Frankly, I’d like to throw Khloe, Snooki and the desperate Housewives of New Jersey under a bus.

But it seems like everyone wants to be a Reality TV star. If that’s in your plan, consider these look-good/feel-good tips from Billy Lowe, celebrity hairstylist and longtime PR LEADS client who is now offering beauty services to Reality TV wannabes:

1: Lighten up. You’ve got to know your content, and you have to be comfortable in your own shoes. I remember my first reality auditions and I was like “Ok, tell me about your hair.” Today I look back at the innocence and sweetheart personality I had going into reality television and while that works for some segments, reality loves drama. Nice may cut it for an ensemble cast but if you want to carry your own segments, you have to be sharp, quick witted, and have a sense of humor (even if it’s making fun of yourself). People that are their true, authentic selves are truly the most beautiful. It shows in their confidence, the way they carry themselves, and their overall look.

2: Have your own identity. What sets you apart? Do you have a hairstyle that’s your own? Do you accessorize a certain way that no one else does? No one can mistake the blonde ambition of Tabatha or the 6-foot something RuPaul. These are identity pieces that set you apart from the crowd; a saying, a look, a color, a sense of self. Too many people believe casting directors know what they are looking for, when in fact most of them don’t. It’s what casting calls are all about. They’ll know the role – when they meet YOU. So be yourself, bring your identity, and look the role.

3: Get a good night’s sleep. When you’re tired, it shows. Skin is lifeless, discolored, and you’re often running frantic with no time or energy to perfect your hair or make-up. Furthermore, you’ll get to the audition or meeting and feel tired or exhausted from not having had enough sleep and you simply won’t be your best. Or if you’ve already booked the gig, there’s nothing worse than getting on camera with dark circles or puffiness under the eyes and all the Preparation H in the world won’t shrink that swelling in time. With thousands of potentials watching your show or your segment – you have to be on your game.

Billy knows what he’s talking about. His celebrity clients include Eva Longoria, Katherine McPhee and many, many others. If you’re in L A, be sure to get styled by Billy before your audition! If you think you have what it takes for reality television and are looking for a seasoned expert to show you the way, visit www.billylowe.com or call 310-430-4045 for more information.

Dan Janal helps small businesses get publicity so they can sell more products. My clients get terrific results from my coaching, consulting, done-for-you services and do-it-yourself tools. For info, go to www.prleadsplus.com or call me at 952-380-1554.

These six simple book publicity tips will help set you on the path to book promotion in the new year.

1) Tie your book into the New Year hype. What makes your book a good one for the New Year? Consider all of the relevant themes in your book and points in your message and see if any can be shaped into a ‘New Year’ pitch.

–Put a New Year spin on a children’s book that teaches kids manners:
“Rudeness – A Trend of Last Year: New Book Sets Children on the Path to Good Manners”
–Tie your business management book in with the 2011 hype:
“What’s Your New Year’s Business Resolution? New Book Helps Managers and Executives Set Reachable Goals for the Coming Year”

2) Look up appropriate magazines’ editorial calendars. Make a list of magazines whose content fits the themes in your book and key points of your message. Research on each magazine’s website the editorial calendar – can usually be found in the ‘media kit’ or ‘press’ page of the website. Knowing what features are being planned gives you the opportunity to pitch the editors your book to supplement the articles. Also, knowing when the articles are expected to run will allow you to plan the best time to submit your pitch.

*Reminder: Magazines typically work 3-4 months ahead of each issue.

3) Research holidays, awareness months, and remembrance days. Fill your calendar with dates that relate back to you and your book. By researching ahead of time which remembrance days, holidays, and awareness months and weeks tie in to a theme in your novel, a chapter in your business book, or a part of your personal message, you’ll be able to map out when you need to begin pitching. Remember, give yourself 3-4 months for magazines and at least three weeks for newspapers and online publications.

*For a list of holidays, awareness months/weeks, and remembrance days, visit http://www.epromos.com/education/calendars/.

