Publicity tips/Write better press releases August 29, 2006

The Publicity Hound's
Tips of the Week
Issue #308 - August 29, 2006
Publisher: Joan Stewart
mailto:JStewart@PublicityHound.com
http://www.PublicityHound.com
http://www.PublicityHound.net (Blog)
The Publicity Hound®

Circulation: 21,178

=====================================
"Tips, Tricks and Tools for Free Publicity"
Receive this ezine direct to your desktop
http://www.publicityhound.com/tipsoftheweek/
=====================================

You are receiving this because you signed up for it at The Publicity Hound® website at http://www.publicityhound.com/ or you told me you want to subscribe. If you didn't subscribe, you can unsubscribe by clicking the link at the bottom of the newsletter. Please forward this ezine to anyone you know who needs free publicity to establish their credibility, enhance their reputation, position themselves as employers of choice, sell more products and services, or promote a favorite cause or issue.
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Inflight Magazine Contact Info Updated:

I just completed the annual update of all contact information for "Special Report #29: Fly High with Publicity in the Inflight Magazines." It includes all the information we could find--including editors' names, mailing addresses, emails, phone numbers, websites, pitching tips--for 42 inflight magazines, including many oveseas carriers. I'm raising the price on this report in the next few weeks because we keep adding so much information to it. So get it today before the increase.

See Item #3 below.
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In This Issue
================================

1. Write Better Press Releases

2. 'Thanks' Campaign Brilliant

3. Wanted: Road Warriors

4. Punk Principal

5. How to Promote a Podcast

6. Help This Hound

7. Hound Joke of the Week

8. And at my Blog...

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1. Write Better Press Releases
==================================

David Meerman Scott says that when he used to work as a reporter, he never read a press release, then wrote a story directly from the release.

If he liked what he read, he'd pick up the phone and call the person for an interview. Come to think of it, when I worked as a reporter, I never wrote a story directly from a press release either.

David also says that he never once lifted a quote directly from a press release and used it for his article. If he wanted a quote, he'd call the source so that the quote he got was different.

Ditto for me. I'd never lift a quote directly from a press release because I didn't want it look like the same quote all the other reporters used.

Why, then, are many of you wasting valuable real estate on your press releases with what I call B.S. quotes, usually from the CEO? I can almost predict what most of those quotes look like:

"The ABC Widget Company is proud and delighted to be able to provide our customers with an important new widget that will dramatically increase the capabilities of our clients' manufacturing processes so that blah-blah-blah-blah-blah...."

Your CEO doesn't talk like that, so why do you quote him like that? Besides, that quote adds nothing to the press release.

David, an author and an expert in online marketing, says smart Publicity Hounds should be concentrating instead on press releases that are rich with keywords and keywords phrases that people would use if they were doing a Google search for the kinds of products and services you sell. That way, when you post the press releases online, you can snag potential customers who can buy from you directly, even if no journalists ever cover your company.

Your releases should also have a specific goal in mind--whether it's leading buyers directly to the product catalog at your website or encouraging them to sign up for your electronic newsletter. David shared more great tips during a 70-minute interview I conducted with him recently called "The New Rules of Press Releases: How to Write Them for Buyers, Not Only Journalists." It's available as a CD or an electronic transcript that you can download immediately.

If you've signed up for my free tutorial called "89 Ways to Write Powerful Press Releases" and you don't have 89 days to spend to learn the new rules, this CD or the electronic transcript will get you up to speed very quickly. It's the perfect complement to my course. Read more about what you'll learn at http://tinyurl.com/ndwfo

==================================
2. 'Thanks' Campaign Brilliant
==================================

Regardless of what you think of the war in Iraq, the interactive "Let's Say Thanks" campaign, created by Xerox as a way for people to send postcards of thanks to the troops overseas, is brilliant.

Here's how it works. You go to their website at http://www.letssaythanks.com/ and choose your favorite postcard design, all created by kids, from a selection that scrolls across the screen. You click on your favorite and write a personal message to a soldier. Xerox prints the postcard and mails it in care packages sent by the military support organization Give2theTroops to troops in Iraq, Egypt, Kosovo and elsewhere.

The postcard designs, submitted by youths 6 to 14, will continue to rotate with new artwork. So kids, teachers, children's organizations and volunteers can all get into the act by turning this into a class project. Read the rules at the "Submit a Design" page at http://www.letssaythanks.com/SubmitDesign.html

The website even has a long list of media hits about the project at http://www.letssaythanks.com/News.html If your student or school submits a design that's chosen, count on some fabulous publicity. Thanks to Publicity Hound Lori Lisi for tipping me off to this great idea.

This is the time of year when the PR machines at schools, colleges and universities are cranking on all cylinders. "Special Report #15: Publicity Tips for Schools, Colleges and Universities" shows you how to position your school to be heard, how to maximize your resources, tie into national events, educate your school about the media, educate the media about your school, and develop strategies for an effective op-ed program. Order at http://tinyurl.com/olqx4


==================================
3. Wanted: Road Warriors
==================================

Life on the road is a sport, and American Way inflight magazine is looking for a real MVP to win the 5th Annual American Way Road Warrior Search.

Just think of the great publicity you'll get if you win this one. Once you've completed the contact information and multiple choice questions, get ready to have some real Road Warrior fun! This year's entry form includes a beautiful travel montage (how many places can you identify?), a great travel Mad Lib (see the results after you've submitted your entry), one all-important essay question about your unique Road Warrior perspective, and a bonus question that involves writing your own top 10 list. You can also upload an image to your entry to really impress the judges.

The Grand Prize winner will score 2 million Hilton bonus award points that can be used at more than 2,800 participating Hilton Family hotels worldwide, plus 1 million AADVANTAGE® miles to get you where you want to go.

Other prizes include a Bose home entertainment system, trips to Hawaii, laptop computers, and a subscription for Wi-Fi Internet service.

The deadline to enter is 11:59 p.m. Central Time on Thursday, Aug. 31. Official rules and the entry form are at http://tinyurl.com/em5fj

If you don't win, there are other ways to get into American Way inflight magazine. Contact information and pitching tips for American Way and 41 other inflight magazines are in the new, updated "Special Report #29: Fly High with Publicity in the Inflight Magazines." Order at http://tinyurl.com/n3pk4

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4. Punk Principal
=================================

Here's a great publicity stunt for schools and perhaps even a company whose CEO is brave enough.

The boss issues a challenge, then agrees to do something outrageous if the challenge is met.

For example, tell your football team that if they win the first four games this year, the coach will run 10 laps around the football field in front of the entire school. If your sales team surpasses this month's goals by at least 20 percent, the sales manager will cook each sales person a gourmet dinner at their homes. I'm sure you can come up with far better examples.

I got the idea when I saw the photo of the Punk Principal in the South Florida Sun-Sentinel. Scroll about halfway down the page and check out the photo on the right side: http://tinyurl.com/gqcd8

The photo shows Boca Raton High School Principal Geoff McKee getting a Mohawk after he had made a promise to students for their achievement in beating another school district in a Florida state assessment test.

When I worked as a newspaper editor, we'd often print photos like this one. But we'd use just a caption if there wasn't enough other information to warrant an article.

What kind of challenge can your CEO, coach, president, executive director or other Big Cheese issue? If the media won't cover the publicity stunt, take your own photos and submit them to newspapers and magazines and post them on the Internet. "How to Use Photos & Graphics in Your Publicity Campaign" shows you how to take your own photos that are media-ready.

It will save you hours of time and aggravation researching what kind of photo equipment to buy, and it will give you creative ideas for adding visuals to your publicity campaign. A recent study I saw by a PR firm showed that more than 90 percent of the journalists surveyed said a photo or graphic significantly improves your chances for coverage. Learn more about the ebook at http://tinyurl.com/m7zq2

==================================
5. How to Promote a Podcast
==================================

This week, five Publicity Hounds have ideas for Kit Behling of Milwaukee, Wisconsin. She wanted to know how to promote a podcast for "Single Married Widowed Divorced" women. Their website is at http://tinyurl.com/hl5mc

From Tim Gordon:

"Send keyword-loaded press releases to sites such as PRWeb.com. These these can help bring curiosity seekers and media folks to your podcast.

