Ever sat in the Doctor’s waiting room, flicked through a magazine, spotted a competitor quoted in a feature and thought, “I should have been interviewed for that, our business has a far superior product/customer service/etc.”?

If you feel like the best-kept secret in your industry, and you want to stop communicating one-to-some and start sending your message to thousands, it’s time you had a look at generating your own publicity.

Let me share a few best-kept secrets that only PR pros know:

1 - Publicity isn’t rocket science, it just seems like it is

Put simply, publicity is the art of getting journalists to write or talk about your products, services and company – without paying them to do it. And the best way to achieve that is to, well, ask them. How you ask them can be an art in itself (more later) but really, that’s all you’re doing. Hardly rocket science.

2 - The reporter often prefers to hears from you, the business owner, not a PR rep

Usually, whenever reporters have direct contact with the business owner - sans PR agency – they relish the opportunity to get the story directly from the horse’s mouth so to speak.  Which is not to say a PR agency can’t be of great benefit to you guiding your message and maximising your opportunity to get in front of the journalist. But, if PR agency fees are beyond your reach, don’t let it stop you. Do it yourself.

One email or phone call with the right pitch to the right reporter can mean your product gets written about or you get interviewed. With publicity you are no longer communicating one to a few, but one to thousands, potentially millions. You also gain ‘expert’ status, with all the associated sales credibility.

3 - When you’re pitching, tailor it to the outlet’s audience – not what you want to talk about

If you want to get your own publicity, you have to stop thinking like a business owner and start thinking like a reporter. Research the media outlet before you even make contact. The number one pet peeve of journalists is being contacted by people who have no idea what they cover. Remember, reporters don’t exist to write/talk about your business, their job is to report on something of interest to their readers. So make sure you know the readership, understand what you have that’s of story value, research the right contact, then pick up the phone or shoot them a succinct email.

Journalists don’t always have the capacity to find the info on their own. Deadlines and resources are often tight. You need to make your information and expertise as easy and accessible as possible for a journalist so they can find a way to cover your company. Remember it’s not an advert. Try and put what you do into a framework. Here are a few examples of popular ‘media hooks’:-

New Product / Service / Book - The media is always interested in something new. If you’re launching a new (unique) product or service, you already have a ready-made angle.

Tie-in With Current Trend - Keep abreast of trends by following stories in the media and see how you can tie-in. After September’s economic upheaval last year, the media ran plenty of stories on saving money and budgeting.

Holiday - for example, an up market restaurant donating Christmas dinner to needy families.

Useful Advice  - the public is always on the look out for information to make their lives easier or better. e.g.: health tips, financial planning.

You may also interested in:

1. How to Pitch Your Business to the Media
2. How to Promote Your Business in the Media using PR
3. Advertising in the local paper or a magazine is easier than you think.

This article is what you should know about your business before pitching your story to a journalist (that no one else will tell you). 

There are a lot of reasons why people want to hear about your business, and they are all about those people – not you.

How often do you ask your customers what they love about you? Their answers can be an enlightening insight into how your business is perceived.

Similarly, your success securing media coverage is dependent on your ability to think about what journalists and their readers find interesting, recognising that great news for your business might not be of any interest to anyone else outside your immediate family.

However, and here’s the twist, by identifying the pain points that might bring clients to your portfolio, you can begin to suss out hot topics or new story angles you can weave your business into in order to achieve media interest.

Remember, your publicity is all about them – the end-reader or listener. The journalist serves as a gate-keeper to that audience, the final decision maker who decides if your story will ‘get a run’.

What have you done that’s ‘new’ lately?

Do you have a new product or service? Is it new to you or to the market in general? Rather than shouting all the features and benefits of your new offering, have a think about what it is that isn’t already available to the market and pitch your story all about that unique selling point.

For example, if you offer mobile dog grooming especially for show dogs, rather than simply promote your service and battle to stand out from all the others dog groomers, instead pitch a story about the pressures on participants on the dog show circuit. You come across as an expert (you’re at the shows, you’ve seen the pressures first hand) and readers make connections based on that.

The difference is subtle, but important. Publicity and PR is about influencing opinions, which then reflect positively back to you.

