Publicity is the art of getting your business noticed. I say “art” because finding an interesting angle to make your business newsworthy is a creative endeavor. The payoff is that news is perceived as more credible than advertising, so publicity is not only more effective than advertising, it is free!
Because of the huge number of people reached by mass media like television and newspapers, as well as the ever-increasing popularity of the Internet, publicity has the ability to transform a struggling business into one that thrives. The tips in this booklet will help you get attention from the media so that instead of having to chase after potential customers, they will find you!
If you’re stumped by any of the technical jargon in this booklet, please see the glossary on page 18.
Instant downloads of this booklet and other titles in the Top Ten Tips™ series can be purchased online at www.bitmojo.com/tips. Print copies are available at Amazon.com or can be ordered through your local bookstore.
Angle
An approach to telling a story that connects the subject to a different, more compelling topic.
Beat Reporter
A journalist assigned to cover a certain subject area.
Blog
Short for “web log,” a frequently updated online journal that often focuses on a particular topic. Many feature images or video and allow readers to post comments.
Byline
The name and job title of an article’s author, often shown between the headline and story.
Clippings
Articles cut out of newspapers, magazines or other periodicals to prove reporting experience or establish credibility through prior press coverage.
Credibility Indicator
An academic credential, organization membership, or work reference that helps establish expertise in a particular field.
Keywords
Words that people type into a search engine like Google in order to find something related to those words.
Market Segment
A group of people with similar interests or needs, that can be reached through particular channels and will respond in a consistent manner.
Newswire
An organization that distributes news stories to periodicals and broadcasters. Some distribute articles written by journalists, others distribute press releases that are submitted to them.
Press Kit
A collection of materials, including background information and a press release, submitted to a news outlet. An electronic Press Kit (ePK) provides those materials as files on a CD, DVD or other electronic medium.
Press Release
A news story, usually no more than one page, distributed to news outlets for the purpose of getting publicity for a certain business or event.
Press Room
An area of a web site devoted to posting materials so those materials can be accessed easily by the media.
Social Media
Web sites like MySpace, Facebook, YouTube and Flickr where people can meet others with whom they have something in common and share information.
Universal Search Results
Results of a search on Google, which now include not only web sites but video, news, images and other media types. Often include a thumbnail of a video or image.
In my experience, referrals alone aren’t enough to make a business successful. Advertising is expensive, and hiring a PR firm isn’t cheap either. If you’re good at what you do, but still stuck in survival mode, using the tips in this booklet will help you get the word out about your product or service.
Start by figuring out whether your potential customers are most likely reached through magazines, the Internet, or other media, and decide which specific periodicals or web sites you will pursue. Then, make yourself a reliable source of information for the journalists who work for them. The result is that when you find a newsworthy angle to publicize your business, you’ll be in a position to take advantage of traditional mass media as well as the Internet.
Finally, the public relations trade magazine PRWeek has a web site (www.prweekus.com) that’s a potential source of ideas for topics currently being used to generate publicity. It can also help you keep up on new developments in the public relations field, which is continuously adapting to emerging technology like smartphones.
We welcome your feedback and will incorporate reader suggestions into future editions of this book. Please share your thoughts at: www.bitmojo.com/tips/feedback.
