What's the secret to getting free publicity? It's not a fancy press kit. It's not having a superstar spokesperson. It's not hiring the world's biggest PR firm.
Actually, the ultimate insider secret is quite simple: You need to think like a reporter, says Bill Stoller, publicity guru.
Most of us are too tied-up in our own world to really look at our businesses objectively and come up with a newsworthy story angle that can lead to free publicity. Reporters have a special place in their circular file for puffery, fackery and hyperbole. If you want to avoid this fate, then you must learn to think like a reporter. This means: Being able to separate real news about your company from promotional puffery. Being able to deliver a sharp story angle that will be of real interest to the news reading or viewing public. Being able to deliver this angle in a professional, courteous way.
You own a website. Let's say, for the sake of this report, it's theplace4vitamins.com. (It could be any sort of business or website.) Your goal -- getting your website featured in newspapers around the country. Here are some truths that you ignore only at your own risk: Reporters don't care about helping you. Reporters are hassled all day by PR people and they're pretty much sick of it. Reporters don't care about your website, your book, your products or your life story, unless.....you are providing something that helps make their job easier -- that is, a really good story.
In that case: Reporters love you. Reporters are happy to take your call. Reporters are fascinated by your website, your book, your products and maybe even your life story.
When you design your public relations campaign, develop your angles, develop your media materials and begin contacting the press, always think: "What can I do at this step that will make this more useful to a journalist?" That means: developing story angles from a reporter's perspective, not a business owner's; conducting yourself in a manner free of hype, clichés and puffery, and using proper etiquette when contacting a reporter or editor.
Developing an Angle: What does it mean to "develop a story angle from a reporter's perspective"? Have you ever met someone who has gotten way too absorbed by his hobby? He can go on for hours about his model trains or his coin collection. He can't possibly imagine why you, or anyone else, wouldn't be riveted by his in-depth discussion of Peruvian 19th century coinage.He's far too close to his hobby to be objective. As it turns out, most business owners are the same way about their company. If you spend all day absorbed in the world of vitamins -- or golf clubs, or health insurance, or any other field -- you can lose sight of the realization that most of the rest of the world doesn't really care. So you have to think like a reporter. Step away from your business. View it as a reporter looking for an interesting story. Remember, he's looking for a story that will satisfy his editor and his readers. He's not interested in promoting you, only in crafting a story that will make readers stop and say "Hmmm, I never knew that. Now there's something I can use!." Here are some angles you can use:
Low prices. Yeah, just putting out a press release saying you have low prices won't get you anywhere. But what if there was something special about those low prices? Maybe you give huge discounts to child care centers who buy kids' vitamins in quantity. Maybe you sell vitamins at cost to health clinics in poor neighborhoods. Maybe you provide a big discount on multivitamins to disabled people? These are all publicizable angles, and they take a worn out angle and make it fresh. Take advantage of programs you already have in place, or create new programs to provide publicity opportunities for a public relations campaign.
Great Service. If great service means you're nice on the phone, it ain't gonna work. But perhaps you go above and beyond the call to serve your customers. Remember that Saturn commercial in which serviceman flew to a remote Alaska cabin to fix a customer's car? That was a graphic example of this sort of angle. Now, you probably don't have anything so extreme to tell, but perhaps you do something no competitor would be willing to do. Or perhaps you should.
Wide Selection. Sheer quantity won't turn this into a news angle. But if you carry some products that no one else does -- and those products are in some demand -- you might be on to something.
Thanks to the Internet, you can use your website to position your angles to have mass newsworthy appeal. The answer is to design parts of your website specifically to provide a newsworthy element to your story. Message boards, chat rooms, surveys, feedback pages and so on can all lead to publicity. Is a leading health guru willing to be a guest at a chat sessions for teenagers? Did an online survey you conducted about kids' favorite foods offer some interesting revelations? These, and other offshoots of adding newsworthy elements to your site, can all provide the basis for outstanding publicity opportunities.
A story about helping overweight kids cope with ridicule, based on discussions that have taken place in your forums, is a natural for a "lifestyle" section of a newspaper. So, you want to get an article about it in a major paper (let's say The Denver Post). First, you've got to find out who the appropriate editor or writer is at the Post. If you live in Denver, just read the paper on a regular basis and clip out the columns that deal with parenting, health or kids' issues. But if you live in Rhode Island, it's more difficult.