Forget how fast, how bright, how shiny. It’s the why!

I always say, don’t focus on your widget’s features. Instead, get publicity for clients who are doing something amazing with one of your widgets. Focus on why your widget has helped them, not how. Highlight their achievements to a trade publication and keep the story about the client. Not only will you strengthen client relationships, your product will be shown in the exact light it should to attract other potential clients.

If you’ve had a phenomenal spike in sales, work out the why. That you’ve made more sales is not news in itself. But if you address why all of a sudden people are coming to you, you can find your news hook. People may be seeking particular services or buying in a particular area or taking advantage of a particular grant or loophole. Find out why and develop your news story from there.

Go niche as often as you can

Finally, your products might be wonderful but not necessarily stand-out unique. That’s not to say you have to miss out on publicity. Research the media your target audience would read or listen to. Call up the media organisations and ask for a list of upcoming features. Then try your hand at placing your products as part of a wider feature or buyer’s guide – or send them to a stylist for inclusion in a photoshoot with other products. Register with www.sourcebottle.com.au, a free subscription service that emails 'call outs' for sources from journalists and bloggers.

The media opportunities are out there, so put yourself up in lights.

You may also interested in:

1. Publicity Secrets Revealed – Why doing it yourself is easier than you think
2. How to Promote Your Business in the Media using PR
3. What is Digital and Social Media?

How can you shine a light on your business without spending vast sums of money on advertising? Well, a good way to build your brand awareness is through Public Relations, by getting free editorials on your business. The advantage of editorials is that they cost less and are more credible and engaging than adverts as they are under the by line of the journalist. 

There are some fantastic PR agencies that can get coverage for your brand, but if your budget will not stretch to an agency, then you can give it a go yourself! 

The Right Media

First, you need to find the right media that will target your market, so look at all your local publications.  What magazines and newspapers come free through your door? What are your local newspapers and magazines?   There are so many magazines, newspapers and even TV and radio, the list is endless. 

Right Articles

Then you need to look at what kind of articles and stories the media feature. Would an article on you or your business fit in that publication? Do you have a great event that they need to know about for the social pages? Do you have a good hook? Is it newsworthy?   

Right a Media Release

Then draft your media release or even an article, make sure it has a dynamic headline, include the, who, what, when, where and why and make sure it is professional with the most important information at the beginning of the release. Don’t forget correct grammar and no spelling mistakes. The release is presenting your business and you want to come across as a professional enterprise. Tailor the release for the section you want to target, for example if you own a restaurant, target the food supplement, beauty salons or day spas should target the beauty pages etc. 

Right Contact

Next, you need to find out who the right contact is.  In the magazine or newspaper there is always a section detailing the publishing house and contact details - it is normally at the front of the publication.  Look in this column and make a note of the publishing house telephone number and look for a suitable contact. Your contact needs to be the features editor or the journalist that writes the lifestyle section, failing that, the editor or just ask for the news desk. 

Prep & Pitch Your Story

Now that you know the publications and the journalist you want to contact, review the press release, and localise it for your market. You need to add local information.  Also, make sure you give all your details with your address, email, website and contact telephone numbers. 

Once you have the right contact and the press release or article, think about how you will ‘pitch’ your story (that is when you call the journalist), practice and then make that call. Tell the journalist that you have a great local business story; give them a brief overview of the story and offer to send them a press release to look at.  If they're interested they will then ask you to email the release and Volia!  You have ‘sold in’ your first media piece.  Make sure you get their correct email address and make sure you send the information immediately. You must send the release within one hour of speaking to them on the phone, that way your conversation will still be fresh in the journalists mind.  

Be Patient

Then be patient….. and hopefully within a few weeks you might get your first piece of publicity.  However, no matter how great your story is and how you have ‘pitched it’ there is no obligation for the journalist or publication to cover it.  Never call or pester a journalist to ask why they haven’t covered it or bug them about featuring it - this is the best way to NOT get your stories covered in the future. 

So give it a go and Good Luck!

You may also interested in:

1. How to Pitch Your Business to the Media
2. Publicity Secrets Revealed – Why doing it yourself is easier than you think
3. What is Digital and Social Media?