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Write a letter to the editor to promote your expertise

When you can’t think of a story idea to pitch, and you’re dying to get into a certain online or print publication, write a letter to the editor.

That’s what I did just now after reading the August issue of Independent, the excellent newsletter (it’s more like a magazine) published by the Independent Book Publishers Association. An article titled “How to Handle Complaints” by Janelle Barlow and Claus Moller missed what I thought was the most obvious way to make a complaining customer feel better.

Here’s the letter:

“How to Handle Complaints” in the August 2008 issue missed the Number One most obvious way to handle complaints and keep customers for life: pick up the telephone and call them.

That’s what I usually do when I receive an email from a particularly angry customer, or a sort-of-angry customer. The response is almost always the same: “I can’t believe you’re calling me” or “I’m really impressed because nobody calls anymore” or “I didn’t expect a call…I just wanted to vent. What an honor it is to hear from you!”

Calling them gives me a chance to apologize profusely and let them know how sorry I am, to offer something for free like a $10 special report of their choosing, and to tell them about other free information at my Web site that they might not know about. In a few cases, I’ve even been able to sell the person more products than the one they originally had trouble downloading, or didn’t like.

I always call if someone demands a refund, and I’m able to save the sale in four out of five cases.

I also take issue with the authors’ recommendation to get back to the person who is complaining within two weeks, either by letter or email. Two weeks? That’s an eternity! By then, the angry customer has already told eight friends about the bad experience, let resentment brew for two weeks, and found another vendor.

Joan Stewart
The Publicity Hound
http://www.PublicityHound.com
http://www.PublicityHound.net (Blog)

Letters to the editor are effective publicity tools because they:

—Promote your expertise. Notice how I mentioned that I create information products. In my “Special Report #4: How to Write Crisp, Compelling Letters to the Editor that Promote Your Product, Service or Favorite Cause,” I encourage writers to weave into the letter facts about their business. One great way to start a letter is to refer to yourself as an expert. Example: “As a publicity expert who teaches people how to promote online and offline…”

—Get you in front of a targeted audience. Authors and publishers are in my target market.

—Promote your business philosophy. I’m fanatic about customer sevice. This letter proves it.

—Promote your websites. Many editors won’t let you include your URLs at the end of the letter. But this newsletter does, perhaps because it’s a trade publication written for its members.

So what do you think? Are letters to the editor effective, or a big waste of time?

Posted In: Business Promotion, Magazine Publicity, Newspaper Publicity, Publicity for Niche Markets, Publicity on the Internet
posted On: 8/20/2008: 7:12 am: By Joan
Comments: 3 Comments

Newspaper food sections shrinking, so pitch wisely

If you’re pitching food editors and reporters at daily or weekly newspapers, your job is more difficult than ever.

As newspapers continue to cut staff, lifestyle-related sections are among the first on the chopping block.

Also, at many papers, sections such as food, travel and entertainment are no longer stand-alone sections. They’re combined under one section simply called “Lifestyle.”

The Aug. 4 issue of PRWeek offers these pitching tips:

—If you’re pitching a specific type of food product, be sure it’s available in that newspaper’s market.

–Pitch seasonal angles, and cooking meals that are convenient.

–Make sure your pitch has a local angle. One way to do that is to get local farmers involved in fresh- and health-eating stories. For example, organic produce is available in many supermarkets, and much of it is grown locally. But organic fruits and vegetables often look bruised and unattractive. Try contacting local organic farmers who can offer tips on how to buy organic produce. How do you know if an organic apple is bruised, or if it’s supposed to look ugly?

During the teleseminar I conducted with Jamie Oikle from RestaurantReport.com on “Publicity Tips for Restaurants, Chefs & Foodies,” I suggested pitching trends—whether you’re a restaurant that’s seeing more requests for vegetarian dishes or a store that’s slowly eliminating low-carb food items because the low-carb trend is dying.

Here’s my own tip: Check to see if the food editor or one of the food reporters or columnists blogs. If they do, read the blog. You’ll quickly learn about what food topics they think are important. Post a comment to their blog, then pitch them a week or two later. See my article “Let Bloggers Create Publicity for You.”

