February 03, 2009
How To Profit From Obama’s Economic Stimulus Program
It seems you can’t turn anywhere today without bumping into talk of economic stimulus. Whether you’ll be entitled to some of that money or not, you can use it to build your business.
How? Through using it to get more PR!
Here are some story pitches that astute marketers like you can use the economic stimulus talk and Obama’s new Presidency to build your publicity:
- Right now, before it’s set in stone, pitch a story about how the plan will affect your business. That pitch could show how you would benefit from it, how you wouldn’t, how you should get it, or even how it will be a waste of money in your industry.
- Pitch your corporate environmental policies and improvements. Tell reporters about the changes you’ve made and how they will affect your bottom line. Show how they will increase employment, and how they will impact the environment, especially if those changes cut greenhouse emissions. Remember that those emission reductions don’t necessarily have to come from you, they can come from suppliers, customers, or even from the eventual disposal of the product. The extra work to calculate those numbers will be worthwhile, because they will likely be a lead element to your story.
- Pitch any new U.S. employment initiative you participate in, even if those initiatives just preserve a job that might otherwise be lost to foreign workers. Again, remember, those initiatives don’t have to be just within your company. If you order a new machine that replaces one on your shop floor, you may not add a job, but the manufacturer of that machine may, and there’s a story there! Clearly communicate the number of new jobs, or the number of jobs preserved in your pitch, don’t leave it up to the reporter to do the calculations. And don’t be afraid to make estimates and assume that the money you’re spending won’t trickle down to others in the economy - the government accounting offices are!
- Pitch the direct results from bailout funds and economic stimulus plans. Recognize that you don’t have to be the direct recipient of that check to have a pitchable story. For example, if you run a corporate cleaning service and one of your clients is able to keep you on because of receiving bailout funds, you’ve got a story of the job gains (or prevention of losses) that result.
- Pitch the human interest side of the housing crisis on your employees. Tell the story of your employee who was at risk of losing his home because he couldn’t to get his adjustable rate mortgage refinanced. There’s one story, especially if your company somehow helps him out. But if the bailouts or new policies enable him to actually renegotiate his loan, you’ll have another opportunity to pitch the story.
- Pitch the potential of troops coming home from Iraq. Show the advantages of having 3 of your employees return to your workforce after their stint in Iraq.
- Pitch your usage of technology. As the media focuses on this most technologically savvy presidency ever, story opportunities exist for those who use similar technologies to build their business, avoid laying off people, or maintain their customer base.
- Pitch your company’s volunteerism efforts. Let the media know about the employee that you loan to the United Way for 3 months each year, the employee who gets half a day off once every two weeks to serve as a big sister, or the Saturday when your entire workforce helped clean the local homeless shelter.
- Pitch your corporate giving. If your restaurant gives your leftover food each night to the homeless shelter, you donate x% of profits to charity, or you give your used cars to the Lung Association, there’s a story there. Some would say that in publicizing your giving you are defeating the purpose. So, instead of strutting your contributions, use them as a way to challenge other businesses and individuals in your area to do the same.
- Pitch your contributions to schools. Donate computers, teach reading skills, have your finance VP teach a high school class how to balance their checkbooks. Then tell the media about your story.
- Pitch how your latest book fits into and supports or disagrees with one of the Obama Presidency priorities.
- I could go on and on. The key is to look at the policies and focuses of the new administration and the economic stimulus plan with an eye towards how you could spin them into a story about you or your company.
One point - most of the examples listed above show how you fit into the actions of the new administration. But there is an opportunity to do the exact opposite - to show how you are opposed to or your actions are against those policies. But be aware, you’re more likely to get stories picked up that show how your company fits into those policies as opposed to fighting against them.
Remember also, the media wants to localize the national happenings by showing how local companies and individuals are affected by them.
Regularly brainstorm how your company can fit into a story on that subject. Then, when you’ve got a great, logical fit, pick up the phone and tell your local newspaper, television and radio station, and bloggers about the story. In your pitch, don’t focus on how the story is will be good for you, tell them how it will fit the interests of their readers, and you’ve likely got yourself a story on your hands!
Convinced that you need to pitch a story, but don’t know how to do it? Check out Secrets of Perfect Pitching.
Posted by Don Crowther at 03:10 PM | TrackBack
October 20, 2005
What If You Could Get Reporters To Contact You For Information Rather Than The Other Way Around? A Recommended Publicity Resource
I'm like you. There's nothing I hate more than pitching to an unreceptive audience.
When I do this it always feels like I'm purposely changing from beating my head against a nice soft sheet rocked wall to a beating it against a solid cement one. Frankly, it hurts to do all of that work and never hear a thing in response.
Frankly, that's why we exist as a company - to help you learn techniques to get through to the media and increase your chances of getting your story picked up. Several of our products were created just for that purpose, like How To Write Killer News Releases That Stop Reporters In Their Tracks, Secrets of Perfect Pitching to Reporters, and How to Create the Perfect 30-Second Phone Pitch For Your Story
But now I want to introduce you to what is literally a better way...
What if you no longer had to contact huge numbers of uninterested reporters, who, trust me, aren't waiting with baited breath to hear the 132nd story pitch they've received that day?
What if you could open your email to find messages from reporters who are working on stories in your area of expertise and who are looking for quotes and information from you to help them write their story?
In other words, they're asking you for help, instead of your trying to talk them into running your story.
So, instead of spending your time trying to get unwilling reporters to listen to you pitch a story, you spend your time writing a few sentences back to a reporter who's actually writing about your topic right now and who needs your input to help them wrap up the story!
Sort of changes the rules, doesn't it!?!
And what if you could get several of those requests every single week from which you could pick and choose those opportunities that sounded best for you?
Wouldn't that change your PR success rate?
Trust me - it makes a huge difference. This creates the ultimate hot prospect who's actually asking you to help them file their story!
That's why I felt it so important, as someone who's trying to help you land additional publicity, for me to tell you about this service...
So what's the name of this service? It's called PR Leads. PR Leads is designed for anyone who wants to substantially increase their PR success rate, who wants to get written up in major newspapers and magazines, and who is interested in substantially reducing the time they waste in unsuccessful pitching of stories.
When you sign up for PR Leads you choose from a list of over 200 different topics, several of which will most likely be perfectly suited for your particular areas of expertise.
Then, any time any of the thousands of reporters who are members of this service write a request for quotes and experts in one of your selected areas, you'll get an email, complete with what information they need, how they want to be contacted, and their contact information.
Here are two sample leads from this service. You can expect to receive leads like this several times a week, and in some categories daily!
Behavior/Lifestyle/Relationships
Being a perfectionist at Work - Investor's Business Daily. For an article about how being too perfect can affect one's work negatively, I'm looking for a list of examples of the habits of perfectionists at work as well as sources who can discuss how those traits can sabotage one's work and how the behavior can be corrected. Need leads by... (contact information has been removed)
Health
Colds, The Flue and the Gym - Men's Fitness. For an article about colds and flu at the gym, I'm looking for experts who can answer the following: Can stress and overzealous training compromise your immune system? Does your blood volume drop over time, leaving you vulnerable? Do healthy athletes suffer more or less during flu season? Should you work out when you're sick? Is the gym an easy place to get sick? What precautions should you take at the gym? How long can germs live on equipment? No phone calls, please. Need leads by... (contact information has been removed)
Can you see the potential here? This could literally change the way you do PR! You sit back and wait for the right opportunities to arrive in your email, then respond with several short sentences describing what you can offer the reporter and your contact information. Then the reporter will call you, you give the information (and ideally pitch them on a future story), and you're on your way to the publicity you desire!
