By Patricia Faulhaber For those who have a passion for collecting posters, photos, product information booklets, buttons, cards or advertising swag, press kits can often offer an entire package which could include all those items. Plus, it’s often bundled in a collectible folder, box or binder. Press kits are sent to media outlets by companies, movie or television producers, non-profit organizations or digital game manufacturers to inform them of upcoming events, new product or service announcements, movies, television shows, new music, etc. The media can use all or part of the kit to develop a story for publication. In fact, they are sometimes called media kits. The kits are packages with a slew of promotional materials and other types of resources for editors and reporters. In today’s digital world, many companies have put their press kits online making the hard-copy kits even more desirable. The press kit generally includes a press release, background information, fact sheets or features lists or booklets, photos and/or 35mm slides, promotional items such as buttons, cards, posters or other swag. They can be collectible for a number of reasons. First the products, movies, music, etc. promoted through the kit are often history making. For example, the IBM ThinkPad laptop helped revolutionize the laptop industry when it was first produced in 1992. A press kit from that release would be of interest to many different types of collectors. The use of press releases is also historical. According to www.ereleases.com/pr-fuel/history-of-the-press-release/, the first press release was issued by a man named Ivy Lee and, “According to public relations lore, the press release was born following a train wreck on October 28, 1906, in Atlantic City, N.J., that left more than 50 people dead.” It goes on, “The train was owned by Pennsylvania Railroad, one of Ivy Lee’s clients. In response to the disaster, he convinced the railroad to issue a statement about what had transpired. In doing so, he set in motion a practice for companies to address issues important to them, or, in the case of the railroad, to offer an explanation of what had happened. The New York Times was said to have been so impressed by Lee’s release that the newspaper printed it exactly as Lee had written it. Although it’s rare for media outlets to use press releases verbatim these days, they still often act as a starting point for a journalist to create a story.” Yet another reason they are collectible is they often contain photos or posters that are desired by collectors, especially those kits promoting movies, music or historical events. NASA Apollo press kits for example are in demand. According to www.apollopresskits.com, “Press kits prepared by the public relations staff at the major contractors for the Apollo 11 mission provided valuable additional information not found in NASA issued news releases. Reporters and editors from media outlets including television and newspapers had access to such documents from dozens of manufacturers while working on stories about the first lunar landing. These press kits are beautifully prepared, with stunning artwork and fascinating period photographs.” For those who collect promotional items surrounding the announcement of digital games, there are a myriad of game press kits available online. eBay lists hundreds of these press kits for games such as Fantastic Four, Darksiders, XCOM 2, Shadow of the Tomb Raider and many more. Yet another highly collectible category of press kits includes those announcing new cars, new models, or remakes of a favorite standard such as the Ford Mustang. Another example is the Ford Thunderbird. The seller of a 2002 Thunderbird press kit described it as “an original press kit from the 2002 Thunderbird given to news and media reporters at special preview events at various American auto shows.” The kit contains an illustrated booklet, 35mm slides, a cloth CD case with the Thunderbird emblem silkscreened on the front and a highly collected 1:43 scale diecast model of the car. Almost all items in a press kit can be considered collectible including the 35mm slides. Slides are hardly used these days and could be thought of as a collectible form of art or as one of the collectibles for those who like all things photography. The best way to get started collecting is to look for press kits that promote items of personal interest such as classic cars, favorite movies or favorite video games. While the press kits are out there, one may have to engage in a hunt to find them. But, isn’t the hunt part of the fun of collecting? |