- I have always been so fascinated by traditional media.
What does it take to get on TV?
Who do you need to know?
What kind of person do you need to be?
Well, I got the most amazing opportunity
this past week to be a featured expert
on The Tamron Hall Show on ABC.
Insert freak out here, I know.
I learned so much in the process,
and I wanna share that experience with you,
so that you can pick up some tips for getting brand exposure
through your own traditional press opportunities.
Good morning, good life.
Welcome back to this episode of the Inspiring Influencer
on Amy TV, where we help ambitious professionals
like you to share your story with the world
and captivate a community.
I have been a brand strategist
and content creator for a decade, throughout that time
uploading a lot of YouTube videos, more than a thousand.
So on camera presence is not a skill I am lacking.
I'm not bragging.
I just do this a lot.
I have things to say.
I wanna share value with the world,
and so I look at the lens of a camera like it's a person
and I go, hey, let me tell you all the things.
And this is what we do.
Doing something other than uploading a video
to YouTube is as clear as mud to me. Okay?
I really, really was excited
when I started to crack the code on this.
Before I share how I was offered a TV appearance,
and what I did to convince the producers
I was a good fit for that,
I gotta share with you how I became qualified
to be able to do something like that.
What preconceived notions do you have
about getting on TV or getting press for yourself?
Share that in the comments below.
I know for me, I thought you have to know someone.
You have to have a ton of experience
and you really have to have like a doctorate
for you to be remotely interesting to TV
and the types of things that they talk about.
But it really turns out
this may not be the case for everyone.
The person that really taught me this for the first time
is my dear friend and media maven, Christina Nicholson.
She came on the podcast and shared a little bit
about what it actually takes to get press.
- Don't you feel like there's a lot to grapple
with in terms of how do I get ready
from a mental standpoint to pitch myself to media?
- When you see somebody featured in the media,
whether they're on a podcast, TV, online article,
the perception you have of them is they are there
because they're a big deal.
So just think people will have that same perception
of you when you get this coverage.
They're gonna think you're there because you're a big deal.
And the thing is,
that you don't get there by being a big deal.
You turn into a big deal by getting there.
Do you know what I mean?
- Yeah
- People need to see you.
They need to know about you to do business with you.
People can't do business
with you if they don't know about you.
And this gets you known
because it gets you in front of people.
- So with my goals in mind
and this motivation from Christina,
I started to try to figure out
what does it actually take to make this happen?
How do you get on TV?
And here is what I discovered:
The four Ps for getting press,
prepare, pursue, present and then parlay.
Let's start with prepare.
How do you prepare to be somebody
who would get featured in some sort of press?
It doesn't even have to be TV,
it could be radio,
it could be podcasts, it could be an article.
Ask yourself, what do I wanna be known for?
You need to know what you know really well
and then you need to focus
on what you know really well and not question that,
because you're going to do a lot of sharing what you know.
Like I said, I've been creating for a very long time.
I've been making videos, podcasts, blog posts.
I have been on other people's podcasts a couple
times talking about things.
And so the more I focused about what I knew really well
and the more I found ways to share it,
the more I was preparing to be able to get some sort
of grander exposure through press.
It gives you an opportunity to get a lot
of practice for one, and that's great,
because I don't think the first thing you want out the gate
is to be a TV interview. Okay?
(laughing)
Because it's like really kind of intimidating.
But more than that,
it's really starting to lay the groundwork
for who you are and what you want to be known for.
And that's really important
for people back checking your credibility.
Probably one of the biggest things
in the process was what is your book about?
What can we trust from you?
What do you talk about on your podcast?
I got a lot of questions like this,
because shows need to be able to point back
to the fact that they know you know
what you're talking about when they need to get you
into their segment in a really short period of time.
So the more you share what you know,
the more you're actually preparing yourself
not just with practice, but with creating that credibility.
And really, what does it take to be credible?
You don't have to go get a certificate from someone
and you don't have to be featured in a certain outlet.
You need to present your ideas
to an audience and offer value unconditionally,
generously and that is what builds your credibility.
The more you do that, the more there is to look
at for you if somebody is looking at you
for a very, very legitimate platform.
Second is pursue.
How do you pursue press opportunities?
A producer or a reporter has stories
they need to work on every single day.
They're working on a story now
and they're working on what they have to do tomorrow.
When people were getting in contact
with me for this particular feature,
it was about a week and a half in advance, which is good,
because I had to book a flight.
(laughing)
It was very important
that I had a little bit of notice,
but they may have said they needed me within 24 hours
to get to New York.
And you have to try to figure out, am I gonna fit into that?
They're creating stories based on what's popular right now.
They're creating ideas for new segments
based on what is trending.
So for you to get on someone's radar
like a producer or a reporter, to me,
it seems as though you need to pay attention
to where they're paying attention.
And right now they're paying attention
to the internet in a big way.
So the more you focus
on where people are talking about different subjects
and what they're talking about,
that's where people who are booking these opportunities
are also paying attention so they know
what the pulse is right now.
