Coachamatic

It’s great to have a blog, and a blog can help establish you as an expert in your field, but there’s nothing like getting mainstream media attention to give your business legitimacy in the eyes of the general public.

Especially if your profession is outside the realm of what most folks are acquainted with (such as a coach), having information about your work presented in a format that most folks are comfortable with (like a newspaper) is a great way to introduce yourself to people who wouldn’t generally be reading your blog.

A few months back I was lucky enough to be featured in an article by Boston Globe career columnist Penelope Trunk, which ended up being published in The Boston Globe and more than 20 other newspapers. Here’s how that media windfall came about:

Penelope and I came into contact with each other through our blogs– I had written a post responding to one of her posts and linked back to her, then she came to check out my blog, saw what I did for a living, thought it sounded like a cool job, and found a way to include me in one of her articles.

Admittedly, my media blitz was the result of luck and timing (plus having a well-tended blog that established me as a credible resource). Our meeting each other was completely unpremeditated, and I don’t know if I could replicate that series of fortunate events even if my life depended on it.

Fortunately, getting mentioned in newspapers and magazines isn’t always about luck. Oftentimes that kind of publicity is the result of a conscious effort on the blogger’s part.

Penelope outlines some strategic things you can do to catch a journalist’s eye in her post How to get your blog (or yourself) mentioned in print.

She’s got some great tips in each of the following areas:

1. Don’t pitch yourself, pitch an idea.
2. Pitch an idea with the print audience in mind.
3. Tailor the idea to the journalist.
4. Sign up for Profnet.
5. Answer questions strategically.
6. Be available.

While Penelope’s tips are things we can do to directly, intentionally elicit the interest of reporters, I think that many bloggers who end up in the Wall Street Journal and the New York Times get there by more subtle means.

One thing that never ceases to amaze me is how adept Andy Wibbels is at getting himself and his blog into mainstream print, radio and television with virtually no effort on his part. He’s a bona fide media magnet!

I think it boils down to the fact that he’s established himself as an expert in his field on his blog, he writes about topics that are hot in the news, then he makes it very easy for journalists to find him.

Many of the journalists find Andy by doing a Google search on the topic they’re writing about, and his blog comes up high in the search engine rankings. Then they take a look at his blog and see that it’s well-established and that he sounds like he knows what he’s talking about.

They can also take a peek at the “Media Room” he’s set up on his blog that includes his detailed contact info, a short bio, possible story angles, and a list of his previous media appearances. They can even listen to a sample radio interview to get a feel for his personality and how he handles himself on interviews.

I think he also says outright on his media page that he’s available for spur of the moment interviews (availability is HUGE with journalists on tight deadlines).

In that media room he’s able to do much of the work for the journalist while also showing them that he’s a reliable expert resource. Basically, the easier you can make things for the journalist the better, so set up that media page!

Another thing to consider–sometimes a journalist may contact you without having the intention of featuring you in a piece; she may just be asking for your help in referring her to other resources and folks she could interview.

Even if you’re not going to be getting the limelight, by all means, bend over backwards to help her!

You never know what the future holds–maybe someday she’ll be doing a story where featuring you would be appropriate. Or maybe she’ll refer one of her journalist friends to you one day. If you’ve taken the time to establish a friendly relationship with her, then she’s more likely to think of you when that time comes.

So, let’s say a journalist does take an interest in interviewing you–what then? Problogger Darren Rowse chimes in with some tips of his own for after you get a journalist’s attention:

• Know what you want to get from the interaction. Darren advises, “You’ll find that journalists will have their own agendas and ideas on where they want their article to head but it’s worth giving some careful thought to what sort of message you want to convey. Pick one particular message that you want to get across and keep saying it throughout the interview.”

• Politely ask the journalists to include your URL in the article (this is something I forgot to do!). (BTW–this is another good reason to domain map your blog. Pick a domain name that’s media-friendly; a URL like “sharonsarmiento.typepad.com/e-soup-blog” doesn’t exactly roll off the tongue, and looks and sounds very clunky.)

• Have realistic expectations about the outcome. It’s been Darren’s experience (and mine too) that getting mentioned in a newspaper or magazine doesn’t directly translate into a huge upsurge in traffic to your blog. What it does do is help establish you as an expert in your field and legitimize you in some folks’ eyes. It also gives your parents bragging rights–moms and dads love seeing their kid’s names in print!

So, getting your name into print media is a kick and has many advantages–but it’s not everything.

While you can use a service like Profnet to be sure you’re hanging out where the journalists hang out, that’s kind of an expensive investment for a small biz owner.

Perhaps instead of spending money with the hopes of catching a reporter’s eye, you could focus on things that are more within your control (and that are free), such as having a well-written and consistently updated blog, setting up that media page on your blog, writing about hot news topics from your own unique perspective, and continuing to be involved with the blogging community and meet new people.

Then, when you do meet a journalist, be as friendly, accomodating and accessible as possible. Polish up your interviewing skills, and with a little luck, you may see your name (and hopefully your blog’s URL) showing up in mainstream print media.

Posted on Dec 24th 06 by Sharon Sarmiento.

Sharon Sarmiento owns Streamline, the Virtual Business Management company. She works with internet tech & web media companies by managing the daily operations of online businesses and streamlining processes to maximize personal and business productivity. For free resources on productivity, creativity and virtual entrepreneurism, visit => http://www.eSoupBlog.com/

Other posts on Coachamatic by Sharon Sarmiento.