"But most important, when your potential listeners arrive, make it as easy as possible for them to listen or download. Many people don’t want to download an MP3 because they are on a dial-up, so make sure you have an ‘instant-streaming’ solution, such as a flash-player optimized for 56K streaming. That way, people can click and instantly listen without waiting for a long download."

From Jeff Stimson:

"To whomever you plan to send a podcast, start a month or so beforehand with a simple text or Word emailed release spelling out your effort--and, maybe more importantly, what a podcast is and how listeners can hear them. (I advise only emailing for releases on this subject because anybody who can’t figure out email isn’t going to be a good cast prospect, anyway.) I’ve found that once they have it put plainly to them, would-be listeners are enthusiastic about tuning in, and after a while even regard podcasts as easier ways to take in information than reading! (Note from The Publicity Hound: Make sure you have permission to email them.)

From Lois Carter Fay at MarketingIdeaShop.com:

"I can see that the others covered some of the basics, but what I noticed is you don't have an ezine. Start sending out a weekly ezine with updates and additional information. Also submit articles to places that run them--EzineArticles.com comes to mind--that support your podcasting message to draw your listeners in.

The Publicity Hound says:

Kit, start blogging on your topic. A blog pulls in traffic like a giant magnet. Read Don Crowther's excellent ebook "Blogging for Business" at http://tinyurl.com/7fjrk

Read all the responses at http://tinyurl.com/j5cy8


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6. Help This Hound
================================

Jennifer Perry of Atlanta, Georgia writes:

"My client, Pam Weeks, wrote and produced the 'Pam & Buffy' television shows for children for years. You can learn more at http://www.pamandbuffy.com/ The show is now distributed nationally by NIMCO, an education products company. Buffy is a 6-foot sheepdog costumed character and performed a live interactive show with Pam for 15 years at the American Adventures, a family entertainment park.

"Pam is in negotiations to create a new season of shows at a station in Tennessee and does special live shows around Atlanta at schools and churches. They do a lot of charity work, such as getting emergency dental work for children of very poor families.

"I can’t seem to get Pam & Buffy in any of the local media in Atlanta. They aren’t edgy and hip but just too wholesome. Sometimes I think if Buffy smoked crack and Pam made rude body sounds, I could get them the cover of anything in Atlanta. But shows that teach responsibility, courtesy and kindness are, to use a movie term, box office poison. I’ve tried the local papers, magazines, even Atlanta Parent--zip, zero, zilch, nada!

"Can your Hounds help a fellow Hound in need?

The Publicity Hound says: You be they can! And they'll particularly love the fact that Buffy is a 6-foot sheepdog. Hounds with great ideas on how Jennifer can crack the Atlanta media can post comments to my blog at http://tinyurl.com/ob6u4

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7. Hound Joke of the Week
================================

Thanks to Judith Reppucci of Cape Cod, Massachusetts for this one.

FORD’S NEWEST MODELS:

The Ford Mutt (built from parts all over the world)

The Ford Schnauzer (originally a Porsche)

The Ford Pit Bull (oversized engine)

The Ford Collie (new feature: if lost, it will find its way home)

The Ford Greyhound (looks suspiciously like a bus)

The Ford Poodle (chick car)

The Ford Labrador (keeps going off the road looking for trees to expel fluid on)

DOG JOKES & QUOTES EBOOK: 170+ G-rated dog jokes and quotes, perfect for a dog-lover, your favorite vet, or just for a few good laughs.

BONUS: Buy the ebook and you also get a compilation of the 50 best websites for dog humor.


================================
8. And at My Blog...
================================

Newsday publicity is easier
with editor's pitching tips
http://tinyurl.com/zhk8c

Book promotion:
50 ideas for under $50
http://tinyurl.com/hrrx4

Online tools for journalists:
Here are top 3
http://tinyurl.com/g9ovr

---------------------------------------------------------------

Where to Meet or Hear The Publicity Hound®

March 17, 2007: Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

"Savvy Media Relations: How to Get FREE Print, Broadcast and Online Publicity." 8 a.m. to noon. Details pending.

PERMISSION TO REPRINT: You may reprint any items from "The Publicity Hound's Tips of the Week" in your own print or electronic newsletter. But please include the following paragraph:

Reprinted from "The Publicity Hound's Tips of the Week," a free ezine featuring tips, tricks and tools for generating free publicity. Subscribe at http://www.publicityhound.com/ and receive free by email the handy list "89 Reasons to Send a NewsRelease."

If you like these tips, please pass them on to your friends, clients and colleagues.

You are receiving this because you signed up for it at ThePublicity Hound® website at http://www.publicityhound.com/ or you told me you want to subscribe.

PRIVACY STATEMENT: The Publicity Hound® will never distribute your address to anyone. Period. Promise.

=======================================================

Joan Stewart
a.k.a. The Publicity Hound®
3434 County KK
Port Washington, WI 53074
U.S.A.
Phone: 262-284-7451 (Central) Fax: 262-284-1737

Publicity tips/Google a media mutt August 22, 2006

The Publicity Hound's
Tips of the Week
Issue #307 - August 22, 2006
Publisher: Joan Stewart
mailto:JStewart@PublicityHound.com
http://www.PublicityHound.com
http://www.PublicityHound.net (Blog)

The Publicity Hound®

Circulation: 21,461

=====================================
"Tips, Tricks and Tools for Free Publicity"

Receive this ezine
direct to your desktop
http://www.publicityhound.com/tipsoftheweek/
=====================================

You are receiving this because you signed up for it at ThePublicity Hound® website at http://www.publicityhound.com/ or youtold me you want to subscribe. If you didn't subscribe, you can unsubscribe by clicking the link at the bottom of the newsletter.

Please forward this ezine to anyone you know who needs free publicity to establish their credibility, enhance their reputation, position themselves as employers of choice, sell more products and services, or promote a favorite cause or issue.

*************************************************
THANKS, HOUNDS, FOR BLOG HELP:

My Hounds are the best! Lots of you emailed me with ideas on how to solve the problem at my blog.

Publicity Hounds Pete Quily, Paul Harris and Sherman Hu helped me track down two problems and fix them. Now anybody can comment at my blog. And you no longer have to register before commenting, although I must approve your comment before it shows up in theblog.

Thanks Pete, Paul, Sherman and everybody who responded.
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In This Issue
================================

1. Google a Media Mutt

2. Shopping for Lettuce & Love

3. Is Your VP This Media-Savvy?

4. Wanted: Canadian SOHOs

5. Help This Hound

6. Hound Joke of the Week

7. And at my Blog...

==================================
1. Google a Media Mutt
==================================

If you've been reading this newsletter for awhile, you probably know what I'm referring to when you see the phrase Media Mutt.

An MM is somebody who doesn't belong in the same league as a Publicity Hound. MMs do silly things like call reporters and ask, "Can you tell me if you got my news release?"

MMs order TV reporters and camera people to "get out of my lobby immediately or I'll have you thrown out." This usually happens when the TV station has caught the MM doing something like selling tainted hamburger, and the reporter wants the MM's side of the story for tonight's newscast.

Then there's this week's newest MM: Google. The search engine giant has fired off a series of legal letters to the media, warning them against using the word "google" as a verb.

Are they nuts or what? Nobody, not even Google, has enough money to buy that kind of publicity.

What do you suppose Dogpile--the metasearch engine that "fetches" information from places like About.com, Ask.com, MSN and Google--would do if people suddenly started saying, "If you're looking for information on the benchmark index, just dogpile and see what you find."