Plus, keep in mind that every time you get written up in one of these publications, the probability that you'll be called upon by other reporters who have read about you increases.
It's like a snowball rolling downhill...
I thoroughly recommend this service to anyone who's serious about seeing their name in print. I strongly encourage you to sign up and try it, and let me know your results!
You can read more about it here
Posted by Don Crowther at 05:13 PM | TrackBack
October 07, 2005
Reward: Airline Magazine Contacts Wanted
We have just finished our latest update of our special report Fly High with Publicity in the In-Flight Magazines which provides a contact list for editors of the major in-flight magazines. Included in this report are the editorial contacts for the in-flight magazines at:
ATA
Air Canada
Alaska Airlines
Aloha Airlines
American Airlines
American Airlines Latin American Routes
American Eagle
British Airways
British Mediterranean Airways operating as British Airways
Continental Airlines
Delta Airlines
Delta Airlines Shuttle
easyJet Airlines
First Air
Frontier Airlines
Hawaiian Airlines
Horizon Air
Island Air
KLM
Latin America Airlines
Midwest Airlines
MyTravel Airlines
MyTravel Lite Airlines
Northwest Airlines
Quantas
SkyWest's Delta Connection
Southwest Airlines
Spirit Airlines
Stratos (Provided to passengers on private jet aircraft)
Swiss Airlines
US Airways
United Airlines
VLM Airlines
Virgin Express
West Jet Airlines
You can see more information about it here
That said, we'd like to offer you a reward.
If you have contact information for editors of magazines from airlines not listed above, we'd like to have it to add to our report. So, we're willing to offer a trade. For every contact you provide (that we don't already have) for an airline's magazine not listed above, we'll give you either one of our $10 reports or $10 off any of our other products.
As you can see, this is simple if you have contacts in these areas. Got Air France? That's a report! How about Japan Airlines, WestJet, Garuda, Air India? Each of those is worth another ten bucks!
So dust off your Rolodex and email us your contacts! We look forward to hearing from you to help make a great product even better!
Posted by Don Crowther at 07:13 PM | TrackBack
November 22, 2004
Identifying Story Hooks: How Good Are You?
Are you a master at identifying story hooks?
Here's a chance to prove it and win something at the same time!
Today, November 22nd, is the official launch date for Corporate-Gift-Baskets.com
This new company is designed to help businesses differentiate themselves with their customers by giving heirloom-quality gifts that the recipients will treasure and remember for years to come.
It's basic message is "why give yet another gift basket that will be discarded and forgotten once the goodies are gone? Give a high-quality gift basket that will become a treasured keepsake, so they'll remember you for years."
This site is being launched with a variety of marketing and public relations programs, including pay per click marketing and a series of 4 press releases to be fed out between now and December 7th.
The first, a new company announcement media release, went out this morning.
Two others will be shopping-related tip sheets, giving different tips on holiday-related shopping.
The other one will be a hook-related story.
That's where you come in.
We'd like to see how good you really are, by giving you a chance to propose a hook-based story for Corporate-Gift-Baskets.com
What we're looking for is a short, 350-words or less, story that is designed to perk the attention of reporters and editors, to get them to call and run an article.
Your winning entry will not only be announced in this newsletter, to receive the praise and adoration of your peers, but, when you win, you will also receive your choice of a $150 gift basket from Corporate-Gift-Baskets.com or $150 in publications / services from 101PublicRelations.com.
The best place to find more information is here: Corporate Gift Baskets
To enter, please email your story to me at don@101PublicRelations.com
The deadline for entry is Monday, November 30th at noon eastern time.
And of course, if you decide to grab a few gift baskets from the site, or to use it for all of your corporate gifts this year, we certainly won't turn you away... :<)
We look forward to seeing your entry!
Don't know a hook from a slice? (I know, that was pretty lame...) Check out our best-selling publications Creating Powerful Press Releases and Press Release Templates that teach you exactly how to effectively write press releases so that they get published.
Posted by Don Crowther at 01:35 PM | TrackBack
September 24, 2004
PR Basics: Editorial Calendars
Most magazines publish editorial calendars. These calendars communicate the topics they plan to address in each issue.
One of the easiest ways to get your company or product covered in a magazine is to tie your pitch to their editorial calendar. For example, if they are writing about your type of product in the July issue, you'll find them much more receptive to your pitch to go into that issue then they will in other months.
Keep in mind, however, that magazines have extraordinarily long lead times, especially trade magazines. It's best to contact them to find out their lead times and specifically when they will be looking for articles for any given issue.
Editorial calendars are often available on the magazine's website, or can be requested by contacting the magazine directly.
Posted by Don Crowther at 04:34 PM | TrackBack
September 10, 2004
Using Anniversaries To Generate PR
Three years ago today, September 10, 2001, the business at Michael Worth's http://www.CrewTags.com was humming right along, selling long lasting a very cool looking customizable luggage tags.
Then 9/11 happened.
Only one sale came in the morning of the 11th, and that was the last one Worth would see for a while. For three months, he, his wife and 2-month old daughter lived off of savings. Hundreds of thousands of airline employees, some of Worth's best customers, lost their jobs. It quickly became obvious that tough times were ahead; "My friends were losing their jobs, and I started to wonder if I was going to lose mine as well."
Fortunately, he didn't have to close his business (a testament to having a nice savings account...) and now, on the third anniversary of 9/11, Crew Tags is not only alive, but thriving. In January of this year, sales finally reached their pre-9/11 level, and August was a record month.
Plus, Crew Tags is just days away from serving its 10,000th customer, a major milestone in the life of a small business.
What does a business do in this situation? Promote it, of course!
(See a sample of Mike's media release then go and buy one of his tags. I have a couple and they're really cool!)
This story has several nice hooks attached. First, it hits on a memorable (though poignant) anniversary for Americans and many other countries. Second, it's associated with a milestone (their 10,000th customer). Third, this is an easy story for a reporter to use as a bridge between Crew Tag's success to the travel industry picking back up again. It's got the markings of a winner.
So now, I, as a reporting observer, have to make a choice - which direction do I take this article? :<)
Let's talk about the power of anniversaries.
Anniversaries can be powerful tools in the hands of publicity seekers for several reasons:
1. They evoke emotional response, sometimes powerfully.
For example, in Russia, young children attending their first day of their equivalent of Kindergarten (on September 1st each year) dress to the nines. Then as they graduate on the last day of 10th grade, they wear replicas of the outfit they wore on that first day they entered school.
Now that would create some powerful emotions! (One more insight, by the way, into the significance of the Russian school hostage takeover on September 1st of this year...)
2. The media is oftentimes looking for stories to tie into anniversaries, giving you a chance to get a stories run which don't have any other newsworthy hook.
Of course, it's important to use caution around certain negative anniversaries, like 9/11, the start of the Iraq war, D-Day, etc. The last thing you would want to do is to create negative publicity at the time you are trying to create positive PR.
Let's look at some anniversaries that could be used as story hooks.
