Tim Ferriss has a great guest post by PR expert Ryan Holiday, author of the new book, Trust Me, I’m Lying: Confessions of a Media Manipulator.
At first glance, you may wonder if Holiday has anything to say that applies to attorneys. The slightly outrageous photos from his clothing company campaigns had me wondering the same thing, even though one of the stories features a (fully clothed) attorney.
The process of getting PR is the same in any field, however, and Holiday’s tips are solid.
First, he recommends starting small by becoming a resource for reporters who are researching stories. Help them do their job and get your foot in the door. (Great resource: HelpAReporter.com — a service that matches reporters researching stories with sources).
Next, Holiday says to “always appeal to self-interest”. Give the writer what they want (an exclusive on a good story) rather than what you want (exposure for your firm). Make their job easy by providing the background evidence to support the story.
The final tip is to “feed the monster,” meaning give the media what it wants. It wants what readers want: controversial, sexy, topical. These are what people want to read, and what they will share.
I’ll add my tip: the story you pitch doesn’t have to be about you. Use your clients, their businesses, or their causes. Surely there will be a legal angle and your client’s lawyer will need to be quoted. Just make sure you have something to say that people want to hear.
Holiday knows what makes a story go viral and he knows how to get the attention of reporters and bloggers. He got Tim Ferriss’ attention, and he got mine.
