I got a telephone call today at the office from the wife of a certified public accountant. She was pitching me on a story that her husband had just written about the benefits of creating an LLC versus an S-Corp. I listened politely, then told her why I couldn’t run her husband’s obviously wonderful story.

I can’t tell you the number of times I get pitches that we would never publish—not because it’s a bad idea but because it just doesn’t fit in the pattern we have already created.

The magazine I edit is a regional publication that has a pretty narrow focus. We only publish stories that fall within our already established sections. I can’t tell you the number of times I get pitches that we would never publish—not because it’s a bad idea but because it just doesn’t fit in the pattern we have already created.

I often get advance copies of novels and CDs from publishers, authors, and musicians, asking us to please consider reviewing them in our magazine. We have never, in the six years we have been in print, reviewed a book or CD. Never. Yet I keep getting these lovely gifts in the mail on a monthly basis. And I always feel badly—these publishers and public relations people are clearly wasting money on sending me stuff.

In the case of this lovely woman who called me on the phone, I explained to her that we currently don’t have a place in the magazine where such a feature would appear and that we decide upon our editorial calendar 8 months to a year in advance. She proceeded to tell me how it would be a benefit to our readers. I didn’t argue that point—it very well might—but I can’t reinvent the wheel. I suggested that she contact the local daily and weekly newspaper, as they have much more flexibility to publish articles than I do.

Our company also does not accept unsolicited manuscripts—but I didn’t feel like I needed to get into that with her. She was clearly not used to pitching story ideas to the media.

What I wanted to tell her was that if she was going to pitch people her husband’s already-written story, to take a look at some back issues of said publications to see if it’s a good fit or not. If she had looked at ours, she would have seen that we don’t publish stories of that nature. I also wanted to tell her to not introduce herself as the wife of the CPA who wrote this wonderful article that I should publish in our magazine. It’s unprofessional—and of COURSE she thinks it’s a great article…her husband wrote it! Continue Reading

Do you have to write a press release? It’s not as easy as you think. Writing headlines for anything—be it a press release or a story—is one of the hardest things to do.

The thing with a headline is that you have to create something that signifies what you are writing about while being clever, concise, and exciting. If someone doesn’t like or connect with your headline, they probably aren’t going to read your story.

There are editors out there whose job it is to create headlines. It’s what they’re good at. I am not one of these people.

One of my favorite parts of NBC’s The Tonight Show (which I am rarely awake to watch at night) is the part where Jay Leno shares some of the worst headlines with viewers. Here are some doozies:

• County to pay $250,000 to advertise lack of funds
• Brain gain: Additional schooling may boost IQ levels
• New sewer line is breath of fresh air
• Freetown residents living with odors at Crapo Hill
• Unanimous decision unopposed

Pretty bad, huh?

Sometimes, with the urge to be clever, the headline makes the writer look really, really stupid. Continue Reading

The magazine I run is holding a contest, and we’ve been working hard with our PR consultant on creating the best press releases possible to advertise our event. It’s not as easy as one might think to craft a good press release—even if you are a professional writer. I found this blog post on 5 Tips on Writing a Good Press Release really helpful—and I thought I’d share it with you.

Do Your Research Before You Pitch

I get press releases all the time that make me wonder if the person who sent it to me had even picked up a copy of the magazine I work for. We are a regional publication that has strict guidelines on what we publish. And we publish the same columns and categories each month. National news or news outside of our coverage area does not interest me, or our readers.

Yet I constantly get emails and phone calls from PR people pushing their agenda on me, the editor of a publication that would never consider publishing their news. They are not only wasting my time, they are wasting their time. And, if they are charging their clients, they are wasting their client’s money.

Make sure you do research on the magazines, newspapers, TV stations, whoever you are pitching your press release to before you pick up the phone and call. There is no reason to pitch the opening of a new Los Angeles-based restaurant to a home improvement magazine who caters to people living in Boston, Massachusetts. Continue Reading

Much of the talk about public relations focuses on how you can get the news media to cover your business. If it’s good coverage, then it may have a positive effect on your sales.

However, getting good coverage can burn up a lot of time and energy that might be put to better use. Instead of courting the media, you could be courting potential clients.

However, this is not to say that public relations is best left to big companies with deep rosters of established clients and the ample cash needed for hiring outside firms to manage PR campaigns. There are simple PR steps that your freelance business can take. Here are five: Continue Reading

Matthew Heusser, a technologist hailing from Allegan, Michigan, got his roots in computer programming. But what he did with that knowledge—mixing in tons of risk-taking and determination—has made him a prominent speaker in his field as well.

I talked to Matthew, 32, to find out how he leveraged his job in programming to become an expert in the industry, how he gets paid to talk about it—and how you can do the same.

Continue Reading

While Molly Lynch used to be a player in the traditional PR game — long hours, grunt work and glamorous clients — she managed to go solo after just a few years. She discovered that freelancing provides numerous challenges, but the rewards are just as grand… if not better.

That’s why the 29-year-old loves her life as a PR consultant for Lynch Communications Group, LLC. Based in Chicago, this Windy City resident likes getting caught in the whirlwind of the public relations arena, but prefers to fly solo.

Kristen Fischer (KF): How did you get started in public relations?

Molly Lynch (ML): During college, I interned and freelanced for Weber Shandwick. I also worked at a radio station on their promotions team and in the news department at the local ABC affiliate. I knew I was going into the communications industry, but I wasn’t sure which area. Post-college, I sent out hundreds of resumes to public relations firms and TV stations and landed my first full-time job in the Publicis Groupe. It was a great experience for me from A to Z—I had a great boss, great clients, fun colleagues, etc. A perfect way to get your feet wet. Continue Reading