AllBusiness Editors
 |
Getting media exposure for your clothing company can be diffcult, as with all small businesses, and especially when your company is in its infancy. Worry not, however, for there are many ways to get the word out about your new business venture - many of them free. Below are many ways to get this free publicity...
Publicity is, in effect, free advertising. Typical examples include feature stories and product or service announcements that are published in either print or broadcast media. Publicity is especially effective as a promotional tool because people — specifically, prospective consumers — give more credibility to what they read or hear when it comes from news sources, whereas their belief in advertising is understandably tainted with varying degrees of suspicion.
The downside of free publicity, of course, is that you cannot control what is said about your company, product, or service. Make sure that what you publicize can withstand the sharp eye of media scrutiny. After all, members of the media know that to maintain their credibility they must present the facts as they really are, not as you say they are. They have been trained to be suspicious.
Local newspapers, business periodicals, TV and radio stations, and magazines can all offer the publicity for which you’re looking. Don’t limit your search for free publicity to business-oriented outlets; often, exposure in the news or with a human interest story will be of more benefit. Generally speaking, more consumers read or listen to news and human interest stories than to those media outlets that focus only on business people.
The Hook
In most cases, you need a hook to attract publicity. A hook is the characteristic that makes you or your product or service unique and of publicity value. Examples of hooks include a restaurant where the waiters are intentionally rude to patrons — but where you’ll also find the best Italian food in town —, the gas station that gives newspapers to its customers with every fill-up, and the antique shop with goats in its lobby for visitors to feed. A secondary advantage to hooks is that your attempts to find publicity will be easier. A bona fide hook will attract the media, because it will be perceived as something of interest to the readers or viewers.
How about your business? What exactly is your hook? Have you thought about this question? If you can’t think of one, perhaps you need to consider your overall approach to marketing. Everyone can use a hook, whether you’re looking for free publicity, writing a radio commercial, or handing out flyers on the street corner. If your business doesn’t have a hook, it is to your advantage to develop one.
Hooks, incidentally, don’t have to be as exotic as goats in the lobby. Hooks can be as simple as a bowl of Tootsie Rolls next to the cash register, follow-up telephone calls to thank your customers for their business, or birthday cards to your best customers.
Here are some additional tips on how to develop free advertising for your business:
Write an article for your local newspaper on a subject that relates to you or your business. If the article is well-written and has a special hook, it could bring you the publicity you seek.
Give talks or teach classes about your profession or business (or hook!) to local groups such as the Chamber of Commerce, Rotary Club, civic associations, and other groups.
Hire a public relations firm. PR firms are to publicity what ad agencies are to advertising, and their fees are similar too.
Finally, whenever appropriate, remember to send a photo of yourself — and of your event, if there is one — along with any publicity requests. Photos tend to personalize the request and give the reporter someone to whom to relate. Make sure, however, that the photos you send are of professional quality. That way, you and your business will be judged accordingly.
We hope this advice helps, and for anything related, check out our Marketing and Advertising Center for more aid: http://www.allbusiness.com/marketing-advertising/2976219-1.html
or, visit anytime at http://www.allbusiness.com/
Also, here's a website that will help in promoting your business online - by creating a business profile and networking, you can target your customer base: http://www.onlineinlocal.com/
or, for free classifieds and other forms of advertising, consult:
http://www.inetgiant.com/
For other media exposure tactics, try these sites:
http://www.freeadvertisingexchange.com/
http://www.usfreeads.com/
http://www.adleaf.com/
http://themadvlad.com/
Good luck with your clothing company. |
1 Hr Bookkeeper
 |
I am a big Oprah fan, and Oprah has often marketed products on her website because the PR person sent their product to the people behind the scenes, as well as to Oprah herself. Of course the product was free (which may not be what you're looking to do), but it has been effective quite often. And, in fact, those products sell out across the country immediately when Oprah has them on her tv show.
Also, according to Donny Deutsch's show "The Big Idea...", you should find out where you want to send your product, then research the person you want to contact. Find out what they like, and maybe send them something to go with that. Or, research who in the company needs your product and send it to them. You'd be amazed who will get your product to the boss. In fact, when I was just the phone operator at a company, I used to pass on products I liked to the boss all the time, and he would get it because he knew I liked it. (For example, if you sell baby products, find out who's pregnant or just had a baby at the company and send your product to them.) You might think it would do nothing, but you'd be amazed at how quickly the boss (aka editor) would hear about your product.
Hope this helps. |
Homepage 
Financial
Forum 
Advertising & Marketing 
No Spam
Adult 
Gambling
Unfinished
Deception
Plagiarism
Not English
