The Publicity Hound’s Blog  

Shotgun Sports magazine is looking for articles on trap, skeet, hunting, sports clays and 5-stand.

Hunting articles can include the following topics: upland birds, large game, small game, waterfowl and turkeys. Readers consider these to be the toughest targets: deer, grouse, waterfowl, quail, turkeys, chukar, pheasants and elk (not often taken with a shotgun, but it can be done), so they’d like help with those.

“When you are writing about clay targets, these are the ones they say they most need help with: rabbits, dropping targets, long, flat crossers, chandelles, battues, long, fast crossers, hard rights, straightaways in the wind, teal, trap doubles, and very slight angles that look like a straightaway and, of course, the mental side of the game,” editor Linda Martin says. ” The non-competitive shooters just want to know how to have more fun and beat their own personal best.”

She said readers want more reloading advice, gun-cleaning and maintenance tips, and advice that will help non-competitive and new or struggling shooters improve. They’d also like tips on how to overcome those one or two targets that seem to be keeping them from moving ahead.

Email your stories to her for the 2010-2011 Shotgun Sports schedule

Posted In: Magazine Publicity, Writing Articles
posted On: 1/27/2010: 8:56 am: By Joan
Comments: No Comments

Jill Starishevsky of New York, NY writes:

“I am a prosecutor of child abuse and sex crimes in New York City.  I wrote a children’s book called My Body Belongs to Me to teach children that if someone touches them inappropriately, they should tell a parent or teacher right away. 

“In a non-threatening, engaging manner, this guide establishes boundaries and teaches kids that when it comes to their body, there are some parts that are for ‘no one else to see’ and empowers them to tell a parent or teacher if someone touches them inappropriately. 

“Most importantly, this narrative assures young ones that sexual molestation is not their fault, and by speaking out, the child will continue to grow big and strong.  A ‘Suggestions for the Storyteller’ section is also included to help lead a comfortable discussion afterward.

“How can I promote this book in traditional and social media?”

(Read more about how to submit your own question to this blog.)

Posted In: Authors & Publishers, Magazine Publicity, Newspaper Publicity, Radio Publicity, Social media marketing, TV Publicity
posted On: 1/26/2010: 1:04 pm: By Joan
Comments: 25 Comments

Struggling to find a good story idea to pitch to the business reporter at your daily newspaper?

Wondering how to use your Facebook Fan page to promote your product or service?

Trying to catch the attention of the editors at Oprah’s magazine?

Help is on the way. Actually, it’s called “Help This Hound,” and it’s one of the most popular features in my weekly ezine, The Publicity Hound’s Tips of the Week, delivered every Tuesday.

      
Here’s how it works

Anyone who needs help with publicity or marketing can email a question to me, along with their name and town. If I use your question, I’ll post it here at my blog, and then print the question in my ezine.

Readers who are willing to help can offer their best ideas as blog comments.  I choose the best ideas and print them in the following week’s newsletter. Authors, small business owners, PR people, publicists and nonprofits submit the most questions.

  
Here’s why “Help This Hound” is so popular

• Most of us are too close to our own businesses to be able to see clever angles or unusual hooks that can catch a journalist’s attention.
    
• Many Publicity Hounds are on razor-thin or non-existent publicity and marketing budgets. They appreciate the free ideas.
     
• The blog posts live forever. That means that as the search engines pull in traffic, ideas will be accumulating here over several months or years. If I use your question, check back every few weeks to see who else has commented.
     
• Even though I created this service to help you solve a problem, your question exposes you to my audience. Several people who have submitted questions over the years have gotten calls from journalists and bloggers who read about them in my newsletter. Others have even received additional business.

No anonymous questions, please. Be sure to offer enough information in your question so that my readers fully understand the problem. Explain what you’ve done that has or hasn’t worked. And include a link to your website. If appropriate, attach a photo of your product.

Right now, I’m short on questions, and I could really use yours. But don’t just email it to me. Help other Hounds by contibuting your best ideas when you see a question in my newsletter that you can answer.

  
How to subscribe

If you don’t subscribe to my newsletter, you can do so by typing your name and email address into the box on the right side of this screen, under my photo. Then check your email box (or spam folder) and click on the confirmation link.  

