How to Write
Press Releases that Get Published
by Paul Krupin
Do you want to know the secret
of writing a news release that
will get published? Here it
is:
My secret for publicity
success, developed from rigorous self
assessment, after having
sent out over a million faxed news
releases on behalf of over 2,000
clients:
"Tell me a story,
give me a local news angle, touch my heart
(make me laugh or cry), hit me in
my pocketbook, make my stomach
turn over, or grab my gonads."
Do this as many times as possible
in a one page news release in
30 seconds or less and you will
succeed in getting publicity.
A few years ago I spoke at the National
Public Relations Society
meetings in Omaha. I found out
that most publicists at most big
PR firms don't
have a real clue about how to write a news
release to get news coverage.
They write corporate fluff.
Rarely do you see
them create something that makes an editor
drop what he’s doing
and pick up the phone and call. And yet
this is what you want an editor
to do.
Few people who write a news release
really think about what they
want the editor
to do after they receive and read a news
release.
I’ve been sending
out news releases for people for almost 22
years, and most
of the people who come to me initially write
detailed book
reviews or commercial news and web
site
announcements, not short ideas for
articles intended to attract
editors’ attention and
get a dialog going that results in a
feature story published.
I often have to tell them to start
over or shift gears.
A lot has to
do with the content and quality of the book,
product service or web site,
but let's just assume that you've
written the be-all, end-all
of whatever subject in your field.
This is the ultimate sensation.
The only thing anyone will ever
need or want. You're
all charged up and revved up to go. Now
what...
A Publicity Plan!
Yes! A Publicity Plan.
First, establish your
goals for the release. Write them down.
Memorize them. Sleep
on it. Wake up and think about them some
more.
Remember you have to
integrate your marketing with your PR and
keep it all within
your budget. So identify what you have
available and write
down how much you want to spend -- and on
what -- and when -- and with whom.
Let's assume your
goal is getting the word out about your
product. It could be an initial
announcement. It could be part
of a year-long monthly
campaign to a well targeted media list
(again and again to get name recognition).
Look at your schedule
and see that this week your task is at
hand.
You want to get
an article published in as many places as
possible, to feed
sales, acquire name recognition, drive web
traffic, all of the above, or whatever.
These are common goals.
Now it’s time to
be more specific. Narrow your options and
tighten the true alternatives
you wish to seriously consider.
Think strategically. Narrow
the goals and keep it as simple as
can be.
Whatever your specific
publicity goals, you need to be mindful
of the types of news
releases that can be written: · Print
releases for feature stories ·
Op-Eds Tips articles
Event announcements
Radio and TV interview releases
Product or services releases
Query letters
Internet News Releases
E-mail news releases
All these can produce publicity
success. But writing each type
of release entails
arraying different information into a
different format and style of presentation.
Each release has a
different purpose and
asks the editor or producer to take a
different action.
And doing any of these well in order to
succeed is a daunting challenge.
Every year I complete
a qualitative review of our custom news
distribution and the relative success
people have been having in
getting published as
a result of sending fax and e-mail news
releases. We analyze
this data to see what works and what
doesn’t work. We ask our clients
what got published and where,
and how much publicity or success
they experienced as a result.
While this is
by no means statistically definitive, it is
nonetheless useful.
We've seen one page releases sent
to targeted media lists result
in successful publicity (defined
loosely as having resulted in
either wide national publicity,
a significant number > 35, top
national interviews
or bookings, or profit) for book authors,
publishing companies,
product firms, and government agencies,
whose one-page news
releases took one of the following
approaches.