4) Book your book fairs/tradeshows. Not only should you consider attending the major book fairs and trade shows, like BookExpo America (www.bookexpoamerica.com), you should check out fairs and festivals taking place in your region, some in your own backyard! Make sure you’re equipped to attend with business cards in hand. The easier you make it for people to get in touch with you, the higher your chances become to hear back.

*For a breakdown of U.S. and worldwide book fairs and festivals, visit www.bibliobuffet.com. You can locate the lists under ‘Books & More Books’.

5) Start your blog. Make it a New Year’s resolution to start your author blog. Your blog will be a great way to incorporate ongoing industry trends and news developments that relate to your book and message. For novelists, your blog will give you a platform to discuss ‘real life’ issues that relate back to themes in your fictitious story. For nonfiction and business writers, your blog might become a place where you can offer additional tips or advice that expand on the points you’ve made in your book. By incorporating some of the tips from Cathy Stucker’s article above, you could be well on your way to building a successful blog by February!

6) Set three long term goals for you and your book. By brainstorming and setting a few practical goals for you and your book at the beginning of the year, you’ll be able to monitor your progress towards reaching them. The above tips should help you hone in on which goals are most appropriate for you and your book. Are you interested in hiring a graphic designer? The book fairs and tradeshows will be a great place to start networking! Do you want to be branded as an expert in your field? Tying your message in with awareness months and causes will solicit opportunities to highlight your expertise.

Bottom line: If you devote a few hours to completing these tasks, you’ll give yourself a year’s worth of promotional homework and be well on your way to raising awareness for you and your book. So, what’s your book publicity resolution?

Corinne Liccketto is the Sales & Marketing Manager at Smith Publicity, Inc. Beginning in 1997, Smith Publicity is one of the world’s leading promotional firms, specializing in book publicity. Fueled by a passion for making good things happen for clients, the company has worked with over 900 individuals and companies–from authors and entrepreneurs to publicly-held companies and businesses representing a wide range of industries. The Smith Publicity reach is international with offices in New Jersey, New York City, Los Angeles, and London. For more information about Smith Publicity, Inc., please visit www.smithpublicity.com.

I won’t lie to you – book marketing online takes a lot of hard work. We spent many hours setting up our author platform and preparing for our launch day. We set up a custom landing page on Facebook as well as a customized YouTube background. We also began posting on our blog and recruiting others to share their stories of forgiveness on our blog as well.

Hosting a Free Online Conference to Generate Buzz

We also decided to host a free 4-day Christian conference online to generate buzz, interest and a list of people who might be interested in buying our book on launch day. We secured four speakers whose topics fit well with our target audience and then conducted live audio interviews over the phone using the free service, Freeconferencing.com. We also made these audio interviews available afterwards on our website as an online replay. We had over 350 conference registrants and a great response to the speakers and their topics.

Not only did the conference build momentum for our launch day, but those that attended the conference got to know us better. In marketing, it’s important to build relationships with your customers (in this case, our readers) to gain their trust. You want them to get to the place where they “know, like and trust” you. An audio conference is a great way to build these relationships with your readers.

Book Launch Day

Currently, we give away the MP3 downloads from the conference as well as the PDF transcripts as a bonus for those who purchase our book. On launch day, we also had other Christian authors, musicians and ministries offer bonus gifts. In fact, we gave away a total of 43 prizes worth over $1150 and 19 gifts worth over $100 available on launch day. We decided to offer a grand prize of one Kindle Fire, iPod touch or Nook (winner’s choice).

The Final Result?

We published our book on August 24th and on December 6th, just over 3 months later, our book became a #1 Amazon bestseller in inspirational Christianity for both books and ebooks! Wow…what an amazing journey it has been. And we give all the glory to God.

We are finishing up our four month book marketing plan with a virtual book tour. We thank Cathy for hosting us and allowing us to share about our book marketing strategies. And we pray our book impacts many lives for years to come.