I doubt they'd go running to their legal department. I don't care what the trademark attorneys say. Telling somebody to "just google the phrase and see what you can find" is the very best kind of PR imaginable.

If my competitors told their followers "Now be a good publicity hound and take a reporter to lunch," I'd do back flips.

The worst part of this whole mess is the bad publicity that's already resulted. The bloggers are yucking it up with each other at the very thought that Google will threaten them--or sue them.

Miriam-Webster, by the way, has added the verb "google," with a small g, to its dictionary. So it will be interesting to see how this ends.

Former award-winning investigative reporter Clarence Jones says 9 out of 10 times, an attorney will tell a client company not to comment during a bad-news event like this one. Doing exactly that might help you win in a court of law. But by the time the case, like a big lawsuit, winds its way through the legal system, you could lose in the court of public opinion and see your stock price tumble, your CEO booted out, your customers scrambling to do business with your competitors, and your reputation in ruins.

I interviewed Clarence on what companies should do if they're caught in the middle of a crisis and they need legal advice. He presents a convincing case why the CEO--not the attorney--must make the ultimate decision. "In a Media Crisis, Your Lawyer Will be Wrong" is available as a CD. Read more about what it includes at http://tinyurl.com/zu7td

==================================
2. Shopping for Lettuce & Love
==================================

Here's a clever publicity idea many of you can steal.

But brace yourselves because the crowds, not to mention the print reporters and TV cameras, will be knocking down your doors.

The Metro Market in Milwaukee sponsored its first singles night over the weekend--a chance for 500 unattached guys and gals ages 19 to 90 to peruse the produce, and shop for a little love and lettuce at the same time.

The story in the daily Milwaukee Journal Sentinel caught my eye when I saw the accompanying photo of a cute guy who was participating in the bowling competition in the freezer section of the store. But instead of a bowling bowl, he threw a frozen cornish hen down a makeshift alley, hoping to knock down 10 rolls of paper towels that were set up like bowling pins.

Participants sent text messages on a computer screen to the object of their desire. They stacked Oreo cookies as high as they could for a chance to win a gift card. They played Twister. And at an auction, they bid on a lunch date with a Milwaukee firefighter. The $600 raised from the auction went to the fire department's burn camp.

Just think of all the great ways you could promote an event like that. Invite those good-looking, unattached TV people in town. Pitch the local drive-time deejays. And, of course, post the event to Craigslist, which has a category for singles.

How about a singles night for your customers? Or just for the over-50 crowd? Or for skiers who buy their gear at your sporting goods store? Or for all the local volleyball teams? Or singles night at the local library? Or for card clubs, Scrabble players, or computer geeks in your community?

If you want to pull a huge crowd, special events like this require a detailed planning calendar months before the big day. You have lots of bases to cover the day of the event, and plenty of follow-up tasks to keep people on your radar screen after it's over.

Deb Schmidt, one of the most creative event planners I know, teamed up with me to produce an entire series called "How to Plan & Promote Sizzling Special Events."

It's available as an ebook or a series of 7 audio CDs. Both formats include 15 can't-do-without checklists. Read more about what you'll learn and download several sample checklists at http://publicityhound.com/publicity/promote.html


==================================
3. Is Your VP This Media-Savvy?
==================================

Publicity Hound Patricia Luebke of New York City, a freelance writer for a retail magazine, shares this commentary about a recent experience she had contacting the vice president of a gift card company.

As you're reading this, ask yourself: Would our company VP be this savvy? And would a reporter even be able to get through to the veep?

Pat writes:

"Yesterday I was writing a piece for a retail magazine about getting ready for holiday shopping, and I was researching the topic of gift cards. I wanted to make the point that even small retailers can have a quality gift card program--you don't have to be Home Depot or Pier One.

"So I Googled 'gift card' and 'retailer' and found this company called Valutech. On their site, they had something called JumpStart(tm) for small retailers where you only have to buy 100 cards to start, and it's a whole package, including marketing materials.

"Sounded just like what I needed. So I called the company to find out the price. I got transferred from customer service to somewhere else. The next thing I know I'm talking to Al Duggan, the VP of Marketing.

"This man was so cheerful and so helpful and so useful that now Valutech and its JumpStart program are part of my article. When I hung up, I thought THIS is how it works for companies. So many companies can't talk, won't talk, are afraid to talk, or can't get their act together enough to set a time to talk. But this company was ready to go.

"At the end, he offered his direct phone and email, which I've kept in case I ever have a question about gift cards."

Is this experience typical for freelancers?

Pat says no. "In fact, it's so unusual that it's sad."

After hearing that, how would you grade your spokesperson? If it's anything less than an A+, you need to know "How to be an Expert Spokesperson the Media Love." This CD explains all the things the best spokespersons must do to build strong relationships with media people--particularly when the spokesperson has short notice. Read more about what you'll learn at http://tinyurl.com/rzcdd


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4. Wanted: Canadian SOHOs
=================================

I’m thrilled to be a new columnist for SOHO Business Report, a quarterly magazine for Canadian small office/home office business owners.

My first column is due September 1, and I’m looking for publicity success stories from Canadian SOHOs.

Tell me:

--How you got publicity for a product, service, cause or issue.

--How you pitched a story idea that intrigued a journalist.

--A technique you used to form relationships with journalists and broadcasters.

--A clever tactic you’re using to create a buzz online.

Email me with details. Who knows? Your idea might generate even more publicity for you in SOHO Business Report.Mailto:JStewart@PublicityHoundcom?subject=SOHOs

Jeff Zbar, the 2001 Small Business Journalist of the Year, says there are lots of ways for small business people to catch the attention of journalists like him. No business is too small for publicity, Jeff says. If you pitch a great story idea with a clever angle, the reporter will do the rest.

I pumped him for his best tips during an interview we did called "The Fastest, Cheapest, Easiest Ways to Publicize Your Small Business." It's available as a CD or an electronic transcript that you can download as soon as your order has been approved. Read more about what you'll learn at http://tinyurl.com/3tbbp


==================================
5. Help This Hound
==================================

I'm printing this question again because several of you who tried to post comments when my blog started going bonkers a few weeks ago either couldn't, or your comments never appeared. Please repost your best ideas for Kit Behling of Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Kit will thank you, and so will I.

Kit writes:

"The writers of 'Single Married Widowed Divorced' need your help.

"We are a group of technologically challenged, over-35 women who have jumped on the podcasting bandwagon--uh, make that bandwidth. We have a website at http://tinyurl.com/hl5mc and a play and a weekly podcast in which we examine real women’s relationship stories.

"Each week, we poke around some theme (examples: sleeping arrangements, kegeling, guilty pleasures, romance). Regular show features include:

--Table Talk: Listen in while the writers chat about the week’s theme.

--Working Mom in Her Car: Patched in from a vehicle somewhere in suburban Chicago, Working Mom is funny and on edge and always has a comment--if not for us, then for the person who just cut her off.

--The Retired Therapist: Puts everything in a well-reasoned physiological or psychological context. And reassures us that no, we’re not crazy.

--Story Time: One of the writers gives us her take on the week’s theme.

"Our challenge: How do we publicize this podcast to our target demographic, women over 35, who will probably laugh & cry & ah-ha right along with us but may be scared off by the podcasting technology? Are your Publicity Hounds up to this challenge?"

The Publicity Hound says: You bet they are! Many of my Hounds already podcast, and I'll bet most of the podcasters know how to promote podcasts, too. Hounds with great ideas for Kit can post their comments to my blog at http://tinyurl.com/j5cy8


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6. Hound Joke of the Week
================================

Dear God,

Excuse me, but why are there cars named after the jaguar, the cougar, the mustang, the colt, the stingray, and the rabbit, but not one named for a dog? How often do you see a cougar riding around?

We dogs love a nice ride! I know every breed cannot have its own model, but it would be easy to rename the Chrysler Eagle the Chrysler Beagle!


