The Publicity Hound’s Blog  

Ever since the news of Michael Jackson’s death, my brain won’t  stop humming his songs.

The news—and his music—are everywhere.  I’m a huge Michael Jackson fan, and I’m devouring the musical tributes on cable. But enough is enough already.

My sister says the same thing is happening to her. Some nights, it’s so bad she can’t fall asleep. In my own brain, the annoying “ABC” keeps trying to drown out “Rock with You,” my favorite Michael Jackson song.

I know we’re not alone. So how about turning it into a publicity opportunity?

This is a perfect time for psychologists, sleep experts, music teachers and even musicians and band members to offer some tips on how get certain songs out of our heads.

Pitch the story to morning drive-time deejays. It would make a fun call-in topic. I remember listening to several shows like this in which callers were encouraged to name the WORST song they’ve ever heard—you know, the one that just won’t stop playing inside their heads. These shows are hysterical. See How to Get onto Drive-Time Radio Shows.

What’s the worst song you’ve ever heard, the one that makes you crazy?

Posted In: Celebrity tie-ins, Radio Publicity
posted On: 6/30/2009: 11:42 am: By Joan
Comments: 1 Comment

When a producer calls you and needs you to fill in for a guest who has canceled, move a mountain if you must, and say yes.

That’s what I did when Jon Missall of VoiceAmerica Business Network called yesterday afternoon and asked if I’d serve as a fill-in on the PRInsider show this morning with Maureen Kedes. Someone canceled, and they needed confirmation, within 30 minutes, that I could appear along with a guest of my choosing.

Of course, I said yes.

I invited Michelle Tennant of Wasabi Publicity, who has a string of A+ media hits to her credit, along with a really fun style. We’ll be a great team. And I know we’re on the same track because she was in The Publicity Hound Mentor Program for several years.

We’ll talk about a half dozen or so of the most important things Publicity Hounds must do to generate online and offline publicity. Michelle will share recent successes she has had getting her clients—including authors, nonprofits and small business owners— onto NBC in Dallas, AOL Canada, Good Morning America, the Colorado Business Journal, Dr. Phil and in other online and offline media.

The show will be at noon Eastern Time and you can listen here. I hope you join us.

Posted In: Authors & Publishers, Celebrity tie-ins, Newspaper Publicity, Nonprofits, PR Consultants/Publicists, Pitching the Media, Publicity on the Internet, Radio Publicity, TV Publicity
posted On: 5/22/2009: 8:35 am: By Joan
Comments: 1 Comment

If you write books, or you want to write one, don’t even think about catching the attention of a major publisher unless you have what’s called platform.

The bigger your platform, the greater your influence and following. It’s that simple. 

You can build your platform dozens of ways online and offline. One way is by having your own radio show. I can’t begin to count the number of Internet radio hosts who have invited me to be a guest on their shows. I always say yes because I never know who might be listening.

Traditional radio has big pay-offs, too. I’ve gathered hundreds and perhaps thousands of email addresses from people who have heard me on radio shows. A local business talk show here in Milwaukee invited me as a guest, and a listener who heard me called and asked if I’d create a PR campaign for him. I’m not a publicist but referred him to one of my friends, who ended up with a $15,000 contract.

Even if you’re not an author, having your own radio show can be downright impressive to potential clients and meeting planners who hire speakers. 

Radio show a path to stardom

Over the years, this proven marketing strategy has worked for such diverse personalities as Oprah, Dr. Ruth, Howard Stern, Rush Limbaugh, Dr. Phil, Donald Trump, Martha Stewart, Dr. Laura and many others. In fact, one of the best ways to get media attention is to become a member of the media yourself.

To discover how to get started hosting your own show, join my friend Steve Harrison of Radio-TV Interview Report (RTIR) for a free 90-minute telephone seminar at your choice of two times on Thursday, March 26, on “How to Get Started Hosting Your Own Radio Show For Fame, Fortune and Fun!”

On the call, you’ll hear Steve interview radio veteran Martin Wales, who’s hosted a number of different shows on both traditional and Internet radio. You will learn:

• The pros and cons hosting on traditional radio station vs. Internet radio
     
• Common mistakes to avoid either way you go.
     
• How one Internet radio host parlayed her show into a trip to the White House and meeting with the president in the Oval Office.
     
• Why you don’t even need to leave home to host your own show.
     
