How To Get Publicity For Your Home-Based
Business
By Tom Egelhoff
 Outline
What is publicity and how do you get
it?
When is the best time to start seeking
publicity?
What are the advantages of publicity?
Where to publicize your business.
Make it easy on the media.
How to convince them you are worthy of
publicity.
The Last Word On Home-Based Publicity
Did you know that many of the
largest corporations in America started as home-based businesses?
Procter & Gamble, Motorola, and Apple Computers to name just
a few. The point is many people "experiment" with a
business at home, part time, while they decide if the business
is viable and worth pursuing to a higher level. Most will give
up after only a few months if the business hasn't risen to the
level of Microsoft.
But, for those that have decided that the business path they
have chosen has potential, the next step is letting as many people
as possible to know about it. That is where publicity comes in.
What is publicity and how do you
get it?
The Random-House dictionary defines publicity as, 1. information
given out to attract public attention to a person, cause, etc.
2. public notice or attention. I site the definition for a very
specific reason. Note, that nowhere in the definition does it
say anything about newspapers, radio or TV finding or contacting
you. According to the definition, you are the one who is supposed
to contact them with the information about your business.
In the mid-1980's I worked for a 45 store video chain in San
Diego, CA. At that time, "Raiders of the Lost Ark"
was the first major blockbuster title to be released on video.
It was a major entertainment news event. All the local newspapers,
radio and TV stations came down to our headquarters to interview
the owner of the chain about the big event.
How did the media find out about this major news event? Simple,
We called them and told them it was happening. They had no idea
the release was scheduled. We were on every major station that
evening and many people thought we were the only stores that
had the movie. And it was all FREE. Just for a couple of phone
calls.
When is the best time to start
seeking publicity?
This is the biggest mistake most small and home-based businesses
make. They seek publicity too soon. When you start a new business
there is pressure to see immediate results from your efforts.
Most people are not comfortable with "delayed gratification."
You expect to see the money rolling in and when that doesn't
happen, panic sets in and you try to "kick start" your
business without proper planning. (See
Chapter Six: Marketing Objectives & Strategies in your copy
of "How To Market, Advertise and Promote Your Business Or
Service In A Small Town.")
As badly as I wanted to rush right out and start promoting
this website, I had to wait until I had a substantial number
of articles written and a secure credit card ordering system
in place for my book. That took some months of work plus the
expense of keeping the website up with nothing coming in, but
has paid off very well.
You must be prepared to handle any increase in business that
might come from your publicity. Maybe you need to establish a
"line of credit" with suppliers if business explodes.
Do you have back-up suppliers in the event one can't deliver?
Do you need a certain amount of on-hand inventory? Can you qualify
for volume discounts to increase profit margin?
What are the advantages of publicity?
- Cost: Publicity is usually free. If it isn't totally free,
it is cost effective.
- Perception of your business by the customer. We tend to remember
stories about a business long after we've forgotten their ads.
- Credibility: Anyone can buy an ad in the paper. Publicity
must be earned. There is the perception that the media doing
the story has verified that you are "as advertised"
before they do the story.
Where
is the best place to publicize your business.
The best place is where your target market will see it. If
I own a nightclub with gambling, the chances are pretty good
I won't be featured in the church bulletin so I won't try to
contact the editor of that media.
Local and regional newspapers, radio and TV stations are where
you most likely want to be. Write a letter to the editors of
each of these media introducing yourself and explaining your
expertise in your business or industry. Explain that when events
about the industry come up you would be happy to provide the
local point of view to the story.
Part two of this scenario is to keep up to date on what's
happening in your industry and when a story comes along, alert
the media and offer your assistance as the local expert. I am
often contacted for a point of view about small business topics
reported by our local papers.
Make it easy on the media.
Before you submit any materials to the media, ask what format
they prefer. If they want computer discs, what program? If they
use QuarkXpress, as most papers do, and you give them a disc
done in Microsoft Publisher (probably the worst possible format),
you are going to create additional work for them. They may not
have enough time before deadline to extract and convert your
information for publication.
Start well in advance of the date you would like to see the
information in print. Don't show up on a Monday morning expecting
to see an article on you the following week-end. It's probably
not going to happen unless you are really big news.
The media will work with you as long as you work with them.
Try to resist being too demanding. You may not be totally happy
with the final copy. In the case of publicity you will have very
little say in the final product. Don't be surprised to find and
alternative view of your business or industry in the same article.
The media is not going to run a free ad for you. Accept the exposure
you get as a positive step forward in your business efforts.
How
to convince them you are worthy of publicity.
In my case it was pretty simple. I could have written an ordinary
marketing book that would have been largely ignored by the publishing
industry. Instead I saw a glaring lack of information for business
owners in small towns. There are a ton of books on marketing,
a ton of books on small business, but there are none that I can
find on small town marketing. My book is a niche that is also
news. And, as I am happily finding, there is a demand for it.
What is it about your business that makes it unique? (See: How
To Make Your Business Unique) We are all unique in some
way and for that very reason our respective businesses are unique.
Can you tie your business to a national event? Y2K is a very
hot topic right now, how does your business or industry relate
to it? World Series, Super Bowl, new laws in your area, economic
changes in the industry that may affect your town. It's there,
you just need to do a little looking.
The Last Word On Home-Based Publicity
Someone once said even bad publicity is better than no publicity.
I'm not sure I totally agree with that but, I will agree that
publicity in the right place exposed to the right people is worth
it's weight in gold.
Don't try to go too fast. Meet the editors of the various
media and try to form a relationship. It's no secret what you
want to do. You want a free ad and they don't want to give it
to you...unless you make it newsworthy. Why would I want to read
about your business? What makes you or your product so special?
Answer these questions and you're on your way to free publicity.
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This article may be reproduced for your group
or organization provided it is not altered in any way
and the following is attached:
Used With Permission
©1998-2002 Eagle Marketing PO Box 271 Bozeman, MT 59771-0271
http://www.smalltownmarketing.com - (406) 585-0219 - Toll Free
(888) 550-6100
email: tommail@smalltownmarketing.com
Based in Bozeman, MT, Tom Egelhoff is the author of How To Market, Advertise & Promote Your
Business Or Service In A Small Town, and The
Small Town Advertising Handbook: How To Say More And Spend Less.
He is also a seminar and workshop presenter
and trainer. He may be reached at 888-550-6100 or PO Box
271 Bozeman, MT 59771-0271
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