PR Tips

The Hook

In most cases, you need some sort of a hook to attract publicity. A hook is the characteristic that makes you or your product or service unique and of publicity value. Examples of hooks include a restaurant where the waiters are intentionally rude to patrons (it also happens to serve the best Italian food in town), the gas station that gives newspapers to its customers with every fill up, and the antique shop with goats in its lobby for visitors to feed. A secondary advantage of having a hook is that it makes your attempts to find publicity easier. A bona fide hook will interest the media in your story - the media writer will perceive it as something of interest to the readers or viewers.

How about your business? What exactly is your hook? Have you thought about this question? If you can't think of a hook, perhaps you need to do some thinking about your overall approach to marketing. Everyone can use a hook, whether you're looking for free publicity, writing a radio commercial or handing out flyers on the street corner. If your business doesn't have a hook, you should develop one.

Hooks, incidentally, don't have to be as exotic as goats in the lobby. Hooks can be as simple as a bowl of Tootsie Rolls next to the cash register, follow-up telephone calls to thank your customers for their business, or happy birthday cards to your best customers.

Here are some additional tips on how to develop free advertising for your business:

• Write an article for your local newspaper on a subject that relates to you or your business. If the article is well-written and has a special hook, it could bring you the publicity you seek.

• Give talks or teach classes about your profession or business (or hook) to local groups such as the Chamber of Commerce, Rotary Club, civic associations and other groups.

• Hire a public relations firm -- PR firms are to publicity what ad agencies are to advertising. (Their fees are similar, too!)

• Finally, whenever appropriate, remember to send a photo of yourself (and of your event, if there is one) along with any publicity requests. Photos tend to personalize the request and give the reporter someone to relate to. Make sure, however, that the photos you send are of professional quality, you and your business will be judged accordingly.

...more of Nancy's Tips