2006 January | The Publicity Hound's Blog

January 2006

Monthly Archive

How to promote a helicopter charter service

Lauren Tarne of Dallas, Texas writes:

“I have a client who is a high-end helicopter charter service in New York City—obviously a very crowded local market. I am struggling to think of opportunities for them because they don’t like doing free promo flights because of the high costs associated and they don’t have any clients that are willing to speak about the experience because they are the kind of people who like to keep a low profile.

“They have a very specific target niche–people who make $200,000+, and I am trying to think of the best ways to publicize the service without the above elements. Do your Hounds have any ideas?”

Posted In: Business Promotion
posted On: 1/31/2006: 9:37 pm: By Joan
Comments: 18 Comments

Crain’s Chicago editor offers tips on how to get into his paper

I swear I’m not making this up.

PR people actually call newspapers and ask journalists, “Can you help me get a client into your paper?”

As in, “My butt’s in a sling, and I need a media hit—fast!”

As in, “I can’t convince anybody else to write about this guy. Do you mind if we waste your time?”

As in, “I don’t care what you write. Just write SOMETHING!”

Brandon Copple, managing editor of Crain’s Chicago Business, says that’s exactly what some PR people do.

“We won’t do your job for you if you just give us a piece of news,” he said. “You need to give us more than a client to interview. Tell me something we don’t already know to pique our interest.”

Copple and other journalists were guest speakers at a recent luncheon at The Publicity Club of Chicago. You can read about it the Media Insider blog.

His most valuable tip?

“The important thing is getting on our radar,” he said.

And how do you do that? One of the best ways is to read their articles, then comment on them. If you thought the article was slanted, say so. Did they miss an obvious source? Let them know. Do you have a different angle to offer? Suggest it.

In ”Special Report #49: 17 Ways to Build Valuable Relationships with Media People,” I mention that a panel of four business journalists at the Media Relations 2005 conference in San Francisco last year all mentioned that the very best way to get their attention is to comment on something they have written or covered.

Why? Because so few Publicity Hounds bother to do that. The Number 1 thing they love to talk about is themselves. The Number 2 thing they love to talk about is their work.

Posted In: Newspaper Publicity
posted On: : 12:58 pm: By Joan
Comments: No Comments

What you can do to fight bias in the media

I just finished reading the book “Bias—A CBS Insider Exposes How the Media Distort the News,” written by former CBS correspondent Bernard Goldberg and published about five years ago. It hit No. 1 on the New York Times best-seller list.

So do I think the media slant the news? I thought they did long before Goldberg’s book. I’m a conservative who has worked in newspaper newsrooms for 22 years and much of what I saw and heard about media bias falls in line with what Goldberg has written—only it wasn’t as blatant.

People who refuse to recognize media bias probably won’t bother reading this book. As for the rest of you, here are eight ways to fight back. This list, by the way, is as effective for Democrats, liberals and others who think the media slant the news to the right.

Complain to the media brass at offending TV stations, magazines and newspapers and go as high up the ladder as you can. Sinking ratings for programs like the evening news shows petrify the networks. And newspaper publishers are watching their circulation and paid advertising plummet so low that many of the big papers are laying off newsroom employees—again. I blogged about how to complain here.
If you’re tuning out, let them know. If you’re canceling your subscription or pulling your advertising from places like your daily newspaper, say so. Media success is all about ratings, circulation and advertising.
If you want a newspaper to continue covering you and you’re upset with the way you’ve been treated, you can write a letter to the editor or an op-ed column. But even better, you can ask for a meeting with the newspaper’s editorial board. (See “How to Use Newspaper & Magazine Editorial Pages“.)
Complain to the companies that advertise with the offending media outlet(s). This is even more effective than complaining to the media brass.
Don’t forget to pitch the bloggers. Religion stories, for example, are particularly difficult to pitch to any section of a newspaper other than the religion page. One reason is because many journalists who work for mainstream media say in newswroom surveys that they don’t attend church services, so they often don’t see religious issues as very important. But many bloggers welcome religious topics. Bloggers also like linking to each other’s blogs, unlike traditional media which quote each other only when they have to. Don’t forget about the Religion News Service.
If the media have treated you unfairly, let the bloggers know.
If you’re lucky enough to have a tape-recording or a written transcript of an interview you did with the media, you can fight back by posting it on your website, like Overstock.com President Patrick Byrne did following an interview with BusinessWeek e-commerce editor Timothy Mullaney—before the story was published on BusinessWeek’s magazine or on its website. You can read more about it here.
If you’re a conservative who can’t get your story into the mainstream media, you’ll find dozens of conservative talk radio shows and TV shows. If you’re a liberal who wants to complain about right-leaning media, you’ll find only a handful of liberal talk radio shows.

