Episode 56: 5 Things All My Top PR Students Have in Common That Gets Them Featured Over and Over Again
"Are the results you show for real?"
"Is there some magic formula that gets your students featured on top media outlets?"
These are some of the most frequently asked questions I get from everyone trying to take their small business to the next level.
And my quick answers for their FAQs are Yes and No.
For one, hundreds of my students who have applied the principles I teach are getting the recognition they deserve. They can now serve more people through their businesses from the massive attention they gained through top-tier media outlets and publications.
And let me be the one to tell you this fact: organic PR does not entail rocket science.
If you want to land that media feature and succeed in the long run, you must be an action-taker!
That's exactly how most of my students continue to succeed in their PR endeavors—nothing fancy, just straightforward and consistent efforts.
But don't be fooled by the simplicity of what my top PR students do.
Whether optimizing their LinkedIn profiles or getting used to rejections, these unconventional yet proven PR strategies have allowed my students to go from being unknown to becoming valued experts in their respective fields.
Having mentioned that, this brings another question to our discussion: if it were this simple, why am I still not seeing the results?
My friend, don't worry because I've got you covered!
All it takes is one inspiration to help you gain clarity in what you do so you can create more opportunities for your small business.
That is why in this episode, I will share with you the five exact observations my top PR students have in common that consistently land them media features over and over again.
"So, get in there, and don't be afraid. It's all about planting those seeds and making sure that you nurture that because you never know when the seeds will bear fruit."
-Gloria Chou
If you're still on the fence, waiting for the 'perfect' moment, I'm telling you it's time to take action for your small business. The best step you can take now is to tune in to this episode and discover the five things my PR students have in common that get them featured in top media outlets. Soon enough, I hope to see you featured, too!
Topics We Cover in This Episode:
Maximizing social media to connect with the right journalists
Why you should embrace specificity in your PR message
The PR truth that every business founder must understand
How adaptability and agility help you in your PR pitches
Embracing rejections to move the needle of your business
If you want to land your first feature for free without any connections, I want to invite you to watch my PR Secrets Masterclass where I reveal the exact methods thousands of bootstrapping small businesses use to hack their own PR and go from unknown to being a credible and sought-after industry expert. Register now at www.gloriachou.com/masterclass.
Resources Mentioned:
Join Gloria Chou's PR Community: Small Biz Pros: By Gloria Chou
Connect with Gloria Chou on LinkedIn: Gloria Chou
Small Business PR Podcast-Episode #35- How to Get Publicity
Additional Resources:
Join the Small Biz PR Pros FB group
Listen On Your Favorite Podcast Platform
Follow & Review on Apple Podcasts
Are you following my podcast? If you’re not, I want to encourage you to do that today so you don’t miss any future episodes!
I would also appreciate it if you would leave me a review! Reviews help me make sure I am providing the content that you need! Plus, you will be entered to WIN a 1:1 pitch writing session with me where I will help you find your press-worthy angle! Click here to review, select “Ratings and Reviews” and “Write a Review”.
Here’s a glance at this episode…
[1:16] What I mean is they use PR as their main strategy, but they also supplement with social media, and they use social media to be able to connect with journalists.
[2:43] The first step is to optimize your LinkedIn so that you can get noticed not only by your peers, but by journalists.
[9:31] They see PR as really the foundation for all of the other aspects of their business. They know that in order to get PR, they have to get super good at their message. Once you're really good at that message, that's going to create ripple effects.
[12:35] Another thing that you can leverage in terms of seeing PR as the foundation of your efforts is that if you're launching something, you can definitely use a press release and use that angle in order to get more traction.
[20:57] Thee founders who get press success, it's not the founders who have millions of dollars. It's really about what they believe is possible.
-
Gloria Chou 0:00
Now if you're in our Facebook group, you would know that every single day we have PR Starter Pack students posting about their wins, big and small, and how it's been able to move their business, their revenue, their profit, their visibility, and most importantly, so that they can make a bigger impact. So in this episode, I am sharing the five things that all of my top students and clients have in common. These are everyday Small Business heroes who are wearing all of the hats, people who are immigrants, people who have never done PR, people who traditionally have been cut out of the conversation, and they have been able to use the methods to be able to go bigger with their message. Because at the end of the day, your customers want to know more about you. They want to hear your why. And nothing says more than I am a leader than getting earned media.
