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and those of you who are looking for something for nothing, a cheap bargain basement deal, bye bye... cya...
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and those of you in denial... all I can say is it ain't just a river in Egypt...
Published on Massage Business University website
For awhile now I have been saying that I am going to write an article called Oprah isn't for everyone. I changed the title but this is what I wanted to say. Everyone says they want to be on Oprah. It's like everyone says that they want to win the lottery. Folks, I hate to be the one to burst the bubble, but it simply ain't true. Let me explain.
A Gallup poll indicates that 95% are more afraid of public speaking than of death. So when it comes time to promote your practice (and your book, seminar, or business), you start feeling squeamish about the glare of the limelight. Others may be in denial and suck it up, full steam ahead. But little glitches happen. You have hired ten publicists and none of them works out. Someone always screws up. You don’t get the media interviews you think you want, you can’t seem to write good press releases or send them out. The dog bites, your child spills grape juice, a world crisis erupts that pre-empts your news. Many, if not most people fit into this category.
And then there are the media hogs who eat up the limelight for breakfast. The Brittney Spears, OJ's and Lindsay Lohans and other celebrities who are addicted to media coverage and gotta be in the limelight. They will do ANYTHING to grab the headlines. And too often, do get caught with their pants down.
Finally, there are the rare go-getters like Kyle Macdonald. Surely, you heard of the Canadian guy who traded One Red Paperclip and eventually got a House? As a boy, he had played a game called Bigger and Better, where you trade something small for something bigger and better. It had not worked for him when he was a child. But later, he was unemployed in his 20s and wanted a house. All he had was one red paperclip and so he decided to try his luck on craigslist.
You may be saying why the heck are you talking about one red paperclip in regards to publicity? Trust me, I have a point. Having just read Kyle's book called what else, One Red Paperclip, which tells his tale of how he traded up, it became apparent to me that he is one extremely I Love the Limelight kind of guy. Along the way, he did everything right, took advantage of all the media coverage the world showered upon him along the way and that is partly how he obtained said house. He regales how he did three radio interviews back to back in a phone booth at an airport.
How many of you would be willing to do whatever it takes to get what you want? How many interviews would you be willing to do if the media were knocking on your door? How many of you would run in the opposite direction if you were the next media feeding frenzy object of attention?
Let me put it another way. Back to the everyone says they want to be on Oprah or win the lottery. The truth is that many people are not ready, willing and able to go the distance. When success comes in the form of media coverage, a reporter arrives at their door, they are not home, do not answer the phone or run in the opposite direction. Yes, the glare of the spotlight can spook people like deers in headlights. And no one talks about this aspect of doing publicity but I will. I think it is important and worth repeating over and over again.
It is scary to be visible and stand out in a crowd. We are taught to fit in and be safe. We are afraid of the paparazzi and the media. Those scary, hard-boiled journalists with their pointed questions and glaring cameras. We are intimidated and feel exposed. What if all of our deep, dark, dirty little secrets are revealed? What if all of our skeletons and dirty laundry are revealed to the world? How about all of those jealous of our success, will they rush out of the woodwork like boogie men? Will we be able to handle being number one? Who wants to sit in the front row or be teacher's pet? Friends, we all have issues. It is normal to be afraid of the limelight and to stand out. Some people let these issues stand in their way and others don't.
Case in point. I recently worked with someone who said she wanted top notch media coverage for her clients. She had been getting them coverage in blogs. Blogs are fine but they are not the New York Times, O magazine, or The View. Increasingly, I obtained media coverage for her clients in several of the Top 100 newspapers, numerous national magazines including Entrepreneur, and was talking to The View and Regis and Kelly. What happened? Was she overjoyed and showering me with love, appreciation and money? Nope. We have stopped working together because the more I delivered top notch results, the less she was paying me and the worse she was treating me. In fact, she was taking clients away from me. Clients who were happy and wanting to work with me because I was getting them Great Results. That's crazy you say.
Read on, it gets worse. One media contact for another top notch publication liked one of the interviews I obtained for her so much, she asked me for more professional people to interview for her column. It is now four days later and I still haven't one person to come forth. I have combed my contacts. A couple of people attempted to answer questions. A few said yes and then no, they did not have the time. Others ignored my request altogether. I am waving a big red hot media opportunity under people's noses and no one is going for it. No one seems to want it. What universe have I landed in? The Twilight Zone episode where everyone is hiding under the bed afraid of the media?
I need to say a word here about responsibility and what media coverage is and what it isn't. Media coverage will not cure all of your ills. It won't fix your broken marriage, sell all of your widgets and it is not a cure for baldness. Media coverage may not sell any of your widgets or your service. Even if you were to buy an ad from a publication, they cannot guarantee that your widgets or service will sell. That is your ultimately your responsibility.
