Who wouldn’t like to get their picture in a newspaper? In most cases it is just going to build up your name and provide the perception that you are successful. Most people do this by paying a PR company, but if you don’t have much money here is how you can get covered in publications such as the Wall Street Journal and Wired Magazine:
Figure out who is in the limelight.
In my industry (Internet marketing) I noticed that sites like Digg and a lot of contributors on Digg were getting covered by online and offline media. The way I figured this out was by browsing through all the trade publications in my industry. Once I figured out who was getting the buzz I started to get to know some of those people. Some of the people who were getting interviewed listed their emails and AIM screen names publicly. I simply created a list and started contacting these individuals.
Start asking questions
Once you get to know the people who are getting interviewed ask them on how they got contacted by the media. In most cases they will tell you that journalists just contact them because they found them on XYZ.com. What you want to do is try to replicate the effect they created as well as ask them if they can drop your name to the journalist because usually at the end of an interview a journalist will ask “do you know anyone else that I could potentially interview”. This should help increase the number of journalists that contact you.
Build relationships
When you get interviewed by a journalist make sure you are very friendly. You want to build a relationship with the journalist so that the next time they need to interview someone in your industry they think of you. One of the things you should always do is give them more than they require because that will definitely improve the chances of them interviewing you in the future.
Rinse and repeat
After you do this with a few people you need to keep the wheels in motion and not stop there. The thing with media is that one minute one thing maybe hot and the next minute something else is hot. You have to keep on finding the people who are getting interviewed as well as build relationships with journalists because the window for you to get in there is very small.
Good Luck!
Look over my shoulder while I share: 
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Neil, it would be great if you could dive into more detail with some examples on each of these…
Great idea for a later post. Thanks!
Great advice. I’d also look at working into speaking engagements, these are often good avenues to mainstream press. Speaking gigs grant a lot of credibility (especially to those outside the industry, viz. potential clients), garner more link citations, and in turn media exposure.
Excellent advice you’re offering here Neil — I’ll be putting it to use in the near future, actually!
I’m interested to read a follow-up with more detail as well…
Great advice as always, Neil. Building relationships with the media community is definitely the way to go.
Not only should you give the reporters more than they’re asking for, some of them will be very appreciative if you can help them with additional information that they’re seeking–ask them if there’s anything that you can help them research or anything that you can do to make their job easier like finding additional people for them to talk to.
Also, you don’t always have to hit a “home run” all the time with the larger news media like the WSJ. Your local news media is a great place to start, as well, especially because a lot of the bigger news outlets find their stories from local news outlets.
Getting your name in front of your local journalists can be as easy as sending (or better yet — delivering) printed press releases that you’ve written to them. Email is great, but it’s easy to delete and doesn’t seem to have the same impact.
Of course, you also need to know to whom you’re sending the press release (so do some research), and make sure that it’s written about something they cover (research), and make sure it’s well written (be smart and have something unique and insightful to say).
They might not do anything with your story the first time they get something from you (or the second or third), but if you keep your name in front of them they’ll remember you when they need a quote or a source for a story related to your area of expertise.
Hey Neil:
How about giving me your msn?
Great advice Neil…so far I have been in the newspaper 5times..now I’m trying to go for the big guys!
Congrats Fredrickus! 5 times is a good amount of press.
When attempting to build rapport with journalists, a few things to keep in mind;
They’re often working against deadlines. ask if it’s a good time to speak. If not, ask for a more suitable time to be suggested.
Everyone has their preferred means of communications. Start with an email mentioning you’d like to speak to them. They’ll probably let you know if it’s ok to call or if they’d prefer an email.
If you’re pitching yourself as an on-call expert, offer a link to a fact file or profile on yourself so they can review your expertise at their leisure.
Be available by phone. Journalists often want immediate answers, which means they’ll often pick up the phone if they need quick answers.
Mubin my MSN user name is neil168@hotmail.com
great post but i think getting media coverage is difficult not unless you have a very good content on your site.
Unlike some of the other But-kissers who comment with just “great post” to get top commentator,
I want to say I think you have a good start but
You’re missing something here
press releases
press releases have to be the Top way to be covered in offline media
many of the web pr services offer parts where you can include a podcast , a sample audio interview and even a video clip.
its not easy to actually write a press release that gets picked up but once you know what journalists and editors are looking for
Easy and interesting
then you have a good start.
this is a subject worthy of much deeper discussion. I will be adding a post about effective Press releases my site soon
thanks and take care
bryan
Thanks for leaving detailed comments! I really appreciate the thought compared to the people who just write “good post”.
Befriend everyone in your market / niche, even “competition” where appropriate. There are many benefits to this, but it clearly strengthens the network, and compliments your quest for media contacts.
More contacts you make, the more press chances you will get.
I thing I would add is get to know all of your contacts. Just don’t “befriend” them.
Neil, It’s been almost 2 years since you posted these tips. How many times were you mentioned in press since then?
Not as much as I would have liked, but a decent amount. My guess is 10 or so times since then.
I was recently speaking with Don over at free publicity focus group, (who I incidentally met because of a comment he made on your site) and he was talking about the same things. The importance of looking at offline sources of media as well. Don is putting some things together for me to help me build some brand awareness with both online and offline media. I have a very unique position in my market so we will see if it catches on with the media.
Going after the “offline” sources is what will MAKE your business a business.
Hey Neil
How about giving me your msn?
I don’t use MSN but feel free to contact me through these comments, I respond quickly
A wonderful idea. But i see its not that easy. You should already have a name in your market for the journalist to interview you. What’s your opinion Neil?
Well you need to start some where. You can’t just automatically have a list of people you can go after, it’s something to acquire over time.
I have used facebook to build relationships with alot of local media outlets, then when special events come up I can invite them and It also trickles down to all of their followers… Think of it as a social press release.
Sometime, its not that easy to go and talk with someone you dont know. But to my experience people who may look difficult to talk with are infact easy people to talk to.
The more you put yourself in uncomfortable positions, the easier it will be for to grow on a mental level. Plus you never know who you’re talking too… someone that maybe even able to help you grow your business…
Thanks for the tips Neil. I would love it if you could go into more detail with some examples. It’s one thing to know these concepts but to see them implemented is another story all together.
What types of tips or examples are you looking for exactly? Have you read some of my new posts?
This sounds awesome! I do not know if anyone would interview me in my industry.
I would love to be interviewed on any newspaper or online website it sounds really exciting!
Great post. In this day in age people forget the old ways. It is always fun to see yourself in the paper. I used to model and I loved it. It would be nice to be in the paper for something a bit more respectable, not that modeling isn’t but, i guess more intellectual.
It just makes sense… following it this way I mean.
News papers are going out these days. The only thing keeping them afloat are car commercials
Along with sales ads.
Nice tips another way is to have a press release or try and get covered on the news for something noteworthy.
Definitely, press releases work very well.