The Power of One Targeted Media Story

In truth, it is very rare that your marketing strategies work immediately, including PR. Why is this? Simply put sometimes the most targeted media story you can get may happen to be in a magazine, and national pubs work up to six months out. So, while you've secured the opportunity, you still have to wait six months for it to hit. This can be true for a lot of media. But then again, you realize that marketing, in general, is a long-term process that needs nurturing and requires patience.

There are those few precious times when a journalist can take interest in your story and change the face of your business overnight. The best way to explain this is to give you examples of two of our clients.

About two years ago my friend, Dr. Michele Kehrer came to me and said "I'm one of few people in the country who treats chronic dizziness and balance issues, which 90% of Americans will suffer from at one point, and doctors don't know about me". It was a great story and was immediately picked up by the local ABC affiliate's HealthBeat. They came out the next week, taped and ran the story not just once but four times over the next several days - mostly appearing late night. Her business, Lifestyle Physical Therapy & Balance Center got more than a shot in the arm - she picked up over 100 patients and it transformed her clinic, literally, overnight. Two years later she has doubled her staff, again, and is enjoying less work and more management of the business.

More recently, as in this week, our pro bono client Kendall Ciesemier of Kids Caring 4 Kids, and I, finally saw the fruits of our labor. Roughly three months ago, Channel One, a news resource for six million kids across the country that is fed directly into classrooms, called and said they were in from New York for a story and wanted to cover Kendall's interesting story - and it is interesting (read more). Her primary goal: to distribute her "i care 2" kit and encourage American kids to support AIDS orphans in Africa. It took a few months to edit (and breaking for the holidays) and finally aired January 11, 2010 on Channel One. The result - within just a few days hundreds of kits were requested, donation pages set up on her website and....to date those numbers are still growing.

Why did these work to produce so much for these two organizations? Because the story truly hit their target demographics. Other key ingredients for success are two great stories, something the public would be interested in as well as learning about, they differentiated themselves from anyone else and both are extremely passionate about what they want to accomplishment.

This is what one truly targeted story can do for your business

This isn't to say that you aren't passionate about your business, it's about locating your story, writing and presenting it in a compelling way (Make it News!) and finding the one media outlet that reaches the particular audience you desire most.

Look, there are a lot of people out there who practice the "Bowl of Spaghetti" theory to PR - take a bowl of spaghetti, throw it up on the wall and see what sticks. In this case, write a press release, SPAM it to every journalist on the list and see who shows interest. Our particular approach was hands on, meaning our clients gave us their media wish list of about 10-15 and we went out and got them interested. It was more than just "sending an email", we crafted our story to each particular media and audience and....gasp....we even called them on the phone over just distributing by email.

Yes, generating PR, and marketing in general, takes time. Valuable time out of your day when you could be doing other things to run your business, but isn't it worth it to you and your business to focus on it for a week and see what develops? It could change your business and make your dreams of becoming a successful entrepreneur come true.

In both cases, it took one person to stand out from the crowd with a great story to impart success. There is only one way to success.....go out and find your amazing story and if you're struggling, then it's worth it to find an experience news/PR professional to write it for you.

Follow me on Twitter @SmallBizPRXpert and @MyStorySource or subscribe to MyStorySource.com for FREE to pitch your story to media.

The Best FREE Resources for Getting PR

In the past, as a PR professional there were a multitude of great resources we used to help generate news stories for our clients. Back then many were pay services that came by fax or even mail! Can you imagine how far ahead journalists had to plan to get a query posted on that one!

Well those days are mostly gone, thanks to the Internet and many service, while still pay are offering part of their service for free (promotionally) and others are just FREE.

Now my cohorts would ask me why I’m giving these away, but the reality is that if you really wanted to find them online, you will and I would rather have you visit Small Business Daily and save yourself some serious time.

Help a Reporter Out – sign up to receive this free email distribution three times daily with the latest queries from journalists looking for sources. Be ware. Participation has rules so best to read them before you get booted from the list.

Pitch Rate – also an email distribution that’s focus is on industry experts

Reporter’s Source – free email distribution with leads but you don’t have the chance to pitch the reporter yourself. Actually, you send in your pitch, it’s evaluated by the publishers and they pitch it for you. If the journalist is interested they put you in touch.

My Story Source – just launched. Free email distribution to media that allows you to pitch your news in the email and journalists contact you at their convenience. Also a good place to build community with other small businesses and nonprofits.

The Publicity Hound – a great place to get tips on improving your ability to generate positive PR for your organization.

Toilet Paper Entrepreneur – another great resource for entrepreneurs of every shape and size. A wealth of knowledge and information. Read the blog daily!

Jennifer Fortney
Cascade Communciations

Follow me on Twitter @SmallBizPRXpert

How the Internet Can Help Drive PR

The Internet has done great things for our lives. Seriously, think about waking up tomorrow without it! Not only has it allowed us the opportunity to find news and information, resources and more, it’s given little stores across the world the chance to have customers around the world. We’re no longer tied to doing business in our local regions, but we have the opportunity to expand and grow our businesses in a way that’s never really been available before.

It is also giving small businesses the opportunity to attract the attention of media….that’s if they can find you.

This brings me to the key connection between SEO (search engine optimization) and generating public relations. PR strategy has always focused on the “traditional” with press releases and press kits being sent directly to journalists, follow up calls and emails sent and a proactive approach to results. Today, the Internet is giving journalists a new way to search and find small businesses, new products and companies, experts to use as story sources…but that’s only if they can find you.

Remember: When using the Internet to market your business, most people don’t know they’re looking for you and your business until they find you!