DOG JOKES & QUOTES EBOOK: 170+ G-rated dog jokes and quotes, perfect for a dog-lover, your favorite vet, or just for a few good laughs.

BONUS: Buy the ebook and you also get a compilation of the 50 best websites for dog humor.
http://www.publicityhound.com/dogjokebook/


================================
7. And at My Blog...
================================

Business travel killing you?
Relax and work in your jammies
http://tinyurl.com/g5cyh

Northwest Airlines PR
nosedivesdue to tips booklets
http://tinyurl.com/zfvjw

Nag Oprah? Try it at your own risk
http://tinyurl.com/kl2kk

---------------------------------------------------------------
Where to Meet or Hear The Publicity Hound®

March 17, 2007: Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

"Savvy Media Relations: How to Get FREE Print, Broadcast and Online Publicity." 8 a.m. to noon. Details pending.

***If you're in the National Speakers Association or the Public Relations Society of America--or another business, marketing or PR group--and you want details on how to bring in The Publicity Hound to do a fund-raiser for your chapter, or you want me to host a teleseminar customized just for your group, contact me at mailto:JStewart@PublicityHound.com?subject=speaker_inquiry or call 262-284-7451.

***Attention Meeting Planners: If you're booking speakers for winter, spring or summer conferences or events, keep me in mind--even if you have a last-minute cancellation. I deliver high-content, interactive programs that are lots of fun. Call 262-284-7451 or mailto:JStewart@PublicityHound.com?subject=speaker_inquiry for details.


PERMISSION TO REPRINT: You may reprint any items from "The Publicity Hound's Tips of the Week" in your own print or electronic newsletter. But please include the following paragraph:

Reprinted from "The Publicity Hound's Tips of the Week," a free ezine featuring tips, tricks and tools for generating free publicity. Subscribe at http://www.publicityhound.com/ and receive free the handy list "89 Reasons to Send a News Release."

If you like these tips, please pass them on to your friends, clients and colleagues. You are receiving this because you signed up for it at The Publicity Hound® website at http://www.publicityhound.com/ or you told me you want to subscribe.

PRIVACY STATEMENT: The Publicity Hound® will never distribute your address to anyone. Period. Promise.

=======================================================
Joan Stewart
a.k.a. The Publicity Hound®
3434 County KK
Port Washington, WI 53074
U.S.A.
Phone: 262-284-7451 (Central) Fax: 262-284-1737

Publicity tips/'Oprah' gig tougher than ever August 15, 2006

The Publicity Hound's
Tips of the Week
Issue #306 - August 15, 2006
Publisher: Joan Stewart
mailto:JStewart@PublicityHound.com
http://www.PublicityHound.com
http://www.PublicityHound.net (Blog)
The Publicity Hound®

Circulation: 21,115

=====================================
"Tips, Tricks and Tools for Free Publicity"
Receive this ezine
direct to your desktop
http://www.publicityhound.com/tipsoftheweek/
=====================================

You are receiving this because you signed up for it at The Publicity Hound® website at http://www.publicityhound.com/ or you told me you want to subscribe. If you didn't subscribe, you can unsubscribe by clicking the link at the bottom of the newsletter.

Please forward this ezine to anyone you know who needs free publicity to establish their credibility, enhance their reputation, position themselves as employers of choice, sell more products and services, or promote a favorite cause or issue.

*************************************************
HELP THIS HOUND--ME:

I need help trying to figure out why my blog at http://www.publicityhound.net/ isn't forwarding readers' comments to me via email, for approval. Some of you are posting comments, but the blog isn't forwarding them to me. They're getting lost in a big black hole somewhere. If any of you use WordPress for your blog and you have the solution to my problem, and you can help me get this working the way it's supposed to, I'll give you a fabulous Hound treat to thank you. Mailto:JStewart@PublicityHound.com?subject=BlogSolution
Until I get this problem solved, the Help This Hound section of the newsletter will be temporarily on hold.
*************************************************

================================
In This Issue
================================

1. "Oprah" Gig Tougher Than Ever

2. Terrorist Plot Tie-ins

3. Pitch Photo Tie-ins, Too

4. Publish an Ezine for Publicity

5. Media Leads

6. Hound Joke of the Week


==================================
1. 'Oprah' Gig Tougher Than Ever
==================================

In the old days, booking a coveted spot on "Oprah" was one of the most difficult tasks a Publicity Hound could face.

But there were some tricky ways to get around the problem. You simply recorded a show, then watched the recording in slow motion, checking the credits at the end for names of producers who were responsible for shows that tied into your own topic. Then you'd call the show, ask for the producer by name, pitch our idea, and hope they bit.

Not anymore.

"They're so protective of producers' names that there aren’t any producers even listed in the credits after the show has been aired," says publicity expert Susan Harrow. "They took all of that information off their website and off of the actual show credits. They’re becoming more and more protective of their time because so many people approach them and don’t have any idea how to pitch a show or what's appropriate."

So what's a frustrated Publicity Hound to do?

You have only two choices:

--Go to Oprah's "Be on the Show" page at http://tinyurl.com/dv9v and read about all the upcoming shows. If you think you're a good fit, email the producers and let them know.

--Or, if you want to pitch an idea that doesn't tie into a show they're already planning, you must use the form at http://tinyurl.com/qr6q

But you're not done yet. You must know which topics push Oprah's hot buttons. They've changed the last several years, and you can't assume that the kinds of shows she featured five years ago are the same kinds she wants today.

She's having so many celebrities as guests, for example, that it's tougher than ever for regular folks to find a way onto the show. Susan has more ideas in her bag of tricks, however. And she knows how some of you can make all those celebrity appearances work in your favor.

She explains her tactics in the new interview we recently recorded called "How to Get Booked on Oprah." It's an update to the interview we did back in 2002 and it's available as a CD or an electronic transcript.

Read more about what you'll learn at http://tinyurl.com/855eb


==================================
2. Terrorist Plot Tie-ins
==================================

I saw two clever tie-ins to last week's big story about Scotland Yard breaking up the terrorist plot to blow up as many as 10 U.S.-bound passenger jets.

--Michelle Tennant of Wasabi Publicity Inc. and her team of 10 publicists immediately started pitching story ideas about their client, SATSair, which provides "air taxi' services. Their press release and pitch noted that the company was deluged with travel requests on the day we found out about the foiled terrorist plot. The Associated Press picked up the story and distributed it to thousands of media outlets on Friday. Yesterday, First Business, a nationally syndicated TV news feed, picked up the story and sent it to thousands of TV stations.

"Whew. It was a very good week, and our client was thrilled," said Michelle, a graduate of The Publicity Hound Mentor Program. Learn more about the program and what I can teach you at http://tinyurl.com/n22hn

--Wyndham Hotels posted a press release on PRNewswire saying that they'd come to the rescue of arriving guests who were forced to forfeit their toothpaste, contact lens solutions and drinking water in their carry-on bags. It's all part of the hotel's longstanding guest service program called "We Remember What You Forgot," which supplies travelers with the personal products they most frequently forget to pack. The hotel offered arriving guests a choice of 21 items, from deodorant to contact lens solution. The item was picked up by the Wall Street Journal and USA Today, among others.

Piggybacking onto big national and international stories is one of several hundred ideas I suggest in my ebook, "How to be a Kick-butt Publicity Hound," which I co-wrote with Tom Antion. It's a one-stop-shop for beginning or advanced Publicity Hounds, and you'll find an entire chapter on how to generate free publicity and sell more products and services from blogs. Read more about what you'll learn at
http://www.publicityhound.com/publicity/publicityhound.htm


==================================
3. Pitch Photo Tie-ins, Too
==================================

When a big story breaks, you sometimes won't have an idea that warrants an entire story, but you can pitch a photo. Here are some photo ideas you could have been pitched last week, all tie-ins to the terrorist plot:

--Photos of products that were cleared by the new carry-on rules established by the Transportation Safety Administration.

