Getting Free Publicity with Radio Interviews

Imagine that you are a radio producer. You have to fill three hours a day, five days a week, every single week. You need topics that inform, enrage, entertain, educate, motivate, and otherwise engage your audience. How do you find those topics, and the guests to make them come alive?

Radio shows use lots of guests, and if you can show them why you would be a good one, you can be on the air. The great thing about radio is that you can be on a show anywhere in the world--without leaving home! I've done radio shows in Denver, Washington DC, Phoenix, San Diego, Atlanta, and lots of other places, all from my home near Houston--and often while I'm still in my jammies. (If video phones ever catch on, I'm in trouble!)

Getting on radio can be as simple as targeting the stations or programs that seem to be a good fit for your topic (or finding a way to slant your topic to fit). Then, contact them by phone, e-mail,letter or fax. Send your pitch to the producer, and explain why you would make a great guest for their show.

Once they express an interest, be prepared to follow up with an information sheet or bio, and a list of suggested questions for them to ask you. Some will use these questions, others won't, but it's a good idea to have them available. Fax the info, or if there's time, you may want to mail these items along with a product sample or other promotional item. I offer to give them a couple of my books to give away to listeners.

Be prepared to give listeners a way to contact you, and a reason to do so. For example, I give out my toll-free number and offer a free bonus (such as an extra booklet or tape) when listeners order and say they heard me on that station. Make the contact info easy to remember. My toll-free number is 888-BOOK-888. It's easy to remember, even if you're in your car and far away from a pencil to write it down. You may also want to give out your website URL.

Practice some answers to the questions you expect. Make them short and punchy. If you're taking more than 30 seconds or so to answer, you may be talking too long (although that is largely determined by the type of show).

Once you're on the air, remember that you are there to give them a good show, not to sell. Most will be good about giving your contact info, but be ready to work it in if they don't. Whether your interview is 10 minutes or an hour, it will go quickly. At the end of your first interviews, you'll remember all the things you wanted to say, but didn't get to. You'll get better with practice.

Relax and have fun, and remember to give them a good show. When you do, you'll have lots of opportunities to tell your story on the air.

Copyright Cathy Stucker. As the Idea Lady, Cathy Stucker can help you attract customers and make yourself famous with inexpensive and free marketing ideas. Get free tips, articles and more at inexpensive and free marketing ideas.

weekly home cleaning Highland Park ..
In The News:

Scammers nearly stole an Apple account by exploiting the support system with authentic-looking tickets and phone calls, users can protect themselves with safety steps.
FoloToy restored sales of its AI teddy bear Kumma after a weeklong suspension following safety group findings of risky and inappropriate responses to children.
Threat intelligence firm Synthient uncovers one of the largest password exposures ever, prompting immediate security recommendations.
Viral video shared by Elon Musk shows Tesla's Optimus humanoid robots performing tasks from cooking to construction, garnering over 58.5 million views on social media.
Chinese hackers used Anthropic's Claude AI to launch autonomous cyberattacks on 30 organizations worldwide, marking a major shift in cybersecurity threats.
Apple's new Sleep Score feature gives you a rating for your nightly rest quality. Learn how to set it up on your Apple Watch and iPhone today.
Essential phone settings to enable before losing your device, including Find My network, location services and security features for iPhone and Android.
The Fox News AI Newsletter gives readers the latest AI technology advancements, covering the challenges and opportunities AI presents.
Cybersecurity research shows weak passwords remain a major threat, with simple patterns and number sequences putting millions of accounts at risk.
New Android malware BankBot YNRK silences phones, steals banking data and drains crypto wallets automatically. Learn how this advanced threat works.
FDA approves first human trial for Paradromics' brain-computer interface that could restore speech for paralyzed patients through neural technology.
New phishing platform QRR targets Microsoft 365 users across 1,000 domains in 90 countries. Learn how to spot fake login pages and protect your accounts.
OpenTable now uses AI to track your dining habits and share insights with restaurants. Learn what data they collect and how to protect your privacy.
Google's discontinued Nest thermostats still secretly upload home data to company servers despite losing smart features, raising serious privacy concerns.
New Android malware NGate steals NFC payment codes in real-time, allowing criminals to withdraw cash from ATMs without your card. Learn protection tips.
DoorDash confirms data breach exposing customer names, emails, addresses after social engineering attack. Learn how to protect yourself from scams.
Concerned about Google's AI scanning your Gmail? Learn how to disable Gemini features that access your emails, Drive files and Chat messages for privacy.
Google warns Android users about dangerous fake VPN apps hiding malware that steals passwords, banking details and personal data from phones and tablets.
Apple's digital passport feature lets iPhone users breeze through TSA checkpoints this holiday season using Digital ID technology at 250+ airports.
A new phishing scam targets family photos with fake "Cloud Storage Full" alerts. Criminals steal credit card information through fake sites. Learn protection tips.
South Korean scientists create ultra-thin fabric muscles that turn clothes into robotic assistants, lifting 33 pounds while weighing under half an ounce.
Archer Aviation has acquired Hawthorne Airport for $126M to launch an LA air taxi network ahead of the 2028 Olympics, featuring AI-powered eVTOL operations and next-gen aviation tech.
Stay up to date on the latest AI technology advancements and learn about the challenges and opportunities AI presents now and for the future.
Fake AI apps disguised as "ChatGPT" and "DALLĀ·E" are flooding app stores with dangerous malware that steals data and monitors users without detection.
Fake buyers demand specific vehicle reports from unknown sites to steal credit card information from car sellers, but warning signs can help identify these scams before paying.

