You Could Be Getting Press 3 Different Ways—Without a Publicist
The 3 proven strategies I use to get founders and business owners into outlets like Business Insider, Fast Company, Forbes, TODAY, and more.
If you’re reading this, I’m going to assume you already know you want to be featured in the press.
You want your name or your business name on Business Insider; you want to be quoted on Forbes, you understand how press coverage can actually change your business.
… and how the little “As Seen In” section on your website makes you look instantly more credible.
Cool. We’re on the same page.
But here’s where things get a little murky for founders / business owners / experts.
They get stuck because they think getting press means waiting for a journalist to write a big front-page story about their business.
And listen, I hate to break it to you, but that’s going to be reeeall difficult. I’ve spent enough time as a publicist and as an editor-in-chief, to tell you you’ll probably need a publicist for that. And even then…
BUT it doesn’t mean you don’t have an incredible story that’s absolutely worth sharing.
It just means it usually takes people years to get the cover, the front page, or the interview feature.
BUT more importantly, that’s not the ONLY way to be featured in the press.
There’s actually other ways you can say “featured in Forbes” without needing Forbes to write an article about you.
A lot of business owners haven’t yet used these approaches the right way but there are 3 ways I want you to think about getting yourself into the press:
1. THE BYLINE
Instead of waiting for a journalist to decide you’re interesting enough to write about...
Write the story yourself.
Every week since you’ve been subscribed to this newsletter you’ve seen how there are over a dozen editors looking for new pitches.
A lot of these editors want a good story. It doesn’t matter if you’re a trained writer, doesn’t matter if you haven’t been published in the past. If you have a good story, they will work with you.
So here’s what you do if you’re a business owner: pitch your expertise to publications that accept contributed pieces.
This is the easiest and most underused way you can be featured in the press as a small business owners.
The trick is you don’t want to pitch your business or what you do. You want to pitch an interesting story related to your business but not the business itself.
And if you’re like “what interesting story can I pitch?!” I’m going to answer that for you at the end but first,
Here’s an example:
Here’s another example (bragging rights because this is a win from a genius client of mine):
And yes, many publications actually pay contributors for this.
So you’re not just getting exposure; you’re getting your ideas in front of someone else’s audience. And the effect is the same as having a writer write about you (still get the credibility, audience reach, and you can still say you’ve been featured in Fast Company).
2. THE QUOTE
This one is probably the easiest place to start.
Journalists are already writing stories and they need experts like you to answer their questions.
They need someone who can say, “Here’s what’s actually happening here.”
You just need to know where they’re looking and how to get yourself into the conversation. (AKA be signed up to this newsletter).
But the trick is to give them something actually useful that hasn’t been said before.
The benefit of getting quoted in an article is you can use it as credibility in your website, sales pages, media kits, speaking kits, etc.
You have actually third-party authority from a journalists saying “this person knows what she’s talking about.”
3. THE NEWSJACK
This is where things get fun (my fave strategy to talk about).
At any point in the news cycle there will be some celebrity doing something wild, some viral kissing story like the Coldplay kiss-cam situation, or an entrepreneur who said something that people have strong opinions about (think: Emma Grede on being a 3-hour mom).
Everyone starts talking about the same thing on social media.
That’s your opening because right after that…
Editors start looking for opinions, hot takes, and responses to whatever that thing is... and they want them fast, before people move on to the next thing.
I’m going to use Emrata’s “The Cut” essay as an example.
She published this:
People shared their opinions:
BUT here’s where you come in.
(Btw, this is what happens every time something controversial creates a big wave and people have opinions about it—it’s not exclusive to Emrata’s essay.)
You can use these moments to get press features by connecting the story back to what you do.
What it looks like in practice:
→ A dating coach gets quoted in an article about modern relationships.
→ A therapist gets tapped for commentary on attachment styles.
→ A single mom writes an essay on why she agrees or disagrees. (Like the screenshot in this post).
You don’t need to wait for a journalist to come find you. You can see the opening and pitch yourself into it.
Speed matters with this specific strategy.
Want me to walk you through ALL of it, step by step? 💌
WHAT DO I ACTUALLY SEND?
WHO DO I SEND IT TO?
WHEN DO I SEND IT?
WHAT STORY SHOULD I PITCH?
AND HOW DO I KNOW IF THEY’LL EVEN CARE?
I’m breaking allll of this down for you in The Pitching Challenge which is now OPEN.
It’s a 30-day, done-with-you system where I’m going to walk you through the three proven ways to pitch yourself.
But here’s the important part:
This is not another course you’re going to buy and forget exists… because this is not a course.
We’re actually going to DO the work and you will actually be sending pitches.
Also, this is not another challenge where the host sells you the challenge and you never see them again… I’m the host and I’m going to be very very very present for you through the entire thing.
You’ll get:
→ Daily 10-minute lessons Monday-Friday
→ Weekly live calls + Q&As with me
→ A private community for accountability and pitching feedback
→ Curated pitch opportunities every week
→ A repeatable system you can use long after the challenge ends
→ Access to journalist contact information
→ And, most importantly, a reason to actually sit down and pitch yourself instead of adding “get more press” to your goals for the 47th time
Here’s what I don’t want you doing (because I can already hear you):
Waiting until you have a publicist budget.
Waiting until your business is “big enough.”
Waiting until you feel like enough of an expert.
You’re already good. You already have a story.
You just need to know how to get it in front of the right people.
🙌🏼 THIS IS FOR YOU IF...
You have a business and know who you serve.
You have expertise people would actually find useful.
You’ve been thinking, “I really should get more press,” but have absolutely no idea where to start.
You’ve pitched before and gotten crickets.
You want credibility that goes beyond posting on social media.
You want to learn how to pitch yourself instead of paying someone thousands of dollars a month to do it for you.
And you’re willing to spend 15–30 minutes a day actually doing the work alongside a community (and yours truly!).
Substack-only perk: The first 5 subscribers to join can use code SUBSTACK for a special price. Once the first 5 spots are gone, the offer disappears.
We start September 1.
If you’ve been telling yourself you need more visibility, more credibility, more authority, more people to know who the hell you are...
👉 Join The Pitching Challenge here.
See you inside!!! Let’s get this press.
xx,
Suanny