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Get Media Coverage:
Your 15 Minutes of Fame

I remember being in the green room at Rockefeller Center before going to a taped episode of Your Business with JJ Ramberg of MSNBC. I was nervous, but I was ready. Since then, I’ve done what seems like hundreds of interviews on podcasts, radio, TV, and other outlets.

You can get your fifteen minutes of fame, as well, if you plan for it and make it happen. Here’s an example of planning for media coverage and making it happen:

It happened to me in December 2018. The New York Times came out with an article about how a black doctor was helping a passenger on an airplane, but the staff didn’t believe she was a doctor, and it took some convincing and showing of credentials. The article explained that, many times, white doctors have helped passengers in distress on an airplane and didn’t have to go through a lot of explaining or provide proof of their credentials. I contacted the writer and shared my story of how I’ve been given car keys to park cars and coats to hang. People assume I’m “the help,” I presume because I’m black. Several days later, my head shot was featured in The New York Times. Let’s rewind. I saw a story where I thought I could fit in. So you have to keep your eyes open for opportunities. Second, I was able to contact the reporter and sent a pitch that caught her interest.

Most of us love watching the news, or we have our favorite cable show. These news segments all have one thing in common. They have an expert who is commenting on a particular news item or topic of discussion, or they have someone who is the news story or focus of the information.

Let’s say there is a news story about the government’s new tax laws. The reporter will feature either an expert on how the new tax laws affect small business or a business owner who is speaking about how the new tax laws affect his or her business.

This is the opportunity for YOU. You are an expert, right? You’re an expert in something. Are you able to comment on how a particular news story affects you or your business?

Understand where you fit into this media equation—are you the expert or the story? For some story angles, you might be the featured expert who is commenting on a headline. For other angles, you might be the focus of a news story, or a part of it.

Here are my four big tips to gain media attention (without being the subject of a scandal) and to have a journalist interview you:

• Have a story. To get the media to take interest in you and your business, you must have something to say. Going back to our tax law example, maybe your story will be the three things every business owner needs to do to lower their taxes.
  Maybe your story is how the new tax laws enabled you to hire more employees (or caused you to have to fire employees). Just asking a journalist to interview you for her next newspaper article is not enough. You’ve got to clearly explain why her audience will be interested in what you have to say.
• Target the media. Once you have your story, get to know the media. Know whom to pitch to and why journalists want to cover your story and share it with their readers. Remember, every radio station or news outlet might not be a fit for your story. Be selective and picky. Don’t just look at the “top tier” media. Just because your local Fox News affiliate is covering the launch of Apple’s latest product doesn’t mean they want to cover your business. Maybe the local association publication would be a better fit for starters.
• Pitch your story. Next step is to share your story with relevant journalists. Get them interested in how your story can benefit their readers or viewers. When you pitch them, be an asset, be helpful. You are not begging them to talk to you; you are offering them an opportunity to speak with you and have some useful content for their audience.
• Be persistent. Many times when you don’t hear from a journalist (or blogger or podcaster), they are not ignoring you, they are just busy. I know my inbox is filled every hour with dozens of emails to go through. And these are not emails from my team or friends. These are unsolicited emails from public-relations professionals pitching me on this or that story for me to cover their clients.

Media attention is not just about getting on the front page of The Wall Street Journal or having an hour-long talk on 60 Minutes. There are hundreds, if not thousands, of blogs and podcasts that would love to share your story, your knowledge, and your expertise. Indeed, it’s a great adrenaline rush to brag to your friends that you were on CNN or Fox Business (as I’ve been). They won’t know about the little blog about entrepreneurship or accounting or lawn care. But if that little blog is where your audience is, it might be even better than being featured on Oprah or Dr. Oz.

Timing is another important aspect of getting media attention. For example, what are the big stories that the media, in general, wants to cover between November and December? Thanksgiving and Christmas! Right? So your pitches to the media should focus on thankfulness, gift giving, etc.

What are the big events, occurrences, and important dates in your industry or that are important to your customers? What are the international events that are happening that you might be able to leverage? In my industry there’s SXSW, held every March in Austin, Texas. There’s Salesforce Dreamforce with 170,000 plus attendees every fall in San Francisco. There’s Small Business Saturday, held in November. There’s Small Business Week, held in the spring and produced by the Small Business Administration.

Having a story to tell is essential, and you might be struggling with what kind of story to share. Maybe you think you have no story. But here is a list of a few items to consider that make great stories:

• Statistics and trends: What if you could start a pitch with “Did you know that 87 percent of Americans sleepwalk?” If you are a sleep doctor, that might just get you an interview!
• Commentary on the news of the day: Mainstream news organizations’ first priority is to cover the major news of the day—politics, crime, finance. It’s tough to get a foothold in this vicious cycle, but it’s possible with persistence and by building relationships with the news producers.
• Charity work: Nothing warms a TV studio’s heart more than some puppies running around. Maybe you’ve volunteered to help a local veterinarian get their finances in order and can bring some cute puppies to the studio as part of the story. Maybe you help a local nursing home redesign its recreation room. Charity work is a great hook to get the media to pay attention.
• Your customers: Remember, you might not have an interesting angle for a story, but your customers may. If they can weave you into their stories, it’s a win for you and a win for them. Oftentimes, as an influencer, I’ll work with a brand to represent it in a news story. Online software may be boring, but by featuring me, a successful entrepreneur and high-energy, fast-talking, raised-in-New-York-City person, the online software comes to life with excitement.

A strong personal brand is strengthened even more when you have the media featuring you in some way. This is why media attention is important and can boost your celebrity CEO status.

Having a book published, speaking at events, or having been covered by the media before—these are all items that make you more credible and desirable to the media.

So how do you start actually pitching to the media? Here are a few ways I’ve done it:

1. Email. Journalists are flooded with emails. The big way to ensure your email has the best chance of being noticed (and opened) is to have a great SUBJECT LINE. As a reporter (or blogger, etc.) is scanning through hundreds of emails, it’s the subject line of the email that is most important. Of course, your pitch inside the email must be good too.
2. Twitter. Most journalists use Twitter as a way to glean information and scan what to cover. Pitching journalists via Twitter is very effective. Over time, you might build a “Twitter relationship” with a journalist!
3. In-person meeting. I’ve met many journalists in person. Nothing makes a great connection like a firm handshake and a warm smile. If you can get a journalist to know, like, and trust you, you’re well on our way to a chance at getting media coverage.

These are few ways you can start to build relationships with journalists. As you build the relationships, remember to provide VALUE to them. Keep their audiences in mind. Once you secure an interview, prepare. Learn the art of speaking in “sound bites,” know how long the interview will be, and know the audience. Do your homework. You have ONE chance to get this right. Leaving a good impression can lead to an invitation to return again and again.