This is part of the series “50 Tips for Free Publicity” which I’m pinning on Pinterest. Follow me there, and if you like my tips, comment and repin. Just click the button with the red “Pin It” above.
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Your industry magazine writes a cover story about you.
The New York Times features your restaurant in its business section.
The Wall Street Journal prints your photo along with a pop-out quote in its Marketplace section, and you’re a major part of the story.
Before you scurry off to make reprints, you must first obtain permission from the publication because they own the copyright. Yes, even though the article is about YOU.
In the old days, almost every publication gave you reprint rights for free. But not anymore.
A business friend told me she wanted to reprint a story published in The New York Times. The newspaper said it would sell her the rights for more than $2,000. That’s what’s happening in the world of publishing, where advertising revenue is shrinking.
Reprint rights for articles in smaller publications won’t cost that much. But if you can’t afford what they’re asking, your best bet is to buy as many copies as you can afford. Don’t wait a month or two to place your order or there might not be enough back issues.
The same applies to running the story on your website or blog. It is better to find the story on the Internet and then hyperlink to the story’s URL. But even that can have negative ramifications, especially if the URL changes in the future, leaving you with a dead link.
I have read of some companies suing other companies (or individuals) as a result of posting dead links to the story-originator’s site because, apparently, dead links hurt SEO (search engine optimization).
Joan, do you know if that is true, i.e., do dead links to your site hurt your SEO?
Here is a link to just one of the articles that addresses this: http://www.seroundtable.com/linkage-lawsuit-15131.html. Is this a credible post? Hopefully, I won’t get sued if that ever becomes a dead link. 😉
Great point, Michelle. Many people think it’s OK to run the article on their website. But linking to it is fine.
Yes, dead links do hurt your website.