Shelley Hitz is the co-author of Forgiveness Formula: Finding Lasting Freedom in Christ, along with her husband, CJ. Visit their website to find out more about their book and the special gifts they offer with purchase at: www.TheForgivenessFormula.com. Shelley also helps authors get published and market their books at her website www.Self-Publishing-Coach.com.

1. Mobile marketing will take off in ways you never imagined.
2. People will be saying, “Visit my app,” in addition to – or instead of -  “Visit my website.” The app will be the brochure, website and starting point of interactivity.
3. Small businesses on Main Street will have apps that provide basic info and coupons – even if they don’t have a website.
4. Doctors, dentists and other appointment-based businesses will rely on text messages and other mobile communications to confirm appointments so they don’t lose money on no shows.
5. Your prospects will think all types of written or spoken intellectual property –ezines, books, articles, webinars, teleseminars – ought to be free.
6. You will think that all information ought to be free – except your information, of course.
7. It will be harder and harder to convince people to pay for intellectual pr operty that is available online. They will pay for customized services specifically for them. Start planning your services menu accordingly.
8. Entrepreneurs will finally heed Michael Gerber’s mantra to work on the business, not in the business. But they will take action by HIRING outside professionals who can do the work for them instead of waiting to do the work themselves. Productivity and profits will increase while procrastination will decrease.
9. This phrase will be on everyone’s lips and t-shirts: “If you get something for free, then you aren’t the customer. You are the product.” I didn’t make this up. I wish I did. Think about it. We aren’t Google’s customer, or Facebook’s customer. We are the products they are selling to advertisers. I don’t know about you, but I don’t like being considered an “eyeballs.”
10. Spam will invade social media sites in overt and covert ways, making visits to those sites less enjoyable.
11. There will be more people showing you how to sell speaking services than there will be companies who can hire speakers. Okay, that one was low.

What are your predictions?

Dan Janal helps small businesses get publicity so they can sell more products. My clients get terrific results from my coaching, consulting, done-for-you services and do-it-yourself tools. For info, go to www.prleadsplus.com or call me at 952-380-1554.

Most authors think of press or media kits as a set of materials they mail to newspaper reporters, radio and TV hosts, or other media people. While physical media kits are still used, they require authors to track down the media experts to mail the materials or the media person to request the information, so an online media kit is also important since it allows the media to view the materials immediately and make a decision about giving you media attention. As a result, authors should make a media kit an integral part of their websites.

Following are basic guidelines for what belongs in a media kit, whether in physical or online form, and ways to make the media kit’s contents effective.

Required Media Kit Content

1. 1. Book Cover Image. Make sure your book cover image is high resolution so it can be used in print or on the web. It should only be the front cover, not the full cover.
2. Author Photo. Again, make sure it’s high resolution. It should also just be a headshot, not full body. You want a photo that appears like you are looking at the viewer so you are up-close-and-personal. Be professional—make sure your book conveys the image you are trying to promote with your book.
3. Book Synopsis. A one-page summary of your book’s content. Often the copy from your back cover, two or three paragraphs will suffice.
4. News Release. A professional press release that announces your book’s release, giving some information about it as well as basics such as title, publisher, ISBN, your website address, and publicity contact information. Even though media people might be getting this information off your website, make sure your website address is on the news release in case they print it and then need to find your site later.
5. Author Bio. Your bio needs to be concise, not rambling. Provide information relevant to your book and your career as an author. You can mention your spouse and kids or your hobbies in one sentence, but there’s no need to give us a paragraph about your interest in quilting if your book is about divorce law, or tell us about your role as a soccer mom if you’re writing mystery novels. Limit it to just a few short and to the point paragraphs.
6. 6. What Others Are Saying/Endorsements. Endorsements are quotes from other authors, magazines, newspapers, experts in the field, or book reviewers that state how much they enjoyed and would recommend your book. Each endorsement should only be a few lines and give the person’s name, title, and affiliation (such as the name of the TV or radio show he’s on, or his book title.
7. 7. Sell Sheet. Although similar to a press release, your sell sheet is just that—a sheet that sells your book. It contains basic information about your book such as price, title, ISBN as well as stating where the book is available—bookstores, online bookstores, your website, and book distributors so people know how or where to purchase it. Feel free to include graphics such as your author photo and your book cover. An example can be found at www.IreneWatson.com

