An app called ThreeRing that creates and shares a digital portfolio of students’ work quickly and easily.

A new social networking site called MatchPuppy that matches up New York City dogs with furry companions according to size, age and energy level. 

A website called Parking Panda that allows you to locate and rent parking spaces, and rent out your own stretch of car-friendly turf.

All three promising startups caught the attention of editors at Mashable.com and are featured in the Spark of Genius series. Your company can be, too, if  it meets the following criteria:

• Must be less than 3 years old.
   
• Must never have received coverage on Mashable.com before.
   
• Must have something like an active site or product to showcase to readers.
   
• Generates less than $1 million in annual revenue.

A story about your company could be a huge publicity coup. That’s because Mashable is the largest independent news source dedicated to covering digital culture, social media and technology. Its 20 million monthly unique visitors and 4 million social media followers have become one of the most engaged online news communities. 

Mashable also syndicates its content to top publications including ABC News, CNN, Metro and Yahoo! News, amplifying its reach to many millions of additional readers each month.

If you want to be featured in the Spark of Genius series, complete the application. If you’re featured in the series, check back here and let us know the results.

Career counselors, resume writers, HR directors, labor lawyers and job-seekers:

If you want publicity, jump head-first into the debate over whether companies should be asking job applicants to turn over passwords to their accounts on Facebook and other social media sites.

Even better, explain how you’re advising job applicants. Should they do as they’re told, so they stay in the running for a coveted job? Or shouldn’t they, and risk making the final cut?

Blogs, news articles and Facebook are all buzzing about this story, and the mainstream media is embracing it. Check out these stories from CBS MoneyWatch, The Los Angeles Times and The Washington Post.

Violates Facebook’s Terms of Service

The Post article mentions that giving out Facebook login information violates the social network’s terms of service, so that might me a a good excuse for job applicants to use if they refuse to turn over the information. Legal experts said the legality of asking for passwords is uncertain.

The article also said that the Department of Justice regards it as a federal crime to enter a social networking site in violation of the terms of service, but during recent congressional testimony, the agency said such violations would not be prosecuted.

I’m not an attorney or a career counselor. So what you tell the media is up to you. But this is the perfect opportunity to be “the local angle” to a national story. Even if the issue is creating angst and uncertainty for you, and you’re willing to go on record saying that, publicity could be yours for the asking.

You also might consider telling job applicants that, before they apply for a job, how to find out if companies ask for passwords during job interviews.
     
     
     
Media Outlets Worth Pitching 

Here are media outets to consider pitching:

• Your local newspapers. You’re the “local angle” to a national story. Call the city desk and offer to be a a source. You can also write a letter to the editor.
     
• Local TV stations.
     
• Drive-time radio shows. This is a GREAT topic for radio because it’s so controversial.
   
• Blogs. You might even consider pitching a guest blog post, assuming you have enough to say about the topic.
   
• Trade magazines
   

If you’re a career counselor or a labor lawyer, are you offering yourself to the media? How else have you piggybacked onto this national story?

Are you unemployed and willing to turn over your passwords? If so, this can be fabulous publicity for you, too, and a chance to get in front of potential employers. Are you willing?

The Comments section awaits.

Update on March 8, 2012:

For years, I have recommended—at this blog, in my articles, in my newsletters, during my webinars, during interviews with other media, in my live presentations and elsewhere—that you NOT pitch a blogger unless you spend time at their blog reading their posts. You must have a good understanding of what they write about. You must know their target audience. You must determine, before you pitch, if your topic is a good fit. If the answer is yes, then and only then, can you use the technique I’ve described below. I should have made that clear when I wrote this. 

*   *   *      

If you want to pitch bloggers or journalists, and make them snap to attention when they read your pitch, let them know you know the names of their dogs or cats, or other personal details that you might be able to weave into your pitch.

Here’s an example. Let’s say I want to pitch Claire Celsi, who writes the Publicity Relations Princess blog.

1. First, I check her “About” page and I learn that her husband’s name is Jim, her dog’s name is Trixie and she lives in Iowa, not far from Wisconsin where I live.

That sure was easy.

But what if she doesn’t have an “About” page? And what if I don’t have a lot of time to read her blog posts to find out if she even has a dog? Here’s a quick and easy way I’m  able to learn not only that she has a dog, but the dog’s name, in less than 30 seconds and several more valuable details in less than 60 seconds. When you see how drop-dead simple this is, you’ll howl.

