Dan Janal

What To Do When Your Book Launch Falls on Inauguration Day – and Other Tips

December 17, 2020 by Lisa Tener

Yes, we’ve been planning on January 20, 2021 for my book launch for The Joy of Writing Journal, and my friend Portland Helmich asked, “Isn’t that the Inauguration?” It is.

So, here’s what you do when book launch falls on Inauguration Day. You reschedule it. Do you push yourself to get those videos filmed and edited, the emails written and sent, the guest blog posts written, yada yada…a week early? Do you push the date a week later and let go of the new year, new you, self-improvement angle?

Here’s what you don’t do:

You tell yourself, “it’s going to be okay. The universe has my back. This will all work out in the end.” And you take a deep breath. Then you look at everything you have to do and you “reverse engineer” as my friend and colleague Kristin Meekhof says.

You and your team ask some more questions, “Can we make a tighter deadline? What will we let go of to make it happen? Or should we let go of the New Years Intentions PR angle and slide to a later date? After all, we could use the extra time to set up additional opportunities.”

The jury is still out on this one and I’d love your input as I plan to make a firm decision by Friday.

Lisa’s Book Launch Tips

Lisa Tener, book coach, launches her new book in January — Lisa

And here are my book launch tips, so far. More to come, for sure:

Breathe. You’re going to make mistakes. When you relax, you can find better, more creative solutions than if you stress out. If you’re still stressed, journal about it. The research says that journaling relieves stress and helps you access your creativity!
Google the date you’re planning for your book launch to make sure it’s not an important holiday or event. No, my at-a-glance calendar did not mention the Inauguration. And yes, I am a dinosaur who still uses a date book!
Assemble a great team. If it’s just you, it’s going to be harder to weather the challenges that come up during a book launch. If you have a team surrounding you, their support will help you access creative solutions and get the extra work done if you hit any snags. I’m lucky in that department!
Order Advance Review Copies to send to the media before your book is available for purchase. It’s a little trick, because if you’re publishing with KDP (Amazon), which has some marketing advantages on Amazon, you can only order 5 proofs at a time. So my assistant Geri Lafferty, found an outfit called 48 Hour Books and they are printing the advance review copies for my most urgent media pitches.
Change up your media questions: Here’s my confession: My friend and colleague, Dan Janal, offered to interview me about The Joy of Writing Journal and the benefits of journaling for his excellent podcast (now on Audible—congrats, Dan). At the eleventh hour, I realized I needed a whole new set of questions for this new angle on creativity and Dan helped me prepare for his own podcast! Don’t wait. If you’ve been guest podcasting or doing media interviews for a while, don’t assume this will be the same. Ask yourself whether your book invites new questions and a different focus from before. Then, prepare and practice.

And the final lesson for today:

There are more lessons but lesson 6 trumps anything beyond it:

6. Get a good night’s sleep! I know I’ll be fresher to deal with the next set of challenges in preparing for a book launch if I go to bed on time! Good night. And good luck.

Please share your own book launch tips and questions as comments below. Thanks!

Book Publicity Advice from PR Guru Dan Janal

July 23, 2012 by Lisa Tener

Lisa: How has the internet changed how we publicize books and reach the media with our message?

Dan: There are many more ways to reach your audience because of the Internet. In the old days, you had to pitch reporters at traditional media outlets and hope they wrote about you. You still need to do that, but you have so many other ways to reach your audience with bloggers, social media, articles and press releases. Also a reporter today has more options to write about books. In the past, they might have a limited amount of space in the print publication. But today, she can write her story, add a blog post and perhaps even do a podcast of video chat with the author.

Lisa: How are press releases working differently from in the past?

Dan: Press releases can still get the attention of reporters and get them to write news articles and features about the author, or prompt them to write about the book and do reviews. However, press releases aren’t just for reporters any longer. Search engines will index press releases from you website or if you use legitimate press release distribution services like PR Newswire or PR WEB. That opens up all sorts of possibilities of being found on search engines. We frequently get our clients listed on page one of Google for key search terms because of this tactic through Press Release Sender. My earlier interview with you offers more details.