--Photos of travel agencies, which were swamped with calls from angry, befuddled travelers last week after the big story broke.

--Photos of the types of carry-on bags that make it easy for inspectors to check.

--Photos of Muslims, some of whom called news conferences last week to comment on the terrorist threat. They supported efforts to ensure safe travel and pleaded with the public not to stereotype entire religious or ethnic groups because of what happened.

Sometimes, if you take your own photo and submit it to busy media people, you'll score. My ebook "How to Use Photos & Graphics in Your Publicity Campaign" shows you how to take your own photos and submit them to the media. It includes lots of tips on what makes a great photo, the kind of equipment to use, how to work with editors, and what the media expect to see in your online media room. Read more about what you'll learn at http://www.publicityhound.com/publicityphotos.htm


=================================
4. Publish an Ezine for Publicity
=================================

Looking for one more way to beat the competition, generate fabulous publicity, and sell more products and services?

Publish an electronic newsletter.

No, I'm not talking about an ezine as long as the one you're reading now. You probably don't have eight hours to spend writing each issue, like I do.

But at the very least, send a tip of the week to a list of people who have given you their email addresses and permission to market to them.

Here's what's happened to me (and what can happen to you) as a result of publishing an electronic newsletter, almost every week, for six years:

--I'm invited to speak at conferences because people who read this pass it along to meeting planners in their trade associations who hire speakers.

--Almost every week, people I don't know invite me to be a guest on their teleseminars. That means I get in front of their audiences, many of whom eventually subscribe to this ezine.

--The content-rich information in this newsletter gives readers a chance to know, like and trust me. Many Hounds are loyal subscribers, read every issue word for word, then pull out their credit cards and order products that solve problems they're facing. In fact, I've made more than $10,000 a week, just from leads I've received and products I've sold through this newsletter. Yes, a week.

--Lots of media people, from freelancers to magazine editors, subscribe to this newsletter. And when they read about something that interests them, they'll often ask if they can interview me for their publications. TV and radio show hosts extend the same invitations.

--I've positioned myself as one of the leading experts on media relations and publicity. I Googled myself just now using "free publicity" as the keyword phrase, and I was first on the list. I'm fourth on the list for the keyword "publicity" but usually rank in the first, second or third position.

--I've attracted dozens of people who have signed up for The Publicity Hound Mentor Program at http://tinyurl.com/n22hn so they can have unlimited, long-term access to me. It's almost filled to capacity, by the way.

I could go on, but I think you get the point.

Most ezines that find their way into my email box are garbage. The biggest mistakes publishers make are concentrating only on selling a product or service, and publishing on an irregular schedule, or less than every other week.

If you're hesitant about taking on such a huge commitment, find out how to save yourself time and make your email tip of the week or ezine a key revenue and lead generator. My friend Dan Janal of PRLeads.com and GreatTeleseminars.com interviewed me several weeks ago on "How to Turn Your Ezine into a Cash Machine."

I shared every tip I could think of, and offered lots of helpful advice and tricks I've picked up during my six years of publishing. It's available as a CD or an electronic transcript that you can download as soon as your order has been approved. Read more about what you'll learn at http://tinyurl.com/ouhq2


==================================
5. Media Leads
==================================

--Norm Goldman, editor of the travel site SketchandTravel.com, wants to interview PR people about romantic destinations offered by their clients such as tourist and convention bureaus. "If you want to get free publicity, not only on Sketchandtravel.com, but also on several other sites, including a link on TripAdvisor.com, go to http://www.sketchandtravel.com/ and refer to the Interview section on the left side of the page. You'll see a drop-down menu.

--Here's a terrific lead for your kids or grand kids. The editors of Chicken Soup for the Teenage Soul are searching for submissions. They pay $200 for each published story. The general theme of the book focuses on difficulties associated with relationships, friendships, family matters and self-image. They want first-person, non-fiction narratives. Learn more at this Craigslist posting at http://tinyurl.com/edjz3 or email mailto:chickensoupforteens@yahoo.com

Are you posting your press releases, Help Wanted ads, events, news about your nonprofit, and other items of interest on Craigslist? If not, you're missing the chance to get in front of many of the 10 million people who visit the site every month. "How to Use Craigslist as a Global Publicity Tool" shows you all the tricks of how to entice Craigslist visitors to read your ad. It's available as a CD or electronic transcript you can download as soon as your order has been approved.

Read more about what you'll learn at http://tinyurl.com/geog2


================================
6. Hound Joke of the Week
================================

A door is what a dog is perpetually on the wrong side of. --Ogden Nash

DOG JOKES & QUOTES EBOOK: 170+ G-rated dog jokes and quotes, perfect for a dog-lover, your favorite vet, or just for a few good laughs.

BONUS: Buy the ebook and you also get a compilation of the 50 best websites for dog humor.
http://www.publicityhound.com/dogjokebook/

---------------------------------------------------------------
Where to Meet or Hear The Publicity Hound®

March 17, 2007: Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

"Savvy Media Relations: How to Get FREE Print, Broadcast andOnline Publicity." 8 a.m. to noon. Details pending.

***If you're in the National Speakers Association or the Public Relations Society of America--or another business, marketing or PR group--and you want details on how to bring in The Publicity Hound to do a fund-raiser for your chapter, or you want me to host a teleseminar customized just for your group, contact me at mailto:JStewart@PublicityHound.com?subject=speaker_inquiry or call 262-284-7451.

***Attention Meeting Planners: If you're booking speakers for fall, winter or spring conferences or events, keep me in mind--even if you have a last-minute cancellation. I deliver high-content, interactive programs that are lots of fun. Call 262-284-7451 or mailto:JStewart@PublicityHound.com?subject=speaker_inquiry for details.


PERMISSION TO REPRINT: You may reprint any items from "ThePublicity Hound's Tips of the Week" in your own print or electronic newsletter. But please include the following paragraph:

Reprinted from "The Publicity Hound's Tips of the Week," a free ezine featuring tips, tricks and tools for generating free publicity. Subscribe at http://www.publicityhound.com/ and receive free by email the handy list "89 Reasons to Send a News Release."

If you like these tips, please pass them on to your friends, clients and colleagues.

You are receiving this because you signed up for it at ThePublicity Hound® website at http://www.publicityhound.com/ or you told me you want to subscribe.

PRIVACY STATEMENT: The Publicity Hound® will never distribute your address to anyone. Period. Promise.

=======================================================
Joan Stewart
a.k.a. The Publicity Hound®
3434 County KK
Port Washington, WI 53074
U.S.A.
Phone: 262-284-7451 (Central) Fax: 262-284-1737

Publicity tips/Piggyback onto heat wave August 8, 2006

The Publicity Hound's
Tips of the Week
Issue #305 - August 8, 2006
Publisher: Joan Stewart
mailto:JStewart@PublicityHound.com
http://www.PublicityHound.com
http://www.PublicityHound.net (Blog)
The Publicity Hound®

Circulation: 20,678

=====================================
"Tips, Tricks and Tools for Free Publicity"
Receive this ezine
direct to your desktop
http://www.publicityhound.com/tipsoftheweek/
=====================================

You are receiving this because you signed up for it at ThePublicity Hound® website at http://www.publicityhound.com/ or you told me you want to subscribe. If you didn't subscribe, you can unsubscribe by clicking the link at the bottom of the newsletter.

Please forward this ezine to anyone you know who needs free publicity to establish their credibility, enhance their reputation, position themselves as employers of choice, sell more products and services, or promote a favorite cause or issue.

