Get that fame and fortune of getting noticed with the right outlook and through the right outlets
By Jim James, Founder EASTWEST PR and Host of The UnNoticed Entrepreneur.
Kentucky-based Allie Martin, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) and Founder of public relations (PR) firm Fame and Fortune, helps entrepreneurs and businesses get fame and fortune. In the latest episode of The UnNoticed Entrepreneur, she talked about how she does that for her clients — and for herself.
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Getting Visible
Allie likes to use the word “visibility” when it comes to getting noticed and getting that fame. She always references visibility as the most impactful and quickest way to change the trajectory of how people view you and your business.
It’s the idea of tapping into outlets and publications that have a great deal of credibility. Because when they can cite you and source you as an expert, you gain that credibility along with it. And this is what Allie does and how she helps others as well.
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She’s managed to get herself on CNN’s Anderson Cooper Show and Forbes, amongst others. And for you to do that, you have to look at it from the perspective that it’s not about you.
She often sees entrepreneurs making the big mistake of thinking, “What's my story to tell? How can I get this visibility that I'm looking for?” But what you can really do to change things around is to look at what the outlet is trying to do. What is this publication or this TV show? What are they doing? How are they educating their audiences? And what are the timely and relevant stories you can tell through that outlet?
This is where the magic happens, and this is when the fireworks go off: when you’re no longer thinking about it from a selfish perspective but more of how you can be of help — of how you can be a resource to that outlet.
It’s about seeing yourself as a contributor to the piece for the audience rather than a contributor to the piece for your own merit.
When you think about it, the outlet has a job to do. They have a goal, they need to retain viewers, and they need to sell ads. They are a for-profit organization; their job is not just to tell stories in a non-profit way.
When you can help them achieve those goals by being an excellent resource, that's when they will want to work with you and see you as a partner — rather than somebody who’s just pitching a random story.
Where’s Your Audience?
Allie’s stint on CNN with Anderson Cooper is a result of her idea to start from the ground. To be able to do that, ask yourself: Where is my audience? Where are they spending time online? Where are they spending time in front of their TV? And where are they getting their news?
Once you identify these, look at the journalists working for those outlets you need to be connected with. In a show like Anderson Cooper’s, many team members make the show happen every single night, so you have to determine who those contacts are and send them timely pitches that align the best with what's happening in the world.
For example, every March 8, we celebrate International Women’s Day. This is an opportunity for any female business owner to look at a local TV station and say, “This is where I can speak to my audience and fit myself in.”
Look at what’s happening in the world (even if it is holidays), find those niches, and then offer yourself as an expert and resource.
In Allie’s case, it just so happened that Kentucky had election results that were quite shocking, and the CNN team happened to be coming into town. It worked out perfectly because they said they’d love to have her on the show to offer her insight and speak as a female voter in the state.
Though it happened rather very quickly, she has this as a piece of advice: You have to always be on your A-game and ready to go.
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When contacting CNN researchers, she sent an email and introduced herself as an expert in the marketing, publicity, and social media arena. She wanted to be tapped as a resource when, for example, an app like Snapchat makes updates or changes or when a streaming platform like TikTok is gaining steam.
As she also has a background in political science, it worked out perfectly that she became a resource for the Kentucky election results.
But, ultimately, it’s about making that connection and introducing yourself as an expert who can offer insight to an outlet’s audience when the time comes and when those stories are evolving and coming up.
You have to look at the outlet's goals and the stories they’re traveling. Find ways where you can offer insight so you can have a perfect pitch that you can send to those contacts.
Reaching Out To Outlets
Finding contact details is like a magic skill because it can be a little tricky (on most websites, you can only see email addresses that start with info@ or contact@). There are tools out there that a lot of PR agencies use to gain contact information.
However, if you don't have access to that, that doesn't mean you're out of the game.
You can simply Google around and find different bits and pieces and patterns with the email addresses. For example, it could be the first initial of their first name and then their last name with the outlet.
Allie herself does this method of testing emails and seeing if they go through more often than not. If she gets a bounce back, she’ll know it didn’t work and just have to try again.
You do have to do a little bit of digging and a little bit of magic to make it happen. But if you want it badly enough, know that there are resources (for example, Prowly) and ways to make it happen.
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Actively pitching yourself to outlets is called proactive public relations. There are also outlets and platforms like HARO, which stands for “Help A Reporter Out,” for reactive public relations. It’s the act of looking for these opportunities where even at the last minute, you can plug yourself in and be a resource.