Gloria Chou 0:48
Hey friends, I'm Gloria Chou, small business PR expert, award-winning pitch writer and your unofficial hype woman. Nothing makes me happier than seeing people get the recognition they deserve. And that starts with feeling more confident to go bigger with your message. So on this podcast, I will share with you the untraditional, yet proven strategies for PR marketing and creating more opportunity in your business. If you are ready to take control of your narrative and be your most unapologetic and confident self, you're in the right place. This is the Small Business PR podcast.
Gloria Chou 1:17
So let's dive right into it. So number one, the thing that all of my clients students have in common, that have really gotten them continued ROI from their organic PR is that they leverage social media. I know it sounds really simple and kind of obvious. But what I mean by social media is that they're not just spending hours on reels and doing things kind of in a way that's not working smarter, but harder. What I mean is they use PR as their main strategy, but they also supplement with social media, and they use social media to be able to connect with journalists. Remember, it's a long term relationship that you're building, even if you can get on the journalists' radar, and prove to them that you are a reliable source, there's no limit to the amount of places that you can be featured. A journalist is probably going to go back to you time and time again, because now you've gotten in with them and they know that you are a credible source. So that's really what social media allows you to do. It allows you to follow up. It allows you to turn on your notifications on Twitter or LinkedIn, so that when that coveted journalist, who writes for that dream publication publishes something, you'll be able to go on and come on and nurture, kind of like you would do in sales. You would have leads. It's all about increasing the number of touch points. And journalists love to know that the people who are pitching them are not only doing it in a self-serving way, but that they actually care about the writing that they're doing, because that's what journalists do. They are writers and they cover stories. They share real life insights. So that's what I mean by using social media. I'll give you an example as well for another way you can leverage social media. In my PR Starter Pack, I teach about how you can optimize your LinkedIn to get noticed by editors, because a lot of editors and writers also post on LinkedIn and it's a great follow up way to connect with them in the DMs. There's a proper way to do that. I teach that in my PR Starter Pack. The first step is to optimize your LinkedIn so that you can get noticed not only by your peers, but by journalists. I have a whole training on that in the PR Starter Pack. And I'll give you an example. Dr. Nora, she is a first generation Bangladeshi-American health care insurance consultant. She is also a mom wearing all the hats, and she was able to use LinkedIn taking the steps that she learned from the PR Starter Pack. And she went from not having any traction on LinkedIn, having maybe a couple hundred followers, and not really growing her LinkedIn to having her post go viral the next day. She did a very simple poll. And she was able to leverage all the LinkedIn tools in order to get the algorithm to get her posts to be visible by so many people. And so even to this day, she was able to count recount that her PR efforts started by those one simple thing which is optimizing your LinkedIn profile, getting more visible, getting the algorithms to like you. And so that way you can appear in more people's feeds. She was able to then take her really optimized LinkedIn, which really put her best foot forward to then connect with journalists, and anyone that sends you an email or an inbox in the DMs. I know that you look at their profile first. So nothing says that you're a credible industry authority, that you have something of value to say, than an optimized social media profile. So that's what I mean by leveraging social media. I'll give you another example. The DMs are a powerful way to connect with journalists and look, not every journalist is someone that wants to be DM-ed and cold pitched. In fact, they'll tell you on their social media, 'Please do not DM me or DMs open.' And so obviously you would take the route of DMing them if they're open to it, just like anyone would be. So for the journalists who are open to, it's a great way to connect with them and follow up, because it's not only adding them to your network, but in the DM, you can also say, 'Hey, I wrote you an email on Tuesday with this subject line sharing these insights. And if you haven't gotten it, let me know.' So it's a very simple and no pressure way to remind them to check their emails because journalists get flooded with emails. It's all about reminding them that you are able to give them value in a pitch and for them to just open it. So that's what it does, it increases your open rates, because if journalists don't open your email, then your pitch is really no good. Tanisha, who is one of our earliest Starter Pack founders, she was in our PR Starter Pack years ago. I think two years ago when we just launched it. And she was just building her company. She was crowdfunding, so she didn't have any investors. She didn't have a physical space for her business. And her website was like pending. It was a waitlist. She was barely launched, and she was able to use social media to turn various rejections into an incredible full length feature story about her and her story on Shape magazine. To this day, she says that was the most powerful story that most accurately represents her authenticity. Now this happened because she went through the PR Starter Pack. She was able to do the DM follow ups. And one of the people she DM actually refused, and said, 'This is not for me right now. But thank you for sending.' Now, my scrappy founders in the PR Starter Pack. They have tenacity, and they have perseverance. So what did Tanisha do? She went in and said, 'Thank you so much for receiving this message. I really appreciate it. I totally understand that the story is not for you right now. But do you have anyone that you know who might be covering a story of the sort?' And that was how she was able to get connected with someone else. And so one thing led to another and connections after connections. She was able to land 20 plus pieces of media within 30 days. I always say this: it only takes that one yes. It's a numbers game. Once you get that one yes, you'll be amazed at the domino effect, because press begets press.
