Free publicity is one of the single best ways for businesses to promote themselves. It is particularly attractive to new businesses and solo-preneurs with a limited marketing budget, but publicity is a powerful marketing method for more established businesses as well. Since the publication of Jay Conrad Levinson’s “Guerrilla Marketing” many marketers and business owners are aware of how effective this form of marketing can be.
It is important to note that the fact that free publicity doesn’t cost anything does not mean that it is necessarily lower quality. In fact free publicity can be much more effective than paid advertising. Studies have shown that people are becoming increasingly able to “tune out” advertisements. When reading a newspaper their eyes will naturally go to the articles and skip over the advertisements. Technology, such as Tivo and online ad blockers, has also made it easier for consumers to block out paid advertising messages. This means that if you want to get in front of your potential audience then free publicity may be the best way for you to do it.
Here are five great ways for you to get your message out to the public using free publicity:
1. Hold Classes and Seminars
As a business owner you have expertise in a your particular industry. A great way to attract buyers into your business is to run a special event where you offer education classes. For example, if you were running a bakery you might offer a free evening class on baking cakes or if you were a financial adviser you could offer a free seminar on the basics of financial management.
You can even profit directly from these events. Charge for admission or for products you sell at the back of the room. If you don’t want to deal with taking registrations and other hassles of hosting classes, consider offering them through a sponsoring organization. I have taught classes at Leisure Learning Unlimited in Houston for many years. They publish a catalog, handle registrations and even provide a place to hold the class. Offering classes through a sponsor also makes it easier to take them on the road. It can be hard to do all the legwork for a class in a distant city, but if all you have to do is show up and present, it is easy to take your message to people in other cities.
Although it may be easier to get publicity for a free event than one that charges a fee, many local media will publish event notices. Plus, when you send press releases about the training you offer, you build your expert reputation. After all, if you are the person at the front of the room, you must be an expert, right?
2. Hold a Contest
People love the opportunity to win something and so contests are a great way to build up a lot of buzz quickly around your business. You can use your own product or service as the prize or you can offer to make a charitable donation of the winners choice. People who miss out on winning your product or service may also choose to buy as a result of the competition.
You can get publicity through media releases about your contest. Another way is to get bloggers writing about your contest. You can contact bloggers directly, or submit a notice about your contest to Blogger LinkUp.
3. Write a Column
Another great way to get publicity and to establish yourself as an expert is to write a newspaper column. People buy from people that they trust and so if you are giving weekly advice on topics of interest to your market, then you will be perceived as being that expert. Typically at the bottom of your column you will be able to include bio information to promote your business.
You can offer your column for free or a small fee to local newspapers, both in your area and across the country. This is called self-syndication. Or you can submit samples and a proposal to one of the major syndicates. The odds are against you when it comes to working with the large syndicates, but if they chose to syndicate your column you can get exposure in hundreds or thousands of publications.
Also consider syndicating your column online to websites and blogs. Many sites are looking for good content, and if you can provide interesting and well-written content on a weekly or monthly schedule, they will want to feature you. Or, just publish a column at one large site, such as the Huffington Post.
4. Piggyback on a News Story
Getting publicity can be difficult. But if you can join your own story to that of an existing hot topic in the media it will be much easier. For example when Blue Fire Poker were setting up their new training business they challenged President Obama to a game of poker for one million dollars. According to https://www.easyslots.com/, the debate about whether poker should be legal or not, and whether is was mostly skill or luck, was a hot topic at the time. Thus the media were quick to pick up on the challenge and the site received a lot of free publicity.
When a story is hot, everyone is looking for a new angle. If the story sticks around for a while, everyone starts to get tired of it, including the media who are covering it. Come up with a new approach and you can get publicity.
This is especially effective if you can come up with a local angle on a national or international story. Local media love to cover the big stories, but they want to show how it affects people in their local area. If you can tie a national or international story to local concerns, you can get coverage.
5. Demonstrate Your Product
Another way to get free publicity and attention for your product is to hold a free demonstration. Showing people how to use your product will not only bring in potentially interested buyers it will also help to familiarize them with the product. One buying objection with technical products is that people are afraid they won’t be able to use it. By holding a demonstration you can help them to overcome this fear while getting a lot of free publicity at the same time.