For websites like HARO, you can send out emails thrice a day. Sending these emails can be a little overwhelming for some people as they’re wondering if doing it is even worth their time. But it actually does. There could be hundreds of opportunities in one email.
In fact, that’s how Allie was able to be sourced in Forbes. She also got her husband, a business owner, on Martha Stewart magazine, a popular female-based publication in the US. From her experience, she can say that using these reactive platforms wisely is a good use of your time because you can get some really big wins out of them.
Apart from the HARO website, there’s also a group called Telemedia that compiles lists. There are also hashtags on Twitter like #HelpAReporterOut and #JournoRequest.
Choosing a Platform
Speaking of Twitter, Allie acknowledges it’s a place where you can really connect well with journalists (though she personally doesn’t like it). In the US, it's most commonly used by politicians and non-profits. What she likes more is the creativity that other platforms like Instagram and TikTok give to create more interactive and engaging content.
When choosing a platform, it comes back to thinking about where your audience spends their time. If it’s on Twitter, then you need to be there.
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Being in the business-to-business (B2B) space, Allie finds TikTok good for B2B communications though it’s still on the very early side of things. If you’re wondering if TikTok is for you, recognise that it’s an interactive platform. Also, for her, the number one thing about it is that its algorithm is smart.
If you’re on Instagram, it can be hard to discover new platforms or new accounts if you don't already follow them. The idea that you’ll just become discovered one day is very rare. However, on TikTok, it truly doesn't matter who you follow and what you've done with engaging with them in the past. It curates what you see today based on behaviours you've done in the last couple of days. For example, if it knows that you are somebody who would really enjoy going to a spa and you are engaging with content from a spa, it will start to show you other content about spas.
The discoverability via TikTok’s algorithm has a high likelihood of happening. In fact, she recently had a testimonial from a client who said they found her solely through TikTok.
How Not to Turn Off Journalists
Allie often hears about entrepreneurs pitching themselves to outlets and getting zero responses. And it can be rooted in their making it about themselves.
They're telling their story and trying to make it fit with all the other publications and outlets out there rather than reverse-engineering it — rather than looking at the outlet, understanding the stories and conversations they're having, and determining the best way that they can fit themselves into those.
These blanket pitches turn off many journalists because they really give no thought to the stories and the goals they have to do. Sending blanket emails is something that won’t work, and you’re only going to be wasting your time doing it.
What you need to do is niche down, figure out your custom pitch for that outlet, and do it that way — one at a time.
Proof of Her Skills
Image from Fame and Fortune
Allie’s business is a consultancy for luxury and healthcare companies, whilst her stint on CNN was about local political affairs. From the beginning, she really looked to pitch herself to these kinds of outlets. The idea is to show that if she can get herself on these outlets, she can do the same for her clients.
CNN is such a credible platform. There are so many ways she can tell her story on her own social media, and perhaps a few would believe her. But if someone like Anderson Cooper sits in his chair and interviews her and talks about the work that she’s done — even if it is in a complementary industry like political affairs — it will have so much more weight to it.
Media opportunities like that can give recognition to a personal brand that you won’t find anywhere else. It will also give viewers and potential customers the idea that if Allie can appear on a platform like that, so can they.
The Future of Fame and Fortune
As for the future strategy of her PR agency, Allie says that video is king.
If you feel hesitant to put yourself on camera, you must get your face out there. You're only holding your customers back from working with you because they can't connect with you quite as well as they can through video.
It’s important to get yourself on video, educate, and give away as much free content as possible. This is the best marketing that her PR business has: They share knowledge and education with clients and customers.
So as advice to other entrepreneurs, she strongly recommends getting that information out there. Don't hold it back. Don't put it behind a vault. Get your face out there, and start to tell your story.
To determine through which platform you can do that, go back to where your customers are. But again, Allie emphasises that TikTok is a smart platform to be on because the growth is there (it’s growing faster than Google itself). YouTube will be a close second.
Another tip is to focus on one or two platforms and do them really well. Add in any other platforms you think would complement that once you've nailed those one or two platforms.
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If you feel like you’re not confident enough about how you look or sound on video, think of it this way: You’re not only holding yourself back from being out there; you’re also holding your customers back from being able to reach their full potential.
Like when you’re pitching to outlets, you have to do video from the perspective that it’s not about you.
The message will be there, and people won’t pay attention to those other details. Remember what your end goal is — the ultimate desire and result you are looking to get out of it — and focus on that instead.
To learn more about Allie and Fame and Fortune, visit www.iwantfamefortune.com.
This article is based on a transcript from my podcast The UnNoticed Entrepreneur, you can listen here.
Cover image by pressfoto on Freepik