Gloria Chou 7:06
Another thing that all of my successful PR Starter Pack customers have in common is that they embrace specificity and sharpening their message. I always say that if you speak to everyone, then you speak to no one. And you don't want to speak very fluffy in general, because we're not able to compete with some of the top experts in our field. So how do we get in to the journalists' inbox by pitching them something that's very specific? Instead of pitching a very fluffy and general article about why remote work is changing the world or something like that, or the future of X, Y&Z. You want to say something very specific. Maybe it's a demographic or how the future of work is changing. Children or future of work is changing. Immigrant children, or families or moms that live in this city versus that city. So you want to be specific. And think of it this way: pitching is like peeling away the layers of an onion. The first layer, it's very obvious. Everyone's going to pitch that. But if you do the work to peel away, the onion is going to sting a little bit. You're going to reveal the very juicy center, and that is the one that packs the most flavor, and punch. And that's really what we need to get good at. And so in the PR Starter Pack, on this podcast, in my community, I'm all about getting you to keep sharpening away at your pitch. Because the more and more you know how to flesh out your message with specificity, the more the person on the other side of that receiving end is going to know exactly how you're going to be able to fit into their story. So that's really what I mean by using specificity. I'll give you an example. Years ago, I wrote a pitch for a founder who made non-alcoholic wines. So she made like a sparkling grape juice. Instead of writing a very obvious first layer of the onion story about why you should drink less alcohol, or it's healthier to go for a non-alcoholic drink, kind of the very obvious things. She told me that there was this movement on social media called sober-curious, and it was actually a hashtag. Then we found out through our pitch writing session that that was actually a trending hashtag, and that journalists were writing about it in Q1. Now this was in 2020, when the pandemic happened. So what did I do? I wrote a pitch for her about how the sober movement, people were dabbling in the sober-curious movement, how that was gonna survive a pandemic, when everybody was drinking more than ever. Do you see how that's more creative, more nuanced, and more specific than a very general pitch that anyone would pitch would be like? Three reasons why you should drink less alcohol. So that's what I mean by peeling away the layers of onion. The more you do that, the better you're going to get, the more you're going to be able to find the best angle in every situation, and there's no shortage of them, I promise.
Gloria Chou 9:53
Now the third thing that all of my PR Starter Pack students and my customers who really just kill it in the PR game, they have have in common is that they see PR as really the foundation for all of the other aspects of their business. So it's not about posting more on Tiktok, or doing more reels, or writing more newsletters. They know that in order to get PR, they have to get super good at their message, a value- driven conversation. Once you're really good at that message, that's going to create ripple effects. It's going to inform your content, your captions, your blog, your Instagram. So that's what I mean by it's not about adding PR as another thing on top of everything you're doing. But really starting off by knowing how to pitch in a newsworthy way to draw people into your world. And if a journalist resonates with it, I'm sure the rest of the world will do as well, because it's so much easier to just throw an ad out there, or appeal to your customers with talking about the product specs and the features of your business. But it's much harder to sharpen away and clarify your message, so that a journalist who will not buy your product will feel like you have a point of view. And remember, it's all about establishing you as an expert. And experts have point of view. It doesn't mean that you have an education that's more than other people or that there is a certification. There's no standard for what is an expert. And so that is the secret I want you to know is that experts have a point of view and you can evolve that point of view. Dr. Nora Ali, I talked about with the Instagram, with the LinkedIn how she started with hacking her LinkedIn and her post going viral. She was able to pivot her conversation as the pandemic continued. So she's a health care insurance consultant, but she was able to pitch something about vaccines. All of a sudden, she became someone who gave commentary about vaccines, and then the Delta flight workers and how they, in order to board an airplane out, had to get a vaccine. And so she was talking about that. Then when people were going back to school, she was pivoting her conversation. So all that to say is that you are an expert. You are worthy. There's no standard that you have to reach to be an expert. But experts have opinion, and experts have point of view. That's really it. And as you know, my CPR method, which is the framework that I teach to thousands of founders about how to get featured. CPR stands for credibility, point of view, and relevance. It's the structure of the pitch, I teach in my masterclass. And in the PR Starter Pack, it's really around positioning you not as a business owner, or someone that's selling something, but someone that has value to share an insight or a perspective, no matter how small. So that's what I mean by that, really seeing the PR as the foundation for all of the other things that you do. It is not something that you add on to an already full plate. But it's really the priority. It's one of those 20% activities that's gonna result in 80% of your ROI. Because remember, your ads and your reels, they don't have lasting power. They're not searchable, but one piece of earned media that's gonna get the ball rolling. It's gonna get SEO and credibility for life. And we're all about that sustainable business building. That is why I teach the organic earned media methods on this podcast and in my masterclass.
