Guest Post: Another HARO success story

We're big fans of Peter Shankman's Help a Reporter Out (HARO) mailing list here at the Marketing Mix blog. Previous guest poster and NYC-based feng shui consultant Ann Bingley Gallops is, too. Check out her latest experience with the list, and how she addressed the reporter in question to maximize her chances of becoming a journalist's resource.

I am on Peter Shankman’s Help a Reporter Out (HARO) mailing list. One of last Monday's editions (editrix's note: HARO goes out three times daily) contained the following query:

"I need an expert in the field of Feng Shui to speak about how harmonizing your bedroom/house will help relationship dynamics. This article will be posted on Beauty News NYC, an online beauty publication with over 400,000 unique visitors monthly. This is an opportunity to promote yourself as an expert. High resolution photo needed.”

I responded immediately with the following email:

"I am a Feng Shui expert here in NYC and have just given an entire workshop on this very topic, Feng Shui in the Bedroom.  In Feng Shui, the bedroom is one of the top three most important areas in any home. I love to talk about it because there are so many things people can do with Feng Shui to enhance their love lives in the bedroom."

I signed off with contact information and a link so that the reporter could check out my credentials.

The result? The reporter contacted me immediately to ask about my background and experience, and out of over 30 respondents to her query, she chose me for her piece. She told me that unlike the other responses she received, mine was "the most sincere". I interviewed with her the next morning and will be going to her home for a sample Feng Shui consultation. The results will appear on BeautyNewsNYC.com throughout the month of December. 

What did I learn? That “Be Yourself” applies in the field of media relations just as it does in so many parts of business life. This reporter didn’t want to hear about all the credentials I’ve accumulated until she was convinced that I was passionate about what I do.

Comments

[Julia Reich]

I learned about HARO from MM...I think its great...and also have a success story: Donna Amos just launched solopreneurs.org (the members-only site for the Int'l Assoc of Solopreneurs), and was looking for solopreneurs and small biz owners to interview for the site launch.

I felt I had an interesting story to tell, since I recently moved my graphic design business from NYC to a barn on my property in rural NY state. In the interview with Donna I discussed the challenges of making such a radical change, but also my more general story of evolving form freelance graphic designer, working out of my bedroom, to small business owner.

The interview was featured on the site on 11/11/08 but was only available to the general public for 24 hours before it became members-only access.

Now Donna has asked me if I'd like to conduct a teleconference, where people can phone in and we can discuss some of these same topics, but in real time, with a back and forth conversation. Here's the info (and it is open to anybody, not just members):
If you want to join us:
Thursday, November 20 at 3pm EST
Dial in: 1(605)-475-6190
Access code: 443728#

This has been and continues to be a great opportunity for me and my business.

Thank you for letting us know about it, and thank you for an always interesting & relevant blog/e-newsletter!

Julia Reich
Julia Reich Design