The Tin Shingle Blog

I had a blast on Weds hosting a free PR Spring Training course and was so glad so many of you could join me.  It's often hard to weed through all the messages about what to do, when to do it, or what's a "must know".   Because of this I was happy to share some tactics that you should be employing RIGHT NOW if you are hoping to see results two weeks, or two months from now.

During the call we went through the ten areas of 360 Degree PR^tm  you should be focusing on throughout your media campaign, and also talked about them in terms of spring and summer training.  Just like when you work out your body you should train all of the different muscles, 360 Degree PR asks you to regulalry work with mutliple areas of your campaign.  Here are a couple tips we discussed:

PRODUCT/SERVICE:
Your product should be the easiest thing for you to pitch, whether it's a tangible good or a service your company performs.  At this point in the year you should have an updated media kit with your line sheets (including retail pricing),  look books, a press release or two (one about your launch one that's more current), and any fact sheets.  Also if you have any great press be sure to include it.  You should also always have pitches on hand that you can copy and paste into an email....do you have at least a short lead and long lead pitch good to go right now?

For Spring Training you must be sure you have created both a short and long lead pitch along the lines of your product.  Short lead could cover spring or summer travel, vacations, health, mother's/father's day, graduation, spring/summer fashion or any other short lead of seasonal stories your product or service could create a story about, or contribute to a story about  - or go a step further and find like minded brands to create a more full segment!

For long lead you should be thinking about what will be happening 3-4 months from now and how you can spin your good or service into it.  This includes holiday pitches as gift guides close early (they are such a big undertaking) and start early, so be sure they have your product first.  That means you also need to prepare a seasonal pitch with photos of your holiday offerings you should be sharing with people within the next month or two!  (Check with your target outlets for their deadlines or check the Tin Shingle Editorial Calendar database if you're a member).

USING PROFNET & HARO FOR REASONS OTHER THAN LEADS
Another tip I shared during this week's call was a trick I use to find the best contacts for my brands, as well as to figure out what the hot stories are in the short lead press so I can pitch accordingly.  Like many of you I am sure someone in my office checks HARO daily, and we also subscribe to Profnet to get leads.  Beyond using these great services to find out what reporters are looking for stories like ours and pitching them, I also use it to find out what the hottest stories in short lead media are.  That's as easy as reading all the queries headlines through - common threads emerge.  I tend to also read exactly what they're looking for.  It not  only shows me what is and isn't being covered yet, but it also often wakes up my own creativity about different angles I can come up with for completely unrelated stories I'm working on.

Though I would never pitch a reporter off topic whether they had a query on HARO or Profnet, I do take note daily of what reporters cover what stories and get to know specific writer's beats.  It also helps me get very familiar with who works at what outlets and what they gravitate to subject wise.  If someone does seem like a great fit, I'll note their name and subject and keep them in mind for future pitches they may be interested in.

Hope that helps and hope to see you at our next call!

It's time for another installment of pitching tips.  Today we're going to talk about how to get on E!  News and The Daily 10.  Just yesterday we talked to the an amazingly helpful producer from E! who gave us the skinny on what they are really looking for.  Believe me, they know exactly what they want and it's important that no time is wasted on your end or theirs with a bad pitch.  So read up and as always, happy pitching.

E! NEWS:

Think of E! News as Daily Candy but on television, with a celebrity twist.  Just like our Daily Candy pitch tips this program wants products and experts with a WOW factor.  This means products that are fairly new, not items that have been on the market for years and in every publication known to man. 

These days, E! also prefers that your product is reasonably priced.  Unless they plan on using your product for a special splurge segment or you have a major celebrity attachment or breakthrough story, save the thousand dollar handbags and uber-expensive jewelry for another pitch.

Speaking of celebrity, this is a very useful and almost necessary component of your pitch when reaching out to E! News.  Remember, you're pitching an entertainment and celebrity focused show, so it's important to show that your product or service has a celebrity tie-in, or at least that you can spin it towards a Hollywood trend.  For instance, if you create amazing products for babies or new moms, perhaps you should focus on the Hollywood mommy trend, or include it in a story about actresses who are expecting.  Awards season time?  Talk about red carpet trends or make-up tips that any gal can follow at home.

Finally, when pitching E! News remember that even though it's about celebrity news, it's still a short-lead media outlet that wants stories that are current, relate to what is going on in Hollywood and the world, and they like to know things first that are fresh!  So use the same techniques you use to pitch local or national short lead press when pitching E! 