National/Worldwide/Community:
- Any holiday
- Preparation for a holiday (Christmas shopping season)
- Election day
- Stock market highs and lows
- End of school / start of school
- New Year's
- Start of seasons
- Wars, battles, and end of wars
- Olympics
- Major storms, earthquakes, natural disasters
- Well known historical events (ride of Paul Revere, circumnavigation of the world, landing on the moon)
- Birthdays and death dates of major figures
Plus, of course, there is the opportunity to create your own holiday (National Anchovie Pizza Day) or to hook into another pre-existing little-known holiday. For more information on how to create and celebrate your own holiday (it's very easy!) see our special report How to Generate National Publicity From Your Own Holiday
Company Specific:
- Founding
- Major product launches
- Expansions
- Latest president's hiring
- Bankruptcy date (just 3 years since being forced to declare bankruptcy, XYZ Corp. announced...)
- Entry into new geographies
- New factory / building
- Key hires
- Disaster within company
There are literally hundreds of ways to tie into an anniversary. Two of my favorites include:
- How your company promotes your products around x holiday
(Yes, this makes a great story. It adds human interest and tells a story not usually told. So if your 10th great grandfather was on the Nina so your restaurant always has a huge celebration on Columbus day, you've got a story there. If you have to triple staff for the 6 weeks prior to Christmas, but have an ongoing party going in the back room, there's a story there...)
- Coming back from disaster.
This is a great way to tie into otherwise negative events. Anyone in the travel industry can use this right now. But there are other ways too. If several of your key employees got called up to serve in Iraq, yet you found ways to work around the issue, there's a story there. If your company declared bankruptcy but has now come back, you were sold to another company who ran you into the ground, so you've now purchased it back, or if your marketplace disappeared so you had to get another one, there are stories there.
For more information and ideas about how to tie your story into these events, see our special report How to Piggyback Your Story Ideas onto Holidays and Anniversaries
What anniversary in the next 6 months is a logical hook for your story?
Posted by Don Crowther at 02:54 PM | TrackBack
August 27, 2004
Go For The Gold: Pitching Lessons Learned From The Olympics
I, like many of you, have been watching the Olympics. In the midst of all the action and cheering for my favorites, have seen some real PR lessons.
In the U.S. broadcasts (and, I presume, those of many other countries), the reporting of the games has consisted of much more than who ran fastest, jumped highest, and executed the perfect tumbling pass. The reporting also included personal profiles, background stories, and interviews with the key players associated with the athletes in the games.
Thus, when Paul and Morgan Hamm from our own frigid state of Wisconsin were being featured, we saw pictures of the barn where they had originally started experimenting with gymnastics and heard the stories of them literally swinging from the rafters until their father decided that he'd better get them some formal training to keep them from killing themselves. This theme was then repeated frequently throughout the competition.
Then when Paul Hamm won the Men's All Around Gymnastics title we heard the words "It's a gold!... From the attic of a barn in Wisconsin, to the birthplace of gymnastics. One of the greatest comebacks in sports." (Apparently, it's not necessary to use complete sentences in sports reporting.)
These background pieces add life, emotion, and spirt to the event, fleshing out the what we know about an athlete into more than just 60 seconds of their amazing effort, but as a person with a history.
But more importantly for us, these asides give us crystal clear examples of hooks that work with the media and audiences alike.
By paying careful attention, we can take those hooks and build stories around them for our own businesses and causes. This will give us not only more reasons to get in front of the media, but also the possibility of a landing story that will build your company's personality and memorability with the public.
Here are a few of the hooks that I saw being used in the Olympics that you may wish to pitch:
1. The history hook
In the Olympics, this was the most frequently used hook. The Wisconsin barn, the shots of the competitor in past games and the reflections of their coaches and parents all fit into this theme.
PR professionals can also use this hook to great advantage. Every company, product, or cause has a history. Most of them started in some place or situation that could be crafted into an interesting side story about your business. Consider HP's beginning in a Palo Alto garage, Dell's start as a student selling computers from his dorm room (then eventually dropping out), and FedEx's famed beginning as a term paper that only got a C because there would be no demand for such a service.
What's your history? There's a story there!
2. The against all odds hook
This hook is seen in the Olympics in the US beach volleyball player's abdominal injury that almost kept her out of the games, the Iraqi soccer team that was perceived as having no chance to win any games, and the Romanian gymnastic team's dilapidated training facility. Yet still they produced...
Many companies face seemingly insurmountable odds. FedEx shipped just a couple of paid packages on the first day and an early payroll was met through Las Vegas winnings. Chrysler was bailed out of bankruptcy, and many politicians have come from being a total unknown to win major offices.
What challenges have you faced? Have you had a patent denied, been turned down by Wal*Mart, or fought off a major competitor's avalanche of promotions? You've got a story there (and remember, people love an underdog!)
Also, remember that you can use this hook even if you haven't actually won yet. Stories about David fighting Goliath run every day.
3. The first ever hook
The first ever hook happens when something new occurs. Israel's first ever gold medal and the US's first medal in fencing are examples. Quests to overcome longstanding dynasties are also a first story (even if not yet achieved) like the years old record in the high jump and several swimming events.
Whenever you are first with something, be sure to take full advantage of it with the media. You don't even have to be the first worldwide, just the first in your region, like starting the first Starbucks in town.
Again, remember that you don't have to actually achieve the first to get a story from it. If you've got some viable potential to cure cancer, there's definitely a story there before you (hopefully) land the cure - the quest to cure cancer.
4. The power of a team hook
We saw many of these in the games. Certain athletes were on the gymnastics team simply because they could nail a great vault. Other stories profiled the different lives and histories of members of the team, pointing out how that diversity created strength.
This is a very viable story for many of our businesses. The team profiled can be within your company, such as the stories of the group that was tasked to build the new product. It can be outside your company, showing the group of outside customers you consulted to refine the product. Or it can be your partnership with one or more companies to build something that you couldn't do alone.
And finally, let me point out one more thing. As I've watched the Olympics, I've been pulled into stories, have cheered when someone did something amazing, and have been involved.
But last night, I went to my daughter's first volleyball game of the year. They were playing to 25, and had to win by 2. When the game finally ended at 40 to 38, I sat back, soaked with sweat and hoarse from cheering, and I was sitting in the stands! As I waited for the next match to start, I realized that even though this game was played at a whole different level than that seen in the Olympics, I had enjoyed it immensely and had been totally immersed in the experience for the 30 minutes of tie-breaking. This one involved me, those whom I know and love, so I cared.
This brings up the one, probably most powerful pitch:
5. The local hook
You probably saw many reports about your State's members of the Olympic teams and how they performed. This is localization of a broader story to apply it to your specific locale. And of course, the gyms, high schools, relatives, and businesses where those athletes work got publicity in the process.
Never forget the power of localizing a real, powerful national or international news story by showing your involvement in that story. Show how you fit in, how your products and services contribute or could solve that issue, how your employees are affected, etc. This tactic brings a great deal of success, because it ties into news that's already there, as opposed to trying to drum up interest in your own story.
Using pitches like these can be very powerful because they can create much more than the traditional few sentences of publicity. This is the stuff features and real stories are made of!
Did I miss anything? What hooks did you see in the Olympics that I should have included. Drop me a note at don@101PublicRelations.com and let me know!