Lisa: Can you say a bit about PR Leads (what it is and how it’s different from the free services out there?

Dan: With ProfNet, PR LEADS started the whole idea of matching reporters and authors. For many years we were the only game in town and our clients got fantastic results in top tier media. Now there are several competitors. We’re still the best because we charge for our service. That means we get a higher level of expert and authors. Reporters realize that difference, so we get top tier reporters using our service. We’ve had clients who used the other services and they return to PRLEADS because of the quality and the likelihood they will get quoted more often because they aren’t competing with 500 other people.

Also, we’re the only service that actually provides training and support. I personally review any message my clients want feedback on. I also provide telephone training. Our clients get a comprehensive 90-day training system that is all part of the service – no extra fees.

Lisa: I had a client who had never responded to a reporter query before joining PR Leads. Your training made him an expert and his platform is so impressive that a major publisher just asked him about writing a book for them! Dan, what’s your advice on responding to reporter queries? How to be effective?

Dan: Offer 2-3 tips that are 2-3 sentences long. That way reporters can copy and paste your info into their articles. It saves them time and makes you stand out. I share about 100 other tips in my book, “Reporters Are Looking for YOU!” I priced it at only $10 so it is affordable for anyone – even people who use free services!

Lisa: Any pitfalls to avoid in responding to reporter queries?

Dan: Not really. Reporters aren’t out to “get you” as some people might think. They just want good, unique answers to their questions. If you don’t have anything to say on point, then you probably shouldn’t waste your time or the reporter’s time. Being a pest would be a pitfall.

Lisa: Any other advice for authors in growing their platforms before book launch or promoting their books?

Dan: Make sure you know your book’s hook. I’ve heard too many authors talk for four minutes and not say anything about the topic. They’ll tell you how hard they worked and who’s publishing it and the problems they had. But they didn’t tell you if it is about leadership, romance or self-help! They don’t see the forest for the trees.

Dan Janal is one of the Founding Fathers and thought leaders of Internet Publicity. His latest book is “Reporters Are Looking for YOU!” Go to PR LEADS for more information on this fast, easy, economical way for small businesses and authors to get publicity in major media. Note: I am proud to be an affiliate of PR Leads and do receive a commission on sales.

Press Releases Get New Life: An Interview with Dan Janal

December 7, 2010 by Lisa Tener

head on hands on books — Your Book Writing Coach

The biggest challenge for most new authors who aspire to be picked up by a traditional publisher is to develop a large enough following. Several of my clients have recently signed contracts with literary agents or publishers had to develop their “author platform” first.

Recently, I spoke to Dan Janal, founder of PR Leads Plus which helps authors, speakers, coaches and small businesses get publicity with do-it-yourself tools and done-for-you-services. Dan told me he’s using press releases in all kinds of creative ways–and not just for traditional publicity. It helps your website’s ranking with search engines, for instance.

I’ll be interviewing Dan on December 9 at 1:00 pm eastern time on How to Get Publicity on Major Media Websites to get more qualified prospects to visit your site. This will help you whether you’re building your following before writing the book and getting a publishing deal or if you already have books to sell.

I’ve asked Dan to share a little more about the power of press releases with us on this blog.

Lisa: How have press releases changed with the Internet?

Dan: In the old days, you sent press releases to reporters and, if they acted, great. If they didn’t, you were out luck. That happened all the time, since so many people fought for limited space in the media. Now, with Internet being the world’s largest printing press, media sites want press releases and they have lots of room to print them. Search engines index press releases and consumers read press releases they find via the search engines and via your site. It’s a lot easier to get your message read by consumers if you write and send press releases.

Lisa: How are authors and aspiring authors using press releases differently than in the past?

Dan: They’re using press releases to get more prospects directly by using search engine optimization tactics.

Lisa: How do press releases help with search engine optimization and getting more traffic to your website?

Dan: You can’t get prospects if people can’t find you. Fortunately, people do go to Google to find people just like you, books just like yours and advice just like your have to offer. The question is, “Will they find you?”

