Benefiting From Fourth Quarter Publicity

As the year enters the fourth quarter, many businesses and entrepreneurs are
making plans and budgets for the year 2002. Those plans could include
anything from setting up goals for new products to preparing marketing,
sales and PR/publicity campaigns. When it comes to your publicity plan, WHEN
you launch your campaign can be just as important as what and how you
launch.

PLANTING PUBLICITY SEEDS
Some business owners may be of the mindset: "I think we'll wait to launch a
publicity campaign until after January 1 to generate consumer interest." The
problem is -- if you wait to launch your publicity campaign until the first
of the year hoping for a quick media interest blast in January, you may be
in for a quiet start of the year. Keep in mind most media outlets have
editorial lead-times of a few weeks to 6 months. Also, what some
entrepreneurs don't realize is this -- because of the increasing number of
publicity pitches media outlets receive, anything you submit is subjected to
what I call the "media digestion period" - simply put - that is a period of
time (sometimes days, sometimes weeks) that it takes media outlets to:

#1) see/understand your release and decide if they are interested;
#2) find space ime in their editorial calendar to place the article/news
story/show segment.

Given the right media research and pitching expertise, there are several
media opportunities you could pursue. From my professional experience, here
is the breakdown of editorial lead-times of the media formats from quickest
to most drawn out: (These are estimates and can vary from campaign to
campaign)

1) Radio Shows -- 1 to 4 weeks lead-time
2) TV News Affiliate Shows - 2 to 6 weeks lead-time
3) Daily & Weekly Newspapers - 3 to 8 weeks lead-time
4) Magazines & Network TV Shows - 1 to 6 months lead-time

The potential placement is also directly dependent upon how quickly and
efficiently your publicist or PR agency can help the media secure the
placement. Media relations is crucial. Your publicist's job is to make the
reporter/editor/producer's job as easy and as effortless as possible - which
will lead to quicker and more numerous placements for your business.

HOLIDAY PUBLICITY OPPORTUNITIES
If your product/business lends itself to increased holiday sales, the next
several weeks are a perfect time to get a product publicity campaign
launched - given the right media targets. Although many holiday issues have
already been laid out for magazines, many other media outlets are feverishly
seeking information/pitches on innovative stories for the holidays. Some
media outlets even reorganize or beef up staff toward the end of the year to
allow for an increase in stories on products. Have your publicist help you
take advantage of this increased media opportunity.

I have in fact had media outlets respond to our media release literally
minutes after pitching it. Conversely, one media outlet responded to one of
our releases 17 months after a pitch. (I had to ask the reporter what the
YEAR was on the release!) You can definitely increase the odds with some
hard work and effective media relations. That's why timing of your publicity
pitch is so critical. Have your publicist get your pitch to the media, allow
the editorial staff to digest it a bit, and strategically and professionally
"rattle the cage" over the next several weeks to generate as many placements
as possible.

What we are trying to do is plant seeds in media outlets' editorial garden
so they will bear fruit -- in the form of articles/show placements --
continuously over the next several weeks and months. Like the plant that
comes from a seed, publicity placements can also grow roots and lead to
other arterial media placements in other media outlets. Given the right
tending, the publicity seeds you plant over the next few weeks will indeed
germinate and you'll reap a wonderful harvest for your business now and into
the first quarter of next year.