Issue #776 Dec. 7, 2013
Publisher: Joan Stewart
“Tips, Tricks and Tools for Free Publicity”
In This Issue
- Collect Emails on Facebook
- How a Podcast Can Waste Time
- Pitching Tips from ABC, NBC, CBS
- Hound Video of the Week
This Week in the Hound House:
It’s f-f-f-f-f-freezing here in the Upper Midwest. And I’ve yet to find a pair of gloves that keep my paws warm. If you have a recommendation, please email me at JStewart@Publicityhound.com. Gloves only, please. No mittens.
1. Collect Emails on Facebook
Remember the big stink a year ago when Facebook users discovered that only a small percentage of fans were seeing their status updates?
It’s happening AGAIN, and that means even fewer fans will see what you’re posting.
If you want to build the buzz, Facebook says, you’ll have to buy an ad. Advertising Age obtained a three-page document that Facebook sent to its partners recently. In it, Facebook says that the main reason to acquire fans isn’t to build a free distribution channel for content. It’s to make future Facebook ads work better. In other words, hand over your credit card.
Regardless of whether you decide to spend money for an ad, there’s a powerful little trick to encourage your Facebook fans to give you their email addresses. I watched Don Crowther demonstrate it yesterday, step by step, and he even offered a free cheat sheet that explains, complete with screenshots, how to do it. I already do it, sort of, but I’m making two critical mistakes that I need to correct.
I found his instructions so helpful that I invited him to share them with you, too, during a free webinar I’m hosting with him from 4 to 5:30 p.m. Eastern Time on Thursday, Dec 12. He’ll also teach you how to use Pinterest and your own blog to build a valuable email list of people who will let you market to them over and over again.
Register for the free webinar “Turn Your Social Media Into a List-building Machine”. You can access the free step-by-step directions after the webinar.
2. How a Podcast Can Waste Time
Appearing as a guest expert on someone else’s podcast boosts your credibility.
But if it’s the wrong podcast, it can waste your time.
Podcaster Cliff Ravenscraft says that before he’s invited to be a guest on a podcast, he does his homework. He’ll accept the invitation if:
–The podcast has at least 10 episodes.
–It has a target audience that wants to hear his message.
–The host is a professional and not a hobbyist.
–The show has quality content. No foul language. No political ranting.
The 2014 edition of “How to be a Kick-butt Publicity Hound” ebook includes a chapter on podcasting, with tips on where you can find a free series of videos on how to start your own podcast with free or very inexpensive tools. You can still grab the ebook for the pre-publication half-price special.
3. Pitching Tips from ABC, NBC, CBS
Smart Publicity Hounds already know these three important tips about how to get booked on a top national TV show:
–Watch at least one, preferably a half dozen, episodes of the show you want to get onto, so you have a good idea of the types of topics they cover.
–Don’t pitch your message! Pitch a hook. Your message is what you want to share with people. Your hook is what gets you on the show so you can share it. You should be able to explain your hook in a sentence or two.
–Offer great visuals. If you’re a cooking instructor, be willing to demonstrate how to “flip” food in a frying pan without it landing on the floor. If you’re a dog trainer, offer to take your dog onto the show and demonstrate how to teach it how to do a trick. Be more than just a talking head.
But those are only three.
Producers at the big shows like “Live with Kelly,” “Rachael Ray” and “The Wendy Williams Show” have dozens more tips. They’ll be sharing their inside secrets on what you must do to pitch convincingly and catch their interest during Steve Harrison’s 90-minute telephone seminar on Thursday, Dec. 12, at 2 and 7 p.m. Eastern Time.
You’ll hear Steve interview producers for those shows, as well as other executives who hand-pick guests for shows on ABC, NBC and CBS and FOX. Register here for “How to Become a Guest on Top National TV Programs.” The call is free, and I’m promoting it as an affiliate.
4. Hound Video of the Week
I never tire of watching this ad for Beneful dog food that shows dogs having fun.
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