What's in store for this edition:

• Getting Your Product On National TV

  • How to Craft the Perfect Pitch:

• NEWSWORTHY: Company named Lumon - Ignore or Embrace the Attention?

• COOL or CRINGE: Government PR Executive Viral Fail

• TOOLKIT 🧰 — Coverage Book

• Attention Seeker of the Week 🐶

Television Pitches: Morning Shows

Journalists want to hear from small business owners and makers. It’s with you, the small business owner, they can find diverse stories to tell. Because that’s what journalists do, they tell stories.

And you have a story for them to tell.

As a small business you can get featured on national TV programs such as Today, GMA (Good Morning America), CBS Mornings, and over 20 more are listed here. It may be overwhelming to think this can happen with a small business, but it can. Trust me. I’ve done it before, and you can too.

Let’s tackle a key principle. Remember journalists are busy people, so respect their time. They receive a lot of pitches. If you take away anything, this is it, your pitch must be concise, well-written, and tailored to the journalist beat and audience. If you do these 3 things in your pitch your chances of being seen have just increased dramatically.

How to Craft the Perfect Pitch:

For the perfect pitch don’t forget the following:

1. Concise and clear:

   • Make sure your pitch is concise and directly communicates your story or product. Edit down your pitch.

   • Avoid lengthy emails or pitches that require too much time to read. Less is more!

2. It’s all in the details:

   • Always include links to products or images in your pitch.

   • Provide necessary information, like prices, to avoid follow-up questions. This will respect the journalist’s time.

3. Timing and research shows you’re reliable:

   • Research the journalist's recent stories to avoid pitching something they've just covered.

   • Pitch timely and seasonal content to increase relevance.

   • Remember to pitch well enough ahead of time for different holidays or seasonal products.
     

     💫 Pro Tip: For National TV shows like GMA or like this pitch about two months in advance for seasonal segments. You don’t want to pitch to early, nor to late. 2 month good rule of thumb.
     

4. Direct communication:

   • Some producers don’t mind direct communication with business owners. You do not have to have a PR rep to get on these shows.

   • Be genuine, clear and yourself.

5. Value over noise:

   • Focus on the value your story or product brings rather than trying to be loud or pushy.

   • Build relationships based on trust and clear communication.

   • Think about their audience and what they want to hear. Not what you want to say.

6. Social media is a secret weapon:

   • Use social media, like X or Instagram, for quick and direct access to journalists. Use for initial outreach or follow-ups.

   • Use DMs to reach out to media companies or journalists directly.

     
     💫 Pro Tip: While you can do initial reach out using DM’s, however email remains preferred method for sending pitches.

See more info on Perfecting Your Pitches here.

Next Time: More on who to pitch to and how to find them.

Do this now: Write a practice pitch to a fictional journalist.

You are a small business owner, you make ____(you choose) product crafted in this ____(you choose) unique method or use ____(you choose) sustainable/new/unique materials. You want it to be on ____ morning show.

Write your pitch.

Research your journalist.

Go back the next day and see if you followed the guidelines from above. Make notes on what needed changing.

Now you have some practice writing a pitch. Email me your pitch and I’ll be happy to give you some feedback.

Get PR techniques from recent news.

Newsworthy

Company named Lumon - Ignore or Embrace the Attention?

Many companies named Lumon or Lumen share their brand name with the hit Apple TV+ show called Severance because of this coincidence have had some unexpected attention.

Many companies have found themselves subject to teasing on social media, and found an uptick in search traffic related to the show’s popularity.

Communicators must decide how they will handle these flash-in-the-pan moments.

Strategy options:

• You can ignore it.

• Use it to get more search traffic.

• Have fun with it, and show your audiences a lighter side.

✍️ Key PR Takeaway: What ever you decide to do, make sure everyone is on the same page. If you do decide for go for a little extra attention, have fun with it, and always stay true to your company’s values.

Learn from others.

0% Cool : 100% Cringe

Government PR Executive Viral Fail

A government communications director thought her office was her personal TikTok studio. Spoiler alert: It was NOT.

Why is this Cringe? McLaurine Pinover, an executive at the Office of Personnel Management, decided to turn her GOVERNMENT OFFICE into a fashion runway. While delivering statements about mass layoffs, she's filming outfit videos and pushing clothing sales.

✍️ Key PR Takeaway: Protect your reputation. Once it’s gone, it’s hard to get back. No amount of side-gig money can buy it back. The internet sees everything, so there are professional codes of conduct for a reason.

Useful PR Resources.

🧰 TOOLKIT

Coverage Book

This is a great tool when you need to show your PR metrics and show the impact and value of a campaign.

1. First paste links to web articles, social post, print clippings, video or audio files.

2. Get Screenshots, PR Metrics & data back and choose how to present your coverage.

3. Customize and share your book: Online, PDF or CSV

Attention Seeker of the Week

Penny, is a cute as a button Dachshund 8-month-old puppy. Her human got her a bell to ring in the hopes of training her to ring when she needs to outside. Instead she uses it for, you guessed right, getting attention. Penny you are the definition of an attention seeker!

Busy week coming up, but I’m taking time to enjoy the beautiful weather and spring flowers.

Until next week, keep your shades on and stay cool.

Your fellow Seeker,
Keren

🕶️