While in-person demonstrations are effective, another possibility is to pitch an on-air demonstration of your product to a morning show or talk show. Or post online videos showing your product in use. (Think “Will it blend?”)
Remember the opportunities for free publicity are only limited by your imagination. If you think creatively and you are proud of your product or service then limited funds will not stand in your way.
Hi Cathy
thanks for your article. You raise some really good points. It’s funny because as a newer entrepreneur, I find myself thinking how do I cope if I DO get some publicity – it’s just little old me! Clearly this is a hurdle I need to get over to take my business to the next level : )
Regards
Garry
Garry, it can be a good idea to start small with local media or media in a tightly-defined niche. You do not want your first television interview to be on a national show, and it is unlikely they want that, either. Your first interviews may not be great because you may be nervous or unsure of how to get your message out. Practice with small and local, then work up to larger outlets.
Good luck!
If your attempts at media coverage have fallen flat, quit grumbling and start taking a proactive approach to free publicity by identifying interesting, compelling story ideas the media need. Yes, NEED. Newspapers, magazines and trade publications have hundreds of thousands of column inches to fill. TV and radio stations have hundreds of hours of news and community interest programs they must broadcast. The number of media outlets is greater than ever, and competition is fierce for advertising dollars, viewers and subscribers. The secret to savvy media relations is knowing exactly what they want, then giving it to them.
Garry, your concern about coping with too much publicity is like wondering what to do if you earn too much money. This is a “problem” that most businesses want.
LOL! True, Robert. Too much publicity is probably a good problem to have! But it can be hard to deal with, especially if you are not experienced with the media.
I’ll take that problem over not having enough publicity ANY day of the week….especially if it translates to more revenues for my business!
Start by compiling a list of the local media contacts that cover your company’s industry, then contact those people directly. Press releases can be submitted to cover a variety of company happenings, including but not limited to the promotion of an employee, the release of a new product, changing locations or opening a new location, landing a new contract.anything noteworthy that can be printed will lead to credible and consistent company exposure. Aside from press releases, there are other ways to get your company in print or on the air. For example, if you are a tax accountant you might volunteer to write an article explaining recent tax law changes or offering tax advice for the average person. If you are opening a new restaurant in the area you might be able to get a local television news spot doing a cooking demonstration. There is always a publicity angle no matter the industry; you just have to find it. An added bonus to print publicity is that you can save the article and show it to potential and existing customers time and time again.
Want free publicity in a magazine? Getting it is a lot easier when you pitch specific section editors. If you have a new product, for example, send a press release and digital photo to the New Products editor. Here are other tips on how get free publicity during a product launch.
Nina, you are right. Directing your pitch to a specific person is always a good idea. Think about where your story should be in the publication, then find out who is in charge of that section. Don’t just hope that your pitch reaches the right person.
Thanks for the comment!
As a new self-published author, I find that without a large bankroll, it is very difficult to get publicity. But I will keep trying.
Steve, any marketing takes some combination of time and money. However, publicity can be obtained with very little cash. Someone with lots of money to spend can hire a publicist and let them handle it. You may have great success doing that, or you may spend thousands of dollars and have nothing to show for it.
If you want to spend less, you can hire someone to write a press release, pitch letter and/or other marketing materials for you. You can also buy media contact lists so that you can send out your materials to targeted media. Depending on how you choose to spend, you can do this for a couple hundred dollars and up.
If you want to spend nothing (or close to it) you can do everything yourself. That is how I got started with getting publicity, and I got coverage from local newspapers, radio and TV. I also got on radio shows around the country and even featured in national magazines.
Publicity is always a bit of a crap shoot. I have contacted hundreds of targeted media outlets and gotten no coverage, and I have sent 40 press releases and gotten two national features. You just never know.
Keep trying!
Hello Cathy,
I really appreciate you writing this post. There are many suggestions that I have not even considered until today. Your final statements resonated with me:
“Remember the opportunities for free publicity are only limited by your imagination. If you think creatively and you are proud of your product or service then limited funds will not stand in your way.”
I look forward to reading and commenting on your future posts. Have a wonderful week:)
Best,
Stacie Walker
Thanks, Stacie. Check back soon–there are several posts coming soon, including some really useful tutorials.
Thanks for the comment!