Joan's Top 10 Tips for Free Publicity

 
By Joan Stewart
The Publicity Hound

They’re referred to as Publicity Hounds and I’ll bet you know at least one.

They’re the people smiling back at you from color photos that accompany their profile story in the morning paper. Turn on the radio and there they are again, chatting away on a local talk show. Two months later, they show up on the cover of your trade journal. Then they're being interviewed on the 11 o’clock news. While you're buying expensive advertising to deliver your message, they’re doing it for free.

During my 22 years as a newspaper editor and reporter, I have seen well-meaning people fail repeatedly in their attempts to beg and cajole the media to pay attention to them. That’s because media relations is a sophisticated game with its own etiquette, protocol and rules. Today, as a media relations consultant, professional speaker and ezine publisher, I teach people how to create free publicity to sell a product or service, champion a cause, create an image and establish their expertise.

Here are my Top 10 tips for free publicity:

1. Send news releases about new products and services, contests, awards, open houses, speaking engagements. The handy checklist “89 Reasons to Send a News Release” is yours free when you subscribe to my free ezine, "The Publicity Hound's Tips of the Week," using the sign-up box on this page.
    

2. Write "how-to" articles for newspapers, magazines, trade publications and newsletters, and offer lots of free advice. It helps establish you as an expert. See Special Report #6: How to Write How-to Articles That Position You as an Expert.
    

3. Get onto the speaking circuit. Speaking to community groups and trade associations is a wonderful way to "create the buzz" about your business. See Special Report #21: 67 Great Publicity Tips for Professional Speakers 
    

4. Create a web site that offers free advice, reciprocal links, articles by and about you, story ideas about your business, an electronic media kit, and a list of experts the media can contact. See Electronic Media Kits: How to Create Them, Deliver Them and See INSTANT Results.
    

5. Start an e-zine. A free electronic newsletter helps you sell your products and services to an international audience and costs almost nothing compared to expensive direct mail campaigns. With permission, you can send the ezine to reporters who cover your industry. See Special Report #38: How to Publish a Profitable Electronic Newsletter
    

6. Get to know reporters. Offer yourself as someone they can call on for background, commentary and story ideas. Call and ask, "How can I help you?" See Get Free Publicity in Print
    

7. Start your own TV show on your local cable TV company’s public access channel. Air time is free. You pay a minimal amount to rent the camera equipment.
    

8. Look for photo opportunities. Local newspapers, TV stations, weekly shoppers, trade publications and other media are always looking for interesting photos. Call the media with ideas, or submit your own photos.
    

9. Give free classes and demonstrations through adult ed programs, at schools and colleges, or at your own business. Invite the media to attend. See Special Report #42: Tips for Letting Reporters Experience Your Story, Not Just Write About It.
    

10. Participate in online discussion groups and offer lots of helpful advice. Reporters lurk here, and if they’re impressed with your messages, they might contact you for a story. Use a signature file in your e-mail that explains what you do and how you can help solve people’s problems. Link to your web site. See Secrets for Getting Through to the Media Online.

How to be a Kick-Butt Publicity Hound is an ebook with more than 300 pages of tips on how to get thousands of dollars in free publicity in the print and broadcast media. Written by Joan Stewart and Tom Antion. It's the only book you will need to launch a publicity campaign, or kick your existing campaign into high gear.