Monday, March 25, 2019

Toot Your Own Horn

Whether you get your news online, through broadcast, or in print, I'm sure you have seen articles about various companies, products, or people - the latest technology widget, a TV or movie star and what they think about something, a better mousetrap, or a new service; how a company handled a challenge, a new office opening, or some other newsworthy event. Did you wonder how that information got to you?

While you are pondering that question, realize that very often the same story appears in multiple outlets at the same time... and it isn't a coincidence. It's much the same with a single celebrity story being published in multiple supermarket tabloids.

I can almost guarantee you that a hard-working journalist wasn't out beating the bushes while looking for an interesting story to write. Be assured, it didn't happen by chance. Getting news out about a person, a company, or a public product is both a science and an art form.

Large companies have Public Relations staff or use the services of an agency. Celebrities have publicists. There are also some agencies that work for smaller companies. OK, you are not a celebrity or a powerhouse large company, but still many small companies are successful at "tooting their own horn" through their own persistence and hard work. They don't wait for the media to come to them. They toot their own horn!


  • They network and find out who to send their news to.
  • They present their news in a well-written, finished form that the media can use intact or easily put into a readable piece.
  • They present their story as news rather than an advertisement.
  • The information is complete with names, addresses, phone numbers, and a person to contact for more information.
  • They write their story with spin to create curiosity or a unique solution to a known problem or challenge.
  • Their news is written in plain, but powerful, language without acronyms (unless written for a tech audience).
  • They create multiple submissions and send them out often because they know that editors are busy and are not sitting and waiting for your release to land in their inbox.




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