First, I set my timer to see how long this takes. Then I open my Google browser and search for [claire celsi blog] + [my dog]“. The brackets tell Google I want an exact match.
 

I struck gold! Here’s what Google returned to me. These are the first two listings on the page:
 

In less than 30 seconds, I learn:

• Claire has a dog that she affectionately refers to as “Trixie the Wonder Dog.” (The About page at her blog simply says the dog’s name is Trixie.) 
     
• She inherited a teapot from her grandmother.

Curious about the teapot, I click on that second link and I find a blog post with a pretty photo of purple flowers inside a teapot:

 More golden nuggets! I also discover:

• Trixie loves to chase squirrels.
     
• Claire collects ceramic pieces and loves this teapot that she inherited from her grandmother.
     
• On a spring day in April (the blog post includes the date), she delights in finding purple flowers in her backyard and she places them inside the teapot in her house.  Why does Claire think  that finding flowers in her backyard is such a big deal? Because she lives in Iowa, where it isn’t unusual to see snow in April.

Now, I’ve collected enough details.
  
  
I’ve Done My Research. It’s Time to Pitch

Because I live in the Midwest too, I know that this has been one of the warmest winters on record.  Using that information, and knowing what I know from the nuggets I collected at her blog, I connect the dots.

Here’s the first paragraph:

Hi Claire:

I hope this finds you, Jim and Trixie well, and that Trixie is  enjoying her walks and chasing squirrels in Iowa’s very unseasonably warm winter. It won’t be long before you can fill your teapot with spring flowers again.

(Now, I pitch my idea….) 

See how easy this is?

It took me far longer to write this blog post that it did to learn all those juicy details about Claire’s life. The first paragraph of my pitch tells her: “I know who you are. I know your husband’s name. I know your dog’s name. I know your dog’s nickname. I know you live in Iowa. I know you love finding flowers in your backyard in April. I know you collect ceramic items. I know you love to put the flowers in your grandmother’s teapot.”

That’s so much more powerful than the crappy pitch someone emailed last week:

“Hi:

“I am a freelance writer who would like to write for your blog. If you have an interest in tips about romance, please let me know and I’ll write something.”

That pitch says: “I don’t know who you are. I don’t know your name because if I did I would have used it in the salutation. I’m too lazy to read your blog so I don’t know what you write about.  But I’m not worried about wasting your time.”  
   
   
Other Ways to Use My Tips 

My tips don’t always work because not all bloggers and journalists share personal details about themselves online. But many do.

You can use my Google search tips to also find the name of their spouse or children. But be very careful about mentioning the children’s names in your pitch. Some bloggers, particularly women, might think you’re stalking their kids. If you do name the children, let the blogger know how know the names. Example:

“You’ve mentioned several times in your blog that Ashley, your 3-year-old, loves fingerpainting. You might be interested in knowing about non-toxic., kid-safe cloth wipes my company has created that remove paint from walls and carpets…” 

Also, these personal details work best when you can actually tie them into the topic of your pitch, like I just did.

I got the idea for this post after I wrote an item earlier this week on How personal details in your pitch is your ticket to publicity.  Blogger BL Ochman  wrote about a **really great** PR pitch she received from Rob Toledo of Distilled Creative and she actually dissected the pitch to show you what caught her attention.

In the Comments section of my post, Rob mentioned that he was able to find the name of BL’s dog, but not mine. So, Rob, this post is for you, and for anybody else who wants to bowl over a blogger or journalist with a pitch.

But I can’t leave within showing you the adorable photo of Trixie the Wonder Dog:

Thanks, Claire, for sending it. And here’s a photo of Claire and hubby Jim:

Let’s hear how other Publicity Hounds research journalists and bloggers. Have you ever used interesting details in your pitch? If so, tell us about it and link to the article or blog post that you got as a result.

A Tool That Can Help You:

If you don’t have $3,000 to spend on a big, fancy media list, and if you want to create your own customized list of far fewer journalists and bloggers, and collect the kinds of details you see here, check out How to Create Your Own Database of Valuable Media Contacts.  The learning tool comes with the same 8 templates I use. They will save you months of time.

