What you will learn: The past five challenges have been focused on gathering information and setting the stage for media attention. After today's episode, you will be ready to send your first media pitch.

Transcript:

Welcome to the Get Media Smart podcast. Never struggle to get attention again.

I’m your host, Cheryl Tan

Want to learn how to get noticed by the media?

What if the media came to you, and right behind them….clients and customers?

How do you leverage that publicity to grow your company?

This is the Get Media Smart podcast, where you will hear real-life stories of publicity gone right. You will learn actionable steps to get your name in front of the people who matter.

Hi, everyone! I’m Cheryl Tan. Welcome to the Get Media Smart podcast. Episode #6.

It is Day 6 of the Become a Media Magnet Challenge.

You can still join us by signing up for this free email challenge at CherylTanMedia.com/podcast and for two full weeks, you will get action items straight to your inbox - action items that will help you attract attention for you and your business.

I will outline the challenges in the first 14 episodes of this podcast. They are short, to the point, and you can always join us in our Facebook community for more insight.

Yesterday, I told you about the importance of getting on social media and finding news influencers. And you’ve done it.

You've found new people to follow who live in your community--personalities in news and entertainment, newspaper writers, radio reporters, DJs. That was yesterday's homework assignment, to find and connect with on social media the anchors, reporters, or personalities in your area.

Now what?

Remember our goal? It’s to become a media magnet. The first step is to know who the players are. You’ve done that. Now it is important to know what topics they cover. If they anchor, do they also report on health stories or consumer issues? Is there a particular reporter who handles crime stories or military news? If that's your niche, know which reporter would be interested in your issue. Remember, going back to Challenge #3, which you can check out in Episode #3 of the Get Media Smart podcast, you want to make sure your story resonates with their audience.

Today's homework assignment is to find the specific reporters (newspaper, TV, radio, online) who would be interested in writing about your field, and then reach out to them. If you are an entrepreneur, the chances are very good you want to be very familiar with the consumer and business reporters in your area. You just want to know what they are looking for in terms of stories. And that means reading their stories, watching their reports and following them on social media. But it also means connecting with them personally.

Remember they are always looking for great story ideas. Interact with them about the stories they have written. Compliment them on something they have put together (be genuine about it), or ask questions for clarification. By doing this, you are creating the beginning of a relationship. You can do this on social media. You can do this via email.

I always appreciated getting emails from viewers. I always remembered the notes of appreciation for stories I had done. And I always responded when someone asked with genuine sincerity what kinds of stories I covered.

We talked about your crafting the story you will share in Episode #3, so take a listen to that for review, and reach out to a reporter to ask their thoughts on your story idea. They are always looking for great stories to tell.

By the way, there is a fine line between stalking and connecting, so let's be clear what this is, and what it is not.