Need help in refining your pitches to the media? Check out Secrets of Perfect Pitching To Reporters
Posted by Don Crowther at 04:51 PM | TrackBack
Capitalizing on Paul Hamm and his Medal
While we're on the subject of the Olympics, Joan Stewart points out that the debate swirling around U.S. Olympic Gold Medalist Paul Hamm and his disputed title as the men's all-around gymnastics champion offers several pitching opportunities for all of us.
The media love this story. So does the public. In fact, the TV ratings so far for the Olympics have been far greater than predicted. And I'll bet the international debate over Hamm’s Gold Medal continues to be big news through this week and beyond. Here are some ideas on how you can piggyback onto this story:
- What’s the lesson to be learned here? Authors, speakers and experts who can tie their topic into this controversy can weigh in with a letter to the editor or an opinion column in their weekly or daily newspaper.
- The sports magazines already are covering this story in-depth. Don't forget to submit commentary to them, too.
- Will gymnastics get greater recognition in high schools as a result of the Olympics competition?
- Does the controversy fuel the anti-U.S. sentiment around the world? If it does, does it matter?
- If you're an expert who can comment on any aspect of this news event, pitch your expertise. Local TV stations are always looking for the local angle to national and international stories.
- What can parents teach their children about what happened, particularly in the area of sports that have subjective judging criteria?
I'm sure you'll think of more ideas. This story is custom-made for TV because of the great visuals. Learn everything you need to know about how to pitch stories to your local TV stations. Shawne Duperon, a TV reporter, walks you step-by-step through the land mine of pitching in "How to Get on the Local TV News Tomorrow," available as an audio CD.
Posted by Don Crowther at 04:42 PM | TrackBack
July 01, 2004
(Pitching University) Pitching Stories To Competitive Media: To Exclusive or Not To Exclusive...
As we recently mentioned, we're dedicated to helping you work all aspects of your PR business. One key area, too often overlooked in formal training programs is story pitching. That's why we've started the periodic series we're now calling "Pitching University."
One of the biggest dilemmas is deciding when to pitch an idea to just one media outlet as an exclusive, versus pitching to all media on your contact list, including competitors. Even though there are no hard and fast rules, Joan Stewart recommends these 7 tips to help guide you.
- It's generally best to avoid pitching exclusives. Rather, suggest different angles of the same story to different media outlets. For example, if you're publicizing an event, suggest a food angle to the food columnist at your local metropolitan newspaper. Pitch a story about how your event affects tourism and the business community to the local business journal. Pitch a profile story about one of the organizers of the event to the local weekly newspaper in the community where that person lives. Let the media know you are pitching different angles so they understand they all won't have the same story.
- Agree to an exclusive only if the reporter asks for it, you know and trust the reporter, and the media outlet is your Number One choice for placement. Or offer an exclusive if you want the story covered by a particular reporter who you know will do an outstanding job on the story. If offering an exclusive, ask the reporter when you can expect to see the story in print or on the air. The danger in offering an exclusive, or agreeing to one, is having a reporter sit on the story for weeks. So insist on a guarantee.
- Don't pitch anything as an exclusive if it's time-sensitive, or if you need to reach the greatest number of people possible.
- If you're trying to strengthen a relationship with a reporter at a particular media outlet, or a certain reporter once did you a favor and it's your turn to reciprocate, offering an exclusive on something like a feature story will win you points. But make sure that you also offer an occasional exclusive to other competitors, or it will look like you are playing favorites. The media understand that sometimes they will get an exclusive, and sometimes they won't.
- If you have a story that you want placed in a weekly business journal as well as the business section of your local metropolitan newspaper, it's usually best to pitch the business journal first. That's because the story will have a longer shelf life. And business journals always want exclusivity. Metro newspapers typically follow stories they see in business journals. But business journals rarely follow stories they see in the metros.
- When pitching TV stations in the same market, it's OK to pitch them all because they aren't as concerned with exclusivity as print media.
- If you're trying to get yourself or your client booked on a radio talk show, either local or national, pitch them all at once.
If you need more help pitching, you'll find hundreds of tips in these powerful pitching resources:
1. "Secrets of Perfect Pitching To Reporters" - a must-have for everyone concerned with pitching to reporters. Tele-seminar audio tape or CD, available here for just $29.95.
2. eBook: Public Relations Disasters - A Dozen Press Releases From Hell and How to Fix Them (It sounds like it's about press releases, but there's 12 great examples of story pitches in this eBook)
3. Special Report: How to Pitch Reporters Over the Telephone and Make Every Second Count
4. Special Report: How to Make Your Story Pitch Stand Out in the Email Jungle
5. Special Report: How to Write the Perfect Pitch Letter that Convinces an Editor to Write About You
Posted by Angie at 06:35 PM | TrackBack
Pitching Reporters
I got an interesting call this week from one of the subscribers to this newsletter who said something I found interesting:
"I have a degree in PR and have taken a number of courses since, and, after reading your newsletter, have realized that nobody, in any of those classes, ever taught me how to pitch a story. Yet, that's what I spend my life doing... Thanks for all of your great information on pitching reporters."
That conversation made me think back to my PR classes. They taught us how to write a press release, how to find a story angle, and how to handle disasters, but I honestly can't remember ever being taught the key PR skill of pitching stories.
If there's any professorial-types out there, maybe a syllabus change is in order...
But since you, "gentle reader" (I always hated that line!) probably aren't in school anyway, we're just going to have to provide you a real MBA-level course on pitching reporters.
Today's first lesson covers the a few of the basics, then each of you is assigned to pick up a copy of the CD/tape/special reports to learn more:
1. When pitching reporters by phone, e-mail or snail-mail, never use the P word. They hate it when they hear something like this:
"We really need some good publicity for this event and we hope you can help us." Yikes! That's the surest way to turn them off. Speaking of P words, ban the word promotion from your vocabulary too. Reporters don't view themselves as either publicists or promoters. They report the news. Period. That's why you must frame your story idea within the context of news.
2. If pitching a reporter over the telephone, the first words out of your mouth after introducing yourself should be, "Is this a good time to talk?" It shows reporters you understand their business and are respectful of their time. If they are on deadline and cannot talk, NEVER ask the reporter to call you back. Instead, ask for the best time when you can call again.
3. If you're an author, don't even THINK about pitching your book. Reporters don't care about your book. They DO care, however, about trends, recent news events and interesting topics that tie into the book. Once you've hooked them with a great story idea, you can then tell them about what you have written.
4. Master the art of the 30-second pitch. When talking to reporters over the phone or in person, be able to pitch your idea in 30 seconds or less. Explain the angle and why people would care about the story. If you can, quote an interesting statistic.
5. In addition to the 30-second pitch, be prepared with something else to tell the reporter if she likes what she hears and says "Tell me more." Talk about an interesting person, tell a very short story or explain how your idea ties into a trend.
6. Before you pitch, you must be familiar with the media outlet, the types of stories they print or broadcast and whether their audience demographics are a good fit with your story idea.
Now here are the required texts for this course - not really, but I guarantee, if you read/listen to them all, you'll be a much better pitcher:
1. The tips above are part of the more than 50 pitching tips available on the tele-seminar audio tape or CD "Secrets of Perfect Pitching To Reporters" available here for just $29.95.