One really, really, really, really great
and easy way to find out what a producer
or a reporter needs right now is to subscribe to HARO.
HARO stands for Help A Reporter Out.
It is an email newsletter.
It goes out three times a day.
And believe it or not, this opportunity that I got
for daytime television was in HARO. Okay?
I got an email saying social media influencers
for daytime TV.
Pick me!
Now, here's the thing, you have to think
like the producer or the reporter.
Read what they're looking for,
read what they wanna know more about
and answer that question.
If you see that somebody is interested in a story
and they're looking for certain types of experts or people
with the experience that has to do with that story,
tell them what they want to know.
If you are pursuing this opportunity,
you are not pursuing selling yourself.
You are pursuing making their story better.
Now, your story will be a part of this story,
but only if you focus on what the deliverables are
for the producer and the reporter.
They have people to report to, they have executives,
they have hosts of shows that they need to talk to
and teach them how to talk about these things
when they're on camera as well.
And you are going to help make that segment
or that piece better.
So if you spend all of your time pursuing something
by saying how cool you are,
you're probably not gonna get it.
But if you see what the question is,
especially in a HARO email,
or you see that someone's looking
for a person with a certain type of experience,
then weigh in on that exact thing.
And only that because everything else, your links,
your website, your social, all of that stuff,
if you've been doing number one,
preparation will help to show the person that you're legit
and you should be considered.
Just for fun, because I know you're probably
thinking right now, oh, well,
I still just don't think that even if I looked at HARO
that there would even be opportunities for people like me.
Let me just, I'm gonna give you real time
examples right now.
This is the latest HARO,
the Tuesday Morning Edition under Business and Finance.
It says, how do 5% cashback credit cards work?
Fortune Magazine.
If you know, because you're a financial expert about how
5% cashback credit cards work, they're looking for you.
There's so many things.
Forbes Gift Guide,
the Best Kitchen Gadgets for Home Chefs Who Have Everything.
Do you know what would contribute to that?
Shoot the email.
All you have to do is subscribe to this email
and get a feel for what different reporters
and different outlets are looking for,
even if you don't see something for you right away.
And I have been subscribed
to this email for almost a a decade.
It took about that long
for me to get a really successful opportunity,
but I never looked at every single email.
I only see them every once in a while.
I don't always have time to read them,
so I got very, very lucky.
You will get luckier if you pay attention
and even more lucky
if you answer the question that's being asked.
Remember, you may not be the story, and that is okay.
Your story is going to make their story even better.
The third P is to present.
First, you've really gotta start from the beginning.
If you see a potential press feature that you
wanna be a part of, why do you wanna be a part of it?
What is your goal?
They're more than willing to plug you if you
are a legitimate expert on some level,
but it has to make sense for the story.
So why are you going to get something out of this?
Why is this going to be successful for you?
But even more so, why are you the person for it.
When it comes to being a part of this piece,
you want to emulate the professional that you
want to be seen for,
once you've been a part of the story.
Bianca, raspberries
when I'm talking about being a professional, really?
So remember why you wanna be a part of this story.
Who you want to be seen as
and emulate that person by giving your best account
of what someone needs to know in this segment.
So before you go on TV,
they brief you on all the pro tips, but really important:
Know what you're going to look like
as the professional you want to emulate
in the clothes that you choose.
They will tell you not to wear a lot of patterns.
They will tell you not to wear a lot of logos.
Do follow all those rules,
but also know what are you gonna look
like when you're sitting down?
How is it going to look and how do you feel in it?
And does it feel like who you want people to know you as?
Dress for the job you want, as they say.
And also, don't forget to smile.
The camera is always on whether you're talking or not
and you just don't know when they're going to snag a photo
of you or capture a certain moment of you
and your eyes and your mouth and your reactions to things.
Just remember what you want to look like in those moments.
Okay, Bianca wanted to be a part
of the rest of this video, huh?
The fourth P is to parlay.
Don't just take a selfie and leave.
Make the most of the opportunity that you get
so that you can continue to see more come your way.
It's one thing to be like, look, ma, I'm on TV!
It's another thing to look at it like a producer would.
If this segment was good enough for a feature,
then how can you continue to share those ideas
in other places that have your name on it?
But now you have the link to point back to,
the footage that was captured to help,
(laughing)
to help you weigh in on why it's important
for people to know and why you're a credible source.
And as Christina would say, repurpose, repurpose, repurpose!
If you got the opportunity
then show people you got the opportunity
and let it be the way that you communicate
to other outlets that you should be brought
on for their next segment
because clearly you're a trusted resource.
Right? Those are the four P's of getting press.
I would love to hear your thoughts
in the comments down below.
And if you'd like to watch my segment
on the Tamarin Hall Show, I will link to that as well.
That's all for today.
Thank you so much for tuning in.
I appreciate it.
As always, remember, subscribe for good vibes.
Kiss the ones you love.
And go after the life you want.
Cheers
(singing)
Do do do do do. Do do, do, do do do.