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Personal PR is how we form relationships with our audience.
It’s time to put on your personal PR hat once again. Many people believe that we need to be wealthy in order to afford the big budgets that PR firms call for. All the press I’ve received has been the result of my proactive and reactive media communications. The only cost of building relationships with the media is time. If you have enough time, passion and faith in your product (yourself), then it’s fairly easy to take time out of each day and connect with bloggers and traditional journalists.
Remember that the term “media” has expanded since 5 or so years ago. Some blogs are designated as “media” sites, while others don’t want to talk to PR and want nothing to do with that type of promotion.
If you’re looking to get on TV or the radio, then the rules are a bit different (relative to print/online). Most people who you see appear on these media outlets are using PR agencies that have built relationships. Through word-of-mouth and ranking in Google, you can claim these opportunities as well, but the chances are far less.
Personal PR – for blogs
I’ve already written a complete guide to pitching bloggers using your personal brand.
Personal PR – for traditional journalists
Some traditional journalists are bloggers as well. Before pitching a journalist or blogger, realize that they are more inclined to support someone they 1) known 2) trust 3) respect. The right way to go about starting a relationship is to “give” first, without asking for anything in return. You will fail 99% of the time if you email a journalist a press release or pitch, unless you are a known brand. Today, I want to talk to you about how to form relationships with traditional media to help promote your brand at a later date. Remember that things take time.
1) Plan. Understand your topic, subscribe to traditional news websites that support that topic and research reporters/journalists who cover it.
2) Locate. Once you’ve locked down the article and know the authors name, locate their contact information. If it isn’t at the top or bottom of the article, then Google their name. Typically journalists will have their own branded homepage with contact information, especially if they’ve written a book (common practice). For instance, if you are a personal finance expert, you may read this article and then respond to one of the journalists, whose email addresses are listed at the bottom.
3) Connect. As noted above, don’t pitch them. All you have to do is comment on their article, while giving your opinion on the topic. As long as you include your contact information, website and a personal brand statement, they can learn more about you if they care.
4) Repeat. I’ll let you decide how many times you should respond to them. Unless the journalist is a regular columnist, I highly doubt they will produce an article a day. Follow them closely and strike conversations now and again. Remember they have busy schedules, so be smart about how many times you email them.
5) Pitch. Once you feel like you have a relationship with the journalist, and understand their audience and writing, then you can pitch to them. If you become close enough friends, the pitch won’t really be much of a pitch because they will probably help you out anyways. Try and make your pitch relevant, timely and concise and if they’re interested, they will seek more information from you.
Best of luck in your personal PR journey!
