3 Reasons Why Publicity Should Be Part of Your Marketing

Everyone knows that marketing is essential to any business.

It's the reason why McDonald's with their millions of locations and billions of burgers sold continues to produce commercial and other initiatives -- because the executives know their products need to stay on people's minds.

So let's talk about about publicity's role in your marketing. By publicity, I mean using the media to air a message that is NOT an advertisement.

So you may be asking...why? I'm a plumber. Why should I try to get publicity?

Related: Three More Ways to Get in the News

Well, Mr. Plumber (and other business owners), you have to consider a few things:

1. Understand that media is more than just the news. There are blogs, magazines and websites about home improvement (or whatever industry you are in) where your expertise may fit. Do you have great information to contribute to create more of a following for your business?
2. You're not using publicity to directly sell. You're using it to create awareness about who you are, what you do and how you can assist potential clients. And it's cool to just help people when you can.
3. If you want to be considered an expert, publicity is a great way to establish credibility. It also gets your message out to a wide audience, which is why I like to say publicity is word-of-mouth on steroids.

The moral of the story? Publicity is a great tool for spreading your message, which will let people know more about you. If you have a marketing plan to grow, definitely consider how you can get the word out through the media.

Related:  The Winding Road to Publicity
               Before You Pitch: 5 Questions Reporters Will Definitely Ask
                   
Bridgette Outten is a journalist and publicity strategist with The Write Vision Group, Inc. With a background in print media, she has written thousands of articles for newspapers and online publications. At The Write Vision Group, Bridgette consults with nonprofits and small businesses about how to get their programs and efforts in the news. Meanwhile, she blogs on all things journalism.

3 Ways Publicity Can Make You Money

We've established that getting news coverage -- minus the cost of perhaps paying someone to pitch your news -- is free.

But.

You do know that publicity can make you money, right?

Through publicity, you can:

• Ask  for donations.
• Publicize a new product.
• Generate buzz about a new program or an anniversary/continuing success of a current one.
  
  All of these can lead to bigger and better partnerships, more clients and more customers.

However, here are a few tips to keep in mind when you're using your publicity to promote your business or organization.

1. Make it about your audience, not about you. People ultimately want to know how what you're doing affects them -- or their community. Make sure people know the bigger picture of how they can help the situation or how what you're doing is going to make their lives better.
2. Don't talk up the competition. Focus only on what you do. You don't want to put yourself in a situation where you've given other people a part of your space.
3. Don't waste a moment of your interview. Make sure everything you tell the reporter is deliberate and has a purpose.

The moral of the story? If done correctly, your publicity will compel people to go to want to find out more about your business or organization, therefore increasing your reach and your potential to make more money for your business or organization.

Bridgette Outten is a journalist and media consultant with The Write Vision Group, Inc. With a background in print media, she has written thousands of articles for newspapers and online publications. At The Write Vision Group, Bridgette consults with nonprofits and small businesses about how to get their programs and efforts in the news. Meanwhile, she blogs on all things journalism.

Keep a Record of All News Appearances

Before I just started asking my clients outright, sometimes I would have worked with a client for several weeks before I find out they have appeared in a news publication or on a program before.

"Why didn't you tell me?"

This question is typically met with a shrug. Or a blank look as if to say, "What, that matters?"

In a word, yes.

Remember when we talked about why you want publicity and how you can benefit -- and one reason is that it gives your organization credibility.

So if you have already had a reporter verify who you are and what you do, make sure you share it on your website under a link marked "In the News" or "Press."

And one last word to the wise: if your last media appearance was six years ago, you should be looking for fresh ways to get publicity.

Bridgette Outten is a journalist and media consultant with The Write Vision Group, Inc. With a background in print media, she has written thousands of articles for newspapers and online publications. At The Write Vision Group, Bridgette consults with nonprofits and small businesses about how their programs and efforts in the news. Meanwhile, she blogs on all things journalism.

In-Depth Journalism: A Thing of the Past?

Think back to the last time you read, saw or listened to a well-put together, thoroughly researched news report.

If you're scratching your head trying to come up with something, you're not alone.

Media experts speaking at a hearing held by the Federal Communications Commission at Arizona State University earlier this week said new media organizations are coming anywhere close to filling gaps created by traditional media outlets that have had to let go of journalists.

So what does that mean? 

"Real news has too often been replaced by fluff, and democracy is not well served by fluff," Commission member Michael Copps said.

A report on the matter said "daily newspapers have decreased their staffing levels by more than 25 percent since 2001 and that the shortage of local reporting means that scandals aren't exposed, public dangers aren't identified and local political candidates aren't vetted as they once were," according to the Associated Press.

It's not a new complaint as veteran reporters are replaced with less experienced reporters for lower pay and even the ones left behind have less time to work on an in-depth piece before it has to be cranked out to be posted on the Internet to keep up with other competitors.

Proposed solutions include more partnership among news competitors and nonprofit news organizations to fill in the gap. The report also suggested creating public affairs cable channels similar to C-SPAN at the state level, easing tax rules for nonprofit news organizations and directing more federal advertising spending to local news media, AP said.

If Your Topic Doesn't Interest YOU, It Won't Interest A Reporter

Think about what you want to pitch to a reporter.

Now take yourself out of the equation. This means the story is no longer about YOUR cause, YOUR event or YOU.

Does it catch your attention? Are you still interested?

If not, a reporter won't be either.

