The Publicity Hound’s Blog  

For years, Debra Holtzman kept wishing and hoping that she’d generate publicity in top-tier newspapers and magazines and on the big morning TV shows like “Good Morning, America” because of her expertise in child safety.

But the wishing and hoping got her a media hit here and there. Then Debra found the key that not only unlocked the door to publicity, but had the media practically tripping over themselves to interview her. Even the bloggers loved her.

Her secret? She ties her expertise to the celebrities–sometimes several times a month.

It all depends on how much material the stars feed her. And feed her they do.

Here’s what she’s done in just the last five months:

—On May 17, when the celebrity magazines printed a photograph showing Britney Spears driving her convertible, with 8-month-old son Sean Preston in the back, sitting in a car seat facing forward and slumped over to one side, Debra wrote a press release titled “Britney Spears Needs Baby Safety Training!” She posted it at Expertclick.com, the subscription-based website that serves as a database of experts for the media and lets subscribers post up to 52 press releases a year. The story was picked up by celebrity
gossip bloggers and top-tier media outlets.

—That same month, when Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt welcomed their baby girl, Shiloh Nouvel Jolie-Pitt, Debra swung into action and issued a press release with the headline “Angelina and Brad’s Perfect Baby Room for Shiloh.” It described some of the dangers of a baby’s nursery and included a checklist of 11 tips on how to keep the baby safe.

—Also that month, the paparazzi got a photo of Pitt during a bike ride in Namibia with his 4-year-old son and 16-month-old daughter. His son wore a helmet and rode his tricycle. The baby rode in a blue papoose strapped to Pitt’s back. Debra wrote another press release about the dangers of riding with babies on a bike and was quoted in Us magazine, among others.

—On August 1, just after Mel Gibson’s drunken-driving arrest, Debra issued another release titled “Top 10 Tips to Drive Like a Star, but not Mel Gibson.”

—A few weeks later, while law enforcement officials were
investigating John Mark Karr, the suspect who claimed he murdered JonBenet Ramsey in 1996, Debra wrote another release headlined “A Focus in the JonBenet Ramsey Case No One is Talking About.” It included a list of 21 things parents can do to keep their children safe from child abduction, molestation and other dangers.

—Last week, just after Crocodile Hunter Steve Irwin was killed by a stingray while diving, Debra posted another press release on Expertclick.com, this one titled “Teach Children How to be Safe Around Pets and Wild Animals.” She didn’t name Irwin or mention his death in the release. But journalists and anyone else who searched online for information on that news story probably would have found her press release in the list of organic search results.

All those releases and all that publicity helps her sell more of
her books, The Panic-Proof Parent (McGraw-Hill, 2000) and The Safe Baby (Sentient Publications, 2005) which she mentions in every release.

She has been interviewed by papers like USA Today and the New York Times and has a list of media hits a mile long at her
website.

Half the work is just keeping your ears open for opportunities. As I wrote in “Special Report #50: How to Piggyback off Celebrity News to Promote Your Product, Service, Cause or Issue,” you can keep your eyes on TV shows like “Inside Edition” and “Access Hollywood” and on the celebrity magazines to give you all the fodder you need.  

Posted In: Authors & Publishers, Business Promotion, Magazine Publicity, Press Releases/News Releases
posted On: 9/19/2006: 10:52 am: By Joan
Comments: No Comments

The New York Times is adding a new best-seller list for political books.

But the line-up is only being posted on the website’s book section, along with the paper’s other best-seller lists. 

Why only online? I’m guessing because of space considerations in the newspaper. During the last several years, many newspapers have drastically reduced the amount of space they devote to book reviews. 

Posted In: Authors & Publishers, Publicity on the Internet
posted On: : 9:54 am: By Joan
Comments: No Comments

Cindi Leerman of WALK! Magazine writes:

I am the editor/publisher/owner of WALK! Magazine, a new quarterly publication.

I’m planning a gift giving guide for the Winter issue. However, I have no idea how to get submissions or who to contact. Athletic stores? Walking clubs? Readers? Manufacturers?

Any suggestions you can offer would be appreciated!

Cindi Leeman
WALK! Magazine
614/306-5094

From The Publicity Hound:

You came to the right place, Cindi! Do three things:

Write your “query” and pattern it after the ones you’ve seen in the Media Leads section of my ezine. Refer to the archives. Be very specific in what you’re looking for and state what your requirements are in terms of photos and how you want them delivered. Include how you want to be contacted: snail-mail, phone or email.

—Send the query to me and I’ll put it in the Media Leads section of my ezine.

—Also email your query to Amy Bates-Stumpf. She sells an excellent subscription service to PR people called “The Gift List” and it provides leads, like yours, to PR people on which newspapers, magazines, etc. are are looking for certain types of copy and photos for gift lists like yours.

—Finally, go to ProfNet, the subscription service that matches journalists with sources. Register as a journalist, then submit the query to them.  

Between the three of us, you’ll  be flooded with copy and photos for your gift guide.
 

Posted In: Business Promotion, Magazine Publicity, Media Kits, Photos & Graphics, Publicity for Niche Markets
posted On: 9/14/2006: 6:05 am: By Joan
Comments: No Comments

In my newspaper days, incorrect or poorly written captions caused more problems, and required more corrections, than any other part of the newspaper.

If you can learn how to write great captions for photos you submit to the media, you will increase the chances of an accurate caption that doesn’t require a correction the following day.

A few quick pointers excerpted from my ebook “How to Use Photos & Graphics in Your Publicity Campaign.”

—Write in the present tense. Example: “Second-grader Timmy Smith swings at the T-ball while his classmate, Brady Turner, waits his turn.”

—Identify people in the photo from left to right.

—Make sure all names are spelled correctly.

—Don’t use “looks on” or “smiles” or other phony verbs that say the person is doing one thing when all they’re really doing is posing.

—Don’t use the verb “poses” or “is posing.”

Studying photo captions in newspapers and magazines will help you write better captions for your own photos.
 

Posted In: General
posted On: 9/12/2006: 7:05 am: By Joan
Comments: No Comments

Dr. Barry Lycka, a cosmetic dermatologist from Alberta, British Columbia writes:

“I recently wrote the book ”Restoring Youth: How To Keep and Restore Your Natural Beauty.” It’s about how our skin is at the mercy of the sun, harsh weather, our own bad habits and our age.

“It discusses the myriad of procedures and treatments such as peels, liposuction, facelifts and many other procedures, and which are the best ones for you. I advise people to see a costmetic surgeon only after they’ve read this book.

“Can you give some ideas for promoting it?”

Posted In: Authors & Publishers, Business Promotion
posted On: : 6:55 am: By Joan
Comments: 8 Comments