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Happy February! If you're a business owner of any kind (product, service or expert) you probably have already worked Valentine's Day into your pitching schedule, whether pitching V-Day gift guides, sharing your expertise in a story related to the holiday, or perhaps you're even hosting a Valentine's Day Sale on your website. My point is, as business owners we leverage this holiday a lot, it gets a lot of love (pun intended).
But we can't be one trick pitching ponies if we want to maximize buzz for our brands! Oh no, we have to be finding ways to spin our stories into other seasonal or trending hot topics. We also need to remember to keep looking ahead and pitching around what the long lead (monthly) magazines will be covering. Feeling stuck trying to figure out just what those topics are? Never fear! We're here to help get your February PR campaign going with 5 pitching ideas you could be pitching this month!
1. Sochi 2014 - The Winter Olympics
The world has Olympic fever, and this means the media does as well. Short lead media (television, websites, blogs, newspaper and radio) will be filling the next few weeks (until February 23rd) with stories related to this international event, so why not find a way to capitalize on this hot topic and make it work for you (and your press outreach). This can work for any business: personal trainers can give some athlete-inspired work out tips and moves, experts can talk about staying focused and eliminating stress (with Olympic athlete-approved tips), food and drink people can even come up with Sochi-related recipes, or perhaps party planner can share how to create a russian-themed Sochi Viewing Party.
Don't be afraid to think out of the box! Scores of television shows, websites and other media outlets locally and nationally will be finding ways to cover the Olympics and all things related to them it's your job to find a way to spin you and your business into one of them!
If an Olympic press story just isn't your thing, don't forget to incorporate the hashtags #SOCHI2014 or #OLYMPICS2014 into your Twitter feed when discussing the events to connect yourself to the flow of related conversations.
#2 - February Health Observances
Every month in the United States we dedicate time and attention to raising awareness for specific health conditions or health hot topics. February is no different and actually focuses on some big ones that the media tend to devote a lot of time and attention to: American Heart Month (a big one folks) as well as other health observances like Sexual Health Awareness Month and Eating Disorder Awareness Week. A simple Google search will help you find health issues and topics that are highlighted every month and you can use your PR brain to decide what if any you can relate to your product, service or expertise.
Remember again, think outside of the box! For instance, there are obvious angles to National Heart Health Month, including tips and advice from doctors, nutritionists and other health experts, but there are also several less obvious but still really powerful ideas. Here are a couple of examples: a yoga instructor could give yoga or meditation tips on lowering stress (thus keeping your heart healthier), a small business could share how their entire office (even if it's an office of three people) is taking National Heart Health Month seriously and starting a Heart Health Work Out Plan as a team. Product people? Perhaps you share products that are related in some ways to these months, that give back to charities supporting them, or you even share "red" colored products for "Wear Red Days" that accompany this holiday!
Remember that as long as you are sharing some related to the national health observance and staying true to your brand and expertise, you're free to get creative with your ideas!
#3 Interesting & Quirky National Holidays (non-health related)
Did you know that February was National Grapefruit Month? Or that it was National Weddings Month? Did you know that this month has days to celebrate quirky and fun things including Random Acts of Kindness Day and National Margarita Day (February 22nd - mark your calendars), Court Reporting and Captioning Week, and Love Your Pet Day? Publicists have used this PR strategy for years and I want to be sure you're using it too! Putting in less than a half hour of research time hunting down monthly holidays will lead you to websites that include holiday and observances lists like this one, this one created for teachers to inspire thematic lesson plans and this weird national holidays of 2014 list from Refinery29. There are so many possibilities every month you'll have countless new and fun angles to work with, and you're sure to find one that fits into your brand's story! Now if you'll excuse me I'm off to celebrate National Send a Card to a Friend Day!
#4 Get Your Spring & Summer On: Long Lead Prep & Pitching
I'm writing this post from Brooklyn, New York where we've been getting hit by "snowstorms" (I'm from the mid-west I wouldn't really call these heavy snows snowstorms...), and it's cold! That said, in the land of PR, the long lead (monthly) magazines are working three to six months into the future! That means that you should be working on getting to know your long lead target media so you know what month they're actually working on (a simple email can help you answer this, but you can bet they're at least 3 months out from today's date). You should also be creating and sending pitches to them that have a late spring or early summer vibe to them. In cases like this it's always best to think ahead in terms of what you're pitching, and be the early bird, not the last one to the party. In other words, don't pitch something for early May, as they're probably closing that part of their issue by now!
Experts and service providers, remember this is your time to shine as well! Find ways to spin your expertise and tips into spring and summer related stories! Listen to our recorded class on How Service Business and Experts Can Get PR Gold for more ideas.
#5 Prepare for Patty's Day - St. Patrick's Day that is!
Sure we're a little bit more than a month out from March 17th, the annual St. Patrick's Day celebration from coast to coast, but it's just the right time for you to begin developing and pitching out stories about all things St. Patrick's Day! Holiday stories tend to get filled quickly by the media and in advance, so you want to beat others to the press with your ideas. In my past decade in the public relations field, I've seen stories get big love around this holiday that address a wide range of "related" angles: Hangover Tips (for the morning after), Green Beauty/Fashion/Accessories products, St. Patrick's Day recipes, St. Pat's Day Cocktail ideas, Irish historians have shared tips, Irish dancers and dance studios have shared their moves (and the dance studios I'm sure have seen an increase class registration since then) and so forth! Perhaps you have a story about how you're a small business and an irish immigrant?
My advice for you when covering a St. Pat's Day angle is to be sure the story you pitch, no matter how creative or good, matches the outlet you are pitching it to! It's not once size fits all when you're pitching a story, so you may need a couple of angles depending on which outlets you want to see the story placed in!
There you have it - five ideas to get your PR brain in gear and grinding away! Remember, just like making it to the Olympics, PR is a long term effort that takes practice and lots of hard work, but the results can be gold-medal worthy!
And when you start pitching, and you have questions, members of Tin Shingle can get support in our Community Forum to get answers, guidance and advice from PR professionals as well as fellow small business owners who are going through what you are going through as you grow your business. We also have weekly calls to discuss hot topics in buzz-building and to connect to each other. Once you've written your amazing pitch, but aren't sure if it's steller, have it reviewed by our Pitch Whisperer service to make it AmAzing with a capitcal A! Knowing how to pitch the press is half the battle to landing great coverage. Members of Tin Shingle get instant access to contacts at national magazines and editorial calendars. Learn more about Tin Shingle's Membership Program and see how it can build buzz for your brand!
