Oprah

Tomorrow: How to pitch Oprah, GMA, other big shows

2/9/2011 By Joan Leave a Comment

Not every Publicity Hound belongs on “Good Morning, America.”

Even fewer belong on “Oprah.”

If your topic isn’t right for the audiences that watch those shows, don’t even bother contacting the producers. But if it is, you could strike gold.

Tomorrow, Steve Harrison will host a free 90-minute teleseminar on the three biggest tips you need to know to get onto major TV shows. His guest will be Michelle Anton, a former guest booker for “Oprah.”

You’ll learn what not to send to producers—like unsolicited books and big, bulky press kits—and mistakes you shouldn’t make or you’ll be blackballed forever.

Anton will share the three big secrets for pitching the right way. You can listen in at 2 or 7 p.m. Eastern Time. I’m promoting this call as an affiliate because many Publicity Hounds have attended these calls in the past and loved the content.

Filed Under: Authors & Publishers, Pitching the Media, TV Publicity Tagged With: big tv shows, Good morning america, michelle anton, Oprah, steve harrison

Sept. 11 deadline looming for O Magazine pitches

9/1/2009 By Joan 2 Comments

omagazinecover2 Sept. 11 is the deadline for pitching your business woman’s success story, or your tips for women, for a special round-up of story ideas that will be presented to O Magazine editors and other top-tier media.

Publicists for PitchRate.com, which connects journalists with people seeking publicity, will take the best 10 to 20 pitches and present them to editors and guest bookers at Good Morning America, Women Entrepreneur magazine, and the Associated Press, among others.

Here’s how you can participate, for free:

1. First, subscribe to their media leads service at http://www.PitchRate.com/PublicityHound

2. After you subscribe, you’ll see a black bar at the top that says “Exclusive Requests.” Click on that and submit your pitch.

3. If the media like what they see, they’ll call you.

Publicists Michalle Tennant and Drew Gerber, graduates of The Publicity Hound Mentor Program who now manage PitchRate, are soliciting pitches only from Publicity Hounds who read this blog and my weekly ezine on publicity tips.

Having problems with your pitch? Email Shannon and he’ll help you.

Filed Under: Business Promotion, Magazine Publicity, Pitching the Media, PR Consultants/Publicists, TV Publicity Tagged With: get on Oprah, Good morning america, o magazine, Oprah, Pitchrate.com, PR, promotion, publicity

Your media pitch isn’t dead until you hear the word ‘no’

6/2/2009 By Joan 2 Comments

Several readers saw the item in last week’s newsletter about getting onto “Oprah” and wrote to tell me that they pitched ideas months ago and still haven’t heard back from Oprah’s producers. Can they assume their pitches are in the “deleted” folder?

Never!

While getting onto “Oprah” is always a long shot, I’ve heard of cases in which journalists and broadcasters follow up on pitches as long as two years after receiving them.

I posted a Note to my Facebook page last night, telling my friends that publicists need to update themselves periodically on pitches that are still “out there.” Also, I advised, tell your clients not to be surprised if they hear from the media when they least expect it. Clients must be prepared on a second’s notice to discuss an old story idea.

Susan Harrow, creator of “The Ultimate Guide to Getting Booked on Oprah,” was on CNBC last week to discuss The Oprah Effect.” Several entrepreneurs discussed how they got onto the show, and what it has meant to their businesses.

I missed the show. If you did, too, you can see a short segment in which Susan gives two tips for getting onto Oprah. (Apologies for the commercial.)

Watch a clip of Susan Harrow discussing
how to get onto Oprah