So no matter what
type of news release you write, you will
increase your chances of success
if it incorporates one or more
of the following. Here's what
appears to be working the best: ·
human
interest angles -- particularly with heartwarming
anecdotal stories that
reveal deep emotion or feelings with
bright, colorful word pictures,
and enriched sensory experience
· interpersonal
relationships on difficult or controversial
issues -- focus on love, sex, money,
communications between men
and women, parents
and children, companies, and employees,
government and individuals,
tips articles advice
and tactics excerpted from books, ten
commandments, ten tips, etc.
unusual events
-- unique personal accomplishments, unusual
creative ideas
humor and wisdom, fun and tragedy
really new and unique
products or books Internet innovations
and developments
politically and socially important
editorial tie - in articles
holiday and event tie in articles
At least in my
humble opinion, for those of you writing news
releases or seeking
publicity, your chances of success are
likely to be increased if you follow
one of these formats.
Even when you do, you will maximize
your success if you give the
editor a "local news angle".
Localizing news releases maximizes
the publication of your release
in weekly and daily newspapers.
The easiest publicity
to get is the announcement of a local
event with a distinct
local human interest angle. You don’t
have to do the editors work for
him, but the idea that the news
release can be easily adapted
to appeal to local needs must be
very clear.
Sometimes getting national
publicity is harder, especially in
mainstream publications. You need
to have a news angle that has
some interest at
a national level. You also will compete
against everyone else vying for
attention in the nation, and you
have to distinguish
why your release is worth publishing over
others.
You can make your job easier
and be more successful by breaking
your national media lists into geographically
distinct areas and
localizing the release.
You can create
custom media lists on the Internet at the
Internet to Media Fax: Click Here.
Even once you've identified
you target media, settled on a type
of news release,
it all comes down to writing the actual
release. Assuming you are aiming
at print (radio/tv releases are
a different animal) -- here's my
advice.
Bottom line -- find out what works
specifically in the media you
want to be in and use my special
simple technique for publicity
and news release success.
The Identify, Imitate and Innovate
Technique
Go to a newsstand,
and pick up the latest issues of every
relevant magazine or publication
you can find. The ones you want
to be in. Spend at least .
Then dissect each magazine for book
articles. Use yellow
stickies, or cut these out and make a
scrapbook. Study the publications
closely and see how they write
book articles and reviews.
Make a list of the headlines. Study
the style, length, focus, content,
word choice.
Then start writing by
imitating the articles you see. Remember
most of the small
articles (which are the easiest to get
published are one page 200
words.
Then Innovate it. Re-write
it fifteen times. Make it Short and
Snappy. Vary the character of your
news release to the media you
are aiming at.
You've written the end all
of all books in the field. Or you’ve
created the best
product in the world. This is the ultimate
sensation. The only book or product
anyone will ever need. Get
enthused. Now
tell people why you are enthused in 150 to 200
words.
Read it out loud
as if you were live on the air -- see if it
sounds good.
By the way, good short articles
in newspapers and magazines are
often read on
radio stations and on talk shows every day,
especially on morning radio talk
shows. This has happened to me.
Listen closely when
it happens. Remember what the radio
announcer is doing. He's reading
a paper or magazine on the air.
Wow -- a force multiplier
effect. Like being seen on Oprah and
getting asked to
do an interview with People magazine (This
happened to my client Courtney Garton.
You can see the 7/27/98
edition of People magazine).
It also happened to my client Ms.
Karen Derrico, author
of Unforgettable Mutts. She did an
interview on a
small radio station in New York City, and was
heard by William Safire, who
then wrote about the Million Mutt
March on Mother’s day in Washington
DC in his column in the New
York Times.
A news release has to sing to you
before you send it to me, if I
am to make you the best
possible custom targeted media list I
possibly can.
Best way I know to make
it right is to follow in the footsteps
of the successful before you.
Paul J. Krupin is one
of the leading PR and Media Consultants,
and is the author of the best selling
ebook "Trash Proof
News Releases")
http://www.TrashProofNewsReleases.com/g.o/21247
Ten Hot Tips
For Using E-Mail To Get News Coverage For Business
by Paul Krupin
As publisher of The US All Media
E-Mail Directory and electronic
database, I know many people can
benefit from seeing some
techniques and guidelines I've developed
on how to get news
coverage from using e-mail.