2. eBook: Public Relations Disasters - A Dozen Press Releases From Hell and How to Fix Them (It sounds like it's about press releases, but there's 12 great examples of story pitches in this eBook)
3. Special Report: How to Pitch Reporters Over the Telephone and Make Every Second Count
4. Special Report: How to Make Your Story Pitch Stand Out in the Email Jungle
5. Special Report: How to Write the Perfect Pitch Letter that Convinces an Editor to Write About You
Posted by Angie at 05:59 PM | TrackBack
Tips for Letting Reporters Experience Your Story, Not Just Write About It.
It was one of my most memorable assignments as a reporter. It was in Ohio, and the daily newspaper where I worked was bringing in "Damon the Hypnotist" who promised to help people lose weight or stop smoking by conducting hypnosis sessions on audiences as big as 150 people. For every $100 admission, Damon would give $50 back to the newspaper’s holiday fund drive.
At the time, I was tipping the scales at well over 170 pounds and saw this as a chance not only to write a great story, but (if Damon’s magic truly worked) to finally see my waistband.
So there I was a few weeks before Christmas in the giant hotel ballroom along with more than 100 other people. The room was dark, and Damon was on stage holding a simple red Christmas ornament that reflected the light from overhead. We were told to focus our eyes on the ornament and listen as his soothing voice took us deep, deep, deeper into a trance.
I felt drowsy, relaxed and very tired and vaguely was aware of the fact that he was suggesting we stay away from sweets and treats. About 20 minutes later, I came to, along with the rest of the audience members. I returned to the newspaper office, wrote a story about the experience, then eventually watched in awe as I lost 15 pounds without hardly even trying.
The following year, when Damon returned, I wrote about my experience again to promote the event. More readers than ever signed up for his hypnosis sessions. It was an event to remember for me and for others in the audience - so much more fun that if I were to simply have attended the hypnosis session as a reporter and watched from the sidelines.
Why You Should Involve Reporters
Any time you can provide a memorable experience for reporters by involving them in your story, you increase the chances of a better story. That’s because reporters aren’t just bystanders recording what they see and hear. They are actual participants who are also recording what they feel, how they are reacting and what they think of the experience. Their stories will more likely be filled with emotion and present a more accurate portrayal of the event. But perhaps the best reason is that it forces reporters to get excited about your story. Excited reporters seldom write dull stories.
At another newspaper where I worked, a local service club sponsored a Cardboard Boat Regatta every Fourth of July. Local companies made boats out of cardboard, then competed for prizes by paddling them down a river. I never covered the event. But if I had, I would have asked to be part of one of the teams so I could experience what it was like to paddle for my life as I felt the cardboard beneath me getting soggier by the minute and, possibly, collapsing.
Want more info on involving reporters in your stories? Click below.
Special Report #42:
Tips for Letting Reporters Experience Your Story, Not Just Write About It
Posted by Angie at 05:45 PM | TrackBack
June 29, 2004
How to Write Crisp, Compelling Letters to the Editor that Promote Your Product, Service or Favorite Cause
Letters to the editor are one of the fastest, easiest and least time-consuming ways to catch the media’s attention and spread your message to the greatest number of people possible. Unlike news stories that are written by reporters, letters allow you to state an opinion, offer an alternative viewpoint, heap praise, or move someone to action - in your own words. That means there’s a much smaller chance that the facts will be wrong or that your message will be twisted or diluted as it might be in a regular news story.
Why You Should Write Letters
Write letters to the editor frequently for the following reasons:
--To keep your name in front of the public. Even if you’re already receiving great publicity, use letters to the editor to supplement the stories that are written about you.
--To build or maintain a high profile. Because well-written letters are so easy to get printed, you can use them as part of your campaign to build your celebrity image, increase your profile in the community or simply to become better known, and to be seen as an expert.
--To set the record straight when a story written about you is inaccurate. Of course, you should ask the newspaper to print a correction. But don’t hesitate to follow up with a letter to the editor correcting the error in your own words. One of the idiosyncrasies of media people is that editors will sometimes balk when you ask for a correction, but they won’t give you a hard time if you ask that they print your letter to set the record straight.
--To get your share of ink when a newspaper or magazine writes about your competitor and never calls you. When I hear people grumble that a magazine contacted all their competitors for a story, but not them, I suggest they write a letter to the editor, or a longer opinion column, commenting on the story and offering a viewpoint that the reporter did not mention in the story. I’ve seen people get four and five times more ink this way, than had the reporter called them in the first place.
Cllick below if you'd like to learn more about building your PR presence by writing powerful letters to the editor.
Special Report #4: How to Write Crisp, Compelling Letters to the Editor that Promote Your Product, Service or Favorite Cause
Posted by Angie at 07:46 PM | TrackBack
Secrets to Becoming a Columnist in Newspapers and Magazines
Landing a coveted position as a columnist in newspapers and magazines is the dream of millions of people who think they know how to string a noun and a verb together. After all, columnists are often recognized as celebrities in their own communities and industries. They can promote themselves as experts, which leads to more business. And writing a column is downright glamorous.
If only they knew. I wrote a weekly column when I worked as a newspaper editor. Trust me when I tell you that despite my strong writing background and keen knowledge of local events, the job often became tedious and difficult. Coming up with compelling topics week after week was a chore. Even worse was writing a weekly column and getting little if any response from readers.
Yet good columnists have their rewards. Columnists can land lucrative consulting jobs because their columns give them instant credibility. Columns can help you draw traffic to your web site. They lead to paid speaking engagements. And they provide valuable reprints for your media kit. If you suddenly find yourself unemployed, showing a potential employer that you’ve written for your industry publication might help you land another job that’s even better than the one you lost.
This special report is written not for freelance writers who want to get paid for their work, but for the millions of business people and non-profit executives who simply want to appear regularly, or even occasionally, in a newspaper or magazine by writing a column for free and getting all that valuable publicity.
How to Get Started
--Understand that from the perspective of the publication, you are not writing a column to promote yourself. You are writing it to offer valuable, entertaining, compelling information to readers.
--Make sure you are an expert in your topic. If you’ve suddenly taken up gardening and want to write a gardening column for your weekly newspaper, you will have little luck convincing the editors that you know what you’re talking about. Be prepared to offer all the reasons why you are the best expert on a particular topic.
--Identify your voice. That is, the style of writing you are most comfortable with. For example, you can write a humor column, an "ask the expert" column, a "behind the scenes" political column, or a down-home, folksy column about the do-good things that people are doing in your community. Be ready to explain in 15 seconds or less what your column is about, your voice and why it will benefit readers.
--Identify the publications that would be the best fit for your topic. Know the demographics of their readers. You can do that by calling the advertising department and asking for their media kit. The kit, primarily created to help advertisers, will include valuable information about things such as average annual income, education level and geographic location.
--Start small. Don’t expect to get the attention of your local metropolitan newspaper if you’ve never been published. Sometimes you must start at the bottom, with your local weekly newspaper, your monthly business magazine or one of several newsletters that specialize in your topic. If you can land a column there and it’s well-received by readers, you can eventually work your way up the ladder and become a columnist for a larger publication.
--Identify a need. You must be able to explain to a publication why they need your column. If, for example, you are an expert on how to job-hunt, and your community has a high unemployment rate, your column might be a good fit.
