The Media is a complicated beast, but there are ways you can tame it and make it work for you… if you know how.
And the best bit is that anyone can do it and it takes much less time than you think.
THE POWER OF PUBLICITY
In this episode, I discuss with two media experts the ways you can blow the competition away, get more bookings and launch your business with powerful publicity.
Short-term rentals that attract the attention of the media are able to:
- Boost reputation and brand awareness
- Build credibility, especially for those just starting out
- Get third-party endorsements that lead to more guest bookings
- Open up new business opportunities and investment potential
- Make connections, gain trust and grow a following
- Become more brand-visible and share a message
- Stand out in the industry to make an impact
- Propel your website up the search rankings
- Attract unexpected opportunities
Even if you are not comfortable in the spotlight, prefer not to be the center of attention, or are terrified of rejection, this masterclass will show you there’s nothing to be afraid of and lots to gain from working with the media if you know how it works and follow the right steps.
In this interview you hear the expert advice from:
Tanya Lynch
Tanya is a creative ball of energy who loves nothing more than helping businesses succeed through her company, Lynchpin, which helps brands with their media strategies and new development projects. Not content to sit on the sidelines, she has also published her own lifestyle magazine and is the founder of Ease Retreats.
She has worn many hats and overcome many challenges as an editor, advertising rep, copywriter, events manager, and all-around grafter. She has worked alongside National PR agencies, editors, and journalists across all media outlets including TV, radio, print, digital and outdoor. She also knows exactly what sells and what commercial radio needs as she spent over a decade leading regional marketing, sponsorship, and promotions teams.
Having worked in the hospitality industry for years, she has experienced all the highs and lows of launching successful retreats and is refining the experience side of her events while waiting patiently for new dates to be set over the coming months.
Louise Goss
Louise Goss is the founder of The Homeworker, a magazine dedicated to helping people thrive when they work from home. Shortlisted for Launch of The Year by the British Society of Magazine Editors, it provides expert insights, tips, and resources to help people achieve a happier, healthier, more productive work-from-home lifestyle.
Louise is an award-winning journalist and mum of two. She has worked across a range of media from TV, radio, digital, and print and in regional, national and international newsrooms. Her experience as a journalist includes producing, writing, and editing, to news reading and reporting in front of the camera and live on air.
Having worked from home for over a decade, she launched The Homeworker in 2019 to help support and inspire people when working alone and adapting to the ever-evolving way we work. As part of this, she interviews many small business owners and understands the challenges of gaining publicity and visibility.
Contact Louise via The Homeworker Magazine
Instagram: @thehomeworkermag
Today’s episode is brought to you by The Start Up And Grow Club, which offers an accelerator program and support group for those who want to set up their unique holiday rental or glamping businesses quickly.
The Glamping Business Podcast Shownotes
Additional Resources And Links Mentioned
- Tanya Lynch LinkedIn
- The Homeworker
- Contact Sarah Riley through Inspired Courses
- The Ultimate Glamping Business Guide
- Guest Booking Success Marketing Masterclass
- The Glamping Business Facebook Group (+ Unique Holiday Rentals)
- Tools and resources in the Inspired Courses VIP Lounge
- How To Start A Glamping Business
Listen to the podcast here:
- iTunes (Apple)
- Stitcher (Android)
- Libsyn (App for smartphones)
- Spotify (Smart Player)
- Soundcloud (Smart Player)
Want To Feature On The Business Of Glamping And Unique Holiday Rentals Podcast?
If you have something inspiring to offer the world of Glamping and Unique Holiday Rentals then get in touch with Sarah Riley and share it on the Podcast. For more information contact Sarah here.
