The Power Publicist

Archive for March, 2009

While spring is just beginning, the school year will be over before you know it. People are already starting to plan summer vacations; not me, however.

Me, my mind is already past summer and thinking of Christmas and the holiday season. If you have a product or service which is a good fit for a holiday gift guide, yours should be too.

Gift guides start showing up in print media as well as on TV, come November each year.

These special sections and blocks of programming take a lot of lead time, so print media outlets in particular begin planning them in the summer. The earlier you can get in on these gift guides, the better. Spring is really the best time to begin making your case for your gift ideas if you want to be featured.

These are the typical deadlines for these featured spots in various media:

* Magazines – July
* Wires and Syndicates – September
* Newspapers – October
* TV – November

If you want to start maximizing your holiday sales long before the first snowflake falls, you’ll want to do the following:

1. Try to position your gift suggestion as appropriate for multiple categories. For instance, I created pitches for a client who owns a skincare line as gifts for women, gifts for expectant mothers, gifts for your girlfriends as well as stocking stuffers.
2. Keep your pitch short and snappy. Two, possibly three paragraphs at the very most. Hit all the high points of the product, provide photos and your contact details and if you can, include product samples for review.
3. Do some research and learn who is leading the gift guide at the media outlet in question. Find out what information they’re looking for. Some of these people may need only a pitch, while others will be looking for a product sample and standard press kit.

Of course, there is more than gift guides to occupy you when it comes to the holidays. You can use the concept of the holiday as a platform for selling your product or service – such as offering some tips on countering holiday stress via relaxation if you have spa services to sell, or holiday decorating tips if you’re an interior decorating business.

If you want holiday publicity for your product or service, the time to plan is NOW!

Think getting featured in a newspaper or magazine, or on TV or radio is only for the really big companies who can afford it? Think again.

More than 90% of everything you see in the news is generated from a press release, also known as a news release. You, too, can see yourself in the local and even national news – and get free publicity -  just by coming up with a fresh and newsworthy story.

But if you really want to attract the local media to partake, you need to give them a good reason. And that reason is: you’ve got a great local story.

One of the easiest ways to do this is what the people in the news business call ‘piggybacking.’ Just as if one of my twin daughters hopped on my back to get a ride,  ‘piggybacking’ simply means jumping on a national story with a local angle.

Why is this important? Local news is the local media’s bread and butter. When they can find someone in their area who can offer background, commentary or story ideas that piggyback off a national event, or someone who is part of a national trend, they will usually bite.

In fact, piggybacking plays a major role in local newsrooms across the country. Reporters often search for hours for someone who can shed new light on a national news story – and give the story a more ‘neighborhood’ perspective.

For example, one of the best piggybacking stories I was pitched when I was a TV reporter was during the time when anthrax and chemical warfare were big on the national news.

A local army-navy store owner called me saying that because of the scare, gas masks were flying off the shelves. The store owner got great coverage, and my story was used in local broadcasts across the state – and covered as a print story on the Associated Press wire service, one of the largest distributors of news to the media.

Here are some of the best ways to give a national news story a local spin:

• Human Interest
• Tips and Advice
• Tragedy or Crisis
• Holiday/Event Tie-Ins
• Current affairs

Want to learn more on how to craft a press release that piggybacks on a national story? Get it straight from the reporters’ mouths by checking out The Inside Scoop.

I surveyed and interviewed reporters and media professionals from small to the big national media outlets including CNN, Prevention Magazine, Everyday with Rachael Ray and Entrepreneur.

And what I found out will help you get the free publicity you want to attract more prospects and establish yourself as the recognized expert.

Visit http://www.InsideScoopPublicity.com for more information

More children will be diagnosed with autism this year than with AIDS, diabetes & cancer combined. That means one child in the US is diagnosed every 20 minutes with something on the Autism spectrum.

And I know.

One year ago this month, both my girls were diagnosed with this developmental disability (DD) – the fastest growing DD in the US.  What I was assured were just ‘twin things’ – playing by themselves for long periods of time, hand flapping, little eye contact – we’re actually signs of the disability.

Luckily, with the help of many people I have only met online, I realized I needed to trust my instincts and do something.

The early diagnosis allowed to girls to get help. (I have to give a special shout out to online pal and designer Susan McCool, who’s son also is affected with Autism. She encouraged me to be the much-needed advocate for my girls to ensure they would get therapy early on – which is the only scientifically proven way to help children with an Autism spectrum disorder. She explained the ins and outs of the (I must say) not so great system to get services.)