Additional Physical Kit Materials

1. A Cover Letter. Make sure you address it to the media person (newspaper reporter, radio host etc.), and make all attempts to personalize it with the appropriate person’s name, as well as a reminder of your conversation if you spoke to the person prior to sending the materials.
2. Folder. You want your media materials to be neatly packaged, not all loose in a manila envelope and falling out when the envelope is opened. Put them in a new and neat looking folder, but also a folder that will be quickly recognizable as yours. You can design and print special folders with your book cover on them, or some authors simply have overruns done of their book covers and then paste copies of the cover onto the front of a folder. The point is to make your folder stand out and be highly visible so it won’t get lost on someone else’s desk and buried under piles of paperwork, and if it does, it will be easy to find again. Plus, it will provide branding and a professional image that sets you apart from other authors.
3. Your Book. It doesn’t hurt to send an actual copy of the book if you are mailing the press kit. Most media people won’t have time to read your book but the chance to spend five minutes looking at it might be a deciding factor in your getting a cover story or interview.

Additional Online Materials

Note that all of these materials, including the required materials listed above, should be downloadable on your website.

1. Website Page. Obviously, you need a website if you’re going to have your media kit online. The important thing is to have your media kit be a link that is clearly visible on your website—one of the key pages of the site—so it is quickly accessible and viewable. You can then include all your contents on your Media Kit page so it is easily downloadable. Again, an example can be viewed at www.IreneWatson.com, which also includes all the other items I’ve mentioned in this article.
2. Your Book Video. If you have a book video, it should be available to view, but also available for download. For example, a TV show may want to use a clip from it, so make it easily accessible and avoid the extra work of dealing with sending it via CD or flash drive, which can easily be lost.
3. Banners. Especially if the media person is online, whether it’s a blogger, an online radio show, or some other website that promotes authors, having a website banner the media can upload and display on its home page to feature you and your book gives you that extra boost of professionalism and will make the media’s website look good as well.
4. Your Book. While you might mail a copy, obviously you don’t want to put a downloadable copy of your book on your website, but you could put up sample pages with a statement that a physical or pdf copy of your book is available by request through mail or email to legitimate media people.

Follow the guidelines above, but also be creative (within reason). One author I know had the word “bones” in her title so she sent bone-shaped cookies out with her press kit. You could certainly send bookmarkers or a pen with your company logo on it. Just remember to be tasteful and ask yourself whether you personally would want to receive these items or if they will just be dismissed as junk and tossed away. Remember that media people are very busy and don’t want to wade through a lot of non-essential information.

An effective media kit will get you the press you need to make your book a success. If you haven’t done so already, make it a goal to have a press kit page on your website within the next thirty days.

Irene Watson is the Managing Editor of Reader Views, where avid readers can find reviews of recently published books as well as read interviews with authors. Her team also provides author publicity and a variety of other services specific to writing and publishing books.

The year-in-review press release is a great way to get increased exposure and position yourself as an expert. This article will show you how to write a year-in-review press release and will also show you many ways you can benefit from it.

As the name implies, these are press releases that review and recap influential trends and news. You start with a paragraph introducing the topic. You end with a paragraph summarizing the trends or offering a perspective from your vantage point. The press release can include anywhere from 3 to 12 events. If you use 12 events, you can cite one event each month, which is a popular technique. Each event is described in 2-3 sentences. The entire press release is about 500 wo rds long – about the size of a high-school essay.

