Going after publicity when the time isn’t right can spell trouble. That’s what I told a reader last week when he asked me if free publicity has any disadvantages. It sure does. Here are five instances free publicity, otherwise sweet, can turn sour. 1. Your book isn’t ready, but a top-tier media outlet calls. You’re… Read More
TV & Radio
Pitching tips Thursday on how to get on Rachael Ray, Live with Kelly, Wendy Williams Show
Here’s a short list of unsolicited junk that publicity-seekers send to TV shows where they want to appear as guests: Guess where most of this stuff ends up? In the trash bin. Why Producers Don’t Want This Junk Producers are too busy to wade through mountains of materials. So the publicity seekers… Read More
Renaming your business? Why it must pass the ‘telephone test’
By Marcia Yudkin In 1994, a young investment banker named Jeff Bezos incorporated a company called Cadabra (after “Abracadabra”) to sell books online. He had second thoughts about the name, however, after talking to his lawyer on the phone one day. “Cadaver?” repeated the lawyer in astonishment. Bezos changed the name of his ecommerce company… Read More
How a Pittsburgh pillow company used a marathon to tell its cause marketing story
By Hollie Geitner We frequently advise clients—using a statement coined by leadership expert Simon Sinek—that “people don’t buy what you do, they buy why you do it.” It couldn’t be any truer in the case of American Textile Company. Last year, the company, headquartered in Duquesne, Pa., just outside of Pittsburgh, produced and sold… Read More
7 things your 2014 publicity plan should NOT include
UPDATE: You can register to watch the video replay of this webinar, at your choice of times and dates. * * * So many small business owners keep making the same mistakes when trying to devise a publicity strategy. They cobble together a bunch of tactics that never worked very well… Read More
How to promote a Hangout, webinar, podcast after you’re the guest
If you’re an expert in your topic, you’ve probably been invited onto at least one program as the guest expert. Afterward, you thank the host, send out a few tweets linking to the replay, and then get back to work. That’s what I usually do. There’s a much better way. Mike Allton, a social media… Read More