When my girls first started getting services at 2 years old, which include speech, occupational and life skills therapies, they couldn’t talk, eat with a spoon or fork,  look me in the eye or even give me a hug.

Today, I have girls who communicate with me, play with their friends, smile constantly, not only eat properly but clean up after themselves afterwards… And best of all, every day I get tons of hugs and kisses. They are well on there way to live ‘normal’ (whatever that means), happy lives.

Although I know people are searching actively for a cure or medical detection, I’m more concerned with the kids who have Autism right now. You see, it was the services that have made a big difference to my kids – and to kids everywhere. But these therapies are severely underfunded.

And frankly, with one in 150 children having the diagnosis, we need to focus on services, just as much as finding a cure.

I’m working hard to give all I can to Autism charities that help children. But I am asking for your help.

I’m hosting a special sale for my new product, The Inside Scoop, which is (I think) the most comprehensive free publicity product out there.  (You can read more about everything you get with it at http://InsideScoopPublicity.com)

So when you buy The Inside Scoop, I’ll donate a portion of your sale to Autism charities.

If you are considering learning about how to get media coverage to attract more prospects, make more money and get more credibility and visibility, please consider The Inside Scoop.

With so many families affected by Autism, your purchase will make a real difference.

Visit http://InsideScoopPublicity.com

Everyone can write, right? After all, we learned in since we we’re starting to read. It’s one of the basics.

But here’s what gets me: just because you know the basics in writing does not mean you can write press releases or marketing copy. It’s the biggest fallacy out there.

It’s like thinking you could handle a complete rewiring of your house. If you aren’t trained properly, you will most likely fail.

By tackling the writing yourself, you may be losing out on attracting more prospects to you and closing sales.

What shocks me even more are those people who hang out a shingle and gives a list of things they can do to help you, including news releases and copywriting. There are a few who can do a good job, but the reality is, more often than not, you get what you pay for.

That’s why my good friend, and top copywriter Michele PW is having a free teleclass, to help you understand exactly what to look for in a copywriter. And if you must do-it-yourself, she’s also sharing some tips to make your writing really convert prospects.

This free call is tomorrow at 4 PM EDT (1 PM PDT). To register go to: http://www.michelepw.com/copyteleclass/

When I surveyed more than 800 journalists on how to get them to cover a story, they had a lot – and I mean A LOT -  to say.

With everything they shared, one thing was clear: you need to catch a media professional’s attention quickly (as in 5 seconds) in order to get free publicity.

Here’s what one reporter said:

“If it’s clever enough and has a connection with what I cot really makes a difference in whether or not I’ll go to the next stage to see what it is your are telling me about.

You have to realize, we’re always working on a tight schedule. And with hundreds of news releases hitting my desk, I’m only going to look at the first paragraph or two.  If you haven’t interested me in the headline of the first paragraph, you’ve lost me.”

So how can you get a reporter to notice you in the sea of press releases they have?

1. Stop writing your releases to sell something and start crafting good news stories. It’s rare to see a product or service featured in a news story, unless it’s being reviewed.
2. Keep things brief. Headlines should be no more than 8 words. Press releases – no more than 500 words.  When it doubt, edit more.
3. Piggyback it on something current. News is fresh… after all it has the world NEW right in it. So don’t send out old news.
4. Stop with the puffery. Hate to break this to you, but your company is not the best. That’s an opinion, unless everyone in the entire world thinks so. Cut to the chase, eliminate hype, and stick to the facts.

Want to know more about what journalists are thinking to get free publicity for you and your business?

LAST Chance!  Today ONLY!

I’m hosting a FREE teleseminar called “The Inside Scoop on Getting Free Publicity for Your Business” today at Wednesday, March 25 at Noon eastern, 9 AM pacific

In ‘The Inside Scoop on Getting Free Publicity for Your Business‘, sponsored exclusively by ReadyTalk, you’ll learn the results of a recent survey I conducted to more than 800 journalists across the US.

I surveyed and interviewed reporters and media professionals from small to the big national media outlets including CNN, Prevention Magazine, Everyday with Rachael Ray and Entrepreneur.

And what I found out will help you get the free publicity you want to attract more prospects and establish yourself as the recognized expert.

To register for the March 25 at NOON EDT webinar, go to
https://cc.readytalk.com/cc/schedule/display.do?udc=16brnce172g7k