*************************************************
ARE YOU RECEIVING MY PRESS RELEASE TIPS?

So far, almost 2,000 Hounds have signed up for my complimentary email course called "89 Ways to Write Powerful Press Releases." If you're not one of them, do it now. I shatter many of the old myths about press releases and explain why you should start writing them not only for journalists, but for buyers. And not just when you have "legitimate" news, but whenever you feel like generating more business or drawing more traffic to your website.
Sign up here: http://www.PublicityHound.com/pressreleasetips/list.htm
*************************************************

================================
In This Issue
================================

1. Piggyback onto the Heat Wave

2. Sleazy PR Website

3. Give Advice to Celebrities

4. Media Leads

5. Think Sidebars

6. Help This Hound

7. Hound Joke of the Week

8. And at My Blog...

==================================
1. Piggyback onto the Heat Wave
==================================

This tip is for all of you who've been grousing that you just can't score a good media hit during these dog days of summer.

Right now, as you're reading this, the media are going ga-ga over stories about the heat wave.

Want proof? Al Tompkins, whose blog gives newspaper reporters great story ideas, has a bunch of heat-related examples in his entry at http://tinyurl.com/r783g

They include:

--How Muslim and Orthodox Jewish women cope with the heat while adhering to religious rules that require things like ankle-length skirts and long-sleeved shirts.

--Sweatiquette, as in etiquette tips for those of you who are "confronted with a sweaty friend who wants to give you a bear hug after he's been percolating on a subway platform for 20 minutes. A normal greeting suddenly turns supremely awkward as you see the drops glistening on his brow and dripping down his neck. Suddenly, fear grips you, as you are forced to encounter the beast in front of you. There is no way out." The New York Daily News did an entire story on sweatiquette over the weekend. Why can't you etiquette experts come up with your own sweatiquette tips?

--The Consumer Product Safety Commission warns that, in hot weather, little kids can be burned in seconds when they sit on hot metal playground slides.

--The South Bend (Ind.) Tribune reports that ceiling fans can reduce energy bills significantly, as much as 40 percent in the summer, according to the American Lighting Association. The cost to run a fan is usually estimated at pennies per day, and fans can lower a room temperature as much as 7 degrees in the summer.

When I worked as a newspaper reporter, I remember writing heat wave stories about:

--Retail outlets that attracted customers who didn't have air-conditioning at home but wanted relief from the heat.

--"Cool" summer jobs, like working in the county morgue or the freezer aisle of the grocery store. This story in the Indianapolis Star is a great example: http://tinyurl.com/em6e5

--Products or services that will help you keep cool, from misting fans to those build-a-dinner stores like Dinner by Design where you can assemble 12 entrees or more in about two hours, package them up, take them home and heat them in the microwave.


OK, Hounds. Those are just some ideas to get you started. Want more? My "Special Report #37: How to Tie Your Product, Service, Cause or Issue to the Weather" gives you terrific ideas reporters will love 365 days a year. Only $10. Order at http://tinyurl.com/6uz9g


==================================
2. Sleazy PR Website
==================================

Thanks to Publicity Hound Gaye Carleton of Mantra Public Relations in New York City for tipping me off to this super-sleazy (as in dishonest) website at
http://www.in-elkhartindiana.com.

If you click on the link, it sometimes leads to an error page, which is just as well. Yesterday, I clicked on it and discovered that the site disguises itself as a website filled with PR resources. The site's owner apparently scraped content from MantraPR and other PR websites, including some from big agencies like Ketchum, and posted the content at their site so they could draw traffic when people searched on PR-related keywords. They also make money from Google AdSense ads that show up on the site.

Gaye contacted me because she noticed that one of my Google pay-per-click ads showed up there. She advised me to tell Google to block that site when showing my ad, which I've done.

Why am I telling you this? Because you should be checking your website statistics to see where your traffic is coming from. That's how Gaye stumbled upon the sleazy site--when she was routinely checking her web traffic statistics provided by Hitslink, a subscription service.

"As I was reviewing the report from Hitslink, I saw that someone came to the Mantra Public Relations site through http://www.in-elkhartindiana.com/. Since I thought that was such an odd site through which to be found, I went to the site myself and was shocked to see what was there. And that's when I began notifying the other PR firms listed on the site."

I use Hitslink, too. It's a better tracking program than what my hosting company offers, and it gives super-detailed real-time statistics like what keywords people use to get to my site, where all the traffic is coming from, what pages they leave from, and how many people are at my website at the precise moment I am reading the stats. You can learn more about it at http://tinyurl.com/ldtm8


==================================
3. Give Advice to Celebrities
==================================

I'm writing two new special reports and I'm looking for great examples from Publicity Hounds on:

--How to piggyback onto celebrity news. Have you tied a story idea to one of the big (or little) celebrities and gotten media hits? Have you given advice to Britney Spears on how to keep her baby out of danger? Have you chastised Tom Cruise for jumping on Oprah's couch? Have you piggybacked onto the Mel Gibson drunken-driving arrest and written a press release about what Mel should do in the area of anger management, cultural sensitivity, rehab, or crisis communications? If so, I want to know about it. Mailto:JStewart@PublicityHound.com?subject=Celebrities

--I'm writing a special report giving more than 40 examples of things you can offer visitors to your website in exchange for their email addresses. What does this have to do with publicity? Well, you can generate online and offline publicity by writing press releases about the give-away. I have plenty of examples of routine things like ebooks, special reports and podcasts. I'm looking for examples of more unusual things--either physical products or downloads--such as calculators, dictionaries, pocket guides, comparison charts, slide charts, tool kits, or tutorials. Let me know about what you're offering and send along a sample to me at mailto:JStewart@PublicityHound.com?subject=Examples

If I use your example in either report, I'll email you the completed special report as a thank-you.

===============================
4. Media Leads
===============================

--Leah Ingram is writing a roundup for Executive Travel magazine on technology-related products and services that can save the small business person money. She needs to hear about new gadgets and tools (both offline and online) that people haven't heard alot about and are relatively new to the market. Additionally, if you can hook her up with a real-life small business owner who has benefited from a certain money-saving technology--and is willing to do a phone interview--that would be great. You may overnight press kits and samples to her at: 106 Summer Lea Ct., New Hope,PA 18938. Please include a shipping number or form if you need the item returned. Email pitches tomailto:leah.ingram@comcast.net?subject=ExecutiveTravel with no attachments. If you want to send detailed documents, do so overnight. Her deadline is immediate. Executive Travel is a magazine from American Express Publishing for small business owners who are frequent business travelers.

--OverTime Magazine, the leading business and lifestyle publication for professional athletes and sports industry insiders, is developing a package that will be about current or former professional athletes who are business partners. The story will profile a yet-to-be determined number of athletes who have been in business together and document their high points, low points, and lessons learned. The purpose of the article is to help other athletes who may be thinking about partnering with another athlete. The athletes must be willing to be interviewed over the phone. This is for OT's winter issue, which is distributed at the Super Bowl. If you know of athletes who fit the bill, send the names of the athletes, sports/years/teams played, years in business, and type/name of business to Melissa Gillespie at mailto:mgillespie@ot-magazine.com

Several journalists who provide media leads here complain that some of you pitch ideas that aren't what they've asked for. Or, your pitches are rambling and don't get to the point quickly. If you're one of the guilty parties, you need to know how to pitch succinctly. In "Secrets of Perfect Pitching to Reporters," Dan Janal interviewed me about the very best ways to deliver your pitch. It includes the worst mistake people make when pitching, and the four key elements of a good pitch. It's available as a CD or electronic transcript that you can download as soon as your order is approved. Read more about what you'll learn at http://tinyurl.com/s3tyx

==================================
5. Think Sidebars
==================================

If you're pitching a story idea to journalists, give them a little something extra that will prompt them to say, "tell me more."

I'm referring specifically to what's called a sidebar. It's a short, often boxed auxiliary news story that's printed alongside the longer article and typically presents additional information such as statistics or bullet points.

Let's say you're pitching a story about the heat wave that I discussed earlier, and you're issuing tips for parents on how to keep their kids safe on playgrounds, where the temperature on sliding boards can burn kids' legs. You could offer a sidebar that shows the exact temperature of a metal sliding board on an 85-degree day, a 90-degree day, a 95-degree day, and so on.