It's amazing but true, you can use
e-mail to get publicity with
the media. Articles can enhance
your visibility, name
recognition, reputation as an expert,
and position in your
industry. But there are some tricks
of the trade that are
developing in this really new marketing
technique. E-Mail PR is
not hard to learn, and the benefits
are substantial.
The Golden Rule: Target & Personalize.
My experience is there are several
essential rules that
publicists must abide by in submitting
e-mail to the media if
they are to avoid the wrath of the
recipients and maintain their
credibility and reputation as a
credible PR practitioner. Here's
my "10 Commandments for Sending
E-Mail to The Media"
1. Think, think, think before you
write. Ask yourself why you
are writing, and what are you trying
to accomplish by writing.
Put yourself in the position of
the person reading your message.
You are a busy media professional.
What would you do upon
receiving your message? Publish
it or toss it?
2. Target narrowly and carefully.
Go for the quality contacts
and not the quantity. Don't broadcast
a query or news release or
announcement to irrelevant media.
Pick out your target media
carefully, based on the industry
or readership of the specific
media you are targeting. Study the
media your are writing to.
Write the way the editors write.
Make it easy for them to use
your submittal.
3. Keep it short. Trim your e-mail
message so that it fills one
to three screens. Keep it three
to four paragraphs tops. Don't
try to sell the media your product.
Do try to get their interest
and make a request for more information.
4. Keep the subject and content of
your message relevant to your
target -- it's got to be newsworthy
and timely. The subject
should intrigue them enough to read
your message. I prefer
presenting and proposing problem-solving
articles which advocate
the benefits or techniques associated
with a strategy,
technique, product or service. This
article is an example.
5. If you are seeking publicity for
a product or service, or
want to get reviews for a new book
or software, use a two-step
approach. Query with a hook and
news angle before transmitting a
news release, or an article, or
offer to send a review copy to
those who request it. To avoid angry
replies and complaints
about unsolicited e-mail send a
very brief e-mail requesting
their permission to send them a
release before actually doing
so.
6. Tailor the submittal to the media
editorial style or content.
Go to a library, read it online,
or write and ask for a free
media kit and a sample copy of the
magazine or journal. Study
the style and content of the media.
Then write the way they like
it. Seek to develop a longer term
relationship as a regular
contributor.
7. Address each e-mail message separately
to an individual media
target. Take your time and personalize
each e-mail. Don't ever
send to multiple addresses. It's
the easiest way to get deleted
without being read.
8. Reread, reread, and reread and
rewrite, rewrite, rewrite
before you click to send.
9. Be brutally honest with yourself,
and with your media
contacts. Don't make claims about
your product or service you
can't prove.
10. Follow-up in a timely manner,
with precision writing and
professionalism.
Welcome to the World of Electronic
Commerce. Remember though,
there are real people at the receiving
end, and your success
with the media depends on your respecting
the media and being
courteous, and your credibility,
reputation and performance.
Good luck and prosper. It is not
hard to garner news coverage if
you take your time and do a careful
job. The benefits can be
phenomenal. E-mail is a good way
to make the most of limited
funds. You can work locally, regionally,
or nationally, and all
you need is a computer with an Internet
connection and e-mail.
Just remember, you can and should
use e-mail to get news
coverage for your business, but
you shouldn't rely on e-mail
alone. When used together with conventional
PR (mail, paper,
phone and fax), you get the maximum
effect. You cultivate
relationships with media by becoming
known as a valuable
contributor. You give them what
their readers want, they give
you the free publicity.
Paul J. Krupin (author of the best
selling ebook "Trash Proof
News Releases") is an acknowledged
authority on PR and Media,
with over 2,000 top-notch clients.
In his book Paul Krupin
reveals the secrets on how you can
get the publicity you deserve
so that your product or business
will benefit tremendously from
the media exposure.
http://www.TrashProofNewsReleases.com/g.o/21247
This exciting
book will teach even the most inexperienced marketer how to successfully
use the media to your advantage. Filled with plenty of specific advice
from actual print and television news editors.
http://www.TrashProofNewsReleases.com/g.o/21247
New Product: "Trash
Proof News Releases"
Face
it, there aren't many people who would share their
hard-earned
publicity secrets with others.