Go to your local library and take a look at Bacon's Newspaper Directory in the reference section. Under The Denver Post listing, Bacon's should provide a name for the Features or Lifestyle editor. It might be outdated, so call the Post's main number and ask the receptionist "Is Joan Smith still the Features Editor?" The receptionist will then confirm that Joan is still in her position, tell you the name of the new person in this role, or transfer you to the newsroom to ask someone else. With the editor's name in hand, you're now ready to make your call. (It's also worthy trying the newspaper's web site. Increasingly, full editorial staff listings can be found online.)
Here are some "etiquette" secrets that can help you effectively work with journalists in generating bushels of free press.....
1. Don't call to "see if they got your release." Journalists hate this. Folks send out mass mailings and then call to see if the release made it there. If you really want to get a story in the Post, call first to pitch your story and then follow up with your release, photos, etc.
2. Plan your call around their deadlines. Most papers are morning editions. Thus, journalists' deadlines range from 2 p.m. local time and on. Don't call during this time! The best time to reach a newspaper journalist: 10 a.m. to noon local time.
3. Don't start pitching right away! If you get Joan Smith on the phone, don't just dive into your pitch. This is rude, as Joan may be on the other line, working on a story, entertaining guests or who knows what else. Start by saying something like, "Hi Ms. Smith, my name's Bill Jones and I have a story suggestion you might find interesting. Is this a good time for you?" Joan will reply "yes"--which is a green light to start your pitch, or "no"-- to which you reply, "When would be a good time to call you back?" Your courtesy will be greatly appreciated by the journalist...which can only help your chances.
4. Pitch to the voice mail. It's fine to pitch your story to the reporter's voice mail. Keep it very short and end the message with your phone number. If you don't hear back, try again until you get the actual reporter or editor on the phone.
5. Don't read from a script! The bane of many journalists' existences are 22-year-olds sitting in cubicles in big PR firms reading pitches off a sheet of paper. If you've ever been called by a telemarketer doing the same thing, you know how annoying it can be. Practice your pitch so that it seems natural and spontaneous.
6. Give them a story, not an advertisement. Newspapers do not exist to give you publicity. They exist to provide readers with interesting stories. Your job is to give the journalist what he or she wants, while getting the free exposure. Make your pitch newsy, exciting and relevant. How about: "Ms. Smith, as you probably know, obesity among children is growing at an alarming rate. Because of the ridicule they face from other children, millions of overweight young people are being marked with lifetime scars that can seriously damage their self-esteem. I host a unique website, were overweight kids can anonymously express their feelings and discuss this issue. I think I've learned some important things about a very serious subject." That's a whole lot more interesting to an editor than: "Ms. Smith, I have a website where overweight kids post messages. Would you like to do a story about me?"
7. Follow up immediately. If she's interested, Joan Smith will ask for more information. Be sure you have a press kit (including news release and photo) ready to send . Send it out via priority mail, and write "Requested Information" below the address.
8. Call again. Now it's appropriate to call to see if Joan's received your stuff...after all, unlike a mass-mailed release, she asked for it! Ask if she's had a chance to look through it, and what she thinks. If she likes what she sees, you're about to get some very valuable free publicity!
Thursday, April 29, 2010
The Ultimate PR & Publicity Secret
What's the secret to getting free publicity? It's not a fancy press kit. It's not having a superstar spokesperson. It's not hiring the world's biggest PR firm.
Actually, the ultimate insider secret is quite simple: You need to think like a reporter, says Bill Stoller, publicity guru.
Most of us are too tied-up in our own world to really look at our businesses objectively and come up with a newsworthy story angle that can lead to free publicity. Reporters have a special place in their circular file for puffery, fackery and hyperbole. If you want to avoid this fate, then you must learn to think like a reporter. This means: Being able to separate real news about your company from promotional puffery. Being able to deliver a sharp story angle that will be of real interest to the news reading or viewing public. Being able to deliver this angle in a professional, courteous way.
You own a website. Let's say, for the sake of this report, it's theplace4vitamins.com. (It could be any sort of business or website.) Your goal -- getting your website featured in newspapers around the country. Here are some truths that you ignore only at your own risk: Reporters don't care about helping you. Reporters are hassled all day by PR people and they're pretty much sick of it. Reporters don't care about your website, your book, your products or your life story, unless.....you are providing something that helps make their job easier -- that is, a really good story.
In that case: Reporters love you. Reporters are happy to take your call. Reporters are fascinated by your website, your book, your products and maybe even your life story.
