Five Places to Meet Journalists

The Publicity Hound’s
Tips of the Week
Issue #494 March 2, 2010

Publisher: Joan Stewart

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“Tips, Tricks and Tools for Free Publicity”

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In This Issue
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1. Five Places to Meet Journalists

2. Google Eyes Facebook Updates

3. Media Lead

4. Marketing Sspeeches on anti-Semitism

5. Help This Hound

6. Hound Joke of the Week

7. And at My Blogs…

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1. Five Places to Meet Journalists
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Meeting journalists and broadcasters in person is easy if you
know where to look.

In most cases, you should start to build the relationship first,
and pitch later. Here are five places to find them:

–At your local press club events. These are great opportunities
to meet them in casual settings.

–At the many public events hosted by local business journals.
Reporters and editors often attend.

–At events where journalists are speaking. Groups hosting awards
dinners and fund-raisers frequently invite TV anchors to deliver
the keynote address.

–In the media room at conventions and trade shows. You might not
be allowed inside without a media pass, but you can hang around
near the exit. Don’t hesitate to invite a journalist for coffee,
and pitch.

–At the National Publicity Summit in New York City, April 28-May
3, where you can meet editors, reporters, freelancers and guest
bookers for TV and radio talk shows, and pitch them. You must
apply, and only 100 people will be chosen to attend. Learn more
at http://www.nationalpublicitysummit.com/?10011 I’ve been
recommending the publicity summit to Publicity Hounds who have
great story ideas but need help refining their pitches and
meeting the right journalists.

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2. Google Eyes Fan Page Updates
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Last week, I listed several reasons why Facebook Fan Pages are
such a powerful tool in a publicity and marketing campaign.

Here’s one more. Google is now indexing status updates on Fan
Pages.

Those simple one- and two-sentence updates that answer the
question, “What’s on your mind?” take just a few seconds to write
and now show up in Google’s results when somebody types the same
keywords into the search engines that are in your updates. What
could be easier?

Have you created your Fan Page yet? Lots of people are confused
by Facebook Fan Pages vs. Profiles, Fan Pages vs. Groups, and the
type of content that’s appropriate for a Fan Page.

Christine Buffaloe sorts it all out and gives you step-by-
directions on how to create a Page, what to include on it and how
to promote it in “11 Ways to Avoid Missed Opportunities on
Facebook.” It’s a recording of a teleseminar I hosted last
summer. Over the weekend, I emailed updated handouts to everyone
who registered, or bought the CD, MP3 or electronic transcript.

Don’t miss this one. Fan Pages are great for branding and
building a huge following. Learn more at
http://budurl.com/facebookwithchris

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3. Media Lead
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Attention motivational speakers, authors and consultants:

If you or your PR client can motivate entrepreneurs and upper
management in corporations, you might be a perfect candidate for
Motivated magazine. The editor welcomes your pitches.

Details at my blog at http://ow.ly/1dhOi

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4. Marketing Speeches on anti-Semitism
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This week, nine Publicity Hounds have tips for Judith Bron of
Spring Valley, N.Y. on how to market herself as a paid speaker on
the topic of anti-Semitism.

From J. Guevara:

“First, I would open with your credentials, to establish
credibility. They don’t have to be academic, especially with the
subject of racism. Personal experience throws a lot of weight.
You need to put a bizz plan together with marketing as the main
project. Presenting a message in a lecture or a novel is the easy
part. Once you get into promoting it you’ll find that’s not even
the half of it.”

From Dale Hutchings:

“Find states and communities that have a heavy Jewish population.
This will help to narrow the focus of your search. Another thing
you need to research is finding Holocaust museums throughout the
U.S…This might be one marketing segment that would be open to
having you come and speak.”

From Gail Sideman:

“In this difficult speaker’s climate, you want to highlight your
credentials for this topic almost as diligently as your ability
to capture an audience. Are you a Holocaust Survivor, or a
college professor who?s knowledgeable and has spoken about World
War II and anti-Semitism?”

The Publicity Hound says:

Read all the responses to this week?s “Help This Hound” question
at http://tinyurl.com/antisemitismspeaker and then check out my
ebook, “How to be a Kick-butt Publicity Hound,” chock full of
publicity tips for professional speakers, small business owners,
nonprofits, and anyone promoting a cause or issue. The updated
edition includes eight new chapters on social media. Learn more
at https://publicityhound.com/publicity/publicityhound.htm

Send your own Help this Hound question to:
mailto:JStewart@PublicityHound.com?subject=HelpThisHound
and include your city and state or province.

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5. Help This Hound
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Patti Chavet of Frisco, Texas writes:

“I’m a sales consultant and I want to brand myself as an expert
in active adult lifestyle living in Texas.

“My target market is Baby Boomers, age 55 and older, who want to
downsize to a maintenance-free home so they’re free to explore
personal hobbies, interests, public service, education, travel,
etc., all in the company of others who share the same lifestyle.

“I work for Del Webb, whose communities traditionally have
targeted retirees looking to downsize. I’m new to marketing, and
I’d like ideas and advice on how to use traditional and social
media to become the go-to person in Texas who can help Baby
Boomers move from big houses to easy-to-manage single-family
homes in Del Webb communities.

“Where should I begin? I’ve been in this niche market for more
than 20 years, so I’m already an expert. My challenge is to now
spread the word throughout Texas. I’d love to hear suggestions
from your Publicity Hounds.”

The Publicity Hound says:

There are so many opportunities for you, Patti, that I don’t know
where to begin. But I’ll bet my Hounds do. If you have ideas for
Patti, post them to my blog at http://ow.ly/1die7

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6. Hound Joke of the Week
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Thanks to Leo & Dorothy Keeler of Anchorage, Ala. for this one:
“If dogs could talk, it would take a lot of the fun out of owning
one.” — Andy Rooney

Dog Jokes & Quotes Ebook: 170+ G-rated dog jokes and quotes,
perfect for a dog-lover, your favorite vet, or just for a few
good laughs.

BONUS: Buy the ebook and you also get a compilation of the 50
best websites for dog humor.

http://publicityhound.com/dogjokebook/

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7. And at My Blogs…
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Consider retweeting these blog posts:

12 tips for proofreading press releases, blogs & other copy
http://ow.ly/1dcK1

Editor of Motivated magazine welcomes pitches
http://ow.ly/1dhOi
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Joan Stewart
a.k.a. The Publicity Hound