Have you ever wondered how to differentiate yourself from the competition without reinventing the wheel? Are clients clearly happy with the work you do, but don’t seem to be sending you business building referrals? If given the choice between two sellers, would you buy from the one that advertised in your trade publication or the one that was mentioned or interviewed in one of the publications’ articles?

We’re all influenced by the media. We may not like that idea, but when a product/service or provider is mentioned in an article or news segment, it puts them in a uniquely credible light. Someone else seems to think their opinion counts, so maybe you should too. One way to differentiate yourself from the competition and build credibility with existing and prospective clients is to get yourself/company mentioned by a credible media source.

Getting you name and message out to the masses can be a challenge, but it’s one worth taking. Essentially, you say or do something newsworthy and make sure the powers that be know about it. There are several ways to make this happen.

Write and Distribute a Press Release

The media won’t know you’ve done something unless you tell them. A properly crafted press release that highlights something newsworthy will get the attention of writers, editors and producers.

Next, you’ll need to either distribute your press release to a media list you create yourself or send it through the wire service likehttp://www.prweb.com orhttp://www.prnewswire.com There are several advantages to using a wire service including:

• Time savings – All you do is submit your release to the service and they’ll send it directly to media professionals that subscribe to their service

• Targeting – Most of the wire services allow you to target your distribution regionally and/or by industry segment

• Price – If time is money, you will potentially save yourself hours or research time by distributing your release through a wire service to a list of people that are looking for content and are interested in hearing what you have to say.

Although creating your own distribution list can be time consuming, you’ll be able to target a few select recipients and can follow up via telephone or email to build your relationship.

One final note on press releases…make sure to have your press release properly proofed. A typo or grammatical error tells the reader you’re sloppy and may not be the credible source he wants to talk to.

Call and Pitch

If you want to make sure the media know who you are and the benefits of working with you as a source, you can call and pitch yourself and your concept directly. When you call or send an email, make sure you have a deliverable prepared in case it’s requested. Good deliverables include a resume, a media kit, a link to your web site or a press release.

The advantage of pitching on your own, or hiring someone to do it for you, is that you can begin developing your relationship and building credibility with the contact immediately, you can tailor or adjust your pitch “on the fly” if necessary and can take advantage of opportunities, like speaking at an event or writing your own article, you may not have considered prior to calling.

The disadvantage of pitching directly is that it can be time consuming to build your list and drill through an organization to find your target contact. Many of us don’t like the idea of cold calling which is essentially what you’d be doing, but it is an effective way to get to worthwhile media contacts.

Respond to Queries

Some media professionals send out queries through the wire services to find sources for their articles. This method is clearly passive, but your time will be spent responding to actual opportunities rather than looking for the proverbial needle in a haystack. A timely, appropriate, well written response to a query will not only get you quoted or interviewed in the media of your choice, but it will allow you to develop a relationship with a journalist that will hopefully rely on you the next time a similar opportunity presents itself.

All it takes is time, tenacity and resources…and your prospects will see your name in print. Most people don’t buy magazines and newspapers to read the ads and writers are looking for solid sources to help tell the stories their readers want to read. A few well placed words can mean the difference between being a “product” your prospect is considering and the one well respected one they buy.

Leslie Guria, http://www.footinthedoorpr.com, helps coaches, financial advisors, entrepreneurs and other business professionals grow their business through effective pay per placement publicity, public relations, sales and marketing solutions.

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