Meg Weaver of Wooden Horse Publishing wants Publicity Hounds to know about these five new magazines, or those planning to launch soon: —My House in the Mountain States is the first in a series of “My House in…” shelter magazines by McGraw-Hill, consisting of regional magazines serving high-end homeowners and the design and building professionals.… Read More
Wanted: Your 7 tips
If you’ve wanted to submit how-to articles to various websites, but you haven’t had the time, here’s a shortcut that’s so easy, you’ll be ashamed to make excuses. The website is called Top7Business, a business-focused article site that only accepts articles in what I call a “tip sheet” format. The formula is simple: –A title… Read More
How quickly could you set up an emergency hotline?
The story about the woman who claims she found a finger in Wendy’s chili begs the questions, if a crisis hit your company or organization tomorrow–like a product recall, for example–and you needed a way for customers to quickly contact you for help, how long would it take to get a toll-free hotline installed? How… Read More
Don’t use letterhead for press releases
Publicity expert Paul Hartunian says there’s no reason you can’t write a succinct one-page news release. His advice makes sense. Scientific studies inside newsrooms have shown that reporters and editors spend an average 5 seconds reading a news release before deciding whether to use it or trash it. Why, then, do so many Publicity Hounds… Read More
Use daybooks to publicize Washington, D.C. special events
If you’re publicizing an event in Washington, D.C., be sure to submit your news to the Washington daybooks, the media’s source of events. By doing so, you can reach hundreds of major media outlets at no charge. While this is one method of driving the news cycle with a timely and newsworthy event, editors stress… Read More
Celebrity endorsements
OK, so it isn’t exactly free publicity. But I think its intriguing that an entire industry is being built around getting people’s product in front of celebrities like Oprah and Paris Hilton. In an article titled “Oprah’s Golden Gut,” Fortune Small Business explains how you, too, can get your products, fromfabric belts to robotic vacuum… Read More
Business Wire waves its annual fee
–Business Wire is waiving its annual $120 membership fee starting January 1. That means you only have to pay a fee if you want the company to distribute your news release, or provide other services. Business Wire also will reduce rates on premier multimedia services. —24-7PressRelease.com now offers news dissemination scanned by news.google.com, opt-in journalists,… Read More
“Side door strategy” relies on not-so-obvious angles
Proteges in The Publicity Hound Mentoring Program heard me lecture recently on the “side-door strategy” to publicity during a teleseminar I hosted just for them. Even though I’ve always understood and promoted the concept, I first heard the phrase “side-door strategy” when I read an article by publicist Jodee Blanco. The “side-door strategy” means pitching… Read More
Cable TV shows draws clients for Illinois PR pro
Publicist Robert Smith wanted something more than the standard brochure to set himself apart from all the other public relations practitioners in the U.S. So after seeing a tip in this newsletter about starting his own TV show, courtesy of his local cable TV station’s public access channel, he tried it. “I had never heard… Read More
Children’s troupe takes its act to trade shows
Publicity Hounds have tips for Melissa Pagan of Tequesta, Florida. She works for a performing arts troupe that specializes in children’s entertainment. Their live shows have an education component that focuses on literacy, and some of their school programs address test-taking tips and techniques for relieving the anxiety of the high-stakes standardized testing. They will… Read More