You'll be
hard-pressed
to find anyone who can show you exactly how it's
done
by sharing what he or she did. Paul Krupin changes all
that with
the debut of his book, "Trash Proof News Releases."
Paul,
whose client files are bulging at the seams with success
stories
of ordinary people who made it big, has convinced his
clients
to let him publish the strategies and the actual news
releases
that resulted in significant news coverage.
This
collection
of PR success stories alone is worth far more than
the
price of the entire book. You can model
the powerful
strategies
in these case studies to craft your own blockbuster
news releases.
If that
weren't enough, Paul boils down the art of news release
writing
down to an easy, step-by-step formula that anyone can
learn -- even
those who have writing phobia, or those who don't
think
they have a newsworthy story to tell. Finally, Paul's
media
expertise shines when he teaches you how to select those
make-or-break
media targets -- this is priceless. I highly
recommend
this book.
Hey,
If you want to see how your name would look on an actual
newspaper
headline, click here.
http://www.TrashProofNewsReleases.com/g.o/21247
Power
Positioning
Course on creating "Top of Mind"
awareness for your business.
The ebook by Dr. Michel Fortin reveals
a comprehensive approach to achieving the highly coveted skill of creating
top-of-mind awareness – for your product and business, particularly on
the Internet. Click
here to learn more about Power Positioning.
Narrow Your Focus and
Broaden Your Sales
By Dr. Michel Fortin
If your web-based business solves
a specific problem, then your
chances of online success are good.
This is not a facetious
statement because you'd be surprised
to know how many businesses
go online with no clear objective
whatsoever. But in order to
increase those chances, an immensely
important step in marketing
effectively online is required --
targeting.
This is where many marketers fail,
for they are trying to be
"all things to all people." Their
web site may offer a product
that solves a specific problem.
And unquestionably, the
marketplace -- and the potential
-- on the Internet is huge. But
it is also for this very reason
that general offers either get
easily drowned in this boundless
electronic ocean or fail to
capture the netizen's attention
due to the vagueness of the
offering's nature.
Since the marketplace is so vast,
attention span so short and
competition so enormous, there is
no better place for market
targeting than on the Internet.
Today's rapidly changing,
technology-driven marketplace mandates
a sharper marketing aim.
If your business doesn't have one,
you're going to either have a
really tough time or require a huge
marketing budget.
Therefore, try to discover the demographics
as well as the
psychographics of your niche --
your niche being your core,
largest or most profitable market.
If you don't have a narrowly
defined market, then identify it
or isolate one. And once you've
defined it, it will then be easier
for you to market your offer
in front of an audience that will
most likely be genuinely
interested in it. Otherwise, without
one you'll be merely
shooting blanks.
Demographics are the basic qualities
and characteristics of your
market. They include age, gender,
culture, employment, industry,
income level, marital status, location
and so on. For example,
does your product cater uniquely
to women? Is it more appealing
to a specific industry? Does your
product complement another
type of product? Is your market
mostly made up of French
Canadians? In other words, who buys
from you specifically?
If you were to answer that last question
with "everyone," then
you are falling in the "all things
to all people" trap mentioned
earlier. Avoid it as much as you
can. But if you do cater to a
diverse market, then the trick is
to find out who buys from you
the most or the most often. Above
all, ask yourself this
all-important question: Who is my
perfect customer?
On the other hand, psychographics
consist of the emotional and
behavioral qualities of your target
market. They include
emotions, rationales, buying histories,
psychology and thought
processes behind the decision to
buy your product. For example,
they include your customers' interests,
associations to which
they belong, previous purchases
they've made, other similar or
related products they've consumed,
activities in which they're
engaged, the length of time they
remained with a particular
company in the past, and so on.