Gloria Chou 13:06
Another thing that you can leverage in terms of seeing PR as the foundation of your of your efforts is that if you're launching something, you can definitely use a press release, and use that angle in order to get more traction. So what I mean by that is if you're launching a product, or if you have an event, or if you have something that is kind of an announcement from your company, you can use PR in the form of issuing a press release, to get it onto the news wires, where it will get distributed online and published and indexed on Google. That will allow other media outlets to pick up on it. It's going to create this viral 'circulosity', where I don't even know if that's a word, but it's gonna create a viral loop where you're gonna get SEO. People are going to pick it up. You can just keep sending that press release, and all of your blogs or newsletters, and it's just something that keeps getting you that ROI. So that's what I mean is distributing a press release, which is a part of PR, and so that it doesn't just live behind an Instagram account or a TikTok account that's not searchable. If you want more information about press releases, and to see the winning press releases, I have written, go to gloriachoupr.com/services. You'll be able to see how I write press releases and why they're so important, and how they've all gotten national coverage. So that's what I mean by that.
Gloria Chou 14:27
Now, the fourth thing that my PR Starter Pack members have in common that gets them such amazing press success is that they are adaptable. They're agile, and they try different messages and they always freshen up their angles. So here's the thing about pitching. I really see it as kind of a revolving baggage claim at the airport when you arrive. So there's gonna be bags I get picked up. Maybe if your bag won't get picked up on the first time, but people will come and they'll slowly pick up all the bags. You don't know when they're gonna get picked up but it just keeps going round and around eventually, until it gets picked up. So that's really what I mean. You want your baggage on the baggage claim conveyor belt so that it can keep rotating. And you never know when it's going to get picked up. So that's what I mean by that: There's always different angles. There's different needs. There's different audiences who are dying to hear from you. So just because you pitch something to one outlet, and it's not a fit doesn't mean that you can't pitch to the other outlets. Journalists are not going to get super upset. If you pitch multiple people at an outlet, they're busy. They have a lot of other things to worry about, then cross checking who pitched who. So again, that's another fear that a lot of founders have, it's, 'oh my god, I pitched this one person.' But you have no idea what a journalist's inbox look like. It is flooded with pitches from people from around the world, and even with PR agencies that are aggressively pushing their clients stories. So, get in there, and don't be afraid. It's all about planting those seeds and making sure that you nurture that because you never know when the seeds will bear fruit. I'll give you an example of what I mean by trying different angles and being agile. So Dr. Ross, who is a dermatologist, and he also is an inventor of a physical product. He pitches stories year round about dermatology and skin. Now you might think, top layer the onion. It could be about skincare tips in the summer because he lives in Texas. But no, he was on the podcast and told me he got 20 to 30 pieces of media because he pitches all year round. It's a system that he just incorporates into his business like bookkeeping, or posting on social media. It's just something that he does every single week because he's always planting the seeds. And it always ends up sprouting. He doesn't know when, but they keep on sprouting. So I'll give you an example of what I mean by different angles. Instead of just pitching skincare angles, summer SPF, or winter skin protection. He told me that he actually pitched and got featured around Halloween. Now you might think, what does Halloween have anything to do with the dermatologist? Well, he said that all the candy that we were eating was wreaking havoc on our skin, and that is creative angles that he was able to pitch and get featured. So that's SEO. That's traffic. That's audience building all year round. So he gets that continued ROI on media. So the world is your oyster. If you can think creatively about how you can draw points of relevance and people into your world. So you really have to think creatively and be in that abundance mindset because there's really no shortage of opportunities. It's not like once you get featured, you're done. In fact, every single person who has gotten featured in the Starter Pack, it's that first domino, and then it just begets more and more and more press. I'll give you another example about adapting your pitch and being agile. So Angela Engel, who's also been on this podcast. She's an incredible founder, a mom, and she is founder of Collective Book Publishing Studio. So she publishes authors on her platform. she has a big team. So she's doing all the things. If you want to hear her episode about how she got featured, go to Episode 35. That's gloriachoupr.com/35. So you might think that she only pitches stories about books and publishing. But no. She told me that she also got into Parents Magazine, and a lot of female founder podcast about her journey, navigating the publishing world and being a mom and wearing all the hats. So you have a right to pitch any angle, but just remember that for every angle that you pitch, you want to be a part of the solution. How can you inspire people? How can you give people some insight or some perspective? So now Angela has been on podcast. She's been on publications for both publishing and non-publishing. And really, sky's the limit for what she's going to pitch. Another example she actually gave me is that she got so good at pitching and using the CPR method, she was able to get one of her authors in her publishing studio, the authors that went through her that book, who she published. She got this person really good media, just by pitching this author because it all helps because she published the title. And it was around the time when the Uvalde, Texas mass shooting happened. So this author was sending workbooks, to children in that area. And Angela was able to use that story and that angle about what was happening in the tragedy and how she was part of the solution by sending books and notebooks to children to heal them. And that was able to get them on a really big publication. So that's what I mean by making sure that you are part of the solution, that you're leading with your 'why' at all times.