Listen to previous episodes here:
TRANSCRIPTION
Sarah Riley: The world is opening up and glamping and unique holiday rentals are getting so much attention at the moment, but with this comes extra competition. So one of the ways you can counteract that and get more bookings and launch your business is with powerful publicity. Welcome to episode 42 glamping and
Unique holiday rentals are surging in popularity with the growing desire of customers to book holidays that deliver an experience. They are also the new business of choice for those wanting to improve their work-life balance. How do you build a strong business like this that gives you the life you need and a great investment? I’m Sarah Riley. And I want to share what I’ve discovered after being immersed in this industry for over 20 years, to inspire you to find out more about what’s going on. Welcome. This is the business glamping and unique holiday rentals. Hello, and welcome to the podcast. It’s great to have you here to say,
I’m excited about this. One is an understatement. So I have been talking to some friends of mine and you know what They have been incredibly generous and they have offered their support to you to help you generate powerful publicity for your business. Now, one of those friends is Tonya Lynch. I’ve known Tanya for a very long time. She is a creative ball of energy. I don’t know where she gets her energy from, to be honest with you, but it’s amazing and infectious and inspirational when you’re talking to her and Tanya and I have known each other for many years, actually, our paths crossed years ago when we talked about setting up the first glamping show in the UK. Now we went down the path of doing everything that we should do to plan it, to, you know, get domains in place, to actually planning and thinking about the event as a whole and how it would work.
And we had some real fun planning, all of that, but unfortunately, because of life circumstances and other things, it didn’t go ahead. But you know, it is still running now with our friends at the glamping show, but nevertheless, Tonya and I did spend a lot of time together working on different event ideas, a bit of media, a bit of other stuff that goes on because Tanya is a media expert. She spent over a decade working in regional commercial radio. She’s headed up all kinds of sales and marketing sponsorship promotions. She now works predominantly in, the UK and she helps support small businesses. She’s a self-employed lifestyle individual. She likes to focus on business models that give her the lifestyle she wants. And her lifestyle choice is to actually hang out on the beach as much as possible, particularly in west Wales, and to just enjoy her freelance life of supporting different brands, helping them with their media strategy, and also their business development projects.
And she has her own side project as well, which is ease retreats. And Tanya was brilliant because she came and spoke to us in the masterclass recently and shared a whole heap of knowledge and guidance and Superbowl tips that everyone went away with and said, they felt really inspired for what they knew they could now do armed with that knowledge. And, you know, there’s highs and lows in this business. And Tanya has experienced that too, particularly around, COVID and what’s been happening with the different industries being pulled back. She’s had to pause her own retreats company over the last year, but she’s really looking forward to a launch in 2022. And that’s exactly what a lot of other businesses are now looking to do. And if you are one of them, if you are already operating and you’re looking at how can you increase your, your guest bookings, where you can do that through powerful publicity, but also if you’re a new business and you’re looking to launch, you’re looking to get a following, you’re looking to get some cute or some social proof going to reassure people that you’re a trustworthy business.
Well, the media can help you with that. And there are lots of different types of media. There are lots of different categories. Some are easier than others to get into each one needs a slightly different approach, but they can bring different benefits that will come back, and Sue you for what you’re hoping to gain from that work. Now, Tanya sat and talked to me for a little while about what she would recommend businesses focus on, particularly in terms of the realities and the mutual benefits of generating powerful publicity. But it was also amazing to be joined by Louis Goss, who is the founder of the homeworker magazine and all the links to all of this, as usual, are in the show notes. And as this is episode 42, all you need to do is go to inspired camping.com forward slash 0 4 2. And that’ll take you straight to the show notes with all the links that you need to click to find out more about these lovely ladies.
So Louise, she has a magazine, which is dedicated to helping people thrive when they work from home. So in this industry, that’s pretty much everyone not necessarily working from home in terms of an office. Many people work from an off-grid load, cation in a field, in a shed or a cabin or a barrel top wagon or Shepherd’s heart. There are all kinds of spaces where people work from. I work from my own vintage caravan and I mix that with a bit of time in the summer with my Lotus bell tent. And it’s really nice to get those different perspectives when you’re working outside, you know, those different spaces and to make them really cozy with all interiors and everything else, just, just lovely. The homeworker environment is really important to focus on. So Louise was shortlisted for the launch of the year by the British society of magazine editors because her homework and magazine provide all kinds of expert insights, tips, and resources to help people achieve a happier, healthier, more productive work from home lifestyle.
