Top Secrets for
Doing Your Own PR
by Gini Graham Scott, Ph.D.
Author of a Dozen Books on Work and Professional Development, including Want It, See It, Get It! and Enjoy! 101 Little Ways to Add Fun to Your Work Everyday
www.ginigrahamscott.com
Smashwords Edition
Copyright 2009 Gini Graham Scott, Ph.D.
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Credit: Cover Photos by... Image 1 - Lunamarina, Fotolia, Image 2 - Pavel Losevsky, Fotolia, Image 3 - DeshaCAM, Fotolia, Image 4 - DeshaCAM, Fotolia
TABLE OF CONTENTS
INTRODUCTION
HOW YOU CAN DO YOUR OWN PR
MY OWN BACKGROUND AND HOW I HAVE GOTTEN PUBLICITY
CHAPTER 1: LAUNCHING YOUR PR CAMPAIGN
CREATING YOUR CAMPAIGN THEME
DETERMINING YOUR TARGET MARKET
LINKING YOUR PRODUCT OR SERVICE TO THE DAILY NEWS
PROMOTING A NICHE PRODUCT OR SERVICE
USING PROMOTIONAL EVENTS
Using Celebrities
Finding Low Cost Venues for Your Events
USING THE SOCIAL MEDIA
CHAPTER 2: WAYS TO APPROACH THE PRESS
USING A PERSONAL AND LOCAL APPROACH
Deciding on Who Will Contact the Media
Building from Local to National PR
Contacting the Local Media
TIPS FOR GETTING THROUGH TO THE MEDIA
Using Your Initial Call as a Door Opener
Getting Past the Receptionist
Sending an Initial Query by E-Mail
Using Your Media Contact’s Preferences
Tying Your Story to the Latest News
The Power of Buzz and Referrals
Gaining Interest from Radio and TV Stations.
CHAPTER 3: CREATING YOUR PRESS MATERIALS
CREATING A PRESS KIT AND PRESS RELEASE
Sending Out a Press Release or Query Letter
WHAT TO INCLUDE IN A PRESS RELEASE
Headline or Subject Line
Using a Subhead
“For Immediate Release” Introduction
Writing Your Release Like a News Story
Contact Information
The Difference Between a Press Release, Query Letter, and Social Media Posting
Finding Contacts to Send Your Release or Query Letter
CREATING A PRESS KIT
Selecting Items to Use in Your Press Kit
Types of Presentation Folders to Use
Sending Your Press Kit by E-Mail
When to Send Out Your Material
CHAPTER 4: USING A WEBSITE OR BLOG IN YOUR PR CAMPAIGN
USING A WEBSITE FOR PROMOTION
Using Search Engine Optimization and Keywords to Increase Website Traffic
Using Your City to Target Your Market
Using Flash on Your Website
WRITING A BLOG
Turning Your Blog Into an Article
Pitching Your Article to the Print Media
Turning Blogs from Articles to E-Books and POD Books
Frequency, Length, and Format for a Blog
CHAPTER 5: SENDING YOUR PRESS MATERIALS TO THE MEDIA
PR RELEASE AND POSTING SERVICES
PR DATABASE SERVICES
DOING YOUR OWN E-MAIL BLAST
CHAPTER 6: THE IMPORTANCE OF FOLLOW-UP
MAKING FAVORABLE CONTACTS
PR RELEASE FOLLOW UPS
CHAPTER 7: TIMING YOUR PRESS CAMPAIGN
CHAPTER 8: KEEPING TRACK OF YOUR PR
WHEN TO EXPECT YOUR STORY TO APPEAR
TRACKING THE PR YOU SEND AND THE PUBLICITY YOU GET
CHAPTER 9: GETTING YOUR WORK PUBLISHED
WRITING ARTICLES FOR PUBLICATION
Deciding Whether to Offer Articles for Free or Pay
Using an Article for Promotional Purposes
Typical Payment for Articles
Using a PR Release to Offer Your Articles for Publication
PUBLISHING YOUR ARTICLES ON EZINES
CHAPTER 10: USING E-BOOKS TO PROMOTE YOUR PRODUCT OR SERVICE
THE IMPORTANCE OF E-BOOKS
COPYRIGHT PROTECTION
MARKETING AND DISTRIBUTING YOUR E-BOOK
Selling an E-Book in a PDF Format
Selling Your E-Book through an Online Reader
PUBLISHING YOUR E-BOOK AS A PRINT-ON DEMAND BOOK
THE FORMAT FOR AN E-BOOK
CHARGING FOR E-BOOKS
WAYS TO PUT YOUR E-BOOK TOGETHER
PUBLISHING AND DISTRIBUTING YOUR E-BOOK
FINDING A MAINSTREAM PUBLISHER
CHAPTER 11: CREATING A PACKAGE OF MATERIALS
USING AUDIOBOOKS AND VIDEOS
CREATING A COMBINATION PACKAGE
CHAPTER 12: NETWORKING EVENTS
CREATING YOUR OWN NETWORKING EVENTS
Some Examples of Successful Events
Organizing Your Own Social Event
Setting Up a Promotional Workshop or Seminar
Attending Networking Events
Being Prepared Anytime
A Caution on Promoting MLM Products and Services
Participating in Referral Clubs
Participating in Entrepreneurial Organizations, Conferences, and Meetings
Getting Tables at Networking Events and Conferences
CHAPTER 13: USING THE SOCIAL MEDIA
The Major Social Media Sites
The Importance of Building a Relationship
Posting Your Information on Multiple Sites
Joining Groups in Your Field
Combining the Social Media with Other Networking
CHAPTER 14: WORKING WITH OTHERS IN YOUR PR CAMPAIGN
DOING JOINT PR WITH OTHER
USING AND CHOOSING A PR PROFESSIONAL
Making Your Decision
Cutting Down Your PR Costs in Working with a Pro
Getting Quotes and Weighing Alternatives
Working with PR People Locally or at a Distance
CHAPTER 15: ASSESSING YOUR PR CAMPAIGN
THE IMPORTANCE OF TIMING
BEING READY TO RESPOND AND MAKE NEEDED CHANGES
KEEPING TRACK OF YOUR PR RESULTS
Deciding If Your Campaign Is Working or Not
