Publicity: Can Your Business Get It?

I sat in on an interesting Webinar today presented by Kay Paumier of Communications Plus. The title of her Webinar was “How to Get Publicity When You Have No News.”

This struck me as a particularly great topic given the economic climate. (Don’t you love that term? Do economies really have climates? If so, ours is in a mini-Ice Age.) Aside from some of the larger financial institutions, which have nothing but bad news to report these days, small businesses have news to report too—and it’s not bad news, either!

In fact, every small business could, potentially, be releasing “news” every single week. “News” can be defined as a new client acquisition, a new product or service, a success story of how your company helped a client out of a jam, and much more. And, if applied correctly, this news can drive more traffic to your Web site and get you more customers.

Kay focused on traditional media sources (newspapers, magazines, trade journals, TV, radio, etc.) in her presentation. That was fine, but I’m more interested in online media sources (there’s obviously an overlap, though). Kay rightly pointed out that (good) publicity provides your business with credibility, it generates leads, and it makes you stand out from the crowd.

She discussed tips and techniques for interacting with traditional media (namely, reporters) as well. But the meat of her presentation was her “Eight Ways to Get Publicity.” They are:

1. HARO (www.helpareporterout.com) – A site that lets you sign-up to receive up to three emails per days with queries from reporters

2. Editorial calendars – Many publications post the topics for their upcoming issues on their online calendars

3. Letters to the editor – We all know the traditional way this works, and the online way is easily translated into responses to articles, blog posts, etc.

4. Calendar announcements – Media advisories of upcoming events

5. Seasonal publicity – Topics that tie into the holidays, tax time, summer, etc.

6. News opportunities – Offering a local angle to a national story, giving a story human interest, etc.

7. Product reviews – Reviews by editors of publications in your industry that increase your credibility and publicize favorable results

8. Visuals and video – These simply visualize a story, draw attention to your company and product/service, and increase the likelihood of coverage across all media

Kay delved into the nuances of each of these. I won’t rehash it here beyond my simple descriptions (feel free to contact her directly at kay@communicationsplus.net for more information), but suffice to say all eight are effective ways to get publicity.

So, why spend all this time providing you with an overview of Kay’s presentation? Well, for one thing, it was an informative presentation that I wanted to share and, secondly, it got me thinking: You’re busy focusing on your core business. You’re meeting with prospects and trying to sell more products and services. You’re busy.

As a marketing copywriter, your business is my business. I can write your press releases, articles, blogs, and other marketing/press materials. But beyond compelling writing to get your company and product/service on the proverbial map, my network of PR professionals and Internet marketing specialists can help create comprehensive campaigns to give you unprecedented exposure and give you that much needed edge in this um . . . yeah . . . “economic climate.”

This topic reminded me of a series of press releases I wrote for a client a few months ago that, when submitted to several free online press release services, yielded results of being ranked on the first and second pages of Google for the particular keyword(s). If you’re curious, here’s a link to one of those Hansten Healthcare articles.

Want to spend less time writing and/or marketing your business and more time interacting with your clients and prospects? Want more publicity? Of course you do! Contact Novo Writing today at 714.335.5677. We'll get the word out.