In the last part of this series I promised to tell you why you should *not* do media interviews. I\’m going to keep my promise right now. Frequently (far too frequently actually) we get phone calls, faxes and emails in my office from people in a panic. They have one of the following two \”emergencies\”:

1 – something just happened in the news that directly relates to their product or service. They know that if they can get a press release out *right away*, telling the media about their product or service, they\’ll make a fortune (and they\’re right!). Unfortunately, they don\’t know how to write a press release.

2 – they sent out a press release and now one of the \”Big Guys\” (Ellen, CNN, USA Today, etc.) has called for an interview – but they don\’t know what to say or how to do an effective interview

They either want us to email them samples of properly written press releases, bios and Q&A sheets they can use as models or they want us to teach them what to say to the people who called and how to do an effective interview. They want the information *NOW* and they want it for free.

None of these people have my publicity kit. They may have glanced over a few issues of my ezine. They haven\’t made any effort to learn what to do but they want to cash in. Our response is always the same… No!

In addition, we unsubscribe them from my ezine. We don\’t want people like that as subscribers. The audacity of them! Many of you have made the investment of time and money to learn my system. Now you\’re reaping the benefits. Along come these slackers wanting a shortcut to success. It just doesn\’t happen that way. I\’m also concerned for them for another reason.

They have no idea what they\’re doing. So they\’ll either send out a lousy press release or they\’ll screw up the interview. Then when they bomb from coast-to-coast, they\’ll blame it on publicity. They\’ll talk about how publicity doesn\’t work, how my system doesn\’t work and on and on.

If you\’ve been a subscriber for any amount of time you know how much I love publicity. It\’s given me and many, many other people everything we could possibly want. When people try to give publicity a bad name, I\’m not a happy camper.

Many people think that if Ellen would just call and have them on her show, they\’d hit the jackpot. The truth is that if you\’re not prepared, your shot on Ellen could be one of the biggest nightmares of your life. When people first purchase my publicity kit, I urge them to begin by doing interviews on tiny radio stations and with [tiny newspapers. Do three or four of these to get used to doing interviews to see how the whole thing works.

Once you get comfortable with the tiny radio stations and newspapers, move up to larger outlets and add some television. Then move up to the big time – Ellen, CNN, the New York Times, etc. By that time you have experience. You know what to say. You know how to do effective interviews. You\’re comfortable and you\’re having a ball. This whole process doesn\’t take a long time…and it\’s lots of fun. But do it any other way and you\’re flirting with trouble. The analogy I use is someone trying to drive from New York to St. Louis withouthaving any idea where St. Louis is. He could wander around hoping to find St. Louis. Or, he could get a map.

In my publicity kit I provide you with a step-by-step tested, proven road map to success with the media. If you’re looking for the system that works, stay with me. If you\’re looking for a magic shortcut to vast fortunes by next Thursday, hook up with the snake oil salesmen who peddle that trash. But don\’t come to me for the genie in the bottle.

When you follow the proven path, you\’re virtually guaranteed success. But when you start doing interviews before you\’re ready, I\’m betting you\’re going to bump into trouble – big time! To me, publicity is the key to the land of opportunity. Do it the right way and you can hit the jackpot. Do it the wrong way and you\’ll wonder what happened to you.

Next time I\’ll give you the details of my most embarrassing encounter with the media. I\’ll also tell you exactly how to avoid having the same thing happen to you.

Paul Hartunian is respected around the world as a leading expert on how business owners can get publicity both online and offline. Learn more about The best source for reliable information on how to get publicity for your business. Visit http://www.Hartunian.com

Paul Hartunian is respected around the world as a leading expert on how business owners can get publicity both online and offline. Learn more about The best source for reliable information on how to get publicity for your business. Visit http://www.Hartunian.com

Author Bio: Paul Hartunian is respected around the world as a leading expert on how business owners can get publicity both online and offline. Learn more about The best source for reliable information on how to get publicity for your business. Visit http://www.Hartunian.com

Category: Business Management
Keywords: what is a press release, how to write a press release, how to release a press release, online pr,