PR Case Study: Getting Over Stage Fright

I was recently contacted by Janet Esposito, author of the new book Getting Over Stage Fright who said:

“I wanted to share with you the great news of my first article for my book. It is a full page spread with a huge image of my book and my photo, along with a long text. It appeared in the feature section of the Litchfield County Times. Thanks so much Elena, for helping to inspire me to go after local media as a first step. I will continue to contact other newspapers and will look forward to more exposure!”

I loved the title of her book as it is what many business owners go through in their own PR efforts – Stage Fright!

We’re often afraid to get started in doing our own PR because of fear of rejection, overwhelm with how to start in the first place and general apprehension of doing something new.

In the meantime, we keep looking over at the competition who IS getting media coverage and wondering when it will be our turn to shine in the spotlight.

How did Janet do it?

“I didn’t even have to write a pitch letter for this one,” she says.  “My assistant had called for information on who to contact at this paper and the editor found out about my book from that call and was immediately interested and a reporter was sent out the following week.”

Could it really be that easy?

Yes, it can be.  Your local media’s mandate – newspaper, TV and radio stations – is to cover local businesses such as yours.  They are looking for you, they are looking for fresh ideas and new personalities and would prefer to cover YOUR business over one that is not in their geographic scope.  If you just look around you will find endless possibilities to get media coverage.

So, take a page from Janet’s story, and get over your stage fright.

If you’d like to see the great write up Janet got in her local paper, check it out here.

OCTOBER 2010 UPDATE:

I received a new email from Janet that said:

“I wanted to share some positive media attention I received for my Getting Over Stage Fright book this month. I got into a national magazine called Whole Living (formerly called Body + Soul). I have about a quarter page that references my book and describes some methods that can help with stage fright. ”

“Interestingly, it took about 5 times for me to get a reply to my inquiry from the editor. I was just about to call it quits on this effort and decided I would give it one last attempt. I received a reply within days and everything flowed nicely from there.”

Takeaway from Janet’s experience: Sometimes it happens immediately and sometimes you need to be a bit persistent and patient before you get some publicity! Do not give up!

As always, I look forward to your comments and your experiences – how have you worked with your local media to get publicity?

---

Elena is founder of a technology PR agency that works with startups to billion-dollar companies. She is passionate about helping marketers and small business owners with practical publicity strategies.

Did you enjoy this post? Subscribe now and get new posts either via RSS feed or your email. Please click on the RSS button below or type your primary email address below and click "Subscribe."

 

---