Posted In: Blogs, Newspaper Publicity, Pitching the Media, Publicity for Niche Markets
posted On: 8/7/2008: 9:43 am: By Joan
Comments: No Comments

How to make news when there’s no news

Here’s a quick trick for creating news when there’s absolutely nothing new to pitch.

Be willing to talk about your business problems and how you solved them.

Pick up any business journal and you’ll see company after company mentioned, usually because they’ve figured out ways to solve a problem, whether it’s delivering the product faster to customers, or finding and keeping great employees, or how to enter a new market that’s already crowded with competitors.

But these stories don’t only play well in business journals. They’re great for general interest magazines, daily and weekly newspapers, and television, particularly if you have enticing visuals.

This tip is one of more than a dozen I’ll be sharing tomorrow during Bulldog Reporter’s teleseminar on “Evergreen Magic for PR: Media Masters Show How to Make News When There’s No News.”

We’ll talk, for example, about editorial hot buttons: pegging your story to rumors, future trends, features, divisive issues, dramatic hooks and other sure-fire ways to supercharge your hit ratio, even when you’re not breaking news.

Four other panelists will join me, and moderator Brian Pittman will make sure we move things along quickly so we can squeeze in everybody’s tips. Don’t miss this one! It promises to be fast-paced, and you’ll come away with enough ideas to keep yo upromoting through the end of this year and beyond.

Posted In: Business Promotion, Magazine Publicity, Newspaper Publicity, PR Consultants/Publicists, Pitching the Media, Publicity Resources, Publicity on the Internet, TV Publicity
posted On: 7/23/2008: 3:48 pm: By Joan
Comments: No Comments

Journalists suspicious of ‘green’ story ideas

When Bulldog Reporter invited me to be a guest panelist on the July 24 teleseminar designed to help Publicity Hounds create news when there is no news, I jumped at the chance.

I wrote three pages of notes for the session titled “Evergreen Magic for PR: Media Masters Show How to Make News When There’s No News” and reviewed them on Monday with the three other guest experts who will be on the panel with me. During the call, I learned something fascinating.

Always-cynical journalists are becoming increasingly suspicious of story ideas tied to the green movement. That could be because PR people are bombarding the media with them.

“Everybody wants to be the next Al Gore,” said one panelist, a corporate PR person who says she’s been meeting increasing resistance from journalists when pitching green stories.

If you’re pitching them, too, you’d better know what you’re talking about, have facts to back up your claim, and make the angle unusual enough.

We’ll discuss this topic in more depth next week. We’ll also explain how to get into the news, front and center, when there’s absolutely nothing happening at your business that’s remotely exciting.

Posted In: Magazine Publicity, Newspaper Publicity, PR Consultants/Publicists, Pitching the Media, Radio Publicity, TV Publicity
posted On: 7/16/2008: 11:02 pm: By Joan
Comments: 2 Comments

How to get journalists to mention your website

A common frustration with media interviews results when the reporter, for whatever reason, never mentions your website.

Here’s a way to solve that problem.

The next time somebody interviews you, and the reporter asks for the name of your company, use your website URL, not the actual company name.

Instead of me being the owner of “The Publicity Hound,” my company is simply PublicityHound.com.

That little trick won’t work every time, but it should work with telephone interviews, and especially when the reporter is rushed.

OK, but what happens if you can’t even persuade reporters to call? You pitch a story and it goes nowhere. Then what?

Have you followed up your pitch at least seven times?

If you haven’t, no wonder they’re not calling you. Jill Lublin, author of “Guerilla Publicity,” says you shouldn’t believe journalists who say they hate follow-ups. They hate lousy follow-ups. When I interviewed her during a teleseminar on “Failproof Ways to Follow Up with Reporters,” Jill said reporters often appreciate it when sources call a few days after they’ve pitched a story idea to offer something special like a graphic, or a photo, or an interview with a somebody who lives in the newspaper’s circultion area.

I agree. I worked in a newsroom for 22 years as a reporter and editor and was grateful for sources who saved my hide.