book publicity news releases publicity book marketing author tips event publicity publicity success news conference localize

The easiest publicity to get is local publicity.

Local media typically demand local news, locally relevant education and local entertainment information.  That’s what they publish. 

To get these media to publish your information, you must give them what they need and are accustomed to publishing.   If it is a local news paper, then local means that you must identify what it is that affects local people or the local area.  If it is a topical media, like a trade magazine or publication, to localize requires you explain your proposal in terms of how it affects people who subscribe to that media.   

Prove it to yourself. Open up your local newspaper and with a blank piece of paper, writre down what you see the editors writing.

How do you localize? 

What is really comes down to is this: “people, people, people”.    Identify the local news pegs and use as many of them as you can.

Here is a check list of potential key elements that can be used to localize and flesh out local story angles: 

1. Local event that people have access to.
2. Local impacts or consequences identified.
3. Local people, families, or residents involved.
4. Quote from the local person or interest.
5. Local person offered for interview.
6. Story about a local person or people.
7. Direct media access to the local people involved.
8. Local innovation, breakthrough, or accomplishment.
9. Local problem, challenge, issue, or concerns.
10. Local prediction good or bad.
11. Local interests (groups, clubs, cultures, private or public interests) affected.
12. Local area affected (geographic locations).
13. Local facts, data and statistics.
14. Local photo offered with permissions of people in the photo.
15. Local photo opportunity offered.
16. Local celebrity or person of interest or government authority comment or perspective.
17. Local business or government or institution involved.
18. Local secrets, knowledge, special opportunities, hot spots, cool or fun things to do or go.
19. Invitation to local media to attend or get involved.
20. Creating or offering additional local opportunities for events, interviews, and photos in the future.
21. Create new local surveys, events, scholarships, programs, or contests, with local winners.

The more of these elements you can offer the better your chances of success with the media will be. 

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Cudo’s to the folks who are bringing you the news about the latest bigfoot discovery.

I don’t know whether it’s true or not, but who cares! They garnered worldwide publicity by just saying that they have brought in the hairy legs of a bigfoot whatever it is.

And people all over the world are lovin’ every minute of it.

Look at this CNET article, The Bigfoot press conference and the art of selling a website.

This is just a glimpse of the tip of the iceberg of articles that have been written.

The best part of this publicity coup, is that they put their business system and the official Search for Bigfoot website in perfect working order before telling the media a whopper of a bigfoot yarn.

They managed to pull it all off in grand style with fun and flair.

Of course, it’s got all the right elements I’ve written about in many of my articles and books:

D = Dramatic

P = Personal

A + A = achievement in the face of adversity

H = Humor.

According to the CNET article, when asked the key question, they replied honestly. “We’re in it for the money”.

Bravo!

Real Honest to Goodness Integrity.

Now if only our elected officials and candidates can show us that they’ve got the same character.

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Back from the PMA University and the Book Expo America in Los Angeles - what an incredible week.

Just before I left for LA, I donated my copywriting and news release distribution services to a fundraising effort in NYC to help the Chinese recovery from the devastating earthquake two weeks ago.

I wrote a news release and transmitted it to the NYC media highlighting the efforts of a small but exquisite restaurant who was going to donate the entire day’s receipts to the relief effort. This email news release was transmitted May 23 for the one day May 28 event.

Marc Preven, owner of the Neurotic New York City Tours company wrote me an email to tell me what happened. Here is his email:

>> Paul

Thank You, once again for your help.

it’s nice to know there are a few mensches left in this world.

the PR went out a week ago from this past Friday.

I walk into the restaurant and the joint was packed.

Helen tells me the NY Times called but didn’t show up.

I finally get a seat at a table, my neighbor is a round eyed dude

we are distinctly in the minority amongst the patrons.

“hey man, have you eaten here before?” I say to my neighbor at the table next to me.

he replies in the negative.

i start telling him about how much I enjoy the food and helped them issue a press release.

I then tell the gentleman that the owner told me about a reporter from the NY Times called but he didn’t show up.

the dude next to me looks at me kind of funny

he says, “I’m the reporter from the NY Times.”

It was my turn to express surprise, “No shit, man!”

He then goes on to explain how his colleague in China saw what you sent and forwarded it back to the US of A.

Because he is working on the story about relief efforts here.