I love reading stories like the one about the 91-year-old woman newspaper carrier who shows no signs of stopping in Wichita Falls, Texas.

That got me thinking that there might be a very simple pitch that’s staring you in the face.

Does your company employ people in their 80s and 90s?

If so, ask their permission to pitch them to the local media and include in your pitch an interesting angle. TV, in particular would love this story if you can create some decent visuals. This is a perfect tie-in to stories about the monthly unemployment rate in the U.S. Or increasing the age for Social Security benefits. Or tie it into any other news story about employment trends.  

Be ready to offer details about your elderly employee:

Does she have and use a cell phone? Does she text?

Does he wear athletic shoes and walk on his lunch hour? Bring his dog to work? Offer advice to younger workers?

Tweet? Use Facebook? Connect with others on LinkedIn? If so, what groups is he in?

What can the older employee do that many younger employees cannot? Does he have a good attendance record? What does he like best about his job? What advice does he have for people in their 50s and 60s who are on the fence about retiring? 

Nonprofits, Look Around 

If you’re a nonprofit, you might have volunteers in that age bracket who donate their time to stay young, stay spry, spread joy and give back. This includes older volunteers who go into schools to read to children and help teachers with other tasks. It also includes the many older people who volunteer at hospitals. 

A volunteer who has been with you for many years and will be working at an upcoming event you’re hosting could be the ideal angle for some pre-event publicity. That’s one of the tips Debra J. Schmidt and I shared when we recorded How to Plan & Promote Sizzling Special Events.

Here’s another twist on my idea: Let the media and bloggers know when you’ve hired someone in their 80s and 90s. What are the advantages of older workers? Where do you find them, or are they inundating you with job applications?

Have you pitched ideas like these? If so, share the link so we can see the results. 

What other ideas do you have around this theme?

Trust me when I tell you that a media list chock full of juicy personal details about a journalist or blogger can be your ticket to publicity.

BL Ochman agrees. She’s a social media expert and a prolific blogger who writes about online promotions.

On Friday, she wrote about a pitch she received from Rob Toledo of Distilled Creative, calling her attention to a social media campaign roadmap. BL, who has seen her share of lame pitches, was bowled over by the personal details about her that Rob, whom she doesn’t know, included in his pitch. Impressed, she wrote a post  titled Dear PR Peeps: please read this *really great* PR pitch! (And what he was pitching). 

BL analyzed Rob’s pitch to show you exactly what made her pay attention. The screenshot she used at her blog is a little difficult to read, and she gave me permission to reproduce it here:

Her post illustrates my point perfectly.

Spend just 10 minutes or so researching a blogger or journalist BEFORE you pitch, let them know you are familiar with their work, and you’ll be miles ahead of all the other people who are too lazy to bother.

BL’s high-traffic blog is the perfect place for an item about Rob’s social media page. I subscribe to BL’s email updates, and when she alerted me to her post, I knew immediately that it was a perfect item for THIS blog. I write about great pitches in my ezine, too, and I’ll be including a mention about this post in “The Publicity Hound’s Tips of the Week” on Tuesday. So Rob is getting THREE hits for the price of one.

See? I told you it pays to research.

I receive pitches like the one BL received so seldom, that when I do, they really command attention. What have you done recently to bowl over a blogger or journalist with your knowledge of who they are, what they cover and what their readers might like? 

If you want to start building your own media database of contacts and know what to include in it that the big, expensive directories don’t, be sure to read 3 critical elements to include in your email database. You an also access the video replay of the webinar I hosted on Feb. 16 on How to Create Your Own Database of Valuable Media Contacts.

You’ll seldom find these details in those big, expensive media directories:

1. The names of a reporter’s spouse and children.

2. An editor’s likes and dislikes. For example, the food editor of your local newspaper mentions in her column that she loves crispy, crunchy snacks in mid-afternoon but doesn’t touch the typical bagged snacks found in the supermarket because they have too much salt. 

3. Other publications where  a freelance writer sells his articles.
 

Why These Details Are Important 

If you can weave into your customized pitch the names of a reporter’s family members, including pets,  that will get attention like nothing else. Let’s say you know from reading the local business reporter’s blog that his wife, Sally, is training for a marathon. Your company sells insoles for walkers, runners or anyone who has foot problems. A smart Publicity Hound would weave Sally’s name into the pitch.   