And I’m all for that as a huge big thumbs up from me. So Louise herself is an award-winning journalist and mom of two. She has worked across a range of media from TV, radio, digital, regional national, international newsrooms, and so on. She really has got a huge amount of experience, which also includes producing, writing, and editing. And this is around news reading and reporting in front of the camera and live on air. She really is a font of knowledge in all of this. She herself has worked from home for over a decade and she launched the homework in 2019. And so you’ll actually hear her talk about how this whole thing has exploded. As more people are working from home, even if they were based from an office pre-pandemic, lots of people are now at home. So she has been in demand by lots of different outlets who want to hear her perspective on what the homeworking vibe is at the moment what’s going on in this, in this whole area.
And whether people are actually benefiting from it, whether they’re not and all kinds of other things linked to homeworking. So I would absolutely recommend you check those two lovely ladies out through links that I provide in the show notes. And I’m going to share with you now a conversation we had around all kinds of things, including the benefits of working with journalists and the media. How the, if a small business decides to approach a journalist or the media, then what their first steps should be about how to pitch in particular. This is something that many people struggle with. Although it’s not something that you should be fearful of. There is a template, there is a format, and I am sharing all of this and more in my own master class. So this masterclass is going to be covering so many different elements to help you attract more media attention, launch your business and boost your bookings.
Even if you’re not comfortable being in the spotlight, there are all kinds of things to help you develop your secret sauce, your approach there’s done for you, pitch templates and strategies. You get time with some experts to be able to ask them questions. Even someone from the glamping industry who was recently featured on TV. Yes, TV is also media on every level. And there are so many things we can learn from those people who have done it. And they’ve been there. They know what works and what doesn’t, but also I’m going to be sharing some of my trade secrets from the little black book that helped me get my business into the daily mail, the Metro, and all kinds of other magazines and media outlets. So this is something I’m really passionate about because, in terms of small businesses, it’s really most understood about how you can work with the media to benefit your business.
And there are simple steps you can take. All you need to know is the approach, what the journalists need, what the people need, who you’re working within the media, and how you can give it to them in a way that is perfectly easy for them. So they’re definitely going to choose you above others. So let’s go on over to the interview. Now listen to some of the amazing insights from both Tanya and Louise and listen carefully because they do share some amazing inner circle secrets in this interview. And if you want to listen to the whole thing, including tips on how to get seriously involved with media outlets, such as the BBC, then please do join me for my powerful publicity master class. Now, this is taking place on the 24th of June, but it will be recorded. And so you will be able to access the recording if you’re not available to attend this live event on the 24th of June, it’s life because you will be able to ask your questions live.
And from everything that I’ve done, all the mass classes I’ve helped. And the training that I do, I know that attendees always get so much benefit from being able to speak to the experts in the room and ask the questions that they need to ask to get the clarity that they need. And that’s why it’s life, but it will be recorded. So if you want to go and sign up for that, then please do. You can find that over@inspiredcourses.com forward slash publicity. And I’d love to see you there because actually, we’re going to have a bit of a party. I’m going to show you behind the curtain so that you understand you can get this amazing, powerful publicity for your business. And I can’t wait to share it all with you. So without further delay, here’s Louise and Tanya, so fantastic of you to join me here. Thank you so much under these conditions, what a crazy world it is at the moment, but we are opening up. Finally, things are starting to look a bit brighter in the UK and across the world, in fact. And so I’ll start with you, Tonya. And I was just wondering since it’s a pandemic, what’s the number one thing that’s changed for you
She now wants to, I’ll probably answer that on a business on a personal note. So personally it’s actually, slowed me down because I’m a bit of a roadrunner, a busy love, the speed of everything, love new projects. And it just made me sit with my thoughts a lot. So I’ve learned to journal. yeah, it’s, I think I’ve had more positives personally, than I expected because it’s a low-quality family time and, just to take life in the slow lane and embrace it and live with less. I’m a great lover of the beach. I live in, a coastal resort in Wales. I was born in the north, raised in the mid and now I’m in the south. So I, you know, I think I know every corner of Wales at the moment now from a business perspective, I run, I suppose this it’s like a creative media hub, so I helped other businesses find their way with media marketing and sales, but I also have a side project, which is a retreats business. And that’s another story we’ll get onto that later.
Yeah. I definitely want to talk to you about the retreats, cause I know everyone will be really interested in that, but first of all, because we’re talking about PR and we’re talking about media, I want to introduce Louise Louise’s, you know, part of the homework and magazine, and I’m really interested in, what’s changed for you since this has all happened and everything’s gone a bit crazy. Yeah.
