Step Four: Send it Out
Once you've come up with a newsworthy angle and polished
up a press release, it's time to send it off. You don't need
fancy paper or even letterhead stationery for a press
release. Just duplicate it onto plain white paper at a
quality copy shop. The release should look neat and crisp.
No dot-matrix fuzzies!
To choose appropriate media outlets for your message,
think about who you are trying to reach and what they read,
listen to and watch. Most public libraries carry one or more
of the following reference books, which contain reasonably
current names and addresses you can copy out for free. All
of these directories cost more than $100 to buy.
- Bacon's Newspaper/Magazine Directory. 2 volumes.
- Bacon's Radio/TV/Cable Directory. 2 volumes.
- Broadcasting and Cable Yearbook.
- Editor and Publisher International Yearbook.
- Gale Directory of Publications and Broadcast Media.
- Newsletters in Print.
- Oxbridge Directory of Newsletters.
- Standard Rate and Data Service. Look at the volumes
labelled "Business Publications" and "Consumer Magazines."
- Working Press of the Nation. 4 volumes.
For radio and TV, address your release to the producer
of a show, not the host. For magazines and newspapers,
choose the appropriate section editor ("Lifestyle," "Health,"
"Education") whenever possible.
If you're serious about publicity, you'll want to
develop your own list by copying information directly from
current issues of magazines and newspapers, by phoning radio
and TV stations and by keeping a list of the reporters who
call you to follow up on your press release.
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Copyright © 1994 Marcia Yudkin. All rights reserved.