If you’re pitching a story about your company’s low-salt rice cakes to the food editor, you’d mention her dislike for salty snacks.

As for the freelancer, if you know the names of other magazines he writes for, you can pitch story ideas that would be a perfect fit for those publications but only after researching the magazines.

It’s difficult to learn things like this about your media contacts, unless you know where to look. I’ll be explaining all my little tricks tomorrow—Thursday, Feb. 16—when I host the webinar “How to Create Your Own Database of Valuable Media Contacts” at 3 p.m. Eastern Time. 

Creating your own customized media database of far fewer contacts gives you flexibility to include valuable details that will help you build a relationships with your contacts and craft more powerful pitches. It will also save you thousands of dollars because you won’t have to buy the big, bulky databases that include a gazillion contacts you’ll never use, but are paying for. 
   
   
8 Fill-in-the-blank Templates for You 

So that you don’t have to start from scratch, I’m giving all registrants eight fill-in-the-blanks templates for newspapers, magazines, TV shows, radio shows, freelancers, newsletters, bloggers and websites.  

If the time is inconvenient for you, sign up anyway because, within 72 hours after the call, I’ll email you a link where you can download the video replay, the PowerPoint slides I used during the presentation, and other materials. Register here. 

If you do your own publicity, or you’re a publicist who has a small number of clients, you probably don’t have to spend thousands of  dollars on those massive media directories that are as big as phone books.

Here’s why:

1. You’re paying for thousands of listings. Yet you’ll use a small fraction of them. So why pay for what you don’t need?
      
      
2. Many of those listings are out of date by the time they get to you.  Pervasive layoffs in the newspaper industry, and frequent staff turnover at TV and radio stations, mean the revolving door is always in motion.   

      

3. Media relations is all about building relationships. You can’t build relationships with thousands of journalists and broadcasters.
      
      
4. With a big database of journalists at your fingertips, you’ll be tempted to send email blasts to many of them even though you know darn well that they despise them. (Repeat after me: “I will not send email blasts to journalists.”)

      

5. Many of the big databases don’t include golden nuggets of information that you can find yourself online. That’s because many of the companies that sell media lists collect their information by asking journalists to fill out questionnaires. When I worked in a newsroom, I hated answering those questionnaires because they were a time suck. And it seemed like they all arrived in the mail within a few weeks of each other.  I completed them as quickly as possible. Other journalists do, too.

By spending some time online researching a half dozen key reporters, editors or talk show hosts, you can gather details that you’ll never find in those big databases. 

For example,  in about 10 minutes, I discovered a treasure trove of personal information about Deborah Kotz, former health reporter for U.S. News & World Report who now writes a consumer health blog for the  Boston Globe. By spending time at her blog, I learned that Kotz had thought about her risk of staying on birth control pills until she reaches menopause, and lamented the dearth of research on the long-term use of contraceptives by women. You will NEVER find juicy details like that in the big media directories. 

So how about creating your own?

Join me at 3 p.m. Eastern Time on Thursday, Feb. 16, when I present the webinar “How to Create Your Own Database of Valuable Media Contacts.” Register here.

If you’re trying to generate publicity for yourself, or you’re a publicist, you’ll learn about the types of information to include in your database, shortcuts that will help find the best contacts quickly, and the most important details to include in each entry.

I’m offering a huge bonus for everyone who registers: a package of eight templates, the same ones I use, so you don’t have to start from scratch. These will be PDFs and you’ll have to recreate them depending on what program you’re  using to build your database. More about that on Thursday.

At the winter farmer’s market in my town, I ran into my local editor for Patch.com, the uber-local website that’s giving Publicity Hounds yet another outlet for their press releases, photos and local news.

Lyssa Beyer and Matt Schroeder, her associate regional editor, were stopping shoppers and asking if they knew about Patch, which operrates in 22 states in the U.S. and the District of Columbia. Two weeks earlier, I had pitched a story about my local garden club to Beyer, and she said yes. They’re interviewing one of our members this week. So this was a good chance to meet her in person.

Here are her tips on how to use Patch:
  
 
1. Share your blog posts.

If you have your own blog, or even if  you don’t, you can register to be a blogger at your local Patch site. Go to Patch.com, click on the state where live, and then the Patch community where you want your blog to appear. Scroll down and look for the “Want to Blog on Patch?” button in the middle column. Introduce yourself, tell the editor a little about your blog, and wait for instructions.