This is why SEO becomes a critical part of the marketing mix for your business, and to further your chances of generating positive PR for your business. It’s not enough to have a great website, you also need to make sure that it is built specifically for search – meaning what would the average person search for, or what terms would they use to find you? The same goes for how you write your press release and distribute it online. Like anything else, if you utilize your key search terms in your press release, the odds improve that a journalist, or new potential partner or vendor, will find you.

Crafting your story for SEO:

* Write your press release
* Write out a list of all the key search terms someone might use to locate your business
* Cut this list down to the Top 10
* Now compare your press release to this list. Where are these search terms? Are they located in the headline, sub headline or lead paragraph? Well, they should be.

This can become tricky though as the lead paragraph of your press release needs to be kept down to three-four to the point sentences. I know…tricky. If it seems impossible, then you might consider writing two kinds of press releases – one for media and one for search. Then make sure all of this is also available in your online press room, which I’ll talk about next week.

This one thing, if done correctly, will open new doors for you on the web. Whether it’s getting the attention of a journalist or finding a new partner in business offering a mutually beneficial relationship. It’s definitely worth giving it a go and seeing what happens. Use some the free release distribution sites, see what kind of return you get and then make changes in future releases.

However, the most important part of your press release, the point of it really, should never be overlooked. It’s about your story….something really, truly newsworthy. It’s not about writing a release every week and spamming it across social media networks and free distribution sites. It’s better to send them out when you really have news or something to share every now and again than each week. If the content is not valuable, after awhile, people will just ignore everything you distribute. It’s called…..crying wolf and when you do have huge news to share no one will be there to listen.

Jennifer Fortney, Cascade Communications and SmallBizPRMadeEasy.com

Follow me on Twitter @SmallBizPRXpert or join our new group on LinkedIn My Source for Stories – where we connect small businesses with the media

Why Your Business Needs a Press Kit

Your press kit is the most important tool you can have to successfully achieve public relations for your business. Why? It tells your story! You wouldn't go to a meeting or new business presentation without a materials to present and discuss, so why would you just pick up the phone and contact media and not expect them to request information?

It is the FIRST tactic I perform for all of my clients!

Developing your press kit is one of the very first things you should do before pursuing media stories. It's purpose is to be an all-inclusive package of information on your business that tells media why they should write a story.

A press kit might include:

1. Press release(s)
2. Owner bio (human interest story)
3. Company backgrounder
4. Product fact sheets
5. Tip sheets for expert positioning
6. Testimonials
7. List of story ideas
8. Product samples (as part of press kit mailing)
9. Product photos
10. Company logo and other valuable graphics

Let me re-iterate the importance of the press kit: I spend most of my time each week pitching media and when I speak to journalists by phone they always ask for an email with information (i.e. press kit materials). When I approach them via email initially I always include one or two pieces from the press kit - usually the most relevant press release and company backgrounder.

Remember that journalists receive hundreds of pieces of mail and email everyday and this is the ONE chance, first-impression you get with media. Since they don't have a great deal of time, you must include valuable information along with a well-crafted story pitch in order to catch the attention of media. If you don't they will either be interested enough to email and ask for information or....worse....they will trash the email altogether, and you miss out.

One last thing to remember is that just because you send out your story idea and materials to media doesn't mean that they're going to drop everything at that very moment to write the story - unless, of course, it is immediately timely. Offering media press kit materials allows them the opportunity to make some notes and put it on file for a future story that they may be considering your business for. Just make sure that your contact information near the top and clearly visible. No contact means no story.

For more information, read this...

Join Twitter to Get Unique Daily Tips

Twitter has become a great resource for business owners and individuals over the last year. For me, personally, I've found that it's a great way to connect with small business owners and offer unique daily PR and marketing tips that will help you in growing your business.

Small Biz PR Tips ONLY offered by Jennifer Fortney
One day as I was sitting looking at Twitter I wondered how I can translate my drive to help educate small businesses through this particular social media. That's why I created "Today's SMB PR Tip" and "Today's SMB Tip". No one else offers anything close to it and many have found them quite useful, especially when I provide links to my blogs or to related stories. This really is a rare opportunity for my clients and those of you who are interested in DIY PR. You aren't going to find the kind of information and opportunities I offer anywhere else on Twitter or the Web. I'm excited to be able to communicate with small to medium-sized business owners across the country and world and encourage you all to KEEP MARKETING FOR SUCCESS!


Twitter Tips Takes Five Minutes a Day
Using Twitter smartly will give you an abundance of information and help you build new relationships in just a few minutes a day. Using it "smartly" means that you follow only those people who are truly of interest to you and provide meaningful information. In just a few minutes a day you can

1. get tips and ideas for your business
2. use the opportunity to ask me questions directly about your PR and marketing efforts (in 140 characters or less, of course!)
3. follow news outlets key to your business' PR success
4. communicate your business in a new way to new people

That's just another reason why you should follow @SmallBizPRXpert today!

See you on Twitter!

Why PR Will Help Your Biz Thrive in a Recession

Sales & Marketing April 10, 2009, 1:09PM EST

Why PR Is the Prescription
The right story told at the right time can bring valuable attention to your business, even during a downturn By Steve McKee

Times are tough. It can be difficult to keep your focus on driving the top line when the bottom line is bleeding red. A lot of us can identify with John Krafcik, acting president and CEO of Hyundai Motor America, when he says, "Flat is the new up."

Still, you know you can't put your marketing program entirely on hold. You need to do something to attract new customers (and give existing customers more reasons to stay). It may be sacrilege for an ad guy to say so, but I recommend a healthy dose of PR. Yep, PR.

There are a couple of trends that, while causing headaches for journalists, can work in your favor: Properly understood, they can help you generate attention for your business.....

Read more