As a business owner, you’ve probably heard that media exposure can help your company greatly, especially during tough economic times when integrated marketing communications and PR budgets are low and competition is high. The truth is, learning to leverage the power of the media as part of an integrated marketing communications plan can help you stand out from the competition without expending your resources, asserts Pam Lontos, president of Orlando-based PR/PR and the author of I See Your Name Everywhere.

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If you’re inexperienced in dealing with editors or reporters, you might feel intimidated. But you don’t have to be famous to approach the media, Lontos says. Media professionals, like everyone else, gravitate toward someone with whom they enjoy talking. Lontos offers these ideas to help you relax and make sure editors and reporters accept your articles, book you as a guest on shows, or interview you for pieces they are writing or videotaping:

• Become familiar with the journalists you would like to cultivate relationships with. Follow their work, and let them know when you enjoy something they have written. Comment on something specific. Watch the TV show. Read the magazine, newspaper, or blog. Familiarize yourself with the content. Once you become familiar with the audience, you will understand what they want. That will allow you to tailor your content, making it more valuable to the reporter or editor. Providing great content is the best way to motivate reporters to contact you in the future.

• Be observant during conversations, and pick up on personal details. If the reporter is heading out the door to pick up children from soccer, make a note of it. Remember to ask about their kids’ progress the next time you call. Also, be on the lookout for items of interest to a soccer parent. You can email or mail the reporter a parenting article about involving children in sporting activities, for example. The reporter will appreciate your thoughtfulness.

• Send good ideas. Reporters and editors spend much of their time generating ideas for stories. When you’re engaged in conversation, remember to bring up the topics they like to talk about. In a similar vein, if you see a subject come up in the news that you know will be of interest to a reporter, copy and send it to him or her.

• Don’t let months pass without contact. Send birthday or holiday cards to keep the relationship going. They will get the message that you’re thinking about them as people, not just using them for your own narrow purposes. The goal is relationship building.

• When you are interviewed, give good quotes. Strive for simple, declarative sentences. Use concrete images. Answer the question. Don’t go off on tangents that interest you. Remember, the reporter is working hard to gain the knowledge he or she needs to write a good story.

• Be enthusiastic on the phone. Even if you’re not doing an interview for broadcast, the reporter will appreciate your passion for the subject. If you’ve written a book on the subject, offer to send it. At the end of an interview, ask about other stories the reporter is currently covering. Explain how you may be able to contribute and offer a unique angle that may be of interest to their audience.

• Maintain your relationships. Again, thoughtfulness is the key. Sometimes a reporter will call you as a source, but you just aren’t right for that particular subject matter. You can still be helpful by suggesting another person to call or providing another source of information.

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