Stated differently, demographics
define the qualities of those
people who may *need* your product,
while psychographics are the
qualities of those who may not only
need but also *want* your
product. Before you target your
market, profile your customer --
your perfect customer. You can start
by conducting some
marketing research among your current
client base, potential
clients and clients of other similar
products or companies. But
never underestimate the gold mine
that can be found in your own
backyard -- your clients.
In order to illustrate the difference
between demographics and
psychographics, let's look at cosmetic
surgeons and particularly
hair transplant doctors. Hair restoration
caters typically to
men who have experienced hair loss
and are able to afford such
an operation. In other words, men
and bald men specifically are
potential patients because they
may need more hair.
But psychographics on the other hand
go a little further. In
this example, they are comprised
of men who not only need more
hair but also want more hair. This
is important since not all of
them do -- it's a matter of personal
priorities, just as the
type of clothing one chooses to
wear. If you think about it,
would you consider all bald men
as potential clients? Hopefully
not.
Therefore, in order to target this
specific market as precisely
as possible and thus generate higher
quality leads, doctors must
take their patients' psychographic
profile into account.
Elements include their lifestyle,
their interests, the type of
industry in which they work (since
certain industries are more
image-related) as well as their
previous buying habits (such as
men who have already invested in
other forms of hair replacement
solutions).
Once done, they can easily find places
on the web where this
perfect customer hangs out. They
fish where the fish swim. For
example, there are web sites and
even "vortals," which are
niche-based portals, catering to
bald men seeking a hair loss
solution (like regrowth.com). There
are even discussion lists
and ezines whose subscribers consist
of people suffering from
thinning hair. And of course, the
list goes on.
Nevertheless, keep in mind that less
is more. Narrow your focus
to a specific niche and, paradoxically,
you will broaden your
sales. Arm yourself with as much
information as possible about
your perfect customer, and then
target *that* customer more than
any other. While you can't be everything
to everyone, you
shouldn't be targeting everyone
for everything.
Michel Fortin is an internationally
acclaimed and highly
sought-after consultant whose marketing
advice has helped
countless clients earn millions
of dollars in record time. He is
also the Senior Editor of Internet
Marketing Chronicles, a
weekly newsletter with 125,000 subscribers,
as well as the
author of four books. His latest
book, "Power Positioning Dot
Com" reveals how to keep your product
or service indelibly
carved into your prospects' uppermost
consciousness at all
times.
http://www.PowerPositioning.com/g.o/21247
Don't be the Best...Be
the First!
by Dr. Michel Fortin
Often, many businesses build their
entire marketing strategy
around a particular brand and its
"better" qualities. Claiming
superiority smacks of being untrue
and is often a very risky
endeavor. In other words, if you
claim that you're the best,
your statement will be suspect.
Years ago, a mentor once said to
me that "Implication is more
powerful than specification." It
is much more effective to imply
superiority -- to be perceived as
being a superior company or
one with a superior product -- than
to simply being (or outright
stating that one is) superior. But
how do you get others to
perceive that you're the best? How
does one imply superiority
without stating it outright? The
following are a few pointers to
guide you in that direction.
The First Always Lead If you're the
first in some category, you
are also considered as the best.
People have the natural
tendency to attribute superiority
to a product that's first in
its category. But if you're not
the first, you can usually
invent your own position. If there's
no category in which you
can be first, then create one. By
being the first in your very
own unique category makes it tremendously
difficult for
competitors to copy you. But even
when your competitors do copy
you, their marketing efforts will
only help to remind people of
you.
Being the first in the marketplace
is not as important as being
the first in the mind of the marketplace.
Working with cosmetic
surgeons, I've personally experienced
this undeniable truth. A
particular hair transplant doctor
is one of the first surgeons
of this type. While superiority
in this field is a matter of
artistic ability and not seniority,
he is still widely
recognized as the best surgeon there
is -- even if he still uses
outdated techniques.
Jack Trout and Al Ries, the fathers
of positioning, developed
the category concept into a science.
The first law in their book
"The 22 Immutable Laws of Marketing,"
which is the law of
leadership, is based entirely on
the concept of being the first.
