Whom to Pitch: Blogs or Press?

The Publicity Hound’s
Tips of the Week
Issue #540 Jan. 25, 2011

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. Whom to Pitch: Blogs or Press?

2. The Feature Facebook Forgot

3. Your LinkedIn Headline

4. Why Your Book Isn’t Done Yet

5. Explain Your Awards

6. Hound Video of the Week

7. And at My Blogs & Mobile Site…

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1. Whom to Pitch: Blogs or Press?
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I’ll bet you’ve found yourself in this quandary:

You have a great story idea, but you have a decision to make. Do
you pitch it to traditional media, or to bloggers?

There’s no right answer. It depends on the story idea, your
target market, and a variety of other factors.

The next time you face this decision, read the thorough summary
of the pros and cons of pitching the press vs. bloggers from
David Spinks, at the Social Fresh blog at
http://socialfresh.com/pitching-bloggers-mainstream-media-or-
both/

Here’s a quick recap:

Blogs will help you reach a more targeted but smaller audience.
Less popular bloggers are more accessible.

Bloggers can sway their audiences much easier than traditional
media, because people trust them more. But, because they publish
far less frequently, you may have to wait awhile before they
finally use your idea.

Traditional media are generally far less accessible. Because your
audience isn’t targeted, you can see a boost in website traffic
that levels off over time. But a story in USA Today, or even your
local weekly newspaper, can give you instant credibility.

My advice: Use both.

Don’t forget to research before you pitch, however. I wrote a
lengthy comment under David’s blog post that underscores the
importance of research.

One of the best ways to increase the chances of being covered is
to piggyback your story idea onto breaking news. Michelle
Tennant, a publicist who regularly places stories about her
clients in top-tier media outlets, explains how she does it in
the video replay of a webinar I hosted with her recently. Read
more about “How to Tie Your Pitch to Breaking News and Make the
Media Interview YOU” at
http://publicityhound.com/publicity-products/marketing-tapes/breakingnews.htm

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2. The Feature Facebook Forgot
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If you manage your own Facebook Fan Pages, you know how
frustrating it can be to constantly check to see if anyone has
commented on notes, photos, videos or other content you’ve
shared, so you can write a timely reply.

HyperAlerts to the rescue!

It’s a new, free app that sends you an email notice every time
someone posts or comments on one of your pages. You can decide
how often you want to be notified–as soon as possible, daily,
weekly or monthly.

I added it to my Facebook Fan Page at
http://www.Facebook.com/publicitytips and decided I want to be
contacted as soon as possible, because if I show up late to my
own party, my guests could be long gone by then.

You can monitor as many pages as you wish, and even create
multiple alerts for the same page. Maybe you want an alert
immediately, as well as a weekly report of all activity.

Add it to your Fan Page now at http://alerts.hyperinteraktiv.no/

Thanks to Christine Buffaloe, my virtual assistant, for letting
me know about HyperAlerts. She’s a Facebook expert extraordinaire
who was my guest during the webinar “11 Ways to Avoid Missed
Opportunities on Facebook.” Read more about the things she can
teach you to do at
http://publicityhound.com/publicity-products/marketing-
tapes/how_to_use_facebook.htm

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3. Your LinkedIn Headline
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Does your LinkedIn headline set you apart from everyone else in
your field? It should say to journalists and others who find you:
“You need to contact this person, pronto!”

Until recently, my headline was lame. It made me sound like every
other publicity expert. So I came up with one that I think really
sets me apart, and includes a call to action:

“#1 Publicity Expert on Google. President, The Publicity Hound.
Call me at 262-284-7451 & ask how I can help you”

A week after I changed it, the phone rang. It was Matt
Schumacher, a financial services consultant from Milwaukee. The
first words out of his mouth were, “How can you help me?”

I explained how, and now he subscribes to this newsletter, and
knows all about my free content that’s available. I also told him
about my telephone consulting, and where he can find the products
I’ve created that can help him market his practice.

Your headline, by the way, is the two lines of type that appear
to the left of your photo on your profile page. It should include
keywords that the search engines can find.

You’re allowed 120 characters. So use them! No wimpy one-liners.

The LinkedIn headline isn’t necessarily the same as the profile
you write for the other social media sites. Let Nancy Marmolejo
show you how to write a sizzling profile that says, “Call me.”
See “Can Your Social Media Profile Pass the 10-Second Test?” at
http://publicityhound.com/publicity-products/marketing-tapes/socialnetworkingprofile.htm

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4. Why Your Book Isn’t Done Yet
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If you’re writing a book, and it’s taking much longer than you
expected, it could be because you’ve fallen into one or more
common traps:

–You’re taking way too long to do your research.

–You’re striving for perfection.

–You’re putting off the task because you’re not sure if you’re
doing it correctly.

You’re invited to a free webinar (or telephone seminar) on
Thursday, Jan. 27, with a woman who’s developed a unique system
for writing a quality non-fiction book in 90 days. I’m a
compensated affiliate for this program.

Click here to register:
http://www.freeauthortraining.com/call/?10011

Discover the speed writing system she’s used to help 268 authors
get their books done quickly.

See you on the call!

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5. Explain Your Awards
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If you’re publicizing an industry award, for heaven’s sake,
please explain what you did to earn it.

Even better, offer a list of tips on how other people can do what
you do, whether it’s selling more computers, or designing a
better building, or writing a prize-winning novel.

Too many press releases and other promotions that announce awards
fail to do this.

And when you receive the award, make sure you give a gracious and
professional acceptance speech. Speech coach Patricia Fripp
explains how at
http://billionaires.forbes.com/article/09nL48j9Df1u3

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6. Hound Video of the Week
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Have you seen this one of the dog playing basketball? Two points!

http://www.funnydogsite.com/videos/basketball.htm

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 & Mobile Site…
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Paint a picture with your blog, article headlines
http://publicityhound.net/?p=7679

Look far beyond your topic for publicity ideas
http://publicityhound.net/?p=7670

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Follow me on Twitter:
http://www.twitter.com/PublicityHound

Join my Facebook Fan Page:
http://www.facebook.com/publicitytips

Connect with me on LinkedIn (and tell me how we know each other):
http://www.linkedin.com/in/publicityhound

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Joan Stewart
The Publicity Hound