Become a Super Promoter - Lesson 6

How and When to Follow Up

Most PR professionals agree that following up after sending pitch letters and press releases betters your chances of getting coverage.  Sometimes, sending a brief note offering to answer questions or provide missing information not contained in the original release is sufficient, but many times a phone call to the person who received your materials is the best bet.

Be warned, many reporters and editors, under constant deadline, do not welcome follow-up calls and may be gruff or annoyed when you reach them by phone. Nothing sets a writer or editor’s teeth on edge more than an eager voice saying, “I’m calling to see if you got the press release we sent.”  When they’re in the middle of a tight deadline, the last thing they want is a phone call that contains no new or useful information whatsoever.

When you make follow-up calls, know exactly what you’re going to say before you telephone the reporter.  Have it written down.  When you reach an editor or journalist, quickly get to the point.  Ask them whether they are on deadline, and if they can spare a moment.  Use your instincts.  If the reporter sounds rushed, ask them when you should call back.

When you reach the right person, remind them who you are and what you sent, and offer to answer any questions they may have.  If a reporter rejects your story idea, ask if he or she can recommend someone else who might be interested.  When a media outlet responds positively to your pitch letter or press release, send a thank you note.

Going It Alone Versus Hiring Outside Help

If you’re a small business owner single-handedly dealing with all facets of your operation, you might want to consider outsourcing some or all of your PR work.  One advantage of working with an outside PR professional writer is that you can put together a publicity plan for your business and know that it will actually get carried out.

Getting an Article Into Print

Not every article you publish will hit the jackpot, but once you start getting your name in print on a regular basis, you’ll reap many benefits.  An article published in your name gives you instant credibility because it’s editorial matter – not advertising – and hence carries the endorsement of the publication in which it appears.  Articles help you get taken seriously and attract prospects, sometimes – as in the incident I described above – delivering them right to your door. As an added bonus, article reprints make excellent marketing materials.

You don’t have to be a professional writer or seasoned journalist to get your name in print.  Whether you’re a management consultant or a masseuse, publishing articles under your byline can do wonders for your business.  And with more than 10,000 publications in print today, your opportunities are virtually unlimited.  You can do it.

Publications Need You

From fillers to features, most magazines you see on newsstands every day rely on freelance writers for at least some of their content.  No, you don’t have to have a cousin in the publishing world to see your name in print.  You just have to learn and follow the same rules as journalists, and editors will be calling you one day.

There are thousands of business, trade, and Internet publications covering every imaginable industry and audience, and many are fairly easy to break into, even for beginners.

Your Road to Becoming a Published Expert

Bylined, contributed articles are a mainstay in many business publications.  Often written for a small fee – or given freely in exchange for an author bio or byline designed to elicit business – these articles show off the expertise of the businessperson or consultant who authored it.

How to Study a Publication

Contact magazines and request s sample issue.  This is not the time to pitch your ideas.  Ask for their writer’s guidelines (policies for contributing writers), an editorial calendar (a schedule of editorial topics for upcoming issues), and an index of previously published articles. 

Look at a few copies of the publications you’ve targeted.  Study their style to better focus and slant your ideas.  Armed with this information, you should be able to get a good sense of the magazine’s style and content.  This will put you in a much better position to develop and pitch appropriate story ideas.  Remember, the quickest way to turn off editors is to pitch an idea that has nothing to do with their magazine.

Selling to Editors

As a rule, professional writers try to sell an idea before they do the writing, they don’t develop an article and send it scattershot to all the magazines they think might be interested.  Why not?  Because editors want to have input that will help shape the stories they assign.  A query letter starts a dialogue between you and the editor that will hopefully land you an assignment, that is, a request for an article of a certain kind and length on a specified topic with a particular slant.

As a matter of policy most magazines do not accept and will not read completed manuscripts because they just don’t have the time to look at materials submitted outside their regular ways of working.  A query letter saves everyone time.  An editor will not have to read a lengthy manuscript that might not be right for the magazine, and you don’t spend hours researching and writing an article that may never see the light of day.

How to Get the Most from Your Articles

In addition to increasing your company’s visibility, articles can generate immediate response from readers.  Here are some techniques to maximize the results.

The Extended Byline

A byline is the author’s name as it appears attached to a published article.  An extended byline includes not just an author’s name, but also contact information and/or a short description of the company he or she represents.  Extended bylines are common in trade and specialty publications, and if you are contributing an article for little or no money, it is a reasonable expectation.

An extended byline should be a concise but accurate profile of your company, expressing your identify and the benefits of doing business with you.  Here’s a byline used on many occasions:

Communications can help you become a recognized expert in your industry.  We develop, write, and place feature stories in publications read by your prospects and clients, and can help you get quoted in publications that reach your target market.  Ask about our custom tailored Media Interview, Article Coaching and Strategy Programs to help you harness the power of PR for your business as a reasonable cost.  Learn more at www.getthewordout.net.

Marketing your Reprints

Savvy marketers get maximum mileage from their efforts by using reprints of their articles as creative marketing tools.  Not only do reprints cost a mere fraction of the price of an original brochure, but also they carry far more credibility.  While a brochure will always be perceived as a sales piece, reprints read like news, making prospects more receptive to your marketing message.

Here are several ways to use reprints to your advantage:

• Include reprints with proposals.  You have a better chance of impressing prospects with your abilities if you are a newsmaker.
• Use reprints to keep in touch.  When you publish an article, you can mail reprints to prospects and clients.  Again, you can do this at a fraction of the cost of writing, designing, and mailing a newsletter.
• Frame or laminate articles to display in your lobby or reception area.  Everybody likes to do business with a winner.  Show your clients how you stand out.
• Turn reprints into special reports and booklets.  You can take your article and reprint it in other forms that can be given away as sales incentives.
• Post published articles on your Web site.  You can show off what you have done, and at the same time keep your Web site fresh with new content.
• Republish articles in other magazines, Web sites, and newsletters.  Make the most of each article you write by looking for likely publications and Web sites that would be interested in reprinting them as is or with a few changes.

Use reprints as trade show handouts.  You can send reprints to key vendors,  and clients with a cover letter announcing your presence and location at the show.  An effective article can lure prospects to your booth.