--Don’t compete with syndicated columnists or with on-staff columnists. Make sure the publication isn’t already using a columnist who covers your topic, or you’ll waste your time. Syndicated columns are cheap, and the columnists often have more celebrity status than you do.
Click below to get a special report containing tons of additional information on how to land a columnist gig:
Secrets to Becoming a Columnist in Newspapers and Magazines
Posted by Angie at 07:09 PM | TrackBack
Story Ideas To Pitch
Summer's just arrived, and so are summer story opportunities. Here's a few that you may want to pitch to your local media:
- Anything patriotic, focusing on July 4th, our troops overseas, even the elections
- How to stay cool (especially if your product or service provides unique solutions to this problem)
- Summer business stories - how does the weather affect your business
- Back-to-School stories, particularly trends in things such as fashions (it's not too early)
- Tips from lawn and garden experts on how to care for lawns that are parched from summer's scorching heat
- Safety tips on how drivers can pay closer attention to the road with kids out playing in their yards
- Vacation tips
- Picnic and barbecue ideas
- With interest rates rising, how will they affect you, your business and your customers?
You'll find more than 100 story ideas similar to these on the audio CD titled "103 Sizzling Story Ideas from July Through December." It's $29.95 plus shipping and includes a downloadable handout with all 103 ideas.
A great companion to this product is 116 "WOW!" Story Ideas From January Through June
Posted by Angie at 05:00 PM | TrackBack
June 25, 2004
Expert Spokespersons
Al Rothstein, media coach, remembers the attorney who was called on repeatedly by an Atlanta TV station to provide expert commentary during the many months of the OJ Simpson trial. By agreeing to serve as the station's expert spokesperson, the attorney received thousands of dollars worth of free air time that helped build his practice and establish his expertise.
When the jury returned to the courtroom after deliberating only a few hours, the attorney predicted on the air that Simpson would be found guilty simply because it was a long trial and a short deliberation.
If your prediction or guess proves wrong, Rothstein said, simply explain how you reached the conclusion you did. Back it up with facts. Explain the background, circumstances or history that led to your prediction. And understand that you'll usually be forgiven, not only by the public but by the media.
Likewise, when John F. Kennedy Jr., his wife Carolyn Bessette and her sister Lauren Bessette were feared dead after debris from their small plane was found off Martha's Vineyard on July 17, 1999, it was only a matter of hours before CNN, the TV networks, radio stations and other media had tracked down dozens of experts.
All day Saturday and Sunday of that weekend, they not only commented on the crash but ventured guesses as to what had happened. They came from the military, the U.S. Weather Service, the Coast Guard, and from the ranks of flight instructors and expert pilots who had thousands of hours of flight time and were willing to predict what the investigators would find.
Kennedy, they said, was a relative novice pilot flying a high-performance aircraft over the ocean on a nearly moonless night as a summer haze hung over the Northeast. They called that a dangerous combination of factors. Some said he was likely flying into what pilots call a "black hole" while searching through the haze for the first pinpoints of light on Martha's Vineyard. It was clear, they said, that Kennedy was flying into conditions that have lured many other pilots to their deaths.
Some of those who ventured guesses as to what happened had media training, and others did not. The common thread, however, was their ability to predict what investigators would find--and do so convincingly even if they thought they might be wrong. That's the key difference between a media spokesperson, who is supposed to stick to just the facts, and the expert spokesperson, who shouldn't be afraid to look into the crystal ball.
Such is the life of an expert spokesperson. You get to reap the rewards of all that free publicity. But you will be asked to make predictions from time to time, so you often run the risk of being wrong.
Even so, Rothstein still believes that serving as an expert spokesperson is well worth the time and effort. The media do thousands of interviews each day and are always looking for new sources to keep their reports fresh and balanced. Those expert spokespersons must be accessible. They must know how to use sound bites. They also must know how to sound authoritative and unwavering in their opinion, even when they know deep down that they too could be wrong--in front of tens of thousands of people.
Al Rothstein, a media coach who trains experts on how to be media magnets, was Joan Stewart's guest during a recent telephone seminar and shared dozens of tips on how to position yourself as the type of expert who the media go to again and again for background, commentary and predictions. He also explained what expert spokespersons should do when they're wrong, plus lots more advice on how to play this key role with the press.
If you who wants to be an expert spokesperson, or need to have on on your staff, you can learn all the inside tactics from the one-hour tele-seminar "How to be an Expert Spokesperson the Media Love." It's available on Audio CD.
Posted by Angie at 12:19 PM | TrackBack
June 23, 2004
Email Story Pitches
Jump in your local time machine with me and let's travel back 20 years...
You've got an emergency story that your local reporter has agreed to run tomorrow, if you get him the copy by 2:00. You start by looking for the copywriter write the story. But he's on vacation, so you decide to let the English major at the front desk (who's been begging to get into marketing) write it. While he slowly pecks away at the typewriter and slogs through a pint of whiteout, you pace.
By the time you get the copy back ("It's perfect!", he says), you find that it's the quality of a "What I Did Over Summer Vacation paper" someone would write in the third grade. So you blow off your lunch and slog through it yourself. By now, it's late, so you decide you have to courier it over to get it delivered before the deadline. The courier, in his zeal to get it there on time, spills hot cocoa in his lap and swerves causing a 3-car pileup. He's escorted to the police station. The story pitch does get delivered about 3 hours later (covered in cocoa). You're relieved...until you find out that not only did they reject your story because you missed the deadline but they decided to cover the accident instead, mentioning it was caused by an overzealous courier delivering a story pitch for your company!
Obviously this was not a realistic representation of how PR really works. But, it does illustrate one major tool that we have in our arsenal today... email!
Believe it not, most reporters and editors really like using email to receive stories and pitches. The reasons they prefer them are numerous: - There typically is not a lot of "fluff" in an email - It's easier to delete an email than to say no to you when you call to phone pitch (this, of course is a two-edged sword, but one we have to live with) - If they don't have time to review your pitch immediately, they can wait until they do have time to respond. - They can usually tell if the message is high quality or not simply by looking at the subject line. - They can save their trash can space for those pitches that come in via the mail
There are other reasons. But one of the best ways to get a story pitch out in today's market is to send it via email. It travels at the speed of light, costs approximately zero dollars, and doesn't soak up spilled cocoa unless printed (don't try this with unprinted emails).
One key to success is to use your subject line effectively. Remember that your pitch hits their box not only with all of the other pitches, but also with their regular and spam email. So yours has to stand out without sounding like spam. We usually spend half of the time spent writing a pitch working on the subject line alone -it's not something to jot down in a few seconds after you've slaved over everything else.
In your headline, it's important to:
- Describe of what you're pitching as clearly as possible
- Sound like you're providing great value
- Avoid multiple exclamation points
- those get caught in spam filters, and your reporter will never have a chance to see your pitch
- Personalize it to their needs
- Not forget to use the combination of your from line and your story pitch
- it's usually best to have your from line be something other than your email address when pitching stories, so they know who it's coming from
- Avoid words like sex, new, exclusive, revolutionary, powerful, etc.
- Not use all caps
- they're hard to read, and they look like spam
Want to know more about how to pitch via email? Click below:
How to Make Your Story Pitch Stand Out in the Email Jungle
Posted by Angie at 04:25 PM | TrackBack
How to Write the Perfect Pitch Letter That Convinces an Editor to Write About You
You’ve called your local newspaper three times in the last year to suggest an article about your organization. But each time, you reached gruff editors or reporters on deadline. They promised to call you back but never did. Or perhaps you tried to call your TV station to suggest a local feature story, but you kept getting shuffled off to someone who was too busy to help you.
