125: Get Free TV and Radio Publicity For Your Business Today with Sharon Bolt

Robert Plank: Sharon Bolt is a publicity expert and founder of Get Free Publicity Today. She has contributed to more than 40 different local and national newspapers, magazines, TV and radio stations, and has received over $1.5 million in free publicity. That sounds pretty cool. Welcome to the show, Sharon.

Sharon Bolt: Thanks very much for having me, Robert. I'm really please to be here.

Robert Plank: Cool. I'm pleased that you are here. I understand that you talk about press releases and publicity, is that right?

Sharon Bolt: That's right.

Robert Plank: Cool, so could you tell us a little bit about that and how you got started with that, and what makes you different, and unique, and special?

Sharon Bolt: Yeah, sure. People are actually a little shocked when I tell them about my first media experience because what happened, Robert, was I got myself booked on BBC Radio 2, which is a national radio station in the UK. That was without any prior media exposure. Now people are a little bit shocked about that but what actually happened was that I was introduced as a dog-training expert, answering dog behavior questions, when I actually had a complimentary therapy business and not a dog-training business. Dog training was passion at the time and I went on to do for the next 9 years. What happened was I saw an opportunity, I believed I could make a difference so I went for it. It was the start of numerous media interviews.

Robert Plank: That's cool. You said that you had a therapy business and BBC Radio 2, they were looking for experts to talk about dog training so you were able to fit that in, is that right?

Sharon Bolt: Well that's right. I had recently got 2 puppies and had been told that it was the worst case scenario because they're brothers, litter mates. I was told that they would fight for the top dog position, and they'd take no notice of me, and that I would probably need to re-home one. I had been on a mission it had to be a natural way of communicating with them, and I looked at my 2 puppies and said, 'You two are not going anywhere." I had embarked on this mission to save my puppies and what had happened was is that I had started to introduce what I was discovering and what I was learning to my complimentary therapy clients who had dogs. We were all getting amazing results.

When I heard the DJ say on the national radio station that he was going to get somebody from the TV, a dog-training expert, on the show the following week, I thought to myself, "You know what? I can do that." What I did, Robert, is I sat down at the computer and I wrote to the host. It was just the normal email address. I didn't have his direct email address, it was just the general email address, and I said everything about dogs. Now I didn't make it about me at all. It was nothing about me, it was all about what I could do for him and his listeners. Then at the end I said to him, "You've got to give me a call because I'll be a great guest on your show." Naturally I told him I was a dog expert and that he should call me.

Well, nothing happened. I got no call back. A couple of days later he actually said that he was also going to include the following week on the show, and he called them podgy dogs. There I was, Robert, in the subject line now, of the email, I wrote, podgy :04:01] dogs. I'm your girl." Again, I wrote this email and I explained why dogs were overweight, what the answers were, what I could tell him, what I could tell his listeners and that he needed to get me on his show. Nothing happened.

Then it was the weekend and I went and did a dog-training consultation. It was about a dog that was eating the home from the inside out when the owners were going to work, had severe separation anxiety. I came home over the weekend, and I wrote about this consultation, and I sent that off to the show again. Monday morning I got a call from the reporters. On the Wednesday I was being interviewed as a dog-training expert live on the show and I was speaking to 4 million listeners.

Robert Plank: That's pretty cool. Would you say that the reason why that worked is because, number 1, you were listening to what the radio station needed, number 2, you kept on following up and even though you got ignored a few times you kept on doing it, then number 3, you sent over this blog post you had written kind of as proof that you're an authority on the subject?

Sharon Bolt: Well, that's right, Robert. It is. It's that persistence. I knew, it was the self-belief as well. I knew I could make a difference. I was seeing with my own eyes the difference that was being made with people's dogs when they did what I had developed. Although I hadn't been doing it for months, I had probably about 3 months or so at the time, or even years, naturally, I thought, "You know what? I've got a lot to offer here," so I claimed that expert slot and I went for it.

Robert Plank: That's pretty cool. Is that something where you've repeated that technique over and over? Maybe even like this same kind of informal thing where you happen to hear that some radio or TV station was looking for X subject and you kind of fit yourself in there?