I mean, so the homemaker magazine is for people who work from home. So as you can imagine, suddenly that potential audience exploded, in 2020. So it’s been, it’s been quite a busy time and it’s been, obviously, we’ve seen a lot more interest in, in our contents and the magazine itself and the website traffic went a bit bonkers while we, everybody started, working remotely. So from a business point of view, in some ways it has been it’s, it’s been quite positive. It’s also, you know, personally from the business point of view has given me quite a lot more opportunities, you know, for getting exposure. And I’ve been asked to talk about a lot of things around working from home and, deliver speeches and talks and, and, and be on, media as well. So that side of things sort of changed and ramped up quite quickly.
And I think like Tanya said, actually on a personal level, it just forced me to slow down and we’ve obviously had a lot of more time together as a family, which has been quite nice. So, obviously, there have been quite a lot of uncertainties and anxieties as well to deal with, but overall, yeah, I, I’ve tried to embrace the positives in a situation, so it’s been a, it’s been an interesting time, a busy time, but also quite nice as a family to have, been able to reconnect a bit more and slow down.
Yeah, I can absolutely agree with that completely. It’s been nuts, but the connections and time I’ve happened, my family have been something I’ve not had before and we’ve lost Tanya, which I’m sure she’ll pop back soon. so that the world is opening up. Things are changing. We’re seeing more people who are homeworking and D would you say that you offer a bit of support through your homeworking magazine Is that something that you’re aiming to do
Oh, definitely. I mean, the sort of the whole reason behind setting up the homeworker, which was back in 2019, so actually before COVID came along, but it was always about supporting people and sort of just giving them some of the tools and techniques, tips, various things to help them. I sort of frame it as it’s very a holistic view of working from home, but to help them in all aspects, because actually when you, the reason it’s a magazine really is because it focuses not just on the business side of things, but it’s on the wellbeing, it’s on your workspace, it’s on how you communicate. It’s how you sort of your lifestyle, it’s your productivity. So all of those things are so integrated is when you work from home, that the magazine is why as a magazine, it sort of covers all of those different aspects of homeworking. So it really just helps people yes, be more productive, but also be healthier, be happier and, and sort of just live better. I think when all of those things work together, then everything else works and it has quite a big ripple effect into other areas of our life. So, it was sort of giving people a really helps people get a really solid foundation to working from home.
Hmm. Yeah. And I think it’s maybe as well, I don’t know if you agree with this Tanya, but certainly at the beginning, when I was in corporate, my was to work from home and I focused on that a lot and I then finally got to work from home and there are some real challenges of working from home and being your own boss and having your own business and doing whatever you need to do to run that business. And, so it’s really nice to have that support in place. And one of the things that, my audience often talks about is about getting more promotions for their business so that they can become more visible and they can attract more guests because there’s no point in having these amazing structures that people have put their heart on and soul into setting up. And then unfortunately they can’t actually find the guests to fill the beds. And one of the things they could obviously pay more attention to is the media and getting in the media. But so many business owners, small business owners feel that that’s out of their reach. Is that something you agree with as well, Tanya
Well, it’s interesting because I’ve worked in the media in radio newspapers and magazines run my own magazine. You know, I have to step out of it sometimes to go, why is it so difficult for people to understand how much that we just, another human being You know, I, I’ve always tried to tell my friends now that you know, you’re at dinner with me, you know, the contacts I have, you know, the skills and the career of heart. If you have a story, why not talk to me about it, even for a chance, because one of the things is that you just don’t know who within your network actually is in the media or their husband or their wife. Could it be in the media, we’ve got to get away from these barriers of going, I’m not worthy. You know, the one thing at the moment in the media is that they need good, interesting content.
And if everybody looks up their story as distinct contents, then you should really be awash with moments in your day of why am I not speaking to all these other journalists and, and, media contacts because they could be your friend. It’s just because at the moment you’ve not met them. there is, it’s not as simple, you know, I know we’ll get onto a very structured, question and answers now about, you know, the tips and the tricks. But I do think that you, you know, as, as small business owners have to be proud of what you’ve achieved, what you’re offering within the tourism and hospitality industry, and it is doing an injustice to the British tourism industry, if you’re not highlighting, you know, the fabulous places that you have.