Another idea down the drain. Don’t let it happen again. It’s time to send a pitch letter that convinces them to not only return the call but to ask for an interview and a photo.
Why a Pitch Letter?
When I worked as a newspaper editor, one of my biggest frustrations was people who called to suggest a story idea, but couldn’t explain to me why my readers should care. When I asked them why we should write about them, they would respond with ridiculous answers like "Because we’ve never been in the paper before or I’d like to surprise my mother with an article about me." Even worse were people who had no clue about what kinds of stories we covered. If they did suggest something I was interested in, they sometimes didn’t have all the facts or details at hand.
Also, more often than not, the people with the best ideas seemed to call on deadline. I usually asked them to send me a pitch letter detailing their idea. Then I could spend a few minutes reading it, and take a little more time to decide if I was interested, or if there was a better angle that we could pursue. If I liked the idea immediately, I could pass the letter along to the reporter who covered that beat without having to explain all the details of what the story idea was about.
Unless you know they want to be called, it’s best that you mail a pitch letter, regardless of whether you’re dealing with print or broadcast media. If you call, you’ll have only one chance to convince an editor that your idea is worth considering. That pitch should take no more than 15-30 seconds. So why risk being tongue-tied, or reaching a crabby editor who really doesn’t want to talk to you?
With a written pitch letter, you can get in front of an editor twice - once with the letter, then again when you make your follow-up phone call. A pitch letter doesn’t need to tell the whole story. All it needs to do is attract the interest of an editor or news director. That sounds easier than it is.
Here’s how to make the process a little smoother...check out:
Special Report #7: How to Write the Perfect Pitch Letter that Convinces an Editor to Write about You
Want help with article writing, but don't know how to get it?
Special Report #6: How to Write How-to Articles that Position You as an Expert
Posted by Angie at 03:42 PM | TrackBack
How to Identify Story Ideas Within Your Company or Organization
Does this sound like you?
You can't understand why the business reporter at your local newspaper has quoted your competitor in five separate stories but hasn't called you once.
Your company sends out more than two dozen press releases every year about new employees and promotions, but they result in little more than a few lines of type.
The 12-page speech your boss wrote when he spoke at the local Rotary Club luncheon would have made an excellent column for the local business magazine. But after you mailed it to the editor, you never heard a word.
If your attempts at media coverage have fallen flat, quit grumbling and start taking a proactive approach to free publicity by identifying interesting, compelling story ideas the media need. Yes, NEED. Newspapers, magazines and trade publications have hundreds of thousands of column inches to fill. TV and radio stations have hundreds of hours of news and community interest programs they must broadcast. The number of media outlets is greater than ever, and competition is fierce for advertising dollars, viewers and subscribers. The secret to savvy media relations is knowing exactly what they want, then giving it to them.
Here are tickler questions designed to help you identify the best story ideas within your company or organization:
What’s Different?
Is your company doing anything unique or different than your competitors? Examples: A candy store that offers free samples to customers. A web site company that gives its customers discount coupons good for a web site update for every referral a customer sends. An agency that buys creative toys for its employees to use during brainstorming sessions to get their own creative juices flowing.
The Local Angle
Are you the local angle to a national or regional event? During the war in Afganistan, many local newspapers and TV stations ran stories about people in their own communities who kept in touch with their relatives in the war zone. During the Columbine shootings in Colorado, newspapers interviewed local child psychologists and counselors who offered tips on how parents can spot warning signs in their own children. Read more in
Special Report #35: How to be the Local Angle to National Stories
Piggyback on a News Event
After severe rains in Milwaukee a few years ago, a Minnesota company got several minutes of free advertising on a Milwaukee radio station by talking to the drive-time radio host about their special pump that removes standing water and moisture in the air. The host interviewed a company representative and gave out the company's toll-free number. Read more in
Special Report #37: How to Tie Your Product, Service, Cause or Issue to the Weather
Piggyback on Trends
Do you sell a product or service that ties into a national trend? A credit counseling agency might offer themselves as a source for stories about the whopping credit card debt wracked up by college students, many of whom have their own credit cards. A non-profit agency that advocates safety for women can promote its community classes by offering the media tips on how businesswomen can be less susceptible to theft of laptop computers in crowded places like airports.
Piggyback on a Holiday
Is your company doing something different on a particular holiday? Are you a management consultant who can suggest ways that companies can keep their employees productive during the holidays? Have you determined that it's more efficient for your business to simply close down during the week between Christmas and New Year's? If you're of Irish descent and give all your employees a half day off on St. Patrick's Day, that story might interest the media. Remember that the week between Christmas and New Year's is the slowest news week of the year, and an excellent time to seek coverage. A Wisconsin company got a six-minute story on the local TV station after it announced at the annual Christmas party that every employee was being treated to a trip to Disney World. Read more in
Special Report #14: How to Piggyback Your Story Ideas onto Holidays and Anniversaries
For more information pick up a copy of
Special Report #5: How to Identify Story Ideas Within Your Company or Organization
Posted by Angie at 02:24 PM | TrackBack
June 22, 2004
How to Make Your Story Pitch Stand Out in the Email Jungle
One of the keys of getting your stories into the press is to get them noticed by the reporters. And in today's world, that means email.
But how do you get your story to stand out in the email jungle. Remember, reporters are just like us, they get hundreds of spam email messages per day, plus all of the press releases that people send to them. Unfortunately, most pitches get lost in the daily "I've got to get rid of all of these trash email" sessions.
But there are ways of cutting through the fog (sticking with the holiday theme...) just like Rudolph's nose to get your email noticed.
Special Report #26: How to Make Your Story Pitch Stand Out in the Middle of the Email Jungle teaches exactly how to do that. In it you'll learn:
- Why email pitches can be more successful than a phone pitch
- The 5 elements of an e-mail pitch
- Pitching blunders to avoid
- What journalists say they want to see in a good pitch
- How to handle news releases when you're pitching an idea and sending the release
- The best way to follow-up
Posted by Angie at 01:03 PM | TrackBack
Secrets of Perfect Pitching To Reporters
Dan Janal interviews Joan Stewart during this one-hour telephone seminar available on Tape or CD for only $29.95.
You will learn:
The worst mistake people make when pitching reporters
The first thing you should say to reporters as soon as they answer the phone
What to ask them if they don't have time to talk to you
The one question you must NEVER ask reporters
The one word you must NEVER use during your pitch
Why you must pitch quickly, succinctly and powerfully
4 key elements of a good pitch
The one question reporters ask themselves when they're listening to your pitch
What to say if you make your pitch and reporters say "Tell me more."