When you design your public relations campaign, develop your angles, develop your media materials and begin contacting the press, always think: "What can I do at this step that will make this more useful to a journalist?" That means: developing story angles from a reporter's perspective, not a business owner's; conducting yourself in a manner free of hype, clichés and puffery, and using proper etiquette when contacting a reporter or editor.
Developing an Angle: What does it mean to "develop a story angle from a reporter's perspective"? Have you ever met someone who has gotten way too absorbed by his hobby? He can go on for hours about his model trains or his coin collection. He can't possibly imagine why you, or anyone else, wouldn't be riveted by his in-depth discussion of Peruvian 19th century coinage.He's far too close to his hobby to be objective. As it turns out, most business owners are the same way about their company. If you spend all day absorbed in the world of vitamins -- or golf clubs, or health insurance, or any other field -- you can lose sight of the realization that most of the rest of the world doesn't really care. So you have to think like a reporter. Step away from your business. View it as a reporter looking for an interesting story. Remember, he's looking for a story that will satisfy his editor and his readers. He's not interested in promoting you, only in crafting a story that will make readers stop and say "Hmmm, I never knew that. Now there's something I can use!." Here are some angles you can use:
Low prices. Yeah, just putting out a press release saying you have low prices won't get you anywhere. But what if there was something special about those low prices? Maybe you give huge discounts to child care centers who buy kids' vitamins in quantity. Maybe you sell vitamins at cost to health clinics in poor neighborhoods. Maybe you provide a big discount on multivitamins to disabled people? These are all publicizable angles, and they take a worn out angle and make it fresh. Take advantage of programs you already have in place, or create new programs to provide publicity opportunities for a public relations campaign.
Great Service. If great service means you're nice on the phone, it ain't gonna work. But perhaps you go above and beyond the call to serve your customers. Remember that Saturn commercial in which serviceman flew to a remote Alaska cabin to fix a customer's car? That was a graphic example of this sort of angle. Now, you probably don't have anything so extreme to tell, but perhaps you do something no competitor would be willing to do. Or perhaps you should.
Wide Selection. Sheer quantity won't turn this into a news angle. But if you carry some products that no one else does -- and those products are in some demand -- you might be on to something.
Thanks to the Internet, you can use your website to position your angles to have mass newsworthy appeal. The answer is to design parts of your website specifically to provide a newsworthy element to your story. Message boards, chat rooms, surveys, feedback pages and so on can all lead to publicity. Is a leading health guru willing to be a guest at a chat sessions for teenagers? Did an online survey you conducted about kids' favorite foods offer some interesting revelations? These, and other offshoots of adding newsworthy elements to your site, can all provide the basis for outstanding publicity opportunities.
A story about helping overweight kids cope with ridicule, based on discussions that have taken place in your forums, is a natural for a "lifestyle" section of a newspaper. So, you want to get an article about it in a major paper (let's say The Denver Post). First, you've got to find out who the appropriate editor or writer is at the Post. If you live in Denver, just read the paper on a regular basis and clip out the columns that deal with parenting, health or kids' issues. But if you live in Rhode Island, it's more difficult.
Go to your local library and take a look at Bacon's Newspaper Directory in the reference section. Under The Denver Post listing, Bacon's should provide a name for the Features or Lifestyle editor. It might be outdated, so call the Post's main number and ask the receptionist "Is Joan Smith still the Features Editor?" The receptionist will then confirm that Joan is still in her position, tell you the name of the new person in this role, or transfer you to the newsroom to ask someone else. With the editor's name in hand, you're now ready to make your call. (It's also worthy trying the newspaper's web site. Increasingly, full editorial staff listings can be found online.)
Here are some "etiquette" secrets that can help you effectively work with journalists in generating bushels of free press.....
1. Don't call to "see if they got your release." Journalists hate this. Folks send out mass mailings and then call to see if the release made it there. If you really want to get a story in the Post, call first to pitch your story and then follow up with your release, photos, etc.
2. Plan your call around their deadlines. Most papers are morning editions. Thus, journalists' deadlines range from 2 p.m. local time and on. Don't call during this time! The best time to reach a newspaper journalist: 10 a.m. to noon local time.
3. Don't start pitching right away! If you get Joan Smith on the phone, don't just dive into your pitch. This is rude, as Joan may be on the other line, working on a story, entertaining guests or who knows what else. Start by saying something like, "Hi Ms. Smith, my name's Bill Jones and I have a story suggestion you might find interesting. Is this a good time for you?" Joan will reply "yes"--which is a green light to start your pitch, or "no"-- to which you reply, "When would be a good time to call you back?" Your courtesy will be greatly appreciated by the journalist...which can only help your chances.