Sharon Bolt: Well it's very important that when you do pitch or send a press release that you need to be relevant. Of course if you do hear something that they're saying that they're going to feature or you find that out on their website, then you match your pitch, your press release, so that you're ticking their boxes. The other way that's a good way to do it, Robert, is just keeping an eye on the general news. What's topical? What's coming up? What are they talking about? Of course, that's when your pitch, your story idea's in line with what they're looking for and this is where it becomes a win-win situation.

Robert Plank: How can someone duplicate that? It's one thing to be listening on the radio and you hear that they're looking for certain topics, but is there either some kind of database someone could and find out all the shows and all the subjects coming up? Or is it a matter of, like you said, looking at the news and kind of tailoring something to, I don't know, Brexit, or Donald Trump and then shopping that around? What's the strategy behind that?

Sharon Bolt: Well there are books and there are places that you can go to look for journalists but in my experience, Robert, is that what happens with journalists, they move around and change very quickly. For example, if it's a media book that's been published, and I've bought these in the past myself, and when I've come to use them, of course, there's no answer because those people are no longer working there or they've moved jobs and they've got different positions. The best thing to do is to really keep a check on what's going on locally, so read your local newspapers, watch the news, and then go to the specific websites of the particular shows, or newspapers, or radios, magazines that you'd like to appear in. That's really the very, very best way of doing it.

Robert Plank: Okay. How much of your current business would you say that is? Is it half? Is it the majority? Or are there other techniques that take up more of your time?

Sharon Bolt: As in the publicity? That's what I'm really focused on now, and to obviously teach other business owners, and startups, and entrepreneurs how they can grow their business, and increase sales, and position themselves as an authority in their niche by cleverly using free publicity. What I find is, Robert, is that so many people are not using publicity because either they don't know what to do or perhaps they're introverts and think, "Wow. I couldn't get involved in all the media things," but that's really not how it is when you're doing an interview.

For example, Robert, I've got a regular slot on BBC Radio, and I go down once a month, and I answer live phone-in questions. Now, people would think, "Oh, that's really scary," but the truth is is I turn up. I arrive, there's a receptionist, there's 1 producer and there's 1 host. You sit in a room and it's like a small dining room. As long as you can keep your mindset away from how many people are listening and keep out of the negative, "Wouldn't it be awful if it goes wrong," story, then you're on track because you're not talking to 500 people. This is not public speaking but you are reaching just thousands and sometimes millions of listeners.

Robert Plank: How did that weekly, that regular slot you have on BBC Radio, how did that come to be?

Sharon Bolt: Well that was when I was at a social event and a networking event, and where you obviously mingle with other business owners and talking to other people. There was a gentleman I met there who was a freelance radio host in the BBC. He was then going to be on the show as a one-off and he invited me on as a guest. Then they heard me and they liked me, and so it developed from there. Then when they came up with a slot, they call it the Sound Advice slot, where they experts on the show to answer questions, that's when they said would I do that. This is 8 years down the line now.

Robert Plank: You've been going in it for 8 years, is this like a once-a-week program?

Sharon Bolt: The program is on every day but the slot that I do is once a month. I go to the actual studios and do the phone-in once a month.

Robert Plank: That's cool. Do they let you promote your practice or anything like that?

Sharon Bolt: Yes, I mean with the BBC you have to be a bit careful because it's a publicly funded company so they don't have any advertisements on the show and they don't like to be seen to be endorsing people but, yes. I mean, at the end you give your website out, I might talk about consultations I've done because specifically what I'm doing there is about the dog training so I'll talk about different aspects about that. Then it's a case of not blatantly saying and plugging something but telling people in general. For example, "When I was doing a consultation this happened," so then people realize you do consultations. It's that type of thing that you weave into but you always do say your website at least at the very end.

Robert Plank: Even if that's all that's kind of allowed or all that's polite, it's still pretty cool. Just even that little mention to thousands of people.

