Journalists refer to it as the “nut graph.” It’s short for “nut paragraph,” the part near the beginning that explains, in a nutshell, what the story is about. The nut graph often lends perspective, includes statistics or makes a comparison between something then and now. Here’s an examples from a recent Wall Street Journal. A… Read More
Authors rent a mall storefront for grassroots selling
Thanks to Publicity Hound Paul Rhetts of Albuquerque, New Mexico for telling us about the 200 New Mexico authors and publishers who banded together during the holidays to sell local books in a storefront at a local mall. Frustrated by the difficulties getting their books stocked in local and regional bookstores, the New Mexico Book… Read More
Machine shop can use trade shows, clever mailings
Tom Monroe, Jr. of Detroit, Michigan wants ideas on how to promote his production machine shop, which services the manufacturing industry. Its niche market is providing production tapping and drilling of metal parts. From Toni Graeme of Victoria, BC, Canada: “How about a brainstorming group with someone from the advertising field you know who is… Read More
New York Times op-ed page
Every week, roughly 1,200 unsolicited submissions arrive at The New York Times via e-mail, fax and the U.S. Postal Service. All are vying for valuable space on the op-ed page, the page next to the editorial page that includes divergent views on timely topics. Many of the submissions are first-rate. Yet most get turned down… Read More
The Business Journal’s Book of Lists party
It was a night of swashbuckling fun, complete with a pirate treasure game, foods of the Mediterranean and Caribbean seas, and even a special “Pirate’s Pleasure” drink made with Goldschlager, triple sec and rum. It was The Business Journal’s annual Book of Lists bash at a downtown Milwaukee hotel on January 20, in honor of… Read More
Fun idea for a dog training school
Sometimes all you need is a clever play on words and a fun event to generate some great publicity. Take the concept of happy hour. Remove the booze. Add four-legged hounds. What do you get? “Yappy Hour,” a play date for pooches from 6 to 8 p.m. on a recent Friday night at the Amiable… Read More
How to promote a mystery novel
Prudy Taylor Board of Delray Beach, Florida wants to know how to promote her book, “Murder a la Carte,” the first a series titled Recipes for Murder. From Harry Hoover of Huntersville, North Carolina: “Every major paper has a food writer or editor. Pitch a story about how to do a themed dinner party featuring… Read More
Publicity for restaurants
If you manage a restaurant, B&B, museum, amusement park or any other attraction that appeals to tourists, stop dreaming about getting free publicity and do what John Muller does. John, general manager of Punderson Manor Resort at Punderson State Park in Newbury, Ohio, wants to know what his local tourism board is doing to drum… Read More
Good news for newspaper readers
Newspapers have tried a variety of tactics over the last 20 years to reverse those sliding circulation figures. They’re writing shorter stories, using more color and graphics, and placing a greater emphasis on local news. But few of those tricks seem to be doing much good. The News & Record, a daily newspaper in Greensboro,… Read More
The danger in HTML newsletters
If you publish an ezine like I do, but you create it in HTML so you can make it look pretty with different colors and graphics, there’s a good chance that many of your subscribers aren’t receiving it. That’s because HTML, which is often used by spammers, triggers spam filters. The problem is particularly troublesome… Read More