Why Every Nantucket Business Needs a Media Kit
Whether you run a boutique on cobblestone streets, operate a hospitality business catering to summer visitors, or provide year-round services to our island community, getting your story in front of the right people matters. A well-prepared media kit is one of the most effective tools you can have in your public relations arsenal — and it's not just for major corporations with dedicated PR teams.
What Is a Media Kit?
A media kit (also called a press kit) is a curated collection of materials that gives journalists, bloggers, event organizers, and potential partners everything they need to write about or feature your business. Think of it as your business's professional introduction — one that tells your story quickly, clearly, and compellingly, without requiring a back-and-forth of emails.
Source of Sources emphasizes that press kits are not reserved for large corporations with big PR budgets — for a small business, a professional media kit levels the playing field and signals to journalists that the brand is ready for the spotlight.
Why Your Business Needs One
Earned media — coverage you didn't pay for — is extraordinarily valuable. According to Nielsen's Global Trust in Advertising Survey, 92% of consumers worldwide trust earned media — such as word-of-mouth and third-party recommendations — above all other forms of advertising, making PR-driven coverage far more persuasive than paid ads. A media kit is your primary tool for earning that kind of coverage.
As eReleases explains in its 2025 small business press kit guide, each media mention earned through a press kit builds credibility that advertising simply cannot buy — making it a uniquely powerful tool for growing brands. On an island where reputation and word-of-mouth travel fast, this kind of third-party validation carries even more weight.
The Core Components of a Strong Media Kit
1. Company Overview
This is your elevator pitch in written form. Include a clear, concise description of what your business does, when it was founded, and what makes it distinct. For Nantucket businesses, this is a great place to highlight your connection to the island's character — whether that's a decades-long family legacy, a commitment to year-round service, or a product rooted in the island's maritime heritage.
2. Short Bios of Key Team Members or Executives
Journalists and media contacts want to know who's behind the brand. Include brief, professional bios of your owner, founder, or key leadership. Keep these focused and approachable — a sentence or two on background, expertise, and local ties goes a long way.
3. Recent Press Releases
If you've announced a new product, partnership, award, or milestone, include copies of recent press releases. These give media contacts a sense of your news cadence and demonstrate that your business is active and growing. If you haven't written a press release before, the Monarch Small Business Development Center, funded in part through a cooperative agreement with the U.S. Small Business Administration, offers hands-on workshops where advisors provide digital press kit templates and a step-by-step roadmap for earning media coverage.
4. Product and Service Information
Make it easy for journalists to understand what you offer. Include clear descriptions of your products or services, pricing tiers if appropriate, and any relevant specifications. The goal is to reduce the number of questions a reporter needs to ask before they can write about you.
5. Media Coverage Clippings and Links
If your business has been featured in local publications, tourism guides, regional magazines, or online outlets, include links or PDFs of that coverage. Existing coverage signals credibility and gives new journalists confidence that your story is worth telling.
6. Contact Information
Always close your media kit with a dedicated media contact — a name, direct email address, and phone number. Journalists are often working on tight deadlines. Making it easy to reach the right person can be the difference between getting a mention and getting passed over.
Keep It Current
Creating a media kit once and filing it away is one of the most common mistakes businesses make. A media kit should be updated every quarter — or after a major milestone such as a leadership change or award recognition — to keep press materials credible and journalist-ready. A stale media kit with outdated information can actually hurt your credibility, so build in time to review and refresh it regularly.
Make It Discoverable
Don't wait for a journalist to ask for your media kit before making it available. Making a media kit accessible on your website increases discoverability, since many journalists prefer direct access rather than waiting for an email response. Add a simple "Press" or "Media" link to your website's footer and keep the kit ready to download at any time.
Save Everything as a PDF
When packaging your media kit, save all documents — your company overview, bios, press releases, and product sheets — as PDFs. PDFs preserve your formatting across every device and operating system, ensuring your materials look exactly as intended whether a journalist opens them on a laptop, tablet, or phone. They're also easy to share securely via email or download link. If you need to trim pages, adjust margins, or resize content before saving, check this out — Adobe Acrobat's free online crop tool lets you clean up PDF pages right in your browser without downloading any software.
Ready to Elevate Your Business Profile?
Here on Nantucket, we're fortunate to have a close-knit business community where good stories spread quickly — through locals, visitors, and the publications that cover our island. A professional media kit puts you in a position to share your story on your terms, at the moment opportunity arrives. Whether you're gearing up for Nantucket Noel, the Daffodil Festival, or a summer season launch, now is a great time to build or refresh yours.
The Nantucket Island Chamber of Commerce is here to support your visibility and growth. Connect with us to learn about our marketing tools, networking events, and the resources available to our 750+ member businesses.