Mm absolutely. Do you find the same in your world, Louise Do you find that it’s, it’s actually, the media is not off-limits. It’s about making sure that you can find a way in and sharing your story in a really good way. Is that something you agree with Yeah?
I mean, definitely. I think that, because perhaps a bit, I mean, Tonya RC, mentioned it that about, you know, you might know somebody immediate and you just don’t realize, but it, it feels perhaps a bit off-limits because we don’t actually understand it or people generally don’t understand how it works and, and who’s in it. And anything that you don’t fully understand or seems a little bit distant suddenly can seem off limits to you. So actually, I think that’s probably why, but as Tanya said, we need stories, you know, I mean, if something is newsworthy it’s because it’s, it’s a story and stories are about people. We’re all people and we all have stories. So there’s no reason why you shouldn’t be able to share and tell your story and have your business in the media. It’s just about finding the right media and the right angle.
Cause it, isn’t obviously just as simple as, knowing someone and suddenly you’ll be able to get in. Cause we all have, you know, various agendas and editorial calendars that we work to. And there are various things you need to sort of appreciating, I suppose, that, and also as a journalist, you know, we get a lot of pitches and lots of emails and, and so that makes it quite difficult as well. And I think that people can perhaps get a bit disheartened sometimes if they do email somebody or contact, somebody in the media and then doesn’t get an instant reply. And to be honest, you know, I’m a smaller publication, you know, I’m not the times or the Telegraph, but I get dozens and dozens of emails from PRS and, and pitches every day. So it is hard sometimes to cut through. but yeah, I’m sure we’ll talk a bit more about that, but it’s definitely not off-limits. It’s just about finding the right angle and the right place to pitch.
And so do you think that there are any benefits specifically for people who try to get their story in a magazine I mean, have you had any experience, have you had a situation with somebody who’s done that with you, that they’ve actually been able to get their story in your magazine and then things have happened, the balls have rolled. is that something you’ve seen Louise Yeah, definitely?
It’s been really nice actually. So I mean, we do so in the homework, I do profile people who are sort of home business owners. and we talk a bit about them and their business and sort of share a few tips and things. and it, and it depends who, I mean, there are all kinds of, different, you know, the range of people who work from home is quite, it’s quite varied. So, but you know, I’ve had people say, oh, do you know what I, you mentioned me on social media for instance, because I was in the magazine and then I had somebody read an article about me that was in her cuisine and they’ve gained clients through that. So it does, you know, that has happened. I have people who are in my directory as well. We have a directory of, people who can sort of outsourcing services like, you know, accountants or web designers and those sorts of things.
So people who are useful to small business owners, and they found clients through being in there as well. So I think there are definite benefits to it. There’s definite, sometimes it’s not just about getting clients or sales either. And I think that has to be something we have to be realistic about. So just appearing one time in the media might not necessarily suddenly generate a lot of extra revenue, but what it does do is increase your brand exposure and that, particularly on a more ongoing basis is obviously, so when you become front of mind when people are thinking about something, so it might not that day generate a sale, but it might be something that someone goes, oh, do you know what that would be really good. And in a couple of months, time, I really wanted to go and book my holiday there or something. So it’s sort of thinking about it, you know, the bigger picture as well. Mm
Absolutely. Tangi, have you experienced that with any small business owners that they’ve been involved in the media I mean, you’ve been involved very much with radio and TV. Have you seen something happen where doors have opened as a result of an appearance
Oh, it’s, it’s catapulted some small brands and not so just about them as an individual setup or establishment. what we’ve been great in, in some of the projects that I’ve worked on, Emedia is looking at a community. So sometimes there will be glamping sites and then a water sports business, and then there’s a deli and it’s the connect actions joining the dots between all those brands within a community that will put them on the map more. So I’ve always encouraged people to even if now is not the moment for your story, you know, watch what your neighbors are doing and your business associates and any collaborations you’re doing. And then in time and you see this happening and in magazines like a coast, you know, cause she’s constantly that editor trying to keep, try moving because not only are the people, the brands of the stories, but they’re her customers as well, you know, they’re buying the magazine or they’re recommending magazine. So yes, I just, I could write a book about it, the amount of stories and you know, just sometimes he’s going to kick yourself because you think, look how that Brian’s doing from just, you know, having a beehive. And now that the honey is gone, you know, mainstream or liberties or something, you know, it’s, and I think that’s the reward I think, working in the industry that we’re working in.