By the way, have you downloaded the five free publicity ebooks that include the best publicity tips from my ezine in 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008 and 2009? They’re chock full of ideas, and there’s something there for everyone. 

As you’ll notice in the ebooks, many of the best publicity tips, success stories, and dog jokes and videos come directly from my readers, with attribution. 

I’d love to see yours.  Bring ‘em on!

Posted In: Authors & Publishers, Business Promotion, Facebook, Nonprofits, PR Consultants/Publicists, Pitching the Media, Publicity Resources
posted On: : 10:16 am: By Joan
Comments: 6 Comments

If your organization publishes a membership directory, allow members to include URLs for social media sites like Facebook Fan pages, Twitter profiles, YouTube channels and LinkedIn profiles, not just URLs for their websites.

That would be a nice value-added feature for chambers of commerce, convention and visitors bureaus, health care associations, school groups, etc. and it would distinguish your group’s benefits from those of your competitors.

I just received a copy of the 2010 Business Directory for the Metropolitan Milwaukee Association of Commerce. While glancing through the members’ section, I noticed that all the companies, even mine, have only the URLs for their websites.

Can’t afford to let every member include social media URLs because of high printing costs? Then charge a small additional fee. 

Does your organization include these URLs in its membership directories? If not, why not? What other information do you include that members find valuable?

Posted In: Advertising, Business Promotion, Facebook, LinkedIn, Nonprofits, Social media marketing, Twitter, YouTube
posted On: 1/23/2010: 9:36 am: By Joan
Comments: No Comments

Artists frequently make the mistake of failing to capture email addresses at their websites because they can’t think of anything to offer in return.

That’s why I was gratified that on today’s preview call for the smARTist Telesummit 2010, the annual virtual extravaganza on how artists can market their work, artist Melanie Banayat asked:

“What’s the best way to use your website to build a mailing list? Internet marketers use lead capture pages to build theirs and offer something of value in exchange for someone’s email address. What can an artist offer?”

Host Ariane Goodwin directed the question to me. Here’s my list of nine freebies:

1. A video. Demonstrate how to do something. An oil painter can show how to blend colors. A needlepoint artist can show how to do a complicated stitch. A woodworker can show the best way to polish a piece of furniture. 
      
2. Special previews. Offer “sneak peek” previews of your artwork and other projects only to those on your email list.
     
3. A coupon. Offer a coupon good for X dollars off a purchase. The bricks-and-mortar stores do this all the time. A good shopping cart will let you create a coupon. Here’s a free ebook on how to buy a shopping cart. (I’m an affiliate.)
     
4. An article. Think of the Number One question people ask about your artwork. Write an article on that topic.
    
5. A buyer’s kit. Let’s say you sell beautiful handmade jewelry. What’s the best way to store it so it doesn’t get damaged?
    
6. A flow chart.  Show the steps you follow to create something.
     
7. Quotations and jokes. If you paint horses, how about offering the top 20 quotes about horses? Or the 10 best horse jokes? You can find them free all over the Internet.
     
8. A trouble-shooting guide. If you sell beautiful clothing made of rich fibers, explain how to remove stains from the material. What can the buyer do if the material snags? What are some tricks on how to cover up a spot that can’t be removed?    
       
9. A cleaning guide. How do you clean various types of artwork or things like delicate figurines, origami,  or beaded jewelry?

I offer a free cheat sheet on “89 Reasons to Send a Press Release” which you’ll get when you type your email address in the box on the right side of this screen. I listed many more ideas in my special report that lists 55 free things you can offer to generate publicity or capture people’s email addresses.

Once you start building a list, keep in touch with your readers by reguarly sending free tips and updates about your businesses. And don’t forget to let the media know about the freebie you’re offering. That’s one of many ways that artists can generate publicity.

If you’re an artist, or you’re in any other type of business, what kinds of freebies do you offer in exchange for email addresses? Let’s hear about yours.

Posted In: Publicity for Niche Markets, Writing Articles
posted On: 1/22/2010: 4:44 pm: By Joan
Comments: 4 Comments