I have met many people who thought they had a story because they were so taken with their own accomplishments -- which, while they were great on a personal note -- did not make a good or intriguing news story.

Gauge the newsworthiness of your story like this: If it were something that had nothing to do with you that came on television, the radio, was featured in the newspaper or online, would you change the channel, turn the knob, turn the page or click away?

If the answer is yes, do not expect a reporter to be interested in a topic that even you don't care about.

Bridgette Outten is a journalist and media consultant with The Write Vision Group, Inc.  With a background in print media, she has written hundreds of articles for newspapers and online publications. At The Write Vision Group, Bridgette consults with nonprofits and small businesses about how they can get media attention for their programs and efforts. Meanwhile, she blogs on all things journalism.

If You Paid For It, It's Not News

The Internet has made it easier than ever for just about anyone to have his or her own show -- streaming radio, YouTube, live chats and the like. Couple that with the traditional cable access networks and you have a lot of people on the air, in some form or another.

This is actually a great thing because it allows more access for anyone to broadcast their message.

But here comes the caveat: some of these producers or hosts charge for appearances on their shows. However, if you paid to have your business or organization featured on a broadcast or in a publication, it is not a news organization. The hosts/writers/etc. are not journalists -- and what you paid for was a commercial.

Several weeks ago, we talked about the benefits of publicity over advertising. The very first benefit -- and a really great one -- is that publicity is free. Good Morning America? Doesn't cost a dime. The Today Show?  You don't pay a cent. The list goes on.

These are news programs and journalists don't pay for news. We see or hear about a story, decide it will appeal to our viewers/listeners/readers on some level and we cover it. What we don't do is accept payment for featuring a story because one of the principal elements of journalism -- objectivity -- goes out the window once money changes hands.

It is actually unethical for journalists to accept any type of payment for a story and most -- actually I can venture to say, all -- news organizations have some sort of ethics code of conduct. The New York Times has  an entire section on protecting neutrality in its company ethics policy that states:



35. Staff members and those on assignment for us may not accept anything that could be construed as a payment for favorable coverage or for avoiding unfavorable coverage. They may not accept gifts, tickets, discounts, reimbursements or other benefits from individuals or organizations covered (or likely to be covered) by their newsroom. Gifts should be returned with a polite explanation; perishable gifts may instead be given to charity, also with a note to the donor. In either case the objective of the note is, in all politeness, to discourage future gifts.


So there you have it. What does this mean for you and your organization if you are considering or have paid to be featured in print or broadcast? Well, for one thing, it should be disclosed that guests pay to be spotlighted so the audience is aware.  


Any organization that pays it guests or accepts payments from its guests should not be billed as a news show or publication -- because being on the news is free.

Bridgette Outten is a journalist and media consultant with The Write Vision Group, Inc. With a background in print media, she has written thousands of articles for newspapers and online publications. At The Write Vision Group, Bridgette consults with nonprofits and small businesses about how to get their programs and efforts in the news. Meanwhile, she blogs on all things journalism.

Do You REALLY Get Your News From Twitter?

I love Twitter. I'm on it on my laptop, on my phone and eventually on my Samsung tablet when I get one. It can be entertaining, informative, whatever you want it to be -- depending on who you follow.

But I do cringe when someone says they now get their news from Twitter and hope they don't mean in the literal sense, as in whatever someone posts, they believe it and call it "news."

Don't misunderstand; I do know that some people get their news from Twitter in the sense that they see a link someone tweeted, click on it and lo and behold, it's news from a credible source. Twitter is also great because live accounts of events (Iran election, Kanye West's latest situations and so on) come directly from the tweeting public as they happen.

However, all we have to do is look at the number of celebrities that tweeters kill off daily, the number of rumors that swirl in an instant and the rampant misspellings of things that may be news (but frankly, we're just not sure) to remember that Twitter is full of regular, everyday people. People who don't necessarily have the access or know how to actually report breaking news. It's kind of like getting your research from Wikipedia...wait, you don't do that, do you?

I was on Twitter when Ron Isley (@theRealRonIsley) tweeted about Teena Marie's death. While I acknowledged that he sent out the tweet with one of my own, I immediately became what I described as "a Googling fool" to find some verification. It was amazing the watch the news outlets catch up with Twitter posts, but it was eventually a journalist, Roland Martin (@rolandsmartin) whose retweets confirmed it for the Twitterverse. Twitter seemed to know Michael Jackson died before mainstream outlets but I still waited on a credible verification before I broke out the old CDs and candles; I wondered about the people who simply took others' word for it without any confirmation.

It's those kind of blindly retweeting people who may be to blame for the latest celeb death fiasco -- those posting about the supposed death of Nelson Mandela  when the former South African president is quite alive, although ill.

In my humble opinion, these situations show that many stories are just rumors until they are confirmed, even if a news source (CNN, MSNBC, Fox and the like are all on Twitter) verifies via the microblogging site. If that is the case, you didn't get your news from Twitter -- you got it from journalists who are using Twitter.

So my good tweeters, if you INSIST on getting your news from Twitter, here's a tip: follow a reporter.

Bridgette Outten is a journalist and media consultant with The Write Vision Group, Inc.  Her background is in print journalism and she has written hundreds of articles for newspapers and online publications. At The Write Vision Group, Bridgette advises nonprofits and small businesses on how they can get media attention for their programs and efforts. Meanwhile, she blogs on all things journalism.