You can share all your posts, or some of them. I recommend you tweak your posts to give them a local angle.  

Your post won’t appear until the local editor approves it. Patch welcomes moderated comments at all blogs. So check back periodically to continue the conversation if people comment on your posts.

Local nonprofits, this is a great opportunity for you, too!
   
  
2. Pitch news and feature stories to your local editor. 

Beyer responded to my pitch within 48 hours. Remember, local news is their bread and butter, so don’t be shy. 

When you pitch, let the editor know if you can offer contact information for other sources, or photos and graphics.
   
  
3.  Invite your local editor for coffee.

Beyer says she meets regularly with people in the community, usually at local coffee shops.  This is a great chance to start building the relatonship. Invite your local editor for coffee even if you don’t have  a story to pitch. See 18 ways to schmooze with reporters and Magic phrases to use with the media.
   
  
4.  Claim your free listing for businesses and organizations.

Patch includes a free directory of local businesses and organizations. Listings include details such as hours, payments and more, tools for owners, original photos, a description, and customer feedback.  If you’re squeamish about people reviewing your business, get over it. They’re probably already talking about you somewhere online. Read about 11 ways to use Yelp to respond to bad reviews. Much of that applies to Patch, too.   

5. Post your event on the calendar.

One of the reasons I love Patch is because readers can sign up for daily email alerts. When I get mine, I usually drop what I’m doing and head on over to Patch to see what’s happening in my community.
   
  
6.  Share your photos and videos.

The Gallery section is a great place to upload photos or videos that promote an upcoming event, or photos or videos you took at an event.  Remember, stand-alone photos and videos are welcome. You don’t necessarily have to have a big news story.
   
  
7. Write an announcement.

Just married? New baby? Make the honor roll? Spread the word in an announcement. This is for personal news only, not promoting your business. 
  
  
Those are my tips for using Patch. What are yours? If you’re using Patch, what kinds of results have you seen? More people attending your events? More people saying, “I saw you on Patch”?

Here are my Top 10 tweets from this past week, great for retweeting! If you missed these, follow me on Twitter.

10 content marketing tips for 2012. http://ow.ly/8mLqd

Top 3 Video Marketing Lessons from Nielsen. http://ow.ly/8mLRO

Bloggers: Want (recurring) donations from your readers? Just ask! http://ow.ly/8ohOz

Daily newspapers going the way of the milkman. http://ow.ly/8ox57

Authors: 10 Cool & Creative Ideas for Bookmarks. http://ow.ly/8pyWH

Blogggers & Columnists: Submit your best stuff for the 2012 Column Contest. http://ow.ly/8oy5O

How to Destroy Your Online Reputation in 3 Days or Less http://ow.ly/8obvQ

How to learn which content you’re sharing on Facebook is hitting your fans’ hot buttons. http://ow.ly/8ohbA

5 incredibly fun ideas to build your fan base & engage them on Facebook & Twitter. http://ow.ly/8mNYQ

16 things to check when you edit. http://ow.ly/8mNBH

Here are my Top 10 tweets from this past week, great for retweeting! If you missed these, follow me on Twitter.

PR Pros: When you write a press release, do you share it on social media sites? Experts disagree. http://ow.ly/8486v

15 magnets to help you capture & convert leads at your website. http://ow.ly/83XYg 

Heading To a Trade Show in 2012? 5 Tips for Getting the Most ROI Out Of Your Event: http://ow.ly/859iM

Retailers: 17 ways to use Twitter to engage your audience. [No excuse not to tweet!] http://ow.ly/83UdR

Publicity Tip: Readers LOVE year-end lists, like this one, The 50 Best Workout Songs of the Year. http://ow.ly/83RUZ 

The Essential word List for Lazy PR Writers.http://ow.ly/859s3 

5 ways to master the new Facebook timeline. http://ow.ly/86rsi 

When Business Blogging Works Too Well… | Writing On The Web by Patsi Krakoff, The Blog Squad http://bit.ly/ukgnlr

Do you have a form at your website? Add this clever tool to encourage people to promote you: http://ow.ly/85fX7

Local news outlets among Google’s most-searched terms:  http://ow.ly/85ath