There are huge changes happening in media right now and it’s an exciting time for Rhetoric, as we like disrupting the status-quo and embrace change. Boom! TAKE THAT boredom!

We’re talking to the media every day and thought we would share some of the key things we’re hearing from the national media with regards to the general feel of what’s happening out there:

1. Content is king.

More and more, especially online, the media is keen to receive written articles which they can then tailor and edit to their audience. These do have to be exclusive and very well targeted but can be a great way to get your voice into the mainstream media.

I suggest when writing you convey a strong opinion on a current trend or try and be a little controversial. The lovely lot at The Entourage use the Virgin model of attacking the current status-quo, being a bit disruptive and divisive and ooo the media do love that.

If you’ve got stats to back up your opinion and you are open and honest and can really give insight into your industry or a current trend, then you are on your way to becoming a bit of a media dahling!

 2. Op-eds.

Or in full – ‘opposite editorials’. These are opinion pieces and can be a great way of getting your view across on your chosen area of expertise.

If you have a couple of media ‘outlets’ you’d like to feature in, find out the relevant journo and ask if they’d be keen for you to write an opinion piece for them.

Try to ensure its topical and that their audience will learn something from it.

 3. Shoot your own interview…

…and end up on the TV!  I’ve been working with the ABC over the past two weeks and have found The Drum. Not only can you submit your own articles for consideration for publishing on ABC’s website (see publishing guidelines here), but you can also shoot your own video and a local ABC rep can help you out with how to do it!

 4. Using social media to connect.

I have access to an online database of every journalist in Australia and on each contact I pull up a Twitter handle is often cited.

Twitter is a journo’s friend because they can quickly find out to-the-minute news and ready made quotes.

Think of how many articles you’ve read now which has a tweet in instead of the old-fashioned quotes! Get on Twitter and befriend your fave journos/media. One of my clients retweets a couple of times, occasionally has a bit of banter and then when the time comes to announce something the journo will at least recognise your name and hopefully respond

 5.  Media outlets are becoming more niche.

Many in our industry say PR has ten years left and that traditional media is slowly dying as more and more content is available for free online.

In some respects this is true, the media landscape is changing very rapidly, however, with any industry we’re needing to adapt to keep up with technological advances and new players coming into the space. This is great and these are exciting times.

I listening to Cindie Smart publisher of SA Kids and numerous other magazines recently at a conference. She said the key to the success of all of her titles was honing in on a niche. In this day and age of digital, us entrepreneurs need to know EXACLTY who our target market is. Who is your ideal customer, what are their hopes, dreams, fears? Talking to a mass audience now means you get lost in the hubbub.

What is true for us as entrepreneurs marketing our business, is true for the media. Talk to one person well or get lost amongst all the other generic crap out there!

  6. Online and App-based magazines are taking off. 

I met the awesome publisher of new entrepreneurial female based App, Violet, the other day at an event. As an Adelaide-based entrepreneur her main markets for sales through Apple’s App Store are international, though the mag currently ranks number one on Apple’s Newstand for women’s interest in Australia.

Plug into what your ideal client is reading and start making a list of who’s hot and who’s not!  Remember if you want to get into a magazine (online or print) to work two months in advance of your announcement.

 7. Journos are STILL time starved.

This has been the case for a while, but now more than ever if you are offered an opportunity by the media or contacting someone in this space you have to ensure you get to the point quickly, make your case and ensure you follow it up.

If you get a journo calling you out of the blue and really want to grow your biz, get profiled in a publication which may expand your reach and just generally tout yourself and your awesomeness, if a journo asks you to jump, your response should be ‘how high’!

It is not uncommon for a journo to want you for a photo shoot the next day or to give you a couple of hours to get your okay for go ahead. Journos work on VERY tight timeframes, if you don’t seize the opportunity then and there, you opportunity has gone…forever. They are not going to wait until your diary is free or until you can slot them in, they’ve got plenty of other sources and lovely little PRs like me hounding them every day haha!

So there’s our top seven for you!  Hope you found it useful and leave a comment or a question below, I’m happy to help!