If you have other ways to fight back, let’s hear ‘em.

Posted In: Magazine Publicity, Newspaper Publicity, Pitching the Media, Publicity on the Internet, Radio Publicity, TV Publicity
posted On: 1/30/2006: 11:13 pm: By Joan
Comments: 3 Comments

How to create an Experts Directory to promote your experts

If you have numerous experts within your company, nonprofit, government agency, trade association or other group, are you making it easy for the media to find them within seconds?

For most of you, I’ll bet the answer is no.

Take a cue from colleges and universities, which publish annual “experts directories.”

The directory is an inexpensive, spiral bound book with a heavy-stock cover that includes contact information for all their experts, arranged by category, from archaeology to zoology.

When I worked as a reporter, I often kept these experts directories on my desk and referred to them on deadline when I was tracking down experts on a particular topic. Here are some tips for creating your own directory:

—Include all contact information, including cell phone numbers, beeper numbers and, if possible, home telephone numbers.

—Include email addresses

—Update the directory at least once every two years.

—Mail the directory to all your media contacts, and also post it at your website in your “media room.”

—Keep it simple. If you’re on a tight budget, forget the spiral binding and just staple the pages.

—Make sure every expert agrees to interview with the media. Experts who don’t know anything about interviewing or would make boring interviews should be media-trained.
After you send the directories, follow up with your media contacts. But don’t ask the tired question, “I’m just following up to see if you got our experts directory?” Instead, tell them you’re calling to pitch one or two story ideas and suggest names of contacts within the directory who reporters could interview. Following up with reporters requires brevity, patience, persistence and good timing. If your follow-ups are going nowhere and journalists seem to have just disappeared, you need to hear Jill Lublin’s secrets on how to get through to them. She was my guest during a teleseminar a few years ago called ”Failproof Ways to Follow Up with Reporters After Sending a Press Release or Story Pitch.” Jill says you must follow seven times before giving up.

Posted In: Business Promotion, Pitching the Media, Publicity on the Internet
posted On: 1/29/2006: 12:55 am: By Joan
Comments: No Comments

Press releases about new books should explain where readers can buy them

One of the biggest mistakes authors make is sending a press release about their new book to the media, but failing to mention where people can buy the book.

I know this because I feature books in my subscription newsletter, The Publicity Hound. At least 7 out of 10 releases, even those sent by major publishing houses, leave out this critical information. Authors are frequently content to let their customers buy their book from Amazon.

Even stranger, self-published authors who sell their books from their own websites omit this information. So I have to call the author, leave a voicemail message and wait for a return phone call before I can use the item. Most other media people wouldn’t be so patient.

When I complained about this to an offending author, she said, “I didn’t include it in the press release because everybody knows you can walk into almost any bookstore and order any title,” she said.

“Everybody knew that but me,” I said.

I welcome your books that deal with any aspect of publicity or self-promotion. Send them to Joan Stewart, The Publicity Hound, 3434 County KK, Port Washington, WI 53074. And don’t forget to let me know where readers can buy your book.