Generate more traffic and build your bottom line through Radio P.R.
March 16, 2008
Guest Post by Michelle Taney
Editor’s Note: Michelle is my radio PR specialist. Just in the first week of working with her I have been booked on two major radio stations in Florida. To me this means Michelle is someone in the radio PR business to listen to! I will report back with results from time to time so readers can get a glimpse of what radio interviews can do for traffic and branding.
More than ever, you need to be looking at different ways to enhance your business’ visibility. You need a plan that has the ability of reaching thousands of potential customers. Perception is everything, and how customers and the public perceive your business depends upon, in large part, how actively you promote yourself.
One way to generate more traffic to your website is to have scheduled radio interviews. These are typically one-on-one discussions with you and a talk show host. Lasting anywhere from 5-45 minutes, it’s an opportunity to talk about your company to millions of people across the country (from the comfort of your home). Radio P.R. is a necessary and powerful step to achieving excellent results and widespread offline exposure for your business.
By design, simply appearing as a guest on radio stations gives you the “expert” status in the eyes of those tuning into the program. The listening public already believes that if you’re good enough to be interviewed, you must know what you’re talking about. Remember, you have a built-in audience. Now all you need to do is share information pertaining to yourself, website, and company.
Give them just enough information that when you’ve completed the interview, they want more. Radio hosts are great at giving out a web address on air or even putting a link on their site that will direct their listeners to you. These are just a few ways radio P.R can help your traffic increase. You’ll see unbelievable growth as you have multiple streams of traffic coming in from hundreds of radio stations.
Take some time from the demanding needs of your business to create your personalized radio P.R. campaign. Whether you hire a publicist, P.R. firm, or handle your campaign scheduling yourself, here are a couple of steps to get you started.
1. Identify your area of expertise.
2. Develop key messages that will inspire your intended audience into action
3. Create suggested interview questions for future radio interviews.
4. Listen to veteran radio guests, and as you begin to develop your talent learn from those with experience.
Your business success is determined by your ability to powerfully communicate your business with laser precision. Generate buzz and be the best in today’s crowded marketplace.
—
Michelle Taney is Public Relations Director for MediaGuests.net and comes with vast experience in Radio PR. Recognizable for her success as a national publicist, she is constantly creating new and attention grabbing releases for the media. Media exposure, for her clients, is always maximized due to her wide-ranging media contacts and know-how.
—
Further Radio Publicity Posts
- Publicity tips/Be Like the Gabby Cabby Mar 18, 2008
- Radio Interviews - how to be guest expert
- 10 Reasons Why Talk Radio is the Best Promotion for Your Book!
Don't
Miss Out On Free Traffic!
Subscribe to the FTR RSS feed
or our
email list so you don't miss out on real, traffic driving tips from Jack
Humphrey! Thanks for visiting!
FREE Media Manipulation by Dean Hunt Part 2
December 14, 2007
Today we are going to complete our media manipulation experiment. This is a continuation from part one, so if you didn’t read part one, and would like to get your website or business mentioned in the national media… for FREE, then go and read part one first.
STEP FOUR – Write an Overview
You now should have some email replies, some will be positive and some will be negative. It is likely that they will want an overview from you.
Warning: Journalists will try to use a more complex word than “overview”, I don’t know why they do this, perhaps to seem more intelligent, but expect to be asked for:
A Capsualization
An Outline
A Précis
A Synopsis
I was personally asked for a 200 word Précis. Just remember, they want a general overview of the story.
Your goal here is to write an overview that is interesting, easy to understand, fairly well written, and has a unique aspect to it.
Note: Don’t worry about grammatical errors, but ask a friend or family member to proof read it before you send it, and use an online spell checker.
Focus on keeping it simple, and remember to include your unique angle.
STEP FIVE – Get More Coffee
They have your overview now, so grab another coffee, and perhaps an Xbox360 controller as well (contact me if you want to know my Xbox Gamertag) and wait again.
They will reply and either say:
- “We like it, can you please send me/write the full story and then I will speak with the editor and try and get it published.”
- “We don’t like it!”
If they say they don’t like it, don’t worry! There are plenty more fish in the sea, and don’t forget, there are millions of magazines as well as newspapers.
If they say they like it, then you will have to move to Step Six:
STEP SIX – Writing the full story
If you have reached this stage then give yourself a big pat on the back. You are close to becoming famous in your industry, and getting tens of thousands of dollars worth of publicity for FREE.
Note: If you are a terrible writer then you could hire one instead, or perhaps a friend could help you.
Your goal here is to write your full story, aim for around 500 words, and remember to include as many of these as possible:
- WHO
- WHAT
- WHERE
- WHEN
- WHY
Read other stories and copy their formatting style. Test your ideas and then have it proof read once you are finished.
It is also best to include your contact information at the bottom, and send 2 or 3 photos as well.
