Rembrandt's PR and Writing Blog for Startup Success - Interview with Betsy Cummings

As an award-winning business reporter, Betsy Cummings writes for The New York Times, AdWeek, SmartMoney, and other business magazines. Recently, I asked her for her insights on pitching stories to reporters, and here are her comments:

What is your pet peeve when it comes to dealing with publicists?
Promising a source to a journalist and then not being able to deliver that source for the interview or having the source back out at the last minute.

What is the best way to pitch a story to you?
Include lots of statistics, studies and trends in the pitch. And put the information in bulleted points rather than in a long narrative.

What news items are you interested in writing about?
Features on companies; anything that’s unusual—a quirky business story, a strange trend in the marketplace, etc.

Tell us about your books and why you decided to write them.
I wrote “How to Find a Job After 50: From Part-Time to Full-Time, From Career Moves to New Careers” and “Real World Careers: Why College Is Not the Only Path to Becoming Rich.” Both books I wrote after writing articles in the New York Times Business Section about careers and the workplace.

It was apparent to me that there were an abundance of opportunities for workers who might consider themselves less desirable job applicants. I think it’s important to get the word out that the American workplace is changing so drastically these days that almost anyone and everyone can forge a robust career path, regardless of education and previous work experience, if they employ the proper tools and steps to make it happen. The examples in these books are evidence that finding your ideal job regardless of background is possible.

How did you publicize your books?
I conducted a series of radio and print interviews mostly, to get the word out about the books upon their release.

What advice do you have for entrepreneurs who want to get their news in the media or authors who want to publicize their books?
I would suggest trying to get the word out anywhere and everywhere—blogs, interviews, a web site for the book. I think one of the best ways to get coverage is to offer yourself as an expert on the topic of your book and be open to being interviewed by any type of media.

Hopefully, these tips will help you with your publicity efforts. And if you'd like to read more about Betsy's books, please click here. Check back this Wednesday for more PR tips to help your business grow.

In the meantime, if you have any questions or comments, please let me know here or at www.rembrandtwrites.com where I provide free tips and information to entrepreneurs. I'd love to hear from you. Thanks!