Sidebars can also include things like industry definitions, timelines, examples, step-by-step instructions, a quiz, etc.

Journalists especially love quizzes because they engage readers, and they're fun. Learn more about "Briefs, Fillers & Quizzes: How to Write Them and Why Editors Love Them." I explain the 9 different kinds of briefs and give you lots of examples on how you can use them not only as sidebars, but as stand-alone pieces. It's available as a CD or an electronic transcript that you can download as soon as your order has been approved. Read more about what you'll learn at http://tinyurl.com/d74h7


===================================
6. Help This Hound
===================================

A glitch somewhere in my blog is creating problems with the comments function, and I'm working on fixing it. Until then, I won't be posting Help This Hound questions.

When it's fixed, I'll repost Kit Behling's question from last week about how to promote her "Single Married Widowed Divorced" podcast.

So here's a tip to replace what you usually see here:

If you're writing an article for article directories, or a print publication, write a negative headline. "The 7 Worst Mistakes New-Car Buyers Make" is so much more compelling than "7 Ways to Save Money on Your New Car."

If you disagree with me, just take a look at the covers of magazines. Most headlines try to push the reader's panic button by making them so frightened or paranoid that they buy the magazine and turn to the story inside so they avoid making the same mistake.

Learn more about how to write great headlines for your articles with "Special Report #39: How to Write Eye-Catching Headlines for Your News Releases and Articles." Only $10. Order at http://tinyurl.com/6uz9g

================================
7. Hound Joke of the Week
================================

Thanks to Publicity Hound Meredith Hamilton for this video, complete with sound, of a dog laughing.

Maybe this is the sound most of you Hounds make when you read the Hound Joke of the Week (not!). But I think it sounds more like the grunting I heard last week in the Swine Barn at the Wisconsin State Fair. Scroll down to where you see the photo of the tan dog with big ears and the words "Watch video."
http://tinyurl.com/llzs5

DOG JOKES & QUOTES EBOOK: 170+ G-rated dog jokes and quotes, perfect for a dog-lover, your favorite vet, or just for a few good laughs.

BONUS: Buy the ebook and you also get a compilation of the 50 best websites for dog humor.
http://www.publicityhound.com/dogjokebook/


================================
8. And at My Blog..
================================

Gifts for print journalists? Don't you dare
http://tinyurl.com/nt6kf

Need publicity for a charity?
Former WSJ reporter offers tips
http://tinyurl.com/glxl3

---------------------------------------------------------------
Where to Meet or Hear The Publicity Hound®

March 17, 2007: Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

"Savvy Media Relations: How to Get FREE Print, Broadcast and Online Publicity." 8 a.m. to noon. Details pending.

***If you're in the National Speakers Association or the Public Relations Society of America--or another business, marketing or PR group--and you want details on how to bring in The Publicity Hound to do a fund-raiser for your chapter, or you want me to host a teleseminar customized just for your group, contact me at mailto:JStewart@PublicityHound.com?subject=speaker_inquiry or call 262-284-7451.

***Attention Meeting Planners: If you're booking speakers for winter, spring or summer conferences or events, keep me in mind--even if you have a last-minute cancellation. I deliver high-content, interactive programs that are lots of fun. Call 262-284-7451 ormailto:JStewart@PublicityHound.com?subject=speaker_inquiry for details.

PERMISSION TO REPRINT: You may reprint any items from "The Publicity Hound's Tips of the Week" in your own print or electronic newsletter. But please include the following paragraph:

Reprinted from "The Publicity Hound's Tips of the Week," a free ezine featuring tips, tricks and tools for generating free publicity. Subscribe at http://www.publicityhound.com/ and receive free by email the handy list "89 Reasons to Send a News Release."

If you like these tips, please pass them on to your friends, clients and colleagues.

You are receiving this because you signed up for it at The Publicity Hound® website at http://www.publicityhound.com/ or you told me you want to subscribe.

PRIVACY STATEMENT: The Publicity Hound® will never distribute your address to anyone. Period. Promise.

=======================================================
Joan Stewart
a.k.a. The Publicity Hound®
3434 County KK
Port Washington, WI 53074
U.S.A.
Phone: 262-284-7451 (Central) Fax: 262-284-1737

Publicity tips/Publicize the harvest August 1, 2006

The Publicity Hound's
Tips of the Week
Issue #304 - August 1, 2006
Publisher: Joan Stewart
mailto:JStewart@PublicityHound.com
http://www.PublicityHound.com
http://www.PublicityHound.net (Blog)
The Publicity Hound®

Circulation: 20,091

=====================================
"Tips, Tricks and Tools for Free Publicity"
Receive this ezine
direct to your desktop
http://www.publicityhound.com/tipsoftheweek/
=====================================

You are receiving this because you signed up for it at ThePublicity Hound® website at http://www.publicityhound.com/ or you told me you want to subscribe. If you didn't subscribe, you can unsubscribe by clicking the link at the bottom of the newsletter.

Please forward this ezine to anyone you know who needs free publicity to establish their credibility, enhance their reputation, position themselves as employers of choice, sell more products and services, or promote a favorite cause or issue.

*************************************************
ARE YOU RECEIVING MY PRESS RELEASE TIPS?

So far, more than 1,400 Hounds have signed up for my complimentary email course called "89 Ways to Write Powerful Press Releases." If you're not one of them, do it now. I shatter many of the old myths about press releases and explain why you should start writing them not only for journalists, but for buyers. And not just when you have "legitimate" news, but whenever you feel like generating more business or drawing more traffic to your website.

Sign up here: http://www.publicityhound.com/pressreleasetips/list.htm

*************************************************

================================
In This Issue
================================

1. Publicize the Harvest

2. Minimum Wage Law

3. Pitch Consumer Reports

4. Piggyback onto a Holiday

5. Promoting "I Keep Safe" Coalition

6. Help This Hound

7. Hound Joke of the Week

8. And at My Blog...


==================================
1. Publicize the Harvest
==================================

It's harvest time in Wisconsin, and our huge garden is producing string beans faster than we can pick them.

I've already made 28 jars of cherry jam. Canning beets and dill pickles comes next.

Then I'll set aside a Saturday sometime next month for the annual pesto-making extravaganza with my friend Ann Dekorsi. I'll haul a huge garbage bag filled with bushes of fresh basil to her house. We'll hose them down, make a quick trip to Sam's Club for the ingredients, then head back to the kitchen where we'll put everything into a blender to create the most fabulous Italian sauce a foodie has ever tasted.

We eat it on pasta, crackers and as a substitute for tomato sauce on pizza.

In September, I'll head to Columbus, Ohio for the annual salsa-canning day with my two sisters. We typically can about 80 jars of salsa. By December, I'll have a pantry of homemade delicacies to give as Christmas gifts, complete with pretty tags, labels and other decorative touches.

That's how I celebrate the harvest. I'll bet many of you have your own rituals and traditions.

Newspaper and magazine food columnists are hot for these stories because they're so much fun. They provide three vital components necessary for TV: people, color and motion. And you can offer your favorite recipes as sidebars.

Here are tips on how you can publicize your harvest:

--Many gardeners donate the unused portion of their harvest to local food pantries. How about sponsoring a "share the harvest"day at your company? Ask employees to bring in their extra veggies. Stack them all on the conference table and call the local newspaper to take a photo.

--Sponsor a "Funniest Veggie" contest and award prizes to the person who submits the veggie that's the most deformed. (Call theTV stations.)

--Sponsor a cooking contest at your company. Ask employees to make their favorite dish using something from their harvest, and feature everybody's dishes during a special lunch. Let the media know. And be sure to invite your clients to the feast.

--If you're entering your veggies or canned goods in the county or state fair this year, contact the media. They often feature these stories right around fair time. (I'm not entering anything this year. With all that canning, who has time?)