TIP: They want high quality photos, so don’t send them a crappy .GIF file. Use the originals, and in the highest possible quality.
STEP SEVEN – Making a Deal
Most newspapers are NOT going to pay you for your story. But remember, you are getting a lot of free publicity, so don’t worry.
Your goal is to try and mention your site or product without it sounding like a promotion.
My Example
I got a mention of DeanHunt.com by talking about my personal blog. It was logical to give the URL, but I didn’t promote it by saying stuff like “Best Buzz Marketing Site on the Net”.
I simply slipped it gently into the conversation.
Remember: Editors will remove anything that sounds like a promo-piece.
Summary
There we have it. Seven steps you can start using today to get yourself into national newspapers.
Since my article was published I have had over 80 emails from readers. I am meeting with people in Madrid this weekend, and I have had two job offers.
You probably won’t be the next Paris Hilton of the media, but you can get thousands of dollars of publicity for yourself, your site and your business.
I welcome your questions and feedback here at the Friday Traffic Report.
From Dean Hunt – a Newly Published Writer 
Christmas Goodies from Dean
The Web Traffic Orgasm FREE marketing Case Studies, Free Buzz Experiments and Free Media Tricks are still available. Download them today!
Also, if you are looking for a little more cash for the holidays, have you considered selling one of your websites or blogs?
I welcome your feedback.
Have a happy holidays and a hazy New Year
Dean Hunt
Tags: dean hunt, free press, free publicity, media manipulation, web trafficFREE Media Manipulation by Dean Hunt Part 1
December 7, 2007
Guest Blogger: Dean Hunt
My name is Dean Hunt and I recently got DeanHunt.com featured in the biggest selling quality newspaper in the
It was no accident that I got this free publicity, and Jack has asked me to show you exactly how you can do the same.
My Article: I will start this two-part case study by showing you my article. It is from the biggest selling quality
You can see the online article here: Dean Hunt Article
For those of you who don’t know me, I am from the
Wouldn’t it be cool if you and your website were mentioned in something like the New York Times?
What effect would this have on your site or blog? What about the massive benefit this has on a person’s reputation and public image? Wouldn’t it be cool if someone does a Google search for your name and sees a national newspaper talking about you?
This is powerful stuff, you cannot buy this sort of publicity, so let’s see how I did it, and how you can do EXACTLY the same.
Note: There is a huge amount of advice and information in this case study, so Jack has asked me to split it into two chapters. Today I will be showing you part one, this will be the preparation stage of the process.
STEP ONE – Brainstorm
Ok, you want a story in a national newspaper or magazine… but what story?
It would be nice to just have our web address in big writing on the front page, but the world doesn’t work like that. We need to find news worthy story.
At this point we will have to brainstorm, so grab a pad and pen and do the following:
1. Decide what you want to promote – is it your website, your blog, yourself, your new product etc?
2. Go to PRweb.com and Google.com and type in related keywords
3. Look for news stories that are in this industry and see what types of stories they are. Also, look for ideas.
4. Look for a UNIQUE angle
I wrote UNIQUE in large writing for a reason. It is essential you find something unique, something different that will help you stand out from the crowd.
My Example
In my article I am promoting my name, working online, and working from home. But I know that newspapers don’t like people promoting “Make Money Online” related things… so what did I do?
I focused the article on Expats and sent it to the “expat editor”.
My article still promotes me, my blog and my brand. I just disguised the promotion beneath the expat related story.
STEP TWO - Just Ask!
This sounds simple, but remember this… newspapers and magazines NEED stories. So they are keen to hear any stories you may have. Don’t be afraid, if you do not ask then you cannot get results.
I visited a few newspapers online and made a note of the contact email addresses. Then, I compiled an email like this:
“Dear editor,
My name is Dean Hunt and I am writing because I have a story that I believe may be of great interest to your paper.
I am sure you hear this all the time, so I would be happy to send you an overview if you are interested?
Thanks for your time, I hope to hear from you soon.
Dean Hunt”
I know what you are thinking… “Dean, this is not a very detailed email”, you are correct! That is my trick.
The goal of your first email is to get a response. I do this by using curiosity. I sell the story without giving details, and I try not to make it sound spammy.
Art of Negotiations
If the editor replies to your email and asks you for more information, you will have the upper hand in the psychological aspect of a deal.
He is now essentially asking YOU, not the other way around.
Your first goal is to get a reply from the editor or journalist, don’t worry about anything else at this stage.
STEP THREE – Wait
You have done the hard work now, so grab a coffee, get in your most comfortable chair and wait.
Monitor your inbox and wait for the replies from the newspapers to arrive.
–
Check out how Dean gets to the front page of Digg along with his other great buzz marketing tactics with his free guide “Web Traffic Orgasm!” Watch for Part 2 of Dean’s newspaper attention strategy coming soon!
Tags: dean hunt, newspaper marketing, Offline Marketing, offline media marketing
