Ways to find journalists...

Transcription

1

2 By this stage you should be ready to reach out to journalists and start getting the publicity you want! So it s now time to go back to your publicity wish list and start contacting people. There are a variety of ways for getting in touch with journalists, so make sure you utilise them. Ways to find journalists... MAGAZINES usually publish addresses in the front so go and buy the magazines you want to be featured in and reach out to the relevant person. TWITTER you ll find lots of journalists on Twitter, so have a search and then tweet them. If you want to get featured on a WEBSITE, go on the site and look for a contact form to pitch your story Get NETWORKING! Look for events where you ll be able to mingle with journalists, so you can start building relationships. CISION this is an online resource you can use to get in touch with the media. They have the world s largest media database HARO (Help A Reporter Out) this is an online platform where journalists go to find people for their stories. It s a great tool to try out. PR NEWSWIRE - you can use this to submit your press releases to the media. If you re contacting a local paper/radio show- make sure you tell them you re from the area. Make it personal.

3 Set up Google Alerts to be notified whenever someone writes an article in the news on your topic you might be able to respond to the piece somehow Read articles and have an opinion Compliment journalist You need to be familiar with the style, format and pacing of the shows and publications you re getting in touch with. If you want to be on a particular radio show then make sure you take the time to listen to that show and see what they talk about what kind of interviews they do. You ve got to research. If you want to be on Oprah, then you ve got to watch Oprah! Get going with this! Use the next page to write down contact details of the publications, blogs or shows you want to get featured on.

4 MEDIA OUTLET CONTACT NAME CONTACT DETAILS

5 If you don t hear back from journalists, make sure you send a follow up and add extra goodies try and be more compelling, say a little bit more to get them to respond. Don t just repeat what you ve already said or sent them. Try to entice them try a different headline. Include a compelling statistic or a two-line story. Follow up 2 or 3 times, if that still doesn t work try a different approach, a different angle. Don t give up. You ve got to be persistent. Molly Gunn (mollygunn.co.uk) is freelance writer & editor. She has written for Red, Grazia, Evening Standard, Daily Telegraph, The Guardian and many more. Here are her top 5 tips for getting publicity... PICK UP THE PHONE! My inbox is inundated with press releases but my phone hardly ever rings. People that call and strike up a conversation are the first people I think to call when I m writing a story. MEET & GREET. Once you ve got a journalist on the phone, why not suggest a quick coffee or a meeting at their office? It s old-school PRing at its best, and it works! Nothing can replace meeting face to face for forming a working relationship that lasts. BE PERSISTENT. Everyone is busy these days, so if you don t get a response first time don t be disheartened. The PRs that I ve struck up the best relationships with are the ones who contact me regularly, if only because I feel too guilty to ignore their 10th or phone call. GET CREATIVE. A box of bananas by a watch brand, piping hot takeaway pizzas by a car brand, a box of doughnuts by a fashion brand... I ve been sent all of the above and you know what? I took notice! Think of fun ways to stick in a journalist s mind, and if in doubt... send food. JUMP OUT OF THE INBOX. I receive approximately 100 press releases a day as a freelancer (and it was 5x that when I worked on staff at publications). If you must send an make it stand out with a creative subject line, or an offer to the journalist (we love to be bribed). Don t make the too text heavy as nobody will read it - stick to bullet points and pictures!

6 A complete PR strategy to help you get the coverage you want! Now get out there and start getting featured! If you have any questions or need help make sure you join us over in the Facebook Mastermind group and be sure to keep us posted on any PR success you have we d love to hear about it and share your story!