by:Susan Harrow
Hurricanes happen. While you can’t predict them, you can
prepare in advance for the inevitable. While you can’t
always plan your press release when news breaks, most of the
time forethought could be the thing that saves face in the
whirlwind that’s the media.
1. Prepare for disaster.
The best way to get ready for the unexpected is to expect
it. When ordained Voodoo & Yoruba priestess Ava Kay Jones
heard that Katrina was coming through New Orleans, She
packed a few things, her bird Tweety, then she and a group
of friends drove straight to Houston. Knowing that the media
sometimes doesn’t tell you the whole story when they invite
you on a show is more typical than not. When Ava Kay was
invited to be on 20/20 with John Stossel they didn’t tell
her it was going to be a show that poked fun at and debunked
spiritual matters. When Stossel asked her to put a hex on
him, she refused and instead did a spiritual blessing at a
cemetery. One of her colleagues didn’t fare so well and did
as he was told. Bad idea. Know your boundaries and what you
will and won’t do. You’re not a performing seal.
2. Have your systems in place.
One client of mine is raring to go. She wants me to get her
press releases out in a big way, nationally ASAP. I’ve
refused. Even though she’s already being interviewed by
major magazines she doesn’t have the systems in place yet so
she wouldn’t maximize her publicity. Opportunities would be
wasted.
First she needs simple things like having a newsletter sign
up page on her website, her website store in running order
(go here if you don’t yet have store software:
http://www.kickstartcart.com/app/default.asp?PR=31&ID=50856
to get started), a database set up and/or fulfillment house
for sending her products, prices and descriptions for
speaking engagements etc. We need to get all of the basics
up and running before we go public in a major way. After we
do that we’ll define the niche markets we want to target and
write the press releases accordingly.
3. Be resourceful.
If one thing doesn’t work, try another. Ava Kay Jones waited
in line for three days in Houston for assistance from the
Red Cross. Every day they sent thousands of people home
telling them to come back the next day…and the next, and
the next.
When my sweetie and I flew her here to visit as a respite
from the storm. Ava Kay and I went to the Red Cross in Marin
County, but the door was blockaded and there was a sign that
stated we had to go to San Francisco or Oakland for
assistance.
We drove the hour to Oakland and we waited patiently as they
asked inane questions about Ava Kay’s past, filled out 5
separate forms by hand, and then asked us to get them a bill
to prove her residence in New Orleans as her passport wasn’t
good enough.
We had to fax a bill (thankfully, she brought some with her
and my sweetie was around to do it) in order to get a debit
card for a measly $360, which wouldn’t be operative for
24-48 hours and must be used within a month.
But first we had to wait for the fax machine to be fr.e.e
and then it was broken and had to be fixed. Can you imagine
the thousands of people in Houston and throughout the gulf
states spending 1.5 hours getting paperwork filled out to
get a pittance? I found out from my mother that one of her
friend’s who volunteered to help out is being flown from
California to Baton Rouge and put up in a hotel. That’s
where all our Red Cross money is going, not to the people
who need it.
When things don’t go as planned for you when you send out a
press release have a Plan B. And then be willing to do
whatever it takes to get the job done–which is to get your
message out to the audience you want to help.
Do you want to get more media attention? Learn how to create
soundbites that sell and handle any print, radio and TV
appearance with ease and grace effectively. Link to
soundbite teleclasses and transcript (new product).
Copyright (c) 2005 by Susan Harrow, All Rights Reserved.
Copyright (c) 2005 by Susan Harrow, All Rights Reserved.
Susan Harrow, CEO of PRSecrets.com and BookedOnOprah.com, is
a top media coach, marketing strategist and author of *Sell
Yourself Without Selling Your Soul* (HarperCollins), *The
Ultimate Guide to Getting Booked on Oprah*, and *Get a 6-
Figure Book Advance.* Clients include Fortune 500 CEOs,
bestselling authors and entrepreneurs who have appeared on
Oprah, 60 Minutes, NPR, and in TIME, USA Today, Parade,
People, O, NY Times, WSJ, and Inc.
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