These press releases help you in many ways:

1. This type of press release positions you as a thought leader who is lending an insightful perspective on the industry. Simply chronicling the events makes you a valued content creator. If you add perspective on why this event was important then you’ll be seen as adding valuable information that is the hallmark of a thought leader.
2. The press release is a promotion without being salesy. You’ll be seen as an educator who is providing perspective, instead of as a vendor who is selling a product, which is what happens in the average self-promotional press release. Every press release lets you promote yourself or your business with links to your site and the “About Us” section, of course, so there are many ways to lead people to your website where they can build a rel ationship with you.
3. They are easy to write. You simply review the headlines of the past year and decide which are most important.
4. They don’t require a lot of creativity or originality. For people who think they need to think of the “next big thing” to get readers, this is the rare opportunity to put your creativity on hold and go into researcher mode.
5. People like to read these types of press releases. You gain more visibility and credibility. People will say “I see her everywhere.”
6. Websites like to print these press releases because readers like to read them. The more media websites and bloggers who print your press releases, the more fame you get.
7. Media websites and trade publications like to print these press releases in December because staffers take vacations and these sites need cont ent. Because the information is non-commercial, there is a great chance the media will print the press release.
8. These types of press releases are part of the editorial calendar process at many media sites. You are proposing a press release that they actually expect to print.
9. You can get good placement in search engines if you use the proper keywords. If you rank higher in search engines, you’ll attract more visitors to your web site.
10. Because the press release is printed on media web sites, search engines will give a greater value the links pointing to your website so your website could show up higher in the search engines and you could get more visitors.
11. You can post the press releases on your blog and in your ezine to create interesting content for your followers. Your site also will be seen as having educational content, which is highly valued by your readers.
12. You can post a link to the press release on Twitter or you could tweet a trend a day to attract more followers. Same with Facebook or LinkedIn.
13. You can create a video and post to YouTube to attract more visibility and higher search engine rankings. Google loves to index videos. This is a very easy tactic. Simply turn on your camera and read the press release.
14. You can turn the press release into an article and submit to relevant industry sites and guest blog sites. This could created even more links to your website and will expose your name to more potential prospects.
15. You benefit by taking time to review events of the previous year and to learn from it. Your increased knowledge makes you more valuable to your consulting clients and it also helps you plan for the coming year.

Dan Janal helps small businesses get publicity so they can sell more products. My clients get terrific results from my coaching, consulting, done-for-you services and do-it-yourself tools. For info, go to www.prleadsplus.com or call me at 952-380-1554.

Here are 10 common problems I’ve seen with entrepreneurs who want publicity.

1. You think you don’t have anything newsworthy to say. That’s false because it is up to the reporter to decide what is newsworthy. If you tell yourself there’s nothing newsworthy going on, you could be wrong. It takes a reporter or a PR person to look at your business objectively and find out what is news. Some of my clients think they don’t have anything interesting to talk about. But when I ask them about their business, I can see that they are doing things that no one else is doing. That’s news! And they get coverage by reporters in their business journals who are interested in this information.
2. You don’t think of yourself as an expert. That’s not true because you have developed a level of expertise by running your business and dealing with customers, suppliers, vendors, bankers and government agencies. You know a lot more than you give yourself credit for. I’ve had many clients who suffer from this. They don’t give themselves credit for all their experiences and obstacles they have overcome. Once I point out how much they know, they can’t wait to tell their stories to the media.
3. You think that someone else is better qualified to talk to reporters. That may be true, but that doesn’t matter. Reporters will talk to the person who is available right now. If the hotshot expert you are deferring to is on vacation, too busy to talk to reporters or not interested in talking to reporters, then the reporter won’t ever get a chance to speak to you.
4. You don’t think your news is important. This is also not true. Many publications have columns for small pieces of news from local companies. They want to know what is going on. It might not wind up on the front page, but it very well might wind up in print or on the web.
5. You don’t know what to say or how to say it. That could be true. That’s why you can hire a media coach to teach them how to say things, or you could hire a PR person who can speak or write on your behalf and make you sound great.
6. You don’t know how to contact the media. While that might have been a problem years ago, it has never been easier to contact the media. Nearly every reporter can be found on Google and contacted via Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn or Google+.
7. You don’t think PR can help you. Very false. Publicity can help build your brands, create instant credibility and provide widespread visibility. For example, we wrote a press release announcing new training programs for the Reiki Institute. The press release was printed in many online media websites and their site was flooded with new visitors who inquired about their programs.
8. You are afraid of being rejected. Okay. That’s true. But if you don’t try, then you’ve already been rejected.
9. You don’t have a big budget to hire a PR firm. That could be true since PR firms can charge $30,000 and up for a 6-month contract. However, there are many low cost tools and free tools on the Internet that can help small businesses that want to do their own publicity. Plus, there are many small PR agencies that can take on small projects to help small businesses – and charge affordable rates. We offer the key tools at http://www.PRLEADSPLUS.com
10. You are afraid of success. You wonder how you can deal with all the traffic to your business or website. Well, that’s a good problem to have!

