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Four Steps to Earned Media Coverage
Thinking like a reporter can help you reach new customers.

June 2007

So, your website is up and running, and you're open for business. How do you find customers, especially if you don't have much of a budget for promotion yet?

Try earning media coverage. The advantages of earned media are that it's free, and you may be able to reach customers you can't reach in other ways. The disadvantages are that you really do have to earn it, and you don't control exactly what information is presented.

Here's how to get started:

1. Target your audience
First, decide what customers you're trying to attract, and research what they read, listen to, or watch. If you have a dry-cleaning store, the neighborhood newspaper could be a good place to start. If you're selling stethoscopes online, find out what trade magazines doctors read.

Don't limit yourself to the obvious—editors are always looking for new angles to interest their readers. Will fishermen be interested in the seafood spices you offer? Maybe the software engineers at a nearby technology firm who type all day could benefit from your massage or acupuncture services, and they listen to a technology show on your local public radio station.

2. Think like a reporter
To be worthy of coverage, your business has to be more that just interesting--it has to be newsworthy. According to Erin Mills, owner and president of Think Marketing, "The biggest mistake people make is that they're thinking from within their four walls.

"The local newspaper wants to provide value to the local community, so think about what you're providing," said Mills. "Are you providing new dollars to the city? Giving back to the city?"

Mills also suggests business owners think about where their businesses coincide with business trends. "Research like-minded ideas in the industry," she advised. "Ask yourself, 'How is what I'm doing in my business new in my industry?"

If you're pitching to a trade publication, Mills recommends writing about trends or creating how-to articles, helping the readership become more engaged with the topic. "It's all about knowledge building," she said. "We position our clients as thought leaders. Reporters always need industry experts."

3. Write a press release
The press release is the international greeting card that journalists expect and understand. Fortunately, if you're a good writer, they're not difficult to create. Just follow the unwritten formula: Keep it to one page or shorter, include a compelling headline, and put all the important information (who, what, where, when, and why) in the first or second paragraph.

Flesh out the release by elaborating on the basics in order of importance, not necessarily chronologically. It's no coincidence that newspaper stories generally follow this format; occasionally, an overworked reporter may run a well-written press release nearly intact as a story. To enhance the chances of this happening, include direct quotes, complete contact information, and use Associated Press style.

Many businesses post their successful press releases online, so samples are easy to find. If you're comfortable writing, be sure to use spell checker and grammar checker, and have a colleague proofread it for you. If writing is not in your skill set, plenty of experienced P.R. writers offer their services online.

4. Make contact
Get to know the publication that you're targeting, and watch for reporters or editors who cover similar topics. Many publications web sites offer email and phone numbers, or a receptionist can give you the information. Send your press release by email or fax, and follow up with a phone call.

Contacting the media may seem intimidating at first, but if you've done your homework, you may be offering them valuable information. Reporters work on incredibly tight deadlines, however, so respect their time. Practice your pitch on a colleague before you call journalists. If they're on deadline, apologize and ask when you can call back. If you give your pitch and they're not interested, ask what would make your concept newsworthy, and thank them for their time. You're building a relationship, just as you do with your customers. You're hoping to become a valued source of information about your industry.

Consider archiving your press releases on your website, so reporters can find you. And when you do get coverage, definitely reference it on your site. Nothing makes your business look more newsworthy than previous coverage.

Success story
Lynn Schneider, owner of Dentakit.com, has a background in journalism and corporate communications, so she knew when she had a link to a national-level story. In August of 2006, the Transportation Security Administration started regulating liquids and gels carried onto airplanes, including toothpaste. Schneider offers pre-pasted toothbrushes on her Yahoo! store that meet the new TSA guidelines, so she drafted a press release and invested $200 to have PR Web post it.

"The key is to make the press release newsworthy so that reporters and editors will want to run with it," advised Schneider. "In that release, I related some tips for in-flight oral hygiene and then talked about my site and my products. If it looks too much like a blatant advertisement, some reporters might avoid it altogether."

Within a week, Dentakit.com was mentioned in the New York Times, the Miami Herald, and the Contra Costa County Times, as well as several travel forums and blogs. "The result was that our sales skyrocketed," said Schneider. "In the month of August, we earned 65% more revenue than our running monthly average, and we filled almost double the number of average monthly orders. Most of those extra sales were pre-pasted disposable toothbrushes."

Schneider said a whole new segment of customers became aware of her store and products. She made sure to enclose literature and marketing materials with the orders to remind customers where they got their products. "We have already seen some repeat business among these new customers," said Schneider.