Below is the the quote from Sundays NY Times Story

see link below for the whole piece.

as I was writing you this email the handyman from the building has asked me to write him a pair of simple letters for one of his neighbors.

Time to pay it forward . . .

Cuz-N Marc E Marc

Excerpt from the article:

Helen Thong, the owner of Taste Good, a popular Malaysian restaurant in Elmhurst, Queens, held a benefit on Wednesday, allocating the day’s proceeds — more than $9,000 — to earthquake relief. At dinnertime, the line of patrons, representing a broad swath of the Chinese diaspora, snaked out the door of the small restaurant and onto the sidewalk.

“You see those pictures on TV, right?” she said. “The children and the people who are helpless under the rubble? It breaks your heart. Basically we are all human. We have compassion. That’s what motivates us.

Begin forwarded message:

From: Marc Preven
Date: June 1, 2008 11:32:45 AM EDT
To: Marc Preven
Subject: helen taste good China Earthquake - NYTimes.com

Setting Politics Aside to Help Victims of China Earthquake
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/06/01/nyregion/01aid.html

Cuz-N Marc E Marc

aka

Marc Preven

Why JUST have an Ordinary New York Tour . . .
When you COULD have a NEWrotic New York City Experience?”
T: (718) 575-8451

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I love it when clients are happy, especially when we produce publicity sucess for them. This week was incredibly busy, sending out news releases, responding to media requests for review copies, product samples and interviews.

Andy Andrews, author of the NY Times Best Seller The Traveler’s Gift, was in Salt Lake City doing an event on his new book The Seven Decisions That Determine Personal Success, at Kingsbury Hall, at the University of Utah. The event was free, open to the public, 7 to 10 PM, Tuesday night. Our news release and phone campaign for this one time community event netted Andy a few radio talk show interviews, an invite to interview with utah Public radio, a daytime and evening interview on KSL TV and a feature in the Salt Lake City Herald on Monday before the event.

On Tuesday we sent out a news release for Cynthia Frank at Cypress House for author Todd Walton and his new book Buddha in a Teacup. The news releases triggered over 44 media requests for books to review and interviews with Mr. Walton, from newspapers, magazines and radio and tv shows from all over the country. Media requests included Family Circle, Gannett news Services, the Chicago Tribune, Scripps Howard, and dozens of other top media.

Also on Tuesday we sent out a news release and did a phone campaign for Jennifer Bahney at Longhair Lovers for her remarkable new hair product, a emu butter. We saw over three dozen media ask to have product review samples sent to them. We saw media requests from many of the top womens and beauty magazines in the country including: Good Housekeeping, Ladies Home Journal, Cosmopolitan, Glamour, In Style, Shape, Woman’s World, Self, Vanity Fair, More, and more and more.

On Wednesday we did a news release project for a new product. The news release headline says: Dazzling cool colors in bouncing reusable shopping bags. These amazing shopping bags are manufactured totally by Katrina survivors in New Orleans, Louisiana. We received over 20 media requests for product samples from major media within 24 hours.

Also on Wednesday, we sent out a news release for Carol and Phil White, authors of the book, Live Your Road trip Dream. Carol had written a problem solving tips article titled, Five Reasons Why Gas Prices Shouldn’t Cancel Your Summer Fun and i sent it out to outdoor recreation, travel and rv editors and media in the US and Canada. Late in the day, Carol wrote me an email describing what happened. She said: “We sent out the news release this morning… So far, it is already up on 4 websites, 2 major market booked radio interviews, 1 regional market (Indianapolis) using it in a story, and 5 review copy requests including Travel + Leisure.” Pretty cool.

The news release also generated a heated response from one not to be named media editor of a national rock climbing magazine who wrote, ” I cannot believe that you have sent this to me. These republican baby boomer ideas are repulsive and destructive. This is nothing more than dumb propaganda designed to put us at ease about our environmentally destructive bad habits, and rotten ideas such as these should not be spread around with such a straight face. Please consider sending a retraction to this e-mail and an apology to everyone on your list. I hope that the author spends good quality time explaining to her family telling them why grandma didn’t mind killing all of the polar bears and penguins.”

Whew! I guess he must ride his bicycle to work and doesn’t use cars or airplanes to get to his world class destination rock climbing locations and vacations.

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