--If your church, card club or social group socializes by canning or "putting up" the harvest, let the media know. My local newspaper did a story last week about a group of little old ladies who make cherry pickles every year, assembly-line style, for their annual autumn bazaar. You can read it here: http://www.jsonline.com/story/index.aspx?id=475999

I'm a foodie, as if you haven't guessed. And I offered my best "Publicity Tips for Restaurants, Chefs & Foodies" when Jaime Oikle of RestaurantReport.com interviewed me. We recorded it, and it's available as a CD. You can download the handout that explains all 51 tips as soon as your order has been approved. Read more about what you'll learn at http://tinyurl.com/clr26


==================================
2. Minimum Wage Law
==================================

Speaking of Sam's Club, pay attention to the new law in Chicago that imposes hyper-minimum wages on "big box" stores with more than $1 billion in sales like Wal-Mart, Target, Costco and HomeDepot--regardless of an employee's experience, education or skill.

Chicago aldermen say those stores must pay a minimum of $13 an hour ($10 in salary and $3 in health benefits) by 2010.

Local officials in other cities throughout the U.S. are already considering similar laws, and this topic has sparked heated controversy. Unions and others support it. But many consumers (like me) fear the big-box stores will leave communities, mostly in big cities where the jobs are needed most, and take not only jobs but sales tax revenues with them.

This is a prefect time to weigh in on this issue, either by calling reporters who are writing about "the local angle" in your community or by writing letters to the editor and opinion columns. This topic is also great fodder for those who write blogs and ezines.

"How to Use Newspaper & Magazine Editorial Pages" shows you all the ways you can try to persuade public opinion by submitting letters to the editor and opinion columns to your local newspapers. It comes with a template for a great letter to the editor, and tips on how to state your case before the newspaper's editorial board, in hopes they'll write an editorial that supports your position. Read more about what you'll learn at http://tinyurl.com/5wh45


==================================
3. Pitch Consumer Reports
==================================

If you just rolled out a new product and you want Consumer Reports to write about it, don't try to come up with a clever angle or additional sources for the article.

In other words, don't pitch Consumer Reports like you would other media.

Gordon Hard, senior editor of the magazine (4.5-million circulation), says the best thing a PR person can do is to step inside the shoes of the consumer and answer this question: How does your product solve a real problem?

"Try to find all the uses your product might have beyond the obvious ones," he says. "That helps you identify real problems that real people have. Don't just be a person who is promoting your product--be a user of the product."

His other pitching tips are in the July/August issue of The Publicity Hound subscription newsletter. The issue also includes articles on how to appeal to the 5 types of journalists, how the U.S. Bowling Congress got more than $2.5 million in free publicity, 5 simple "rules of the road" for PR, how to get free tips on health care crisis communications, where to find new ethics guidelines for business writers, a Canadian decorating magazine that will debut later this year, what to do when Hispanic media call, how Florida nonprofits profit from PR interns, a DVD you can buy if you're training your staff on how to interview with the media, clever publicity stunts P.T. Barnum would love, and July/August story ideas.

All for $10. Order at http://tinyurl.com/zampu


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4. Piggyback onto a Holiday
===============================

Thanks to self-publishing guru Dan Poynter's excellent "YourPublishing Poynters" ezine for this tip.

Marika Flatt of PR by the Book says your pitch will always be more interesting to the media if it’s tied to a timely date, such as a health awareness month (October is Breast Cancer AwarenessMonth) or a holiday (Memorial Day, Thanksgiving, etc.).

The best resource for existing major and minor holidays is Chase's Calendar of Events at http://www.chases.com


Marika adds these:

---Try About.com's website at http://tinyurl.com/h8ddq

---Springboard Training lists all its own holidays at http://tinyurl.com/z87ln

---EducationWorld.com publishes a list at http://www.education-world.com/holidays/

---Find lots of school-related holidays at the Lynchburg City Schools site at http://tinyurl.com/zu3qw

---Here's one that's sarcastic but very helpful:
http://aware.easilyamused.org/

Thanks, Marika. OK, Hounds. Get going! Either create your own holiday, or piggyback your idea onto somebody else's (yes, it's OK to do that without asking the other person's permission).

For more tips on this topic, see "Special Report #45: How to Generate National Publicity from Your Own Holiday (or Day, Week or Month of the Year)" at http://tinyurl.com/6uz9g


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5. Promoting "I Keep Safe Coalition"
==================================

This week, three Publicity Hounds have tips for Carolyn Cox of Virginia Beach, Virginia. She wants ideas on how to promote the "I Keep Safe Coalition." It helps children stay safe on the Internet.


From Kris Bordessa:

"You don’t say where you sent your press release, but you might have luck if you send it directly to the places that would be interested in hosting your presentation. The American Library Association at http://www.ala.org/, the American Association of School Librarians at http://www.ala.org/ala/aasl/aaslindex.htm or the National Parent Teacher Organization at http://www.nationalpto.com/ might be of help in spreading the word through their networks or newsletters."


From Katherine Doe:

"Call the editor of the local school’s teacher newsletter to explain that you have classroom speakers available and would like to spread the word. Teachers LOVE to have others pitch in for a morning or afternoon and would love to read that in their newsletter."


From The Publicity Hound:

"Website development companies are always looking for ways to promote themselves. Why not team up with several of them, or several dozen, and provide a list of 'How to Keep Kids Safe on the Internet.' They can pass the tips along to their own clients as a value-added service, or to the media."

Read all the responses at http://tinyurl.com/q8lp5


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6. Help This Hound
===================================

Kit Behling of Milwaukee, Wisconsin writes:

"The writers of 'Single Married Widowed Divorced' need your help.

"We are group of technologically challenged, over-35 women who have jumped on the podcasting bandwagon--uh, make that bandwidth. We have a website at http://tinyurl.com/hl5mc and a play and a weekly podcast in which we examine real women’s relationship stories.

"Each week, we poke around some theme (examples: sleeping arrangements, kegeling, guilty pleasures, romance). Regular show features include:

--Table Talk: Listen in while the writers chat about the week’s theme.

--Working Mom in Her Car: Patched in from a vehicle somewhere in suburban Chicago, Working Mom is funny and on edge and always has a comment--if not for us, then for the person who just cut her off.

--The Retired Therapist: Puts everything in a well-reasoned physiological or psychological context. And reassures us that no, we’re not crazy.

--Story Time: One of the writers gives us her take on the week’s theme.

"Our challenge: How do we publicize this podcast to our target demographic, women over 35, who will probably laugh & cry & ah-ha right along with us but may be scared off by the podcasting technology? Are your Publicity Hounds up to this challenge?"


The Publicity Hound says: You bet they are! Many of my Hounds already podcast, and I'll bet most of the podcasters know how to promote podcasts, too. Hounds with great ideas for Kit can post their comments to my blog at http://tinyurl.com/j5cy8


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7. Hound Joke of the Week
================================

Thanks to Publicity Hound Les Boston for this one, which comes from "The Giant Book of Animal Jokes" by Richard Lederer and James Ertner. You can find it at http://stoneandscott.com/order.asp

What did the dog say to the policeman after being apprehended for giving birth to puppies along the roadside?

"But Officer, the sign reads Fine for Littering."


DOG JOKES & QUOTES EBOOK: 170+ G-rated dog jokes and quotes, perfect for a dog-lover, your favorite vet, or just for a few good laughs.

BONUS: Buy the ebook and you also get a compilation of the 50 best websites for dog humor.
http://www.publicityhound.com/dogjokebook/

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8. And at My Blog...
================================

Press releases or news releases? Which is it?
http://tinyurl.com/f2skc


Janet Jackson's CD cover design
contest a clever publicity stunt
http://tinyurl.com/fsd4h


Write articles in pairs
to attract more readers
http://tinyurl.com/zqvp9

---------------------------------------------------------------
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=======================================================
Joan Stewart
a.k.a. The Publicity Hound®
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Phone: 262-284-7451 (Central) Fax: 262-284-1737