How to practice your 30-second pitch
What to say if you must leave a voicemail message
2 things to do to score points with a reporter you don't know
Why it's better to pitch to reporters instead of editors
Who to ask for if you're pitching to TV or radio
Disadvantages to pitching over the telephone
Pitfalls to avoid with telephone pitching
How to find out which pitching method a reporter prefers
What to say if reporters say "no" to your idea
A powerful question you can ask reporters before you hang up
The one word to use in your pitch that will get the media's attention
Why you should never try to get reporters interested in your book
Why authors should seek in addition to a book review
The magic phrase that will catch the attention of local reporters
6 tips for pitching by e-mail
The dirty little secret reporters don't want you to know
How to decide which subject line to use in your e-mail pitches
A tool you can use to get publicity while correcting errors in earlier stories
How to pitch a story about a new start-up company
Ideas for piggybacking your story idea onto the calendar
The best month of the year to pitch story ideas
The slowest week of the year when reporters want to hear from you
The journalistic phrase to use if you are suggesting a story idea that results from an earlier story they covered
How to use editorial calendars
Four sources that will help you locate editorial calendars
How to verify whether a reporter who you're pitching still covers your industry
Ideas for pitching how-to articles
3 questions to ask editors if they want your article
The 3 things to include in the last paragraph of each article you submit to the media
When to follow up a phone call with an e-mail
How to find out the best and worst time to contact individual reporters
What you must do when reporters want to interview you
6 tips on how to write a simple tip sheet
How to be so valuable to reporters that they keep coming back to you
To order this report on cassette or CD, use the link above.
Posted by Angie at 11:55 AM | TrackBack
Pitching Reporters Over the Phone
You've got a terrific story idea. You've researched the magazine you're pitching to, and you know that the reporter doesn't mind story pitches over the phone.
You dial her number and wait patiently for her to answer. When you hear her voice, you suddenly freeze up. you've rehearsed what you'll say at least a dozen times, but she sounds busy and angry. So you start babbling.
"What exactly do you want?" she asks brusquely. Suddenly, you realize you've blown it. Another opportunity lost forever.
Pitching reporters over the telephone is one of the most difficult tasks in media relations. That’s because the reporter on the other end of the line can be easily distracted by others in the newsroom, might be working on deadline, or just doesn't want to talk you. You make the problem worse when you call unprepared, don't have notes in front of you and try to pitch "off the cuff," then get rattled when you hear a response you aren't expecting.
Here’s a roadmap on how to do it right. The best way to start is to assume that you will have no more than 30 seconds to explain who you are, why you are calling, and to convince the reporter that your story idea is worth pursuing. Most people have no idea how to talk to reporters over the phone. Many of them launch into long-winded explanations. Others beg and plead for coverage. Others simply present lousy ideas, then act offended when the reporter isn't interested. Your story pitch might be the twentieth that day. And if you want coverage, it had better stand out from all the rest.
It’s time to create the "30-Second Pitch." Six key elements comprise the pitch:
1. Identify who you are and why you are calling.
2. Ask if this is a good time to talk. If it isn't, ask the reporter to suggest the best time you should call back. Never ask a reporter to return your call. If it is a good time to talk, proceed to the next step.
3. Let the reporter know you are familiar with the publication or with stories she writes about.
4. Explain the idea in a sentence or two.
5. Explain quickly why readers will care.
6. Ask if the reporter is interested.
The "30-Second Pitch" Sounds like this:
"Newsroom, Jane Smith speaking."
"Good morning Jane, this is Maria Ricardo calling to suggest a story idea. Is this a good time to talk?"
"Yes, but I only have half a minute. Can you make it quick?"
"Jane, I know you cover the minority community here in Chicago. I teach English as a second language at the South Side Community Center. We are receiving twice the number of requests from the business community for tutoring in local factories. In fact, we are adding four counselors, directly as a result of U.S. Census figures that show a huge increase in the Hispanic population. Your readers might want to know about this in case they need tutoring at their companies, too."
Jane: "That’s interesting. I'd like to talk about this when I have more time. How about tomorrow? Can you call back then, say sometime between 10 a.m. and noon?"
"Sure, I'd be glad to. Thanks for your time."
In Special Report #25: How to Pitch Reporters Over the Telephone and Make Every Second Count , you will learn:
- How to pitch a print publication vs. TV
- What to do when the reporter likes your idea
- What do to when the reporter says "no thanks"
- What to say when the reporter says "tell me more"
- How to pitch when you want to write an article
Posted by Angie at 10:04 AM | TrackBack
Pitching a Story Idea Through Email
As I'm sure you're aware, email is becoming increasingly important as a way to pitch reporters and distribute press releases. It's extremely efficient. It's fast, and can pass through more terrain in one second than the postal service can pass through in a week.
But there's one important thing that you need to know - if you think you get lots of junk email, you should be in the media. They probably get triple the amount of sp^am email that the normal person gets, plus they also get tons of press releases and story pitches that we don't normally receive.
So what does that mean for us?
It means that you've probably got less than a second to get their attention, and they probably making that judgment from the subject line, not the email itself.
So you'd better write a great email subject line, or all of your work hits the trash bin!
So how do you write a good subject line?
1. Avoid the things that classify email as junk. Things like sensational claims, no subject line, lots of exclamation points, etc. create the immediate perception that this is junk.
2. Avoid the terms that are frequently used in junk email - words like...well, if we put them here, this email will never get through your filter systems, but if you open up your trash folder in your email program, I bet you'll see dozens of great bad examples.
3. Don't use words or phrases like: "Press Release", "Media Release", "Info for you", "Story Idea", or your company name. These seem to be instant deletions. Instead, try doing a one line story pitch in the subject line. How's that for an attention getter?! They're more likely to open it.
While these are only the minor rules, there is a lot more to keep in mind when crafting the email news pitch. Not all of it can be covered here. But, we can certainly point you in the direction of the special report that can cover the whole of the material.
Special Report #26: How to Make Your Story Pitch Stand Out in the Email Jungle
This teaches you all the little nuances that help an email get read by journalists and help you to build your PR prowess. You can order this report for only $9. Just use the link above and you can be writing email pitches that are perfect in very little time.
Posted by Angie at 09:52 AM | TrackBack
When's The Best Time To Pitch a Story?
For those of you who are new to the list, we have
discovered that many people have never been taught how to
do one of the three most important things in public
relations - pitching stories. So we run a occasional
version of our Pitching University. This issue is one of
those...
When's the best time to pitch a story?
There is a definitive answer...
That answer is: "it depends."
- It depends on what else is occupying the attention of
the editor / reporter to whom you're trying to pitch like
the start of a new war, an Enron-type debacle, their
spouse having a baby, etc.
- It depends on whether it's been a slow news day so
they're dying for something to fill the space
- It depends on whether their desk is full, or empty at
the moment.
In other words, we don't have control over lots of things.
Here's what we can control:
1. Don't contact them within 2 hours before their
deadline, unless your story is so hot that it may cause
them to drop the story they're writing now and replace it
with yours (trust me, this will only be true about 0.001%
of the time).
2. Don't contact them while they're at lunch
3. Don't contact them on Mondays - have you ever noticed
that Mondays are the hottest days for everyone to get
started on their week, so the phone rings off the hook
every Monday?
So when's the best time?
Our favorite time is Tuesday morning, well before
deadline.
How do you find out what their deadline is?
How about asking them? Remember, the best way is to
create a relationship with your favorite local reporter.
Once you've got that relationship going, it's a great
question to ask.
One great way to ask is in a thank you call/email for
their running something on you. (You are doing that,
right?)
As part of that call, it works great to say "by the way,
if I have something else interesting in the future, I want
to make sure that I don't call you when you're right on
deadline. What's the best time for me to call?" That way
you find out what really works for them.
Try it, it may help!