The Daily 10:

The producers who work with E! News also produce the Daily Ten, and the rules are fairly simple - follow the same rules as E! News pitching, but add a step - you should be able to attach your product or service or event (legitimately) to three well known celebrities.  Here's another pointer - attachment does not mean photos from a celebrity gift suite!  Attachment means: "Uma Thurman bought this for Kate Hudson, Rachel Bilson is wearing this in a photo (that you can supply), Jennifer Hudson goes to this spa on a regular basis", etc.  As always don't lie or stretch the truth - this won't make you any friends, and at the end of the day, you'll still have to prove your celebrity attachment so be careful. 

Final thoughts?

• Talking to our producer there were a few things beyond the above that she realy wanted to get across:

• Help her out!  Be the person she knows she can call and immediately get samples, photos, media kits, an expert or more!

• Don't just sell her the product/service sell her the segment - make it cohesive and informative and in the "E!" format.

• Ask her how you can help her.  If not through your product, perhaps you can help her fill another segment.  Do that and she'll remember you the next time.

• Don't pitch her items that you know in your heart of hearts are not a good fit.

Need to see it in action and get a few ideas?  Just flip on the programs and check it out live - or join their live Twitter feed to get the inside scoop!

I moved to New York City years ago as a former high school teacher with big dreams of finding my true calling and leading an exciting, passionnate, and successful life.  When I daydreamed about doing just that I'd often be playing the song "Only in New York" in my head, which includes the line "want the moon and nothing less....work for years then overnight success".   I couldn't agree more!  These days promises of  "tricks to being famous overnight" are everywhere you look  and "secrets to becoming a national brand" or "how to get on Oprah" are more than abundant.  At the end of the day sure there are some tricks and secrets:  hard work, creating a fantastic brand image, nurturing great media relationships, running the pr marathon (it's not a sprint), and getting great press and sales.  Oh and again, hard work!  But if I HAD to give 4 ways you could speed up your trip to becoming an overnight success from a PR perspective, here's what I would say:

1. Be Known: Make sure the outlets (magazines, television, radio, online) who are great fits for your product or service and who truly could help "tip" you know you.  They should know your name, know your product, know what it does, and be able to think of it when the right story comes up.  They should also like you.  You want to be familiar in their mind not an infamous pest at their weekly meetings.  This means you update them monthly via email on what you're doing ( short and sweet), you send them new product info as it comes out, you follow their columns and programs so you can connect and relate to them, and you only pitch them relevant stories.  You also help them find other great products & stories when they ask- even if they are not yours!

True Story:  I pitched The Big Idea with Donnie Deutsch for a YEAR before one of my clients got her big break on the show - that is the big secret!  After that she was a regular.  How did that happen?  Every month I called and worked at getting to know the producer. I let them know what she was up to monthly, big or small.  I wanted to be sure she was in the back of their minds.  I watched the show, and pitched her story in a way that applied to their show and their viewers.  When she went on the show, she was a great and media trained guest.  Also, during the entire two years we worked with The Big Idea I placed countless other people on the show just to help them (many were not clients) when they were in a pinch and help them create great shows.  Sure I sometimes felt like it was taking forever, but I never gave up.  A year later, BAM!  There she was...and that opened the door to a back and forth with the producer that netted multiple more stories.  My being a publicist wasn't why I got her on the show - it was my patience, persistence, and strategy!

2. Use editorial calendars!  Even if you want to be an overnight sensation in Glamour, Inc, or Better Homes & Gardens the fastest you're going to get there (even if they fell in love with you today) is 3-6 months.  Why?  Because they run off editorial calendars and plan and write their stories months in advance.  That means you have to be sure you are in those stories that you fit into.  How do you do this?  Research every  outlet you want to be in and find their editorial calendars.  If you are a Tin Shingle member you can access them here, and if not you can call the magazines ad departments, search for them online (usually found in the outlet's media kit), or purchase them from a service.  Once you get this outlet's "ed cal" you go through every ed cal topic and find those that fit you. Create a spreadsheet with the topic as well as when it "closes" (when the magazine's deadline is for submissions and stories).  Then create a great pitch for yourself to that story.  If the ed cal listing says who is working on this story (rare as it changes often) pitch it to them.  Better idea?  Call the outlet (find the contact or retrieve it here if you have access) and ask for the editorial assistant.  Then ask who best to pitch for the story, and what their email address is.  Email them with the ed cal subject as the email subject - make it easy for them to know what you are pitching, do it short and sweetly, link to your site, and follow up on the phone in about a week.  Always pitch months in advance, don't wait until a week before the outlet closes or you will be out of luck.