Life is not fair and there are no guarantees. It is against the Public Relations Society of America's Code of Ethics to guarantee media placements. Why? A good publicist has media contacts and will do everything they can do to ensure media coverage. Ultimately though it is each media outlet's decision to publish or not. Stuff happens. Your interview may not be up to par. Or a world, state or city crisis may pre-empt your coverage. There are a myriad of reasons why the editor or publisher may change their mind and not publish your feature story, product review or letter to the editor.
Most people do not want to do their own publicity and some do not want to pay for it, either. To access the true value of publicity, I encourage you to call up the publication you think you want to be published in and ask them for their ad rates. Then contact a few publicists and find out what they charge. This will be an eye opening experience.
So what about you? Where are you at with obtaining publicity for your practice? If you, too, are afraid of obtaining media coverage, are in denial, or just haven't gotten around to it yet an are procrastinating, you are not alone. Let me hear from you. I would be very interested in what you have to say. I am here to serve and assist you. And I can coach you to overcome your fears, objections, considerations and resistances to being published and obtaining media coverage if you truly want to. i can assist you to identify your objections, hindrances and obstacles to publicity and success. And i would really enjoy doing so.
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How to Write Press Releases that Get Published
Whether you are an author, small business owner, lone professional or corporate manager in the Truckee Meadows area and have a product or service to promote, publicity is essential to your bottomline. You may want to obtain print media coverage in the local newspapers (Reno Gazette Journal, Nevada Appeal, Record Courier, Lake Tahoe Tribune, to name a few) and magazines, and trade journals for your industry.
The key to obtaining print media coverage is giving the media (reporters and editors) what they want. What do they want? Busy editors and reporters are not interested in buying your product or service, and they are not interested in selling your product to their audience. Many publicity seekers send newspapers ad copy with promotional jargon. This is not considered news and will not be published.
Magazines have a much longer lead time than newspapers (six months or less) and in July are working on their Christmas holiday issue. By thinking ahead, several of my clients are receiving coverage in USA Today's annual magazine and other holiday gift guides.
Know which editor or reporter to contact. If your product is an electronic gadget, don't contact the local news or sports editor. Every newspaper has a masthead. Call the newspaper and find out the name, email address and phone number of the particular editor you want to approach, if it's not listed.
Below are a list of possible news angles. Ask yourself, which one can be utilized by your company?
1. Controversy. Controversy sells stories. Odd as it may seem, even bad news can sell books, movies and other items.
2. Dramatic human interest. Include the stories of real people, their triumphs, tragedies, adventures and anecdotes. Everyone loves a good hero story, or a heartwarming tale.
3. Trends. Stories that suggest new opinions, behavior patterns and attitudes. Three is a trend; find at least three examples to assert that a new trend is emerging.
4. Timelines/calendar. Capture something coming up on the calendar. Breast Cancer Awareness Month, Black History or Women's History month can spark story ideas. Here is an example of a campaign for Breast Cancer month. I wrote a press release highlighting various companies who would be donating a percentage of profits to breast cancer foundations. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution featured one of my clients in a front page THINK PINK article.
http://www.ajc.com/living/content/printedition/2007/09/30/bca0930.html
5. Localize a national story (and vice versa). Take a nationally breaking story and emphasize its local impact, i.e., how health care crisis is affecting people living in your community.
6. Anniversaries and milestones. One year later, one decade later.
7. Special Event. A huge conference, rally or gathering. Frame the event to capture the issue and importance.
8. Celebrity. If you have involved a nationally-known celebrity in your cause or business, make sure that you quote them.
As part of successfully crafting a newsworthy press release, the headline, first sentence and paragraph are critical and must grab the reader's attention right away. You can start off with an interesting quote, statistic or unusual headline such as "Man Bites Dog."
Keep it short: publishable press releases are one page and 400 words or less.
Be sure to include your contact information, including your name, company affiliation, website and phone number (including your cell phone number).
Remember, give the media what they want and they're likely to give you coverage.
If you send out press releases to numerous contacts, you may not find out that they've published your press release until you do a Google or Yahoo search. Below is an example. I sent out a press release to over 100 business and/or tech editors. I did a search and found that the Arkansas Democrat newspaper had published my press release.
http://www.nwanews.com/adg/Business/201744/
Next month, I will be tell you more about the online world and How to Write Press Releases for the Web and Search Engines.
Call 702-225-8206 or email celiasue.hecht@gmail.com Today. She has lived in Nevada for 12+ years, and in northern Nevada for six years. She has been published in all of the local media as well as many national publications.