In essence, the law states that
no two bodies can occupy the
same space. If you get to a position
first, nobody else can ever
take your place. Hence, being the
first virtually guarantees
your position.
You don't have to be the first with
a product or service. You
only have to be the first in the
consumer's mind. By owning the
leading position in the mind people
will automatically assume
that you're the best. Why? It's
because uniqueness separates you
from the rest rather than compares
you to them. It's immensely
more effective than actually being
the best.
Create Your Own Category For instance,
Ries and Trout prove this
point with a very simple question.
They ask: "Who was the third
person to fly over the Atlantic
in a solo flight?" Now, if
you're not a history buff like me,
you will more than likely be
stumped. Almost everyone remembers
that Lindbergh was the first
because, being the first, he comes
to mind immediately. But if
you were asked the same question
but rephrased in a different
way (e.g., "Who was the first 'woman'
to fly over the Atlantic
in a solo flight?"), your answer
will likely be "Amelia
Earhart."
Look at your own life. What are the
things you remember the
most? More than likely, you will
remember your first kiss, your
first dance, your first love, your
first car, your first day of
school, your first job, and your
first heartbreak. Can you
remember your second kiss let alone
your fifth one? In all
likelihood, you don't. When it comes
to marketing the same holds
true.
Many people try to compete by comparison
and may even generate
some recognition as a result of
their efforts. But where they
often fail is in creating lasting
top-of-mind awareness by
drowning their image in a currently
known category -- or ladder,
if you will. Everybody knows who
is the first in some category
or another, but rarely do people
remember who's second let alone
third. If you market your company
as a better firm with a better
product or service at a better price,
all you are really doing
is reminding others of that which
you are better than, which is
your competition.
Again, if there's no category in
which you can be the first,
create one. Having your very own
category is powerful because it
is impossible for competitors to
beat you. Being the first, your
place is therefore guaranteed and
you will thus be perceived as
the best by default -- there's no
competition!
Go the Other Way Coke, which was
touted as being "The Real
Thing," is an old company with a
hundred-year old recipe locked
in some secret safe. So, Pepsi decided
to go the other way and
proclaimed that it was for the "New
Generation." On the other
hand, 7UP floundered until it became
the "Uncola." As a result,
the more Coke and Pepsi advertised,
the more it helped 7UP.
For a long time, Avis was an unknown
car rental agency. One day,
it finally conceded that it was
number two -- second only after
Hertz. Their "we try harder" campaign,
which focused on their
underdog position, turned the size
of their bigger competitor
into a negative. Domino's Pizza
was surely not the first
pizzeria. But by being the first
to deliver its pizza "in 30
minutes or it's free," it went from
a small restaurant to a
multimillion dollar franchise operation.
And there are countless
other examples.
You can be the first to cater to
a specific market, the first to
offer an alternative to an existing
product or service, or the
first to cater to a market in a
unique way -- such as by
offering an ordinary product or
service but with a unique twist.
You can also customize a general
product or service for a
specific market. For example, you
might be a travel agency. You
could decide on being the first
to sell business trips catering
exclusively to financial institutions.
However, if you're not the first
you might then market yourself
as "the first to serve the financially
inclined," "the leader in
business trips for bankers" or "the
first travel agent for the
smart financier." In other words,
don't be the best in some
existing category. Be the first
in one -- one you create.
Dr. Michel Fortin is an internationally
acclaimed and highly
sought-after consultant whose marketing
advice has helped
countless clients earn millions
of dollars in record time. He
is also the Senior Editor of Internet
Marketing Chronicles, a
weekly newsletter with 125,000 subscribers,
as well as the
author of four books. His
latest book, "Power Positioning Dot
Com" reveals how to keep your product
or service indelibly
carved into your prospects' uppermost
consciousness at all
times.
Check out the cool, interactive device
on the site that puts
your business "center stage."
http://www.PowerPositioning.com/g.o/21247
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to Publish a Book and Sell a Million Copies
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