Yeah. And certainly, from my perspective, I always see that the most benefit happens after the event. So, they may well have been picked up by magazines such as homework or something else, and they’ve been featured and then time passes and nothing really happens. But then if leveraged right then the kudos, the reputation does rub off. People do see that you’ve been featured by magazines and then they may think of inviting you into projects or whatever else it might be, or getting you involved in something that might bring more guests or more results. And so it definitely, you know, these things happen often afterward and so immediately there’s not always that instant result and no one should really expect that to be the case. But yeah, the aftereffect is fantastic. So what do you think are the first steps for, that a small business might be able to take, to approach a journalist or a magazine or an editor or something like that to try to get their business noted and a bit more publicity What do you think if I start with you, Louise, what do you think the first steps are for you from your point of view So I think
It’s, it starts actually by knowing really clearly what you want to get out of the public as well, and, and look at where you want to pitch that story or idea because, you know, it will vary very much between whether it’s a magazine or a local newspaper or something perhaps more national or whether it’s TV or radio, because obviously the formats are very different and, you know, some are going to be very visual. Some are going to be more about the words and it’s, so it’s actually thinking about where you want, what you want to get out of it and where you want to be seen and be folk featured because also there might be certain art, publications that aren’t right for you. And actually, it’s really important to know what those publications or those, that media outlet is what it’s like, you know, do the research and find out what their audiences and you know, who they talk to because, you know if you’re pitching, if you’re wanting to attract millennials and your pitching to radio four who have a much older one, you know, that’s not gonna work.
I mean that you know, so that’s just an example, but it’s, you know, you’ve really got to sort of understanding who you’re pitching to actually. And, and trying to foster those relationships. You know, as I say with journalists, work with people, we’re humans, we like to connect, we like to talk to people. so if you can do that and find somebody, get a name, and use the name, I say that it’s also a very important point from the very beginning there, the number of emails I get, where I just go, hello, the homeworker, you know, I, I, you know, if I’m going to filter through my emails, then that’s the one that’s going to get put in the bin. Yeah,
Absolutely. And one of the things that I say is I know that we can’t do that at the moment because of the fact that most of the shops are shut, but when they’re open again, we could go to the newsagents, the newsagents section, and just look at the magazines and see, you know, browse through them, see which ones are appropriate. See which ones maybe have similar stories to the ones that we want to share. Those kinds of things. That’s a really early step, but the tiny, can you think of something that a small business owner could do
Yes, I go, that’s key. Also, an approach that you should do is have a media toolkit. And what I mean by that is that if you’ve already pitched to a journalist or an editor and told your story, then they are, they’re interested will want to come back to you and they’ll want images, they’ll want your logo. They want your websites to make sure that all your social media profiles are seamless so that this is your one opportunity to launchpad your story. And it’s, it’s just a very useful, exercise that you update your media toolkits. So it’s almost like in your major toolkit, you’d have all your contacts for your media. You know, it’s like having a database or a spreadsheet, as you developed through becoming more of a marketing pro you should when you’ve met the editor of the homework and magazine, put the details, you know, describe what your conversation was like with Louise.
Was there anything that she highlighted that maybe in the next three to six months, there’ll be something else as a topic within the magazine that might suit you. So then you have time to prep thinking, gosh, yes, we’ve got a glamping site, but we’re going to add an activity and we’re going to collaborate with a local water sports company. So make sure you’ve got your story with that. I go back to Louise and say, look, we’ve even got photos, the water sports company of gods, or wearing a t-shirt with our logo on, you know, there’s all these little dynamics that could be going. You look like, you know what you’re doing within your business on a marketing level and what it does, it makes the journalist and the editor’s job easier. Hmm, absolutely. And I would say, that the picture is actually really important, I mean, particularly obviously for magazines, but you know, if you can get some really good quality, you know, professional photographs and also think about getting them in a variety of, as, you know, to get some landscape, get some portrait.
