How can a developer begin building a brand for the company? If you do contract work, with the publisher promoting your titles, how do you make sure your company gets mentioned in publisher releases? If you decide to self publish, how do you maximize the coverage for a title? What media categories can you get to? What techniques do you use? How do you involve and capitalize on fans? This session will give anyone in marketing an overview of the full range of PR techniques that can be used to promote a game, from the initial announcement to launch, review programs and strategy guides. All media are covered, from peer-to-peer developer sites to the top consumer media, including the potential for TV coverage on a game and how to go after it.

THE SESSION COVERS: Phone calls versus email pitches; the value of face-to-face meetings; story ideas to keep a game in front of editors from development to launch; how to get fans behind your title; the value and use of character art; pitching feature stories to consumer media; filming B roll for TV reporters and doing events for game writers and/or the national consumer media. This session also provides an overview on how developers can increase visibility for the company and position the studio's specific skills to attract contract work. In this section, the speaker talks about: how to get stories in industry newsletters; what is in involved in booking E3 or other industry trade shows; meeting face-to-face with the key game writers; the role of speaking opportunities; pitching company stories. Branding is also touched on, including the value of doing a company positioning, developing key messages and core company visibility activities that get the developer's name out in front of target audiences. Each attendee gets a fat packet of handouts: an extensive PowerPoint presentation that can be used for media training, an article on getting the most out of a media tour and a chart that outlines all the steps to maximize PR for a game title. Attendees have described this session as "Drinking from a Fire Hose," a great overview of what is possible through PR.