2006 March

Publicity for musicians, songwriters and bands on a budget

3/24/2006 By Joan Leave a Comment

Musician Bob Baker says that unless you have friends in high places, your independent CD release barely stands a chance of getting radio airplay on commercial stations.

You’ll even find that it’s difficult to convince college and community stations to give your CD a substantial number of plays on the airwaves.

Bob says that one way to sneak into a station’s rotation is to write a novelty song that relates to a current topic in the news or an upcoming holiday. For instance, Christmas songs almost always get some airplay during the Yuletide season. But that’s far too obvious.

Try creating songs that pay tribute to more musically obscure holidays such as Thanksgiving or Groundhog Day. And what about Easter, President’s Day, Valentine’s Day or Columbus Day?

But don’t stop there.

Create songs about a local political scandal, winning or losing sports teams, elections or famous local people in the news. Consider a theme song or jingle for one of the popular morning radio shows.

“Believe it or not, novelty songs have a much better chance of getting commercial airplay, which will get your name out there, possibly paving the way for your more serious songs later,” Bob says. “Just make sure the novelty or theme song you write and pitch to the station is in line with your overall musical style and identity.”

Bob, who also worked as a music magazine editor, will be my guest during the teleseminar “Do-it-Yourself PR Tips for Songwriters, Musicians & Bands on a Budget” from 8 to 9:10 PM Eastern Time on Wednesday, March 29. He’ll spill the beans on lots of creative, low-cost ways musicians can get valuable publicity for their bands and their CDs—online and offline.

Filed Under: Business Promotion, Publicity for Niche Markets

Publicity for fiction titles requires creative thinking

3/22/2006 By Joan Leave a Comment

Authors who write fiction think they face an uphill battle trying to get publicity for their books.

That’s because most fiction authors see themselves as storytellers, not experts. Yet many of them do far more research before writing their books than authors of non-fiction.

Here are five ways authors can get publicity for their fiction titles:

—Piggyback onto an upcoming major or minor holiday, or a day, week or month of the year. Did you write a romance novel? If so, supply tips on how to be romantic to tie into Valentine’s Day, or Sweetest Day in October.

—Offer helpful how-to advice that ties into your topic. Bill and Susan Albert have a series of mystery books featuring China Bayles, the main character, who has an herb shop, and they’ve promoted themselves as experts on the topic of herbal lore. Their email newsletter includes information and recipes with herbs, in addition to news about their latest books.

—Sponsor a contest that ties into the topic of your book. The bigger the prize, the better the publicity.

—Create your own day, week or month of the year that’s associated with the topic, and submit it to Chase’s Calendar of Events. Then tie news releases and other promotions to the special day.

—In her book “Jump Start Your Book Sales,” Marilyn Ross suggests that authors can ask their local newspapers to sponsor a “complete the short story” contest. You write the beginning and readers submit their own endings. “This has been done very successfully on the Web by celebrity authors,” Marilyn writes.

Read about more ways that fiction authors can promote their books in an article written by publicist Marcia Friedman for the March/April issue of The Publicity Hound subscription newsletter.

Filed Under: Authors & Publishers

How to promote a book for parents on how to use everyday objects that can double as toys

3/21/2006 By Joan 13 Comments

Publicity Hound Tim Martin of Corona, California writes:

“I am working with Rex Bowlby, the author of the book “Why Would I Want the Toy, When I Can Have the Box?…101 Ways to Make the Most of Your Children, With the Least from Your Wallet.”

“It provides a treasure chest full of ideas on teaching and bonding with your kids using everyday items that will stimulate their imaginations, such as empty cardboad boxes, which can double as a fort, a robot, a train, a storage container, a house, a basketball hoop, a tunnel, and a pet house.

“But the book hasn’t gotten the exposure it needs. Are there any Hounds with unique ideas on how to spread the word about this book? Maybe even a way to move a truckload of copies at a time through a huge church or family organization, perhaps as a fund-raiser?

“This author isn’t in it for the money. He’s in it to make a difference.”

Filed Under: Authors & Publishers

PR agency websites rank among the lowest

3/17/2006 By Joan Leave a Comment

Many PR firms’ websites stink. In fact, they rank among the lowest.

The Web Marketing Association, sponsor of the annual international WebAward competition, says its decade-long study of web development trends across more than 80 industries shows that PR agency sites ranked low across all categories. PR firms scored the lowest for—get this, copywriting.

William Rice, president of the web marketing association, says PR firms probably focus more on developing their clients’ sites, while their own sites suffer from typical “brochure-ware.”

Another possibility, he said, is that the low scores “reflect the informal nature of the Internet and the backlash over over-edited, corporate speak.”

A far better explanation is that PR firms with lousy sites are just downright lazy—and horrible at the one thing they’re supposed to do best: PR.

My biggest gripes about PR websites:

—Flash, including annoying audio that blasts from the speakers without warning

—Big, clunky graphics on the homepage that slow down loading time

—No contact information on the homepage

—Use of generic clip art, when the PR firms could be featuring their own stars

—Convoluted copy rife with “industry-speak”

—The absence of a blog. (Big surprise. Many PR agencies are still clueless about blogging.)

—Self-congratulatory copy that’s “all about us” instead of focusing on the needs of the client

I’d like to hear your own gripes.

Filed Under: PR Consultants/Publicists, Publicity on the Internet

Liberal media on the rise—Here’s how to pitch

3/16/2006 By Joan Leave a Comment

The March 13 issue of PR Week reports that liberal media seem to have a heightened profile, mostly because of the opposition to the war in Iraq.

Progressive magazines, blogs, radio and TV programs are reporting bigger audiences. That means it’s a great time for Publicity Hounds to pitch.

PR Week offers these tips:

“Many progressive outlets don’t have large staffs and rely primarily on freelancers, so look to pitch writers rather than just the outlets.
“Liberal outlets often want a lot of perspective and analysis, so position clients as experts and be sure to highlight issues surrounding online hard news stories.
“Don’t be too ideological: with an articulate—and thick-skinned client—even outlets with conservative hosts, like Fox News, can be a place to argue for a liberal cause or promote a progressive book.

Progressive media include The Nation, blogs such as DailyKos.com and AlterNet, Democray Now (the flagship of Pacifica Radio), and TV shows like The Colbert Report and The Daily Show with Jon Stewart.