6 Steps to Using Trade Magazines To Reach Customers

When developing a publicity campaign for their business many owners... Read More

The Story The Media Really Wants

If you're like most of my clients, you're probably interested... Read More

How to Write a Media Release That Wins You Coverage & Exposure

The Today show? The New York Times? Vanity Fair? What's... Read More

Talk Back Radio - Tips To Be A Star On-Air!

Talkback radio offers a fantastic opportunity to access thousands of... Read More

How to Get Some of Paris Hilton?s TV Time

When your book is mentioned on television, sales go up.... Read More

Media Relations: How We Landed on the Wall Street Journals Front Page

Media relations is a great profession.On good days, I earn... Read More

PR - More Than News Releases

Public relations and news releases are synonymous in the minds... Read More

Whats Your Op-Ed?

Everyone has an opinion on something, and you can leverage... Read More

Sound Like Your Situation?

What a shame! Potentially productive public relations people resting on... Read More

Media Relations - Ten Essential Tips to Use The Media to Market Your Business

In the 'Age of Scepticism' gaining media coverage is one... Read More

CD ROM Business Cards

Created properly, an extremely effective marketing tool.It's a great concept,... Read More

Advertising Is Dead. Long Live PR

Although I still believe there is a place for advertising... Read More

Media Training: Why Nobodys Listening to You

SORRY?WERE YOU SAYING SOMETHING?Many spokespeople approach media interviews the same... Read More

Marketing-Minded Financial Planners: Put Extra Content in an E-Zine

As you start getting more media-savvy, you'll find yourself coming... Read More

8 Ways to Use Local Publicity to Drive Your Business

While scoring anice story in BusinessWeek or USA Today is... Read More

Three Publicity Tips for Marketing-Minded Financial Planners

Financial planners, the first thing to know about reporters is... Read More

Media Relations: What To Do When Youre Misquoted

When ABC News anchor Peter Jennings announced he had lung... Read More

Watch Your Attitude

So many restaurants spend money on publicity and then practically... Read More

Best Approach For Free Advertisement

Product/service publicity is the superhighway to business success everyone dreams.... Read More

Top Five Publicity Myths

Most people consider getting publicity the most important part of... Read More

What Kind of PR Makes Sense?

For business, non-profit and association managers, is it publicity that... Read More

PR Campaigns ? How To Get To Grips With The Media

If you're serious about getting great results from your PR... Read More

A Sensible Way to Use PR

The most sensible way for business, non-profit or association managers... Read More

Get Write To It

The toughest thing about writing a news release is getting... Read More

Making the News - Tips from A News Journalist

What makes a good media release and how do you... Read More

whole house cleaning Park Ridge ..