Why you are talking yourself out of getting publicity? You might be passing up a golden opportunity.

Dan Janal works with coaches, authors and small businesses in all industries that want to increase their effectiveness and improve profits. He offers a complimentary “Thought Leadership Strategy Session” that helps you get clear on the tactics and strategies to help your overall marketing program so you can become the thought leader in your market. Contact Dan at dan@prleads.com or 952-380-9844 or visit http://www.PRLEADSPlus.com

What Not to Do

First things first, here’s what not to do. Remember the balloon boy hoax? In 2009, a Colorado couple claimed that a helium balloon drifted into the sky with their six year old son inside of it. During its hour long flight which finally landed near the Denver Airport, their son was not found to be inside of the balloon but instead hiding in their attic at home. Meanwhile, the Denver airport had shut down, TV and radio coverage and police authorities had gotten involved, in which the couple pleaded guilty for using this opportunity to start their own reality show. This publicity stunt didn’t work in their favor, but for many who are trying to market their book, there are many stunts that do. Here are a few ideas:

Connect With a News Story

Have you been struggling to find the right PR stunt that will generate attention from the public and the media to gain some attention for your latest book? Not all press is good press, as the balloon boy hoax and many other failed publicity stunts can attest to. Get connected to an already out-and-about news story and you can take advantage of free press for your latest book. You may see doctors in your area being interviewed before the local 10K race, giving out advice about how to properly train for a run while wearing a shirt that includes their businesses name. It’s genius really: they advertise their services while talking on the news – a win, win.

Put Yourself Out in Your Community

Working on your own PR stunts takes a creative mind, a bold imagination and thinking outside-the-box. How can you utilize your local Farmer’s Market every Saturday or the monthly book fair downtown? Let people know what your book is about by giving away free copies of it at community events. If your book is centered around living a healthy life for example, show up at the health fair with brochures that list your name, the book’s title, where to find the book and a couple of “free” tips that can be found in the book about healthy living. Print out neon flyers advertising your book with local businesses in the area, particularly book stores and coffee shops.

Pair Up With Local Businesses

Talk with local businesses, asking to pair up with “contests” they have going on for their customers. For example, if a café is giving one customer a month a free breakfast, ask if the restaurant will include a copy of your book while advertising it on their shelf. Attend an open mike night, reading a passage from your book and pass out neon flyers listing quotes from your book. Make your publicity stunts enticing, motivational and compelling, and the public won’t be able to turn away; thus, helping you spread the word on your latest published masterpiece.

Ethan S. writes on behalf of The Regan Group, a marketing firm that specializes in sweepstakes fulfillment, and operating as a promotional products distributor.

Everyone appreciates a company that gives back to help make their community a better place. They feel obligated to buy from a company when they’ve reached out to help their family, friends, and neighbors with free products or services. Authors can give back to the community as well to help promote their product, which is their book. An author can donate a few copies of their book to a struggling school or library. This shows the community that the author believes in the importance of literature to the point that they are offering supplies to fill the library shelves for others to practice reading. When dropping off the books, the author can offer to read it to a classroom of kids. The school and children will enjoy this honor and will appreciate the author making the time to brighten the children’s day.

