Hi! Welcome to the latest issue of
'Nita's Helping Hands'! A special welcome to our new
subscribers -- I hope this finds you all well!
So, how have you been the last couple of weeks?
My youngest son started back to school last week. He
started his Junior year of High School, but he
certainly wasn't very excited to get back!
We also had our family reunion last weekend which is
always a special time. I love seeing family members I
don't get the chance to see very often, plus there's
always lots of great food! Many of the guys in the
family were also busy that weekend working to replace
the floor at the front of my brother's house and
actually raising the house! Talk about a bunch of sweaty
guys! Sometimes it's great to be a girl -- all we had to
do was feed them!
Sunday I spent a gloriously beautiful day on a nearby
lake with 3 friends, boating, intertubing and relaxing!
I definitely needed the break and it sure made it much
easier to get back to work Monday morning!
This issue of 'Nita's Helping Hands' focuses on publicity
and writing a proper media release. An important thing
to note: writing a media release properly is only half
the battle -- writing it for a good reason is the other
half! More information will follow in the next issue of
'Nita's Helping Hands' about when and why you should write
a Media Release.
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Quote:
"Improve your business, your life, your relation-
ships, your finances and your health. When you do, the
whole world improves." - Mark Victor Hansen
Writing a media release properly is much easier than you
might think. If you search the internet, through books,
etc. you will find many different variations of the proper
way to write a media release (I know, I looked!). So I
decided to learn from the recommendation of the biggest
publicity expert out there -- Dr. Paul Hartunian.
For those of you who don't already know who Paul Hartunian
is, he's the guy that literally sold the Brooklyn Bridge.
Click here for more information on Paul:
First off, a media release should never be more than one
page -- never! It should also only be on 8 1/2" x 11"
white paper (not letterhead or anything else, only plain
white paper) and the body of the release should always
be double-spaced.
Now here's the basic format:
In the upper left hand corner, type the words "For
Immediate Release" if you want your media release to be
used by the reporter any time. If media release is tied
to an event, holiday, or season, use the words "For Release
On Or After (or before) September 1, 2005" (or whatever
date you want to use).
Directly across from your Release Date should be the words
"For Further Information Contact:" and just below this
should be (on separate lines, all on the right hand side
of the page) your Name, your Telephone Number, and your
e-mail address (if applicable).
Double or triple space, then center and bold your headline.
Your headline should be fairly short, descriptive, and must
pull the reporter into the body of your media release. A
poorly written headline will get your release thrown into
the trash. You must immediately capture their attention
and make them want to read more.
Double or triple space again, then the remainder of your
media release will be formatted the same. The entire body
should be double spaced and each paragraph should be
indented 3 - 5 spaces.
Your first paragraph will start out with your city and
state name (in all caps) followed by a dash, then the
current date.
Your first paragraph is basically a summary and you tell
the whole story in just a few sentences. It should never
take more than 2-3 sentences to summarize your release.
In the second section of your release, you briefly tell your
story of why you deserve the privilege of having the media
contact you for further information. You should include a
quote or two of your own (yours, not someone else's).
The third and final section should contain your 'call to
action'. You tell the mediaperson what you would like to
happen as a result of your release.
When writing your media release, always remember that this
is NOT a sales letter; you write it in what Paul Hartunian
calls the "Who cares?" style of writing. After each
sentence, you should ask yourself "who cares"? If you can't
answer that question, rewrite it until you can.
I don't suggest hiring someone to write them for you either.
This is something that is best done by the person closest to
the announcement -- YOU! But I do suggest you have it professionally proofread (not by an amateur) to make
sure
there are no grammatical or spelling errors. If there are
errors in your copy, the Mediaperson will just throw it in
the trash, assuming that if you can't take the time and
effort to have it professionally proofread, you're an
amateur yourself and don't deserve their valuable time.
Your first few attempts at writing a Media Release may seem
a bit daunting and confusing, but you'll soon get the hang
of it, so don't give up! If you have any questions after
reading this and taking a look at the written press release
I've linked to above, feel free to contact me and I'll be
glad to help you out!
(c) 2005 Nita Helping Hand?, all rights reserved.
You are free to use this material in whole or in part as
long as you include the following:
About the author: Nita is a professional proofreader,
copy-editor and the President of Nita Helping Hand? Please
visit Nita's website for information about proofreading,
copy-editing and other administrative needs available at
www.NitaHelpingHand.com. Nita is your 'Partner In
Perception'.
If you're using 2Checkout on your website to collect online
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It's called 2CO Lock Pro and for a small investment of
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Many of you may have heard that cell phones are now being
infected by viruses such as one called 'Cabir', which can
now quickly drain a cell phone battery. To receive more
information on cell phone viruses, see this webpage:
If you think your cell phone may have been infected by the
Cabir virus, you can go to this page from your cell phone
or PC and download a free program to remove the virus:
If you lose your cell phone or PDA, make sure you change
your passwords immediately. Lost or stolen cell phones and
PDAs are often used to commit identity theft.
That's all the handy tips and tricks for this issue of
'Nita's Helping Hands' -- I hope you enjoyed it and found
some useful information. As always, please e-mail me if you
ever have questions, concerns or would like me to include
information about certain topics.
Enjoy this cooler weather as much as you can, stay safe and
be happy! I'll 'see' you in a couple weeks!