I mean, even little things like that. I really care because you know, that’s going to be useful. That’s going to be, make the decision about which one they use, whether yours goes front and center or not, you know, because if you’ve got a nice variety there and you’ve got some color and that, you know, nice professional photos, and if you’ve got products, I would say some of the lifestyle pages are really important, but if you’ve got product business or you’re, you’re wanting to focus on a particular product, then, make sure we have some out images as well, particularly for magazines.
Mm. With transparent background. You mean a transparent background. Yeah. Yeah. And, and one of the things that I noticed, so in a past role that I had, I was a project manager for a coffee table book for a book, author. And she had a whole load of projects that she could choose to pick, to decide to have that, you know, that particular thing featured in her book. And it was my job to go and speak to each of those people. And one of the things, the defining things as if they had one of those, you know, press packs, press kit, media kit, wherever you want to call it, that was the step that got that person, that business, that one step further than everybody else who maybe didn’t have one. And as you’re saying, had all those elements in it, the right, the right media in the right landscape or portrait the right size, then the white pixels, this absolutely made our job easier.
And therefore, you know, really did push that person at the front of the queue. So I couldn’t agree more with that. I think that’s a fantastic piece of advice. And so, Louise in your work, with the magazine, if you ever experienced a business pitch, that’s worked particularly well, or even in a previous role as you, you are an award-winning journalist as well. Have you had anything come across your desk and you’ve just thought, wow, that’s good? That really got my attention. Its timing, topic, the style of pitch, any of those things that really made you go.
Yeah. no, I definitely have. I’d like to say I’ve worked, I’ve done TV, I’ve done radio of the magazines. obviously, now run my own, but it’s, there have been so many that over the years that I’m sort of thinking about which ones have really stood out and to be honest, they do stand out and I’ll tell you why, because sadly you get a lot that is really bad, which is why the good ones do stand out. And I think that so much of it is about, you know, getting that headline, right. You know, if your subject line in your email is going to grab my attention and I know that it’s relevant, then I I’m much more likely to open it. I mean, the sort of more spammy clickbaity kind of had headlines, and I’m not going to, and also again, I get you to get a lot that isn’t relevant.
So for me, if it, if your pitch, if you email, first of all, I want to open it. So make that subject line enticing, but equally, when you, when I then open it, I don’t have, I don’t want, and I don’t have time to read reams and reams of your backstory as, as interesting as that might be. That might be what we get into later, but you just want the sort of the pithy, the core of what your story is and, and how you can help me actually, because as much as we want your stories and we love hearing them, it’s also not our job to feature you, you have to meet our job is there is a bit of work on your part in that you need to make it an easy job for us to go yet. This is why we want to feature you.
This is why you’re interesting. So a couple of lines intro, and some bullet points about your story, why it’s relevant and make it really clear that you obviously know the publication or the media that you’re pitching to, and that you can see. Right. Okay. I know where this will fit. and I know that this story is going to be relevant to my audience, then that’s, you know, that’s going to, you know, instantly. So, you’ve set the bar there with, okay, I can, you’ve also shown that you’re quite reliable and that, you know, what you’re talking about, and that helps too.
Mm, absolutely. How about you, Tonya Have you seen anything that you’ve experienced in any pictures and you thought, wow, that is really, that really hit the mark.
Yeah. Yeah. There is, there’s one brand in Wales, and their strapline is helping save the world one wash at a time. And there, an eco-friendly brand of handwash and body lotions. And now they’ve gone into, unisex perfume, and their branding is very clean and refreshing, and what’s, you know, caught my eye with that brand particularly were they, they knew where they wanted to go. You know, they had benchmarked off of the products and they didn’t have big marketing budgets, so they have to be very creative and they had to lean on a lot of people that they knew within their community. So it’s, you know, they’ve come from a little small town in Wales and their aim is, you know, to be in the biggest stores in the biggest cities, not only in the UK but abroad. And then they’ve also sent, you know, within any article that I’d interviewed them for is that they want to enjoy this journey. They’re not expecting stardom and they’re not expecting to be multi-millionaires, but they have chosen to come out of their corporate job into a lifestyle business. And they reminding themselves on a monthly basis, even no, it’s frantic and it’s hectic. And it’s stressful. We chose this for a reason because we have a purpose and we, we, that ethos in our brand, we stand by. And I think that’s a key thing is that you know, as, as journalists and editors, we can suss those that are not true to form.
