You want publicity? Here's some advice

Having been inside the belly of the whale called journalism, plenty of people ask me how they can get publicity for their churches, theater companies, businesses, etc.

It can be done. The thing to remember is that a news editor is actually looking for stories. The same is true for bloggers. Coal needs to be shoveled into the furnace all the time for the Titanic to keep steaming toward the iceberg.

It all comes down to writing an effective press release. I've seen plenty, most of them pretty bad. If you want your story printed, there are a few things you can do. This applies to e-mail or snail mail.

Contact information: Put your name, title and phone number at the top, so that the reporter or editor knows who to call.

Headline: Why should the reader be interested? It may be the most interesting thing in the world to you, but people (and editors are people, my friend) have lots of things competing for their attention. What makes you so newsworthy?

Copy: Spell out the who, what, when, where and why. Make it read as much like a news story as possible. Quote members of your organization, but do not quote yourself (big turn-off). Keep it short and simple. One page is better than two.

Avoid these phrases:

First Annual. If you're back for an encore you can say "second annual," but no self-respecting editor is going to allow "first annual" into print, and you're going to get demerits for using it.

Proudly Presents. As opposed to what, "reluctantly presents" or "half-heartedly presents"?

Breakthrough, Unique, State of the Art, etc. Let the editor be the judge of how epic your news is.

Don't be bashful about sending your news to me. Even if it's only a couple of sentences, I will give it my attention and if I think it's worth readers' attention you'll see it here. If you write long, don't be hurt if your golden prose gets reduced to three or four paragraphs. Most people read only three or four paragraphs before they move on. I suspect many already have with this piece.

One last thing. If you want your press release to look really old school and impressive, at the bottom of the last page use this:

-30-

Carl's Jr. plans to open in Idaho Falls by Dec. 31

A spokeswoman for the company that owns Hardee’s and Carl’s Jr., confirmed today that they hope to have the first Carl’s Jr. in Idaho Falls open by New Year’s Day.
“Our opening date has been shifting, but one should be opening by the end of this month,” said Kelly Grieve of CKE Enterprises, Inc.

Look at that juicy Carl's Jr. Burger.

There are two Carl’s Jr. locations planned for Idaho Falls, one on 17^th Street, where Schlotsky’s Deli used to be, and the other at the corner of North Holmes and Yellowstone Avenue, near Wendy’s. Judging by the progress at both sites (the North Holmes restaurant is being built from the ground up), it’s safe to predict that the 17^th Street location will open first.

Carl's Jr. has 11 locations in Idaho, most of them in the Boise area, the nearest one in Twin Falls. Its corporate office is located in Carpenteria, Calif. The chain dates back to 1941, when Carl N. Karcher and his wife, Margaret, borrowed $311 on their Plymouth and added their $15 in savings to buy a hot dog cart. Today, there are more than 1,200 Carl's Jr. restaurants, most in the West and Southwest.

Building a better blog

After three months, BizMojo Idaho had its biggest day Wednesday with nearly twice the number of visitors as our previous high. Drilling down, the numbers say it was the Chick-fil-A post and photo, which went straight to Facebook and got shared a lot from there. Always fun to have a scoop.

Of course the big challenge is keeping the momentum going. I could look at my analytics tomorrow and find out I had 17 visits. Twenty-five years in the newspaper business taught me that if you don't have something every day to get readers' attention you're going to be forgotten about very quickly. I think the Web is an even more extreme environment.

Here is a link sent to me by Jared Fowler of Novayx, talking about what it takes to build traffic. Whether or not you're a blogger, you might find it interesting.  I did.
http://raventools.com/blog/lendio-business-loans-blog-strategy/

Riverbend adds three new local talk radio shows

Riverbend Communications has added three new local talk shows to its daily lineup on Newstalk 690 and 1260. Idaho’s Morning News with Tim Lewis is now airing Monday through Friday from 6 to 9 a.m.

Hosted by News Program Director Tim Lewis, the show aims to cover anything relevant to eastern Idaho residents: news, weather, traffic and road conditions, sports and entertainment.

Riverbend Communications has brought in Carissa Coats, former managing editor of Local News 8, to host Idaho’s Midday News each day from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Mark Richardson, longtime host with his father, Mel Richardson, and a fixture in Idaho radio, anchors Idaho’s Afternoon News from 4 to 6 p.m. Additionally, he is hosting a weekend edition of  “Probing America” on Saturdays from 8 a.m. to 10 a.m.

All three hosts intend to be live, local and more than just politics, bringing an up-to-the moment feel and sound to east Idaho radio. Riverbend is also addding more in-depth coverage and local and community news to the Web, on http://www.eastidahonews.com/.

Riverbend Communications also owns Classy 97/KLCE-FM; Z103/KFTZ-FM; K-Bear 101/KCVI-FM; and 105-5 The Hawk/KTHK-FM.

Crowd assembles at Ammon Chick-fil-A

Your huddled masses, yearning to consume. ... the scene Wednesday morning at the Ammon Chick-fil-A on Hitt Road, which opens Thursday.

The doors of the Ammon Chick-fil-A, at 3003 S. 25^th East, don't open until Thursday, but more than 75 people had already lined up by 6:30 a.m. today despite the single digit temperatures.

The first 100 adults in line when the restaurant opens around 6 a.m. Thursday will win free Chick-fil-A for a year -- 52 coupons, each good for a Chick-fil-A meal (sandwich, fries and drink). The coupons can be used at any Chick-fil-A in the country and can be given to anyone. Many who win the tickets share them with family, friends or donate them to little league teams, civic groups or others who could benefit from free meals, Chick-fil-A spokeswoman Cindy Chapman said.

Today's group includes several people who have participated across the country, including one man from Florida who has been to more than 70 grand openings and two teachers who are skipping school to participate.

Registration has begun and once it’s complete the parking lot will be transformed into an overnight celebration. Chick-fil-A will provide entertainment, security, restrooms and, of course, plenty of food during the countdown. A DJ will be on hand between 1 and 4 p.m. to provide games and music. Later, campers will enjoy Chick-fil-A for dinner and have a chance to watch “The Polar Express” on an outdoor screen before a late-night Chicken Soup party.

The restaurant, in the Teton Spectrum parking lot, is expected to bring with it more than 65 new jobs.