Sharon Bolt: That's right. The thing is in the UK, the BBC, and I think it's worldwide, is very well-known. Of course you can imagine for your type of credibility and certainly your marketing, when you say, "As heard on BBC Radio," of course that opens doors for you. It's not always what you're saying on the show, it's just that credibility. The great thing is, Robert, is that when you are featured, whether it be a newspaper, a magazine. Whether it be a radio show or obviously a TV show, people think and see you straight away as an authority in your niche. It doesn't matter how long you've been in business. This is why this is great for start-ups as well as long-term business owners, because it can skyrocket your business literally overnight when you get featured in the press.

Robert Plank: What's cool is that so far you've told us 2 different ways to do it. One way is to listen to your local news and to see what subjects are coming up lately, or what keeps coming up, and then keep on, I guess, pitching them a little bit on what subject that you can cover. The other way that you've covered so far is that the way that you were able to get your regular radio gig was just by networking, just by knowing someone who was on the radio and just knowing to ask, I guess. Do you have another way of getting that free publicity and getting the word out?

Sharon Bolt: Yeah. What I like to do is come up with story ideas. For example, this is where it goes back to your marketing, where you ask yourself questions like what are my target market's pain points? You know, just your general market and what keeps them awake at night? What would they really like to change? What questions do they regularly ask me? For an example here, Robert, if, for example, you're a dentist and people are confused about the different teeth whitening products on the market, you could write a pitch or a press release explaining the different products, what the differences are between them and what you would recommend for different types of people.

Do you see how you can just tie it in to what you know is relevant and what your target market is asking for? The key then, Robert, is to find the exact publication or show that is then having your target market and is looking for the type of story ideas that you come up with.

Robert Plank: Is there a reliable way of finding those kinds of publications or shows? Or just kind of see what's local, see what's around?

Sharon Bolt: Well, I think the number 1 tool that we all have is Google. I mean, just to Google something like, if you're looking to get on Entrepreneur Magazine, for example, and say you were a health and fitness expert. Just Google in health and fitness magazines. You'll get a whole host of different magazines and then of course you can click on that. Then you need to do some detective work. Start finding what are the magazines and they usually have contact information there because they want you to come up with good story ideas because it is a win-win situation. When they have to constantly be coming up with features and finding people, that's hard work.

That's the key thing to remember here. Journalists and media people, they need us as much as we need them because otherwise it makes their job really difficult. If you show up with everything done for them, coming up with a great story idea that's relevant to your target market and to their audience, and you give them all the tools that they need, they're laughing.

Robert Plank: That's cool. You make it sound so simple. It seems like an easy way for people who, if they want more exposure or they just don't know what to do, I mean, even just that seems like a pretty easy list of things that someone could kind of go after. As we're kind of starting to wind down this call a little bit, you mentioned press releases, so could you kind of explain press releases a little bit? Because all I really know about press releases are I've seen people do them, I've hired some people to write some, and I kind of posted them and they didn't seem to really do much. Could you tell us about press releases and what people are doing wrong, to know what they should be doing instead?

Sharon Bolt: The number 1 thing that people do wrong with press releases, Robert, is that they send it to the wrong people. This isn't about just doing a general mailing and spamming people. There's nothing more annoying for the press, from a journalist's position, than receiving press releases that is nothing to do with their department and what they're interested in. That's what I find the number 1 thing is, sending press releases to the wrong people. The other thing that I find is that with a press release it is a particular format. Now, I have got that, I go into great detail on my website. There's a free report called How to Write An Attention-Grabbing Press Release That Creates Win-Win Situations in the Media, so people can download that free from my website because there is a specific formula to follow.

What happens with journalists, they are trained of how to read a press release. They know how to skim through it really quickly as to what the press release and what the story idea is about. Now if you don't do the right format, if you don't get that right, then of course that already says to the journalist that you don't know what you're doing and what you're talking about. I think they're 2 key things why press releases don't work for people.

Robert Plank: Get the press release to the right people and then use that format that way the journalists know how to read it quickly.

Sharon Bolt: That's right, and they know that you know what you're talking about. It gives them confidence. You can imagine, with a journalist they will often receive something like 100+ pitches and press releases every single day, so in order to get their attention really quickly so they don't hit that delete button, you need to come up with something very eye-catching and in that particular format, which is what I teach people in the press release report that I've written.