It’s likely the school will invite the local newspaper or news crew to cover the story and take photos. At this time, the reporter will want to ask you questions and give you an opportunity to promote your book. You can share the title of the book and announce when it will be available to the public and where they can buy it. This also gives you the opportunity to give a brief summary of the book along with a cliff hanger that will leave others wanting to read the book for themselves. When people see that you are helping the kids in their neighborhood, they’ll think highly of you and you will gain their respect. When they see your name in the future, they will be more inclined to purchase the book and read it for themselves. They’ll feel obligated to support the person that cares about their kids.

The cost of donating the books is minimal compared to the benefits you will enjoy from the positive PR. If donating a few copies of your book is simply out of budget, you can still donate your time by reading it to a classroom. This only takes a few hours and will still signal to parents and the community that you care about their children. Additionally, the local news and newspaper provides a platform for you to spread the word about your book and get the title of it out to the public. Capitalize on the opportunity to give a great summary that will encourage others to read the book and your others publications. Giving back to the community is a great way to generate positive PR for the author and the book. The benefits far outweigh the minimal cost!

Adam Bruk is a marketing specialist for an online sunglasses company. When he isn’t busy analyzing retail trends in reading sunglasses, he enjoys golfing, cooking, and traveling.

When a book is launched, the goal is to create awareness about the author and his or her title for a variety of reasons including sparking book sales, building the author’s brand, positioning the author as an expert, and attracting professional opportunities for the author such as speaking engagements, professional advancement, and future publishing options.

Publicity and advertising are two strategies employed to create awareness. Most people have a clear understanding of advertising since they’re exposed to it every day as they watch television, read a newspaper or visit an online news site. Publicity, however, is seamless to most consumers as the author, person, product, etc. is part of the news.

Advertising and Publicity: Control and Timing vs. Credibility

In advertising, someone—the publisher or author—pays the media outlet for advertising space or airtime. The buyer has 100% control over what is in the advertisement and when it appears. The primary benefit of advertising is control.

With publicity, it’s the book publicist’s job to convince the media the author will provide readers or listeners with meaningful information—whether entertaining, insightful, educational, inspiring, or controversial—and then to make the author part of the news in some way. Examples of media coverage include feature stories, articles, book reviews, interviews, op-ed pieces, expert commentaries, etc. There is no payment from the author or publicist to the media for this coverage. Each of the parties involved–the media outlet and author–get something they want and need.

Put simply, the role of a book publicist is to make their authors newsworthy. The result gives the author immeasurable credibility. The benefit of being “seen on” or “featured in” well respected media outlets lasts long after a publicity campaign ends. The primary benefit of publicity is credibility, and when it works, it is priceless.

The best way to explain the difference between publicity and advertising is to pick up a magazine and find a story featuring an author, and in the same issue find an advertisement for a book. The article gives the author and his title credibility as the reader knows the magazine thinks enough of the person to incorporate him or her into the story. The advertisement gives the author exposure; however the reader also knows someone paid for this advertisement. Therein lies the key difference: credibility vs. control.

An important point authors should keep in mind is when the media does a story or interview, the publicist and author loses control. Publicists suggest direction for the coverage, but publicists can’t control if they cover the author, how he or she is covered or when. A producer or editor can do whatever they want and go in any direction. They may sing the praises of an author and his or her book, or spin the story in an unforeseen direction, including writing a bad review.
When you want planned, controlled exposure, advertising is the route to explore. If you are considering publicity, know there are no guarantees, but again, when it works, it literally provides coverage you can’t buy.

Sandy Diaz is the President of Smith Publicity, Inc. Beginning in 1997, Smith Publicity is one of the world’s leading promotional firms, specializing in book publicity. Fueled by a passion for making good things happen for clients, the company has worked with over 900 individuals and companies–from authors and entrepreneurs to publicly-held companies and businesses representing a wide range of industries. The Smith Publicity reach is international with offices in New Jersey, New York City, Los Angeles, and London. For more information about Smith Publicity, Inc., please visit www.smithpublicity.com.