4. Pitch to the voice mail. It's fine to pitch your story to the reporter's voice mail. Keep it very short and end the message with your phone number. If you don't hear back, try again until you get the actual reporter or editor on the phone.
5. Don't read from a script! The bane of many journalists' existences are 22-year-olds sitting in cubicles in big PR firms reading pitches off a sheet of paper. If you've ever been called by a telemarketer doing the same thing, you know how annoying it can be. Practice your pitch so that it seems natural and spontaneous.
6. Give them a story, not an advertisement. Newspapers do not exist to give you publicity. They exist to provide readers with interesting stories. Your job is to give the journalist what he or she wants, while getting the free exposure. Make your pitch newsy, exciting and relevant. How about: "Ms. Smith, as you probably know, obesity among children is growing at an alarming rate. Because of the ridicule they face from other children, millions of overweight young people are being marked with lifetime scars that can seriously damage their self-esteem. I host a unique website, were overweight kids can anonymously express their feelings and discuss this issue. I think I've learned some important things about a very serious subject." That's a whole lot more interesting to an editor than: "Ms. Smith, I have a website where overweight kids post messages. Would you like to do a story about me?"
7. Follow up immediately. If she's interested, Joan Smith will ask for more information. Be sure you have a press kit (including news release and photo) ready to send . Send it out via priority mail, and write "Requested Information" below the address.
8. Call again. Now it's appropriate to call to see if Joan's received your stuff...after all, unlike a mass-mailed release, she asked for it! Ask if she's had a chance to look through it, and what she thinks. If she likes what she sees, you're about to get some very valuable free publicity!
Monday, April 26, 2010
Using Sponsorships as a Marketing Tool
As a small business owner, you’re hit from every direction by groups who want your dollars to support their worthy events and causes. From Little League teams to high school yearbooks to the art center’s silent auction; how do you decide what’s worth supporting and what’s not? In short, there is no easy answer.
From a straight marketing standpoint, it’s often hard to determine how well sponsorships work, but as a component of a brand-building awareness campaign, it makes sense in many instances, if you’re smart about it.
Many small business owners have a gut reaction about whether they should say yes or no, and that can be a powerful barometer. If the proposal seems sound and heartfelt, with discernible benefits, go for it. But if the request comes from an extremely disorganized or unprofessional outfit and it feels like you are giving a handout rather than meeting a genuine need, it may be wise to say no, unless you expect little to nothing for your gesture of support other than thanks.
For some businesses, a sponsorship opportunity might put the company in front of an audience it wants to cultivate, so saying yes is a wise business decision. For instance a large arts institution might be having a major event; agreeing to a level of sponsorship might help make headway into a long-term relationship with the institution itself as well as its high-profile clientele.
Something you should ask about if you are considering a sponsorship is what are the attendance expectations and advertising budget figures; that will give you a better sense of how much you should pay for a sponsorship. You might also consider whether your business peers or competitors are participating as sponsors. In some cases it might be detrimental to be left out.
Sponsoring a high-profile cause, such as domestic violence or the local food bank, might be a good public relations move, creating a positive association for your business. It might also put you in closer touch with community leaders, movers, and shakers. Such associations could ultimately lead to additional sales or valuable contacts.
If your company has limited resources, consider making an in-kind donation rather than a cash donation. If, for instance, you operate a burger franchise, offer a set amount of free meals for the Little League team in exchange for having your company’s presence acknowledged on banners at the local ballpark rather than buying team uniforms. In fact, exploring how your business can be recognized for its sponsorship is worth evaluating when deciding at what level you’ll commit resources.
In some instances you can get more bang for your buck if in exchange for your support you ask that your company’s logo appear on banners at events; that you receive tickets to events to hand out to clients; that you have a table or booth at the event; or that your company be credited in all advertising collateral about the event. Don’t forget to consider an exchange on the requester’s Web site for your contribution.
You could also contribute branded items as giveaways; that way people will go home with something that has your company’s name on it. For example, you might have your company’s logo on commemorative wine glasses at a wine-tasting event; the glasses are keepsakes that patrons will repeatedly use.
You might not be able to say yes every time, nor should you, but by giving careful consideration to the opportunities that are presented to you, you might be able to contribute to your community while also supporting your business.
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