Free Press Release Template

Issue #760 Oct. 19, 2013
Publisher: Joan Stewart

“Tips, Tricks and Tools for Free Publicity”

In This Issue

1. Free Press Release Template
2. Self-published? No More Shame
3. Sponsors Will Pay for Your PR
4. Hound Video of the Week

This Weekend in the Hound House:

No rest this weekend. I’m cramming like crazy, learning all I can about podcasting, so you can listen to these tips instead of reading them. My podcasting coach, Dave Jackson, forwarded a link to a very nice compliment he got from Tommy G. Kendrick, one of his listeners and a fellow podcaster. Tommy raved about the tips I shared when I was a guest on Dave’s School for Podcasters radio show recently and explained more than a dozen ways to promote a podcast. Listen to the nice things Tommy said. If you missed the segment, you can catch it here.

1. Free Press Release Template

Never rely solely on press releases to generate publicity.

Everyone writes press releases, and you shouldn’t do what everyone else is doing. Stand out from the crowd with a customized pitch or by sharing valuable information through your own media outlets like your YouTube channel, a podcast, or a blog.

But you can’t ignore press releases.

They’re a helpful tool for journalists and bloggers who rely on them to find out what’s happening within the areas they cover. If a journalist loves your pitch and wants to interview you, one of the first things you should do is offer your press release. It will save a lot of time during the interview because it will include the key facts.

This week, Hubspot offered a basic press release template in exchange for your name and email address.

There’s nothing spectacular about it. What you’ll find most valuable, however, is the accompanying fill-in-the-blanks template that helps you with your entire promotional plan. It, too, is free, and all the information is available in one PDF when you opt in.

Hubspot gave no guidance on how to use links within your release.

Links are vitally important because with just one click, you can take readers to a sales page, a blog post or article, a helpful video, or a powerful call to action.

The webinar I hosted Thursday on “Google’s New Rules for Press Release Links” explains important updates to the way you use press releases, and how to use links to help readers while staying out of trouble with the world’s biggest search engine.

I’ll send the links to the video replay and all the bonuses later today or tomorrow. If you missed it, you can still register here.

2. Self-published? No More Shame

Not so long ago, self-published authors were treated like the black sheep in the family.

You were shamed into thinking you weren’t worthy if the big New York publishing houses ignored your book.

Those days, finally, are over. Self-published authors are almost on equal footing with authors who have big publishers behind their titles. And that means opportunities galore to sell more books.

Book distributor Amy Collins says she’s seeing a success rate of as high as 90 percent when she tries to get self-published titles into bookstores.

Why?

Because many self-published authors have dedicated themselves to learning as much as they can about how to write and publish quality books. They also know how to take advantage of the many online opportunities to spread the word about their titles, such as “chunking” excerpts into interesting tidbits that beg to be shared
on Facebook and Twitter.

Ebooks make it easier than ever to publish quality books without spending thousands of dollars. If you do it right, the book can become a best-seller, get picked up by a major publishing house and even make it onto the big screen. Example: 50 Shades of Grey started as a self-published ebook in Australia. It got a seven-figure deal from Vintage and vaulted to the top of the New York Times print bestseller list without ever being in print in the U.S.

Opportunities galore for self-published authors and indie publishers are one of 12 book publishing trends you’ll learn about when you join me for a free webinar from 8 to 9:15 p.m. Eastern Time on Tuesday, Oct. 22.

Register for the webinar, “How to Use 12 Book Publishing Trends to Sell More Books.” In addition to the trends I’ll identify in book publicity, several other book publishing experts will explain trends they’re seeing or predicting in book marketing, distribution and printing.

This is the fourth free webinar in a series to whet your appetite for the cruise we’re hosting Jan. 18-23 in the Caribbean for newbie and veteran authors. Midnight Sunday night, Oct. 20, is the deadline for registering and being eligible to win a free cruise.

3. Sponsors Will Pay for Your PR

Hundreds of authors, speakers, consultants and experts who target niches are teaming up with major corporate and nonprofit sponsors to deliver a message that resonates with a much bigger audience.

This year, I met Dona Storey when I spoke at the Virginia chapter of the National Speakers Association. She’s a consultant who works with publicly traded global corporations that want to do business with the U.S. government. Dona called this week to let me know she was in Milwaukee to speak on behalf of the American Express OPEN Small Business program.

That sponsorship gig helps her get additional media coverage when journalists want an expert who can offer commentary on topics such as the recent government shutdown. She told me her phone has been ringing all week from top-tier media outlets that want her comments on the mess in Washington, D.C.

Landing a successful corporate sponsorship is difficult if you don’t know what you’re doing.

Brendon Burchard, an author and speaker, has partnered with established organizations like Sony, the YMCA, Wachovia, Walmart, Kiwanis, Coca-Cola, Toyota, US Bank and Junior Achievement. When your name is linked with theirs, he says, you have borrowed credibility.

Brendon taps into their huge marketing budgets, giant email lists, consumer research, marketing staffs and their easily recognizable names. It took him two years to figure out how to crack the protective shell of some of those organizations and reach the right people who could help him. If you can find the right partner, he
insists, they can pay for YOUR public relations program.

As a result of his corporate sponsors, he has gotten onto ABC World News, Oprah & Friends, National Public Radio and 63 major radio stations. Many of his corporate partners pay their PR firms or use internal PR staff to get him media exposure.

Want to know how he does it?

Brendon will be a guest on Steve Harrison’s free teleseminar on “How to Get Major Companies and Nonprofits to Sponsor the Promotion
of Your Book, Product or Service” at 2 and 7 p.m. Eastern. Register for the free call here. I’m a compensated affiliate for Steve’s program but that’s not the only reason I’m promoting this. A corporate sponsorship can bring you so much more success than you could possible find on your own.

4. Hound Video of the Week

Thanks to Publicity Hound Jim Gentil of Austin, Texas, for this wonderful compilation of clips of cats stealing dog beds. You can watch it on Huffington Post and endure a commercial or catch it on Facebook.