3. Follow Up, Don't Give Up:  Running your PR campaign can be very exhausting - sure that's the truth!  We wait and wait for a hit and sometimes it's frustrating - but don't give up!  It is truly a marathon, not a sprint.  Create a schedule so it doesn't suck up too many hours a day, and so that you know what you are working on every day, and you feel like you're making progress.  Create a campaign plan so you are always making forward progress, not sitting on your hands waiting for a call back.  Make sure that you follow up with your contacts ( with new information) monthly.  Work on that relationship!  The hardest thing about PR is often feeling like you want to give up - but don't!  If anything, re-evaluate your course, your campaign plan, and who you are reaching out to (as well as how you are pitching them) - maybe it's time to make some changes!

True Story:  In the case of placements that took more than one pitch to land, I've always landed it due to a new approach.  That means after hitting a wall with a certain pitch after multiple tries, we re-evaluate the pitch and the target media, and try a different approach.  We think it out, make a strategy, and go after it.  Often, the change is the magic bullet.  We also follow up constantly when we know it's the right angle and perhaps the wrong time.  We also re-evaluate how we are wording our message - maybe it isn't being understood!  When it's the right message, right time, right product the placement happens quickly.    

4. Network and Reach Out: Writer Karen Salmansohn , often says to me,  "the more people you know the luckier you are".  I couldn't agree more in the case of PR.  Sure you have to know more and more media contacts, but networking with other small business owners and entrepreneurs will also lead you to people you need to know to get placements - in fact it's a necessity!  Many of the brands who you see make it "big" have powerful PR agencies behind them who have strong media relationships and nevertheless are working tirelessly to give their clients great visibility.  If you don't have that luxury just yet you need to work even harder.  So you get out there and network, act as your own brand ambassador, meet other entrepreneurs who will refer you to media contacts they have worked with because they like your story.  Be sincere, and get to know people in your niche, as they will often lead you to other people you need to know.  Be sure your name and your company are on the tip of people's tongues when they find out someone is working on a story that you could be a great addition to.  In the same vein, be a good person when you network:  show gratitude when people help you, help others, refer others, be open about how you could use the help and who you need to know (put it out there, it will come back to you!).... Be the type of person people not only know how they can help, but who people want to help!

True Story:  I myself refer amazing contacts to amazing people daily.  I do this because I know what they want to accomplish with their pitch, and that they are good people.  It's true - people like to help good people who are on top of their brand message and work hard.  Be one of those people!

Now work on those four things, and I promise you, we'll be hearing about you and millions across the country will marvel about how YOU became an overnight success!

It's that time of year when many of you are planning  quick getaways for your spring or summer vacations.  Even if this only consists of a road trip, here's an idea that could possibly net you more brand buzz, more sales, and give you a couple hours of "fun work" to log, meaning you can enjoy the rest of your vacation that much more!

Expert on Tour:

While packing your swim trunks or hiking gear for your upcoming vacations/road trips, be sure not to forget your media kits and a great tv outfit - as it could well be time to take your expertise or cool business story on the road!  If you have a business that can share some seasonal tips (lean meals for summer, how to create a staycation at home, family road trip advice,  must-haves for summer fashion, how to keep the kids out of trouble in the summer, etc) or if you are an expert with a great story and bit of advice to share, why not think ahead and try to book yourself some press in the city you are visiting.

Why not?  This is what pr firms do, why shouldn't you?  Call ahead to news stations in your destination city and pitch yourself as an expert on tour.  Have a one-sheet ( one page:  short bio, talking points, headshot) and some great segment ideas ready to go.

Be sure you include contact information and the times and dates you will be available.  Any old reels or media you have that can support you as an expert is great to include here as well!  Then pitch and follow up beginning 6-8 weeks before your arrival, in order to time their calendar. 

The more seasonal or relatable the story the better - so think about how you can spin yourself into a great short lead story!

TIP:  to find the best media information for the city you are visiting just google their local news stations and call the information desk or news desk number, which is always provided online.  Bonus points if you read through the website first to get familiar with the studio and networks style and reporters!

Bon Voyage!