18. Why you should work with a publicist to get media interviews – Part 1 of 2

Doctors all the time tell me they want to do more interviews and ask me how to get them. That’s true of any type of expert who wants to grow his or her business – attorneys, dentists, real estate agents, financial planners, accountants, therapists, chiropractors, veterinarians, personal trainers and so many more. But we are all busy. So if we don’t want to spend time developing a system to get TV, radio, podcast, newspaper, magazine and online interviews, is there another way?

Actually, yes, and it’s a strategy many experts use. And that’s to hire a publicist.

There are a lot of reasons working with a publicist can be a good idea. But there are some drawbacks you should know and consider as well. So, in this episode and the next one, we are going to talk about the pros and cons of working with a publicist or public relations firm.

Here are a few pros or benefits of working with a publicist:

The publicist will likely have media contacts and relationships that you don’t have.

This is probably the biggest benefit to working with a PR professional. They already know people at different TV stations or with certain TV shows. They know people at certain magazines or newspapers across the country. They know producers of some radio shows or podcast hosts.

They have worked with these reporters, journalists, and producers over the years, sending them clients for interviews. And if those interviews went well, those media people would learn to trust the recommendations of those publicists. Especially with national media outlets, you are more likely to get an interview if you are presented by a publicist that media person knows than if you pitch yourself.

As we will talk about in the next episode, that might not matter as much if you want local media coverage and interviews.

Many publicists specialize in certain niches.

There are publicists that specialize in media for different fields, like medicine, law, even dental practices. There are publicists who specialize in different media, like podcasts or network TV.

Depending on what you are trying to achieve, a publicist with a specific niche can be very valuable.

With a publicist, you will get some interviews.

It might be one, or a few, and it might take several months of working with them and paying their monthly retainers or fees, but you will almost certainly get some interviews.

But they can’t guarantee interviews. They can only guarantee reaching out to media contacts – maybe it’s a certain number of pitches, or a certain number of hours worked.

And as we will talk about next week, the interviews they get you might not be that helpful for your business. Sometimes they are. Sometimes they aren’t.

With a publicist, you won’t have to do any of the work.

This is probably the biggest reason physicians use publicists (and most other busy experts too). We don’t have the time to find people in the media to reach out to. We don’t have time to pitch and ask for the interviews and to follow up when we don’t hear back. So, we hire a publicist who will do all the work for you.

Well, that’s not exactly true. You won’t have to do any of the work pitching. But remember, they aren’t doctors, or lawyers or whatever type of expert you are. They are publicists.

They can present you as an expert on a topic, but they will rely on you to provide them information they can use in their pitch. There will be a lot more time than you expect talking to them and answering whether a particular topic is one you are comfortable discussing on TV. They will want bullet points about that topic for the actual pitch.

Yes, they will be the ones taking the time crafting the wording of the pitch and sending it out, but you will be involved in it to make it appealing (or at least you should be). So, you will still be spending time here.

Publicists can help you perform well in the interview.

They want you to be great, if for no other reason than your success helps them create relationships with those media contacts. If you are great in that interview, they assume that other experts referred by that publicist will be great too.

So they want you to do well. They will – or at least they should – take the time to help you learn the basics of great media interviews. Teaching you things like:

• How to look good on TV
• Creating your message
• Creating take-home points or action steps for the audience
• How long your answers should be
• Gestures and body posture
• Where to look, how to act and so much more

Work with me to become a MEDIA PRO

One of the things I do with the clients I work with one-on-one is that you and I decide if a publicist is right for you and for promoting your business. If it is, we look into what type of publicist might be best. If it isn’t for you, we work together to find the right media outlets for you, identify media people who could use an expert like you, pitch those media contacts, and then prepare for that interview so you can attract potential patients, clients and customers and so those media people ask you back again and again.

Now please remember, that just like my website, my coaching and everywhere else, that I am not giving business, financial, legal, medical or any other kind of advice here. Talk to a professional for advice specific to your situation.

If you want to learn more…if you want more customers, more clients, more patients, you want to make more money, you want to be recognized as THE expert in your industry, or you even want people you don’t even know to come up to you at the gym or in the grocery store, thanking you for helping them, I can help you become a Media PRO.

Sign up for a FREE 30-minute media strategy session with me. We will see where you are and what you’re trying to achieve in your business, and then plan some strategies for you to get more media interviews and appearances to achieve all those goals and far more.

While you’re here, pick up my FREE eBook – The Media PROS Interview Checklist, offering you a handy reference full of tips to shine in your next media interview or appearance so they keep asking you back, over and over