Absolutely, absolutely. Those that aren’t really sticking to brand and aren’t sticking to their mission. And in this, in my industry with unique holiday rentals with, people who are setting up eco-accommodation, eco retreats, or running eco retreats and things like that, and that’s, you know, somebody who’s experienced in retreats and organizing retreats if you were a small business owner, Tanya, which in this niche, so in the, you know, eco-accommodation niche, what would you do to try to get noticed by the media I’m putting you on the spot now a little bit, but is there something that you could see from this industry that would really, maybe noticed more if an owner did that to try to get noticed by the media
I think being as honest and as transparent with your stories, because again, you know, you’re not, you’re not the only one going through this pandemic. Everybody is. So the fact that people are trying to, whoever that they’re trying to be, oh, it’s not affecting us. You know, we’re still happy and positive and that business is flowing well. No, it’s tough. And you know, myself with the retreats, I, I, it was a big decision for me to put it on hold to 2022 because, you know, I felt to the guests that I was constantly putting them off and saying, I won’t take a foot deposit. And I just don’t know what’s on the corner. I don’t know when Wales is going to open again and how it’s going to be safe, but I still have to carry on with my stories. I went on video for a bit, you know, I’m a bit of a crazy tickets homes because I’m like, you know, I’d like to change things up a bit and, you know, just put her out there. And it’s, I think the thing is with media marketing, everybody’s all a bit safe, you know, they just go, oh yeah, I might this. And then they think that, well, if that was the case, and every time we put a story out, everybody saw it and everybody read it while we would, you know, we’d be on our yachts and we’d be just not working. So I think you’ve got to use the time, you know, in a crisis sometimes just to be a little bit more, you know, creative, just try a different media.
Yeah. And do you think that would work Louise Would that get your attention if,
Yeah, I was just thinking actually, because, I mean, when you think about the tourism industry and say you got a campsite or something, and you might think of some, more niche publications where you go, I’ll, I’ll just pitch to something to do with the tourist industry. But I think actually, particularly now it’s important to like, look at the bigger picture, look at wider conversations that are happening that are kind of perhaps more on the news radar on the, or there might be picked up and how you can contribute to those conversations and stories that happening as well. Because, you know, I’m thinking of an article that I did for instance, which was, not about tourism at all, but it was around, how lockdown has affected, gender equality, right So is it something quite different, but I wasn’t just looking to speak to somebody who is an expert on gender equality.
I spoke to so many small business owners because they had experienced that were relevant to that story. And therefore I was able to mention them and, and get their business mention. So I think it’s also looking at what else could you contribute to in terms of what’s going on and not be too sort of narrowly focused, because there are lots of things happening that you might still have an experience or a story that could still be featured, therefore, in the media. And I think, you know, if you’re coming up with, if you’ve got particular, events or maybe giveaways, or you’re doing a special promotion, think about what, some of these publications might be running. I mean, they may, they may do sort of gift guides, or they might be looking at what you’re doing for mother’s day or Valentine’s day or key parts of the year. And those sorts of awareness days are really good to keep an eye on because you could then say promote that you’re having a, you know, a special couples, events or something for you, you know, and promote that in the various gift guides. So it’s kind of looking ahead to thinking about things that are coming up and pitching in good time so that you can, you know, perhaps get on their radar to be featured in those sorts of things as
Well. Whoa, whoa, Tanya and Louise, I’m going to have to stop you there. That’s too many trade secrets in one go, I know you’ve got so many other things to share, but in terms of the podcast, that’s as much as I’m going to share here, if you want to hear the rest of the tips shared by Tanya and Louise and they are epic and they are immense. And in fact, even though I’ve been involved in this industry and publicity and media for a very long time, actually a few of those were really new to me. So I’m going to be using them myself for my own business. So as I said, this is going to be shared in full this interview in my powerful publicity masterclass. So if you’d like to sign up there and join me and my guests live to learn about how you can use the power of publicity to generate more bookings, to get your business launched and to really give it a huge boost of potential, then go over to inspired courses.com forward slash publicity and join us there. We’d really like to see you. And I hope you come back and join me here again
On the podcast. Take care out there.