Ways to Track Your Results
CHECKING THE TRAFFIC TO YOUR WEBSITE
THE COSTS OF A PR CAMPAIGN
Different Types of Arrangements
The Duration and Costs of a PR Campaign
DOING A COST BENEFIT ANALYIS
Factors to Consider
The Length of Time for the Assessment
Making Your Decision
CHAPTER 16: EXPANDING YOUR PR CAMPAIGN
USING THE PR YOU GET TO GET ADDITIONAL MEDIA EXPOSURE
CREATING A UNIQUE IDENTITY FOR YOUR COMPANY
CHAPTER 17: WHEN TO CUT BACK YOUR PR
PROMOTING THE UNDIFFERENTIATED PRODUCT OR SERVICE
PROMOTING THE SPECIALIZED PRODUCT OR SERVICE
OTHER BOOKS BY THE AUTHOR
AUTHOR CONTACT INFORMATION
INTRODUCTION
HOW YOU CAN DO YOUR OWN PR
DO YOUR OWN PR is based on a series of workshops I have given on how to promote any kind of product or service yourself. This is a way to keep your costs down, rather than hiring a PR firm, which typically charges a $2000-5000 monthly retainer for a campaign which commonly lasts about 3-4 months. If you can afford it, an established PR firm can draw on its connections to get you publicity. But if you don’t have such funds, you can use these techniques to do your own publicity.
Today you can do your own PR more easily and inexpensively than ever. You can do everything from sending out press releases and query letters to the traditional media to creating a social media campaign to using online organizations like Meetup to build a quick following.
Publicity is less expensive and more powerful than just placing an ad, because people know you have paid for an ad. So you have more credibility when your publicity campaign generates a news story. Thus, the more you can spread the word through publicity rather than advertising, the more that will help you promote your product or service, though sometimes advertising can open the door to your getting publicity, such as when somebody buys a big ad and that becomes a compelling story, because people respond to that ad in a powerful way. The Apple “1984” ad is a powerful example of this phenomena. The commercial only aired once, but it was picked up by the media and created so much buzz for Apple that there was no need to pay to run it again.
DO YOUR OWN PR covers the major types of PR you can do on your own. It draws on my experience in doing promotional campaigns for several dozen books, as well as dozens of workshops, seminars, and classes I have attended on public relations and publicity. I also gathered material for this program through teaching a grad school class on PR and marketing at the University of Notre Dame de Namur. And I have had numerous discussions with writers and company owners about what they did that was successful in their own PR campaigns.
MY OWN BACKGROUND AND HOW I HAVE GOTTEN PUBLICITY
First, let me introduce myself to show what I have done that qualifies me to write this book about doing your own PR. I’ve been a writer, consultant, speaker, and seminar/workshop leader, mainly doing programs based on my books for the last 30 years. I’ve published over 50 books, and have worked with publishers or on my own in promoting them. In addition, I have published about two dozen games and assisted some game manufacturers in promoting these games. My latest books include: WANT IT, SEE IT, GET IT! and ENJOY! 101 LITTLE WAYS TO ADD FUN TO YOUR WORK EVERYDAY.
Promoting my own books has been an especially powerful learning experience, because now you not only use the mainstream media, but you have to develop social media campaigns, too, to create a presence on the major sites, which include LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter.
At one time publishers used to invest in major PR campaigns for their authors. But now, unless you’re famous already as a celebrity, are in a big news story, or are involved in the latest scandal of the day, you generally have to do your own PR. So that’s how I learned a lot about PR, and for my last book, the publisher’s publicist and my editor sent me all of this information about getting on LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter. Besides that, I’ve written and sent press releases to the major media, and I’ve been on hundreds of radio and TV shows, including Oprah and Montel Williams.
In writing books, my specialty is business and work relationships, and professional and personal development. I’ve chosen to highlight a few specialties, because the media wants people who are experts in something. They don’t like it when you do a lot of different things, because you may seem scattered. So it’s important to pick your strongest topic and emphasize that. In turn, having this expertise helps you develop a high profile, called a “platform”, which is what publishers, agents, and managers are looking for.