Robert Plank: Can you give us a little bit of a case study in a situation where you sent out a press release and what did that get you?

Sharon Bolt: I sent out a press release, in the UK we have something called Bonfire Night. It's November the 5th and it's a great celebration. People light bonfires and fireworks. I sent a press release out about the different ways that people can support their dogs during Bonfire Nights because obviously it's a frightening time for dogs because there's all the fireworks and the fire that's going. It's a nightmare time for a lot of dog owners. I wrote a press release around that, about how to make your dog comfortable when the fireworks are going off and what's the right information to give them. That actually landed me 2 slots on national TV on the Breakfast Morning show. They also came and they did some video footage, and then I was on twice explaining about different ways that we can best support dogs during firework night.

Robert Plank: That's pretty cool. It seems like one of those cases where you take 1 action and it leads to all these other cool things too.

Sharon Bolt: Well that's right, and of course what happens is, Robert, is people are listening. Other journalists, other media people are watching, and reading, and looking at the different media channels. If they see a good guest, this is how it can really catapult very, very quickly. That's it, so 1 appearance can really put you on different medias. Like, for example, if I'm interviewed on 1 radio show, I often get a call almost straight away from another radio show asking me to do an interview on their show about the same topic.

Robert Plank: Nice. It's not just a 1 shot deal and it sounds like a lot of what I'm hearing in these stories that you tell, a lot of it is in the follow-up. Where it's not like you're just doing all this work just for 1 appearance, it's for many.

Sharon Bolt: That's right. I mean, just 1 TV appearance. Obviously it's going to make a big, big difference to your business because you are elevated as to the top authority in your niche, so that is going to be fantastic. It's how to then really pay off that and get lots more leverage. Just that one appearance so that you keep getting asked back time and time again by different media outlets. Because that's where the goal is then, is to have different outlets contact you and obviously repeat interviews and features in both the press, and the radio, and TV.

Robert Plank: Right. I mean I could imagine once you've been on their show once, once you have a relationship with them it's easier to come back, I would imagine.

Sharon Bolt: Yeah, and that's a really good point you make there, Robert. Thank you for saying that because it is all about building relationships. All about that. This is why, another reason I would say with the press releases if they don't work, 1 thing I like to do is if I start to research and I have a particular reporter, for example, that I want to get into a particular publication, I'll start looking at them on social media. I will comment nicely, and favorably, and supportively to their posts, to their tweets, so they start to get to know who I am before I even pitch them or send them a press release. It's all about building relationships.

Robert Plank: I like that. That's a pretty cool tactic. Could you tell everyone about you, and your website, and where they can find out more about you and publicity, and especially that template you mentioned too?

Sharon Bolt:Yeah, they can download my free report, that How to Write An Attention-Grabbing Press Release on my website, which is getfreepublicitytoday.com. I'm in the process right now, Robert, very exciting, it's taken a year in the unfolding, but I'm creating and hopefully launch in about a month or two, free publicity courses where I explain and show people step-by-step exactly how to do it with templates, with everything that they will need. From media training to mindset, everything somebody would need in order to get featured in the press.

Robert Plank: Cool. That seems like something that people need. This whole media, TV and video thing, for me it's pretty unexplored but I like hearing your answers, and your stories, and all these little things about how we can all tap into this. It seems like this is something that every single business needs, I think.

Sharon Bolt: Well it's great as well because people that are not extroverts, who would shy away from this whole media thing, when you are doing an interview, say for the press, for your local newspaper, you sit at home on the telephone and you give an interview. That's all it is. Then that could be 10, 15 minutes and then they go off and write the article and now you become a local celebrity because you're the one that's featured in your industry in the news.

Robert Plank: I like it. You don't even have to put on pants to be in the paper.

Sharon Bolt: Exactly.

Robert Plank: Cool. Sharon, thanks for being on the show today and that link again is Get Free Publicity Today. Thanks for sharing everything you have to know about press releases in this short amount of time. I had a lot of fun. I hope you did too.

Sharon Bolt: Had a great time, Robert. Thanks so much for asking me on your show.