6 Publicity Tips for Small Businesses

By Joan Stewart
The Publicity Hound

In a funk because your competitors seem to be snagging all the free media publicity? It’s time to start claiming your share. Here are six publicity tips for small business owners.

1. Tie story ideas to the holidays. Example: A bookstore that’s offering a special program for Valentine’s Day. An accountant who offers media tips on how people can stay out of jail if they’re doing their own taxes. A concierge who can suggest ways people can save time when Christmas shopping. See Special Report #14: How to Piggyback Your Story Ideas onto Holidays and Anniversaries
    

2. Call the advertising department of every newspaper and magazine you want to get into and ask for a copy of their editorial calendar. It’s a free listing of all the special topics and special sections coming up during the calendar year. It will tip you off to sections where your story idea would be a good fit.
    

3. Invite a business reporter from your local newspaper or magazine for coffee or lunch. Instead of asking, “Will you write about me?” a better question is “How can I help you?” Offer yourself as a resource in your area of expertise. Go Dutch, because some reporters can’t accept free meals. See How to Use Business Journals to Tell Your Story
    

4. Start your own television show on your cable TV station’s community access channel. A floral shop can do a program on how to create dried flower arrangements, for example. The station provides the camera equipment for about $20. Air time is free. Produce one show or an entire series of programs. Call your cable company for details.
    

5. Build a network of other small-business people in your area. Agree informally that you will refer reporters to each other whenever a reporter and is doing a story on a topic in which you all could comment, such as a new sales tax increase.
    

6. Contact your trade association and ask them to refer reporters to you. Many reporters who don’t know where to find sources on a particular topic start by calling trade associations.