, website, social media

2. Broad Selection of Outlets & Contacts

One of the key points of a media database is its ability to deliver access to a great number of media contacts across various media types and industries. The last thing you need is to pay for a service that doesn’t provide the right contacts for your industry or geographic location.Choose a tool that provides a trouble-free experience and can help you contact all of the journalists and professionals you need to reach out to.

3. Frequently Updated Contacts

Don’t settle for a media contact database that provides outdated contact information on their platform. Every PR pro knows that time is precious and it should never be wasted on reaching out to expired email addresses and phone numbers.

4. Local & International Contacts

Many organizations sell products or services that appeal to consumers all across the world. With that said, choose a media database that lets you search for both local and international contacts. The more contacts you have, the more brand visibility your business gets. As mentioned in Tip #1, users should be allowed to search by location and language to reach the contacts and outlets you need.

5. Option to Build & Export Media Contact Lists

It’s important to be able to efficiently organize the contacts you access in a media database. Building lists will help keep your contacts segmented in whatever way makes sense for your organization. For example, you can choose to create lists that separate contacts by geographical location, industry type, level of importance, etc. The platform you choose should also give you the option to export your saved lists in case you’d like to save them to your desktop or send them to executives within your company.

6. Around-the-Clock Support & Guidance

Having access to a support team at any hour of every day is imperative. Media is a 24/7/365 endeavor, so any platform you choose should offer support around the clock as well.

7. All-in-One Media Service

If you’re a PR, communication, journalism or marketing pro, it’s likely that you or your team is also in charge of maintaining your brand’s reputation and status. Hiring many media companies to provide a singular service can get messy when it comes to expensing your bills, maintaining various login and password combinations and so on. Avoid the hassle by subscribing to an all-in-one media service where you can get access to a contact database and be able to monitor your brand via TV and radio, online news and social media.