Gloria Chou 19:27
The last thing that my PR Starter Pack members, who are really rocking in a PR game, what they have in common is that they understand that everything they want is on the other side of the send button. They understand that it's a numbers game and that rejection is a part of the game. Now I know that it's difficult as humans. We don't want to be rejected. But think about it this way. What is the upside and the downside to getting featured? You might get some rejections. You probably won't get any responses. But if you can just get that one. Yes, that one, first, yes, that connects you with a journalist, you're going to learn so much from the process- how to talk to the journalist, how to give an interview.You're going to be able to connect with that person, add that person to your LinkedIn, have that person that's a contact for life, and nurture that relationship. And you're going to be able to pitch them over and over again. For me, the upside of pitching is 10,20, 100 times greater than any rejection that you will you will ever receive. I think the media and PR and ad industry has told us for decades that only they have access to the media. Only they hold the keys because they know these journalists, but guess what? I built an entire business without knowing any journalists and the the diverse founders in my community, they don't know any journalists. They are people wearing all the hats. They're immigrants. They're moms. They're doing all the things. They definitely are not going to fancy networking hours. And just like me, they were never a part of the cool kids club. And they've been able to get featured hundreds of times in all the publications. So that goes to show you that journalism is not dead and that people who are writing for publications are not just looking to interview the Elon Musk's of the world. They need your perspective, your knowledge. So remember to always lean into an abundance mindset because that energy will capture the attention of the next person. It's all about that energy. I really believe in that. And I know it might sound a little woo-woo, but the founders who get press success, it's not the founders who have, millions of dollars, who have fundraisers, or someone who's just making candles in their garage. It's really about what they believe is possible. And they just know that the rejection and testing your message and getting it out there, it's just a part of the process. And once you know that rejection is really not going to bother you, you become invincible. That's how I was able to build my business by literally cold calling hundreds of newsrooms, by dialing the operator and not having a single journalist in my contact book. Because I never studied journalism. I was in the US government. I was working in government, completely different. So as an outsider, I can definitely say that everything you want is on the other side of the send button. So my question to you is, what are you doing this week? Whether it's one tiny little small action that you're doing? Or maybe two or three, that's going to move the needle for your business? What is that one thing? Because all it takes is just that one yes. And trust me, it's around the corner a lot closer than you think. Now if you know anyone who could benefit from what you've heard on this podcast and the tips that I share, whether it's the interviews with journalists, please rate and subscribe to this podcast so that more founders just like you can get the benefit of listening to our podcast. I still appreciate you being here week after week, and I really look forward to hearing from you. The show notes are below and you know exactly how to join my community, and I cannot wait to meet you. Take care!
Gloria Chou 23:00
Hey, small business hero. Did you know that you can get featured for free on outlets like Forbes, The New York Times, Marie Claire Pop Sugar and so many more, even if you're not yet launched? Or if you don't have any connection? That's right. That's why I invite you to watch my PR Secrets masterclass, where I reveal the exact methods thousands of bootstrapping small businesses used to have their own PR and go from unknown to being a credible and sought after industry expert. Now if you want to land your first press feature, get on a podcast, secure a VIP speaking gig or just reach out to that very intimidating editor. This class we'll show you exactly how to do it. Register now at Gloria Chou pr.com/masterclass. That's Gloria Chou c-h-o-u pr.com/masterclass. So you can get featured in 30 days without spending a penny on ads or agencies. Best of all, this is completely free. So get in there and let's get you featured.