Media Relations

Find a freelancer with SPJ freelancer directory

Here’s another great resource for Publicity Hounds who need to outsource work to freelancers. Consult the Society of Professional Journalists’ online freelancer directory, a listing of more than 600 members. You can search by state or specialty. Members include writers, photographers and graphic artists. The trade group also has a new “Editor of the Moment”… Read More

Can journalists and consumers find you on Google?

If journalists and consumers are using Google to find someone with your expertise, and you’re not on the first page of the search results, they may call one of your competitors who ARE in one of the top three positions on the most popular search engine. Like Adam Armbruster who is #1 on Google for “TV advertising… Read More

Inexpensive gifts will be in demand for holiday gift guides

With the economy hanging by a thread, this could be one of the grimmest retail holiday seasons in decades. That means editors of consumer gift guides will be on the lookout for press releases and photos featuring inexpensive gifts such as calendars, picture frames, jewelry, CDs, books, scrapbooks and even kitchen utensils. (Who in the world would feature… Read More

The perils of friending journalists on Facebook

Journalists have always hated being identified publicly as the “friend” of a source. “I’m not your friend,” is a typical response. “I’m just trying to do my job.” But that was 10 years ago, long before social networking sites came onto the scene. These days, if you’re trying to get in front of a reporter at… Read More

Prepare for an interview with a reporter these 8 ways

If a reporter contacts you unexpectedly and asks for an interview in the next few days, and you don’t feel entirely ready, how do you prepare? That’s what Leilie McKinley of Soaring-Phoenix.com, one of my business coaches, just called to ask. A reporter from a major online business magazine found Leili’s blog post about how the credit crunch will affect small business.… Read More

Every day is a bad day for press conferences

Somebody just send me an email with a subject line “Quick question for members of the media”: Good morning! Quick question . . . . If you were to go to ONE press conference a week, which would be your favorite day? Is Monday a good day, at the start of the week? Not Friday,… Read More

Pompous elevator pitches turn off reporters and others

When somebody asks “What do you do?” how do you respond? If your answer includes words with multiple syllables or jargon, words that only people in your industry can understand, you’ve probably forced their brain into shut-down mode. The Philadelphia Inquirer article “Too many firms use jargon to convey ideas” offers example after example of… Read More

McDonald’s iced coffee showing up on TV news desks

Here’s another example of how the line between news and advertising is more blurred than ever. The next time you’re watching the news on your local FOX station, or on a station owned by the Meredith Corporation, look on the desk in front of the anchors. You might spot a cup of iced coffee from… Read More

8 interview mistakes you don’t want to make

Of all the possible mistakes you can make when interviewing with the media, the worst one in my book is lying. Bend the truth, even just a little, and that little white lie can suddenly become the story and have far more traction than the original story you were being interviewed for. Remember Watergate? And… Read More