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Seek Holiday Tie-Ins for Best Results

Some of my best P.R. results have come from tying releases into special events or holidays. This past Christmas, we put out a release on behalf of my fishing client, Ken Schultz, suggesting "Top Ten Holiday Gift Giving Ideas from The Angling Authority." This release was picked up nationwide by newspapers in their outdoor pages and in special supplements. It was useful information and it was tied in with the Christmas/Hanukkah holiday season.

At holiday times, editors are looking for pertinent information. They are also stressed like the rest of us, and they have too much to do and not enough time to do it all. As publicists, why not make their jobs easier by providing timely information in a format that they can easily use?

You should also be thinking of tying in with special days or weeks. Are you promoting literacy? Then put out a release about your organization during National Literacy Week. Promoting volunteerism? Then put out a release during National Volunteer Week! You get the picture.

There's a National Recreational Boating and Fishing week coming up in June of this year. On my 'to do' list is a release about how Ken Schultz, The Angling Authority, recommends that families and friends spend time together fishing and boating. (Note how I'm also positioning him nationally as an expert on the sport of fishing…but I'll get to positioning and PR in a future column.) I'll put this release out about a month prior to this special week, which will be getting a lot of promotion and publicity from a national foundation. My release will dovetail the national wave of publicity. My crystal ball tells me that this release should get good pickup.

Your annual PR plan should include special releases to tie in with all major holidays. For my tourism account with the State of Maine, I put out a release at Memorial Day, the Fourth of July and Labor Day talking about forecasts and summaries of the summer tourism season on our state. These releases always get good pickup because they are timely, newsworthy, and sent out at a time that the editors at the newspapers are eager to get out of the office and enjoy some time with their own families.

Use these tips to maximize your results, and achieve success. Plan for these releases early, and get them out, so you can have more time to spend with your family!

...more of Nancy's Tips