• How to make money with your show even if you have few listeners to start.
     
• Why recent technological advances mean you should really consider having your own show—even if your subject is extremely specialized.
     
•  Martin’s ‘Leapfrog Strategy’ wherein you start on a small station then continually move up to increasingly larger audiences.
     
• How to get freebies and press passes to special events by having your own show.
     
• Strategies for quickly generating sponsorship revenue for new shows.
      
• Got a business you’re promoting?  How one mortgage broker saw his business skyrocket after he started hosting his own show.

And if you need a guest…

If you end up with your own show, don’t forget about me. I’d love to be a guest and share my best publicity tips with your audience.

I typically do shows on how to promote your expertise online and offlne, blogging, social networking, and how to write press releases.

Posted In: Authors & Publishers, Business Promotion, Radio Publicity
posted On: 3/24/2009: 10:15 am: By Joan
Comments: 1 Comment

If you’re pitching a story idea to a Spanish-language radio station, remember that the Hispanic market is diverse.

If you’re planning to treat all stations the same, and deliver the same one-size-fits-all pitch, you’re doomed even before you begin.

Dean Thompson, media relations associate at News Generation, a PR firm that specializes in radio media tours, offers these pitching tips in the March 16 issue of PRWeek:

•  Provide information relevant to the geographic region and the demographics that a station reaches.
    
• Audio news releases, public service announcements and interviews must be written and positioned for specific audiences.
    
• Don’t send the same pitch to a South Florida station serving mostly Cuban or South American audiences as well as to a southwest Texas radio station serving a largely Mexican population.
      
• When pitching, include a specific reason for pitching an Hispanic audience. 

Here’s my related tip: When pitching an idea, you get extra points for supplying contact information of somebody within that radio market who agrees to be interviewed.

Posted In: Pitching the Media, Radio Publicity, The Local Angle
posted On: 3/20/2009: 7:53 am: By Joan
Comments: 1 Comment

Publicity Hound Sheryl P. Kurland of Orlando, FL writes:

With Valentine’s Day just around the corner, which is a logical tie-in to my product, I need some new, exciting, low-cost ideas prior to the holiday to stimulate Valentine’s Day book sales.

I’m the author of the self-published Everlasting Matrimony: Pearls Of Wisdom From Couples Married 50 Years Or More, an elegant coffee-table book in which I interviewed 75 couples married 50+ years. The first run was published four years ago.

My background is Marketing/PR, so I’ve done just about everything—all on my own and on a shoestring budget!

Here’s a brief rundown:

—In her 30 years as host of the nationally-syndicated Dr. Laura Radio Show, Dr. Laura (Schlesinger) has reviewed only one book twice—Everlasting Matrimony. In both 2006 and 2008, Dr. Laura chose my book as her Valentine’s Day book selection.  (Book sales jumped to #2,021 on Amazon.com with the 2008 review two weeks before Valentine’s Day.)

—One-on-one on-air radio interviews by Leeza Gibbons, Sally Jessy Raphael, Jack LaLanne, and interviewed by national and international media.

—Featured on ABC World News Tonight

—Interviewed by the Wall Street Journal and MSNMoney.com

—Nationally-syndicated news columnist (McClatchy News Information Services), writer of weekly”Back-Talk!”

—Featured twice on Ivanhoe Broadcast News; news feed to more than 250 TV markets in the U.S.

—Guest editor of award-winning Special Edition 2007 of Humana’s HAO “Love Notes” magazine.

—Relationship Trainer to businesses/corporations

—Army Wife Talk Radio Show: Contribute “One-Minute Relationship Tips” for internet radio show and enewsletter monthly columnist

—Bridal Show exhibits

What can I do that I haven’t already done to get big publicity a few weeks before Valentine’s Day (using Valentine’s Day as the tie-in, obviously) to significantly stimulate book sales for Everlasting Matrimony? Shows like “Today,” “Good Morning America,” etc., won’t talk to me because I’m self-published.  Also, I am not interested in teleseminars, teaching a course, or creating CDs to sell.

Posted In: Authors & Publishers, Newspaper Publicity, Pitching the Media, Publicity for Niche Markets, Radio Publicity, Social media marketing, Social networking, TV Publicity, Twitter, Video
posted On: 1/6/2009: 2:31 pm: By Joan
Comments: 12 Comments