If your press releases are posted on major media web sites, there’s a better chance you’ll be found. That’s because Google loves links. You probably know that. But not all links are treated the same. A link from my site or Lisa’s site is nice, but a link from the Boston Business Journal is worth a lot more in the eyes of Google. When you write a press release with SEO tactics in mind, you stand a better chance of being found and making your dreams come true.

Lisa: Can you give an example of a press release that helped an author sell more books and led to additional opportunities?

Dan: Nancy Juetten, author of Bye Bye Boring Bio, wrote a press release about her book. We got it printed on at least 40 media web sites.

Reporters called her and wanted to interview her and bye bye boring bio review her book. I don’t know if that happens to everyone, but I’d consider that the icing on the cake.

She took the credibility of those media placements and pitched herself as a guest expert on Rain Today, which is a very big and popular site for professional services companies. She got on the teleseminar and was able to pitch her book there. All in all she said this was the best PR move she made this year and her book sales were strong.

Lisa: How do you write a good press release to show up high in the search engines?

Dan: I’ll share several tips during our teleseminar. Here’s one: Use the most popular keywords for your topic in the headline and first paragraph so the search engines know how to index your press release.

Lisa: Any other tips on Search Engine Optimization? [getting search engines to put your site up high in their search results]

Dan: Yes. Put links to your website in the press release. You can provide several links, so I’d suggest you do that. Put a link to your home page, your book sales page and your squeeze page [the page from which you’re selling something]. That formula should work for most people. If your book is already published, you can add a link to your Amazon sales page.

Lisa: I love how Nancy used her press release. Can you say a little more about how authors and entrepreneurs can use their press release once it’s posted?

Dan: Here are three ways:

1. Tweet a link to the article. I do this for my clients, when they tell me about publicity they get via PR LEADS. I use a provocative title to get attention. For example: Need writing tips for a job application? @prleads client Diane L Samuels gets publicity on Monster.com http://ow.ly/2tGcI

The keyword “publicity” makes sure that people searching for “publicity” on Twitter will see this. Use the hashtag function (#) with your particular keywords.

2. Post the link on your Linked In profile and relevant groups on Linked In: Don’t say “I’m quoted here. ” Tell people what they can learn by reading the article.

3. Send the link and article to your prospects, clients and followers via email.

Daniel Janal is an internationally-recognized speaker, Internet marketer and best-selling author. He has written six books for John Wiley and those books have been translated into six languages.

A former public relations executive, Dan Janal was on the PR team that launched America Online and personally directed the PR launch of Grolier’s Electronic Encyclopedia, the first consumer software program ever produced on a CD-ROM.

Join me on Dec. 9 at 1:00pm Eastern when I interview Dan about How to Get Publicity on Major Media Websites.

How to Get Reporters to Quote You

May 28, 2010 by Lisa Tener

A good number of my clients come to me with amazing credentials and great ideas, but little platform–they often don’t have a huge mailing list. They don’t necessarily speak to thousands of people dozens of times a year. And they haven’t been on Oprah…yet (a few of my clients have been–but not the majority!).

If they’re looking for a traditional publisher, I often suggest they sign up for the reporter queries on PR Leads and helpareporter (also known as HARO). As more people find out about help a reporter, it’s gotten doggone competitive to be chosen as the expert the reporter quotes in their article.

My client, Dr. Craig Malkin has a 75% success rate with the responses he’s sent through queries from PR Leads and HARO. Before I suggested these do-it-yourself PR methods, he’d never had a stitch of publicity. On his first query, he ended up quoted in Match.com’s Happen Magazine online. Not bad for a rookie.

How does he do it? I interviewed Craig to find out his secrets.

Book writing coach (aka me): What do you do when you respond to a PR Leads or HARO query? What goes through your mind in terms of how to present your information?

Craig: I spend time with each query to make sure I’m absolutely clear about what the journalist is asking for. Then, I try to think like a reporter.

What quote would make the story stand out? Is there a new spin on old information that could make the idea more interesting? I try hard to come up with tips if I can, because journalists absolutely love them.

I make sure I’m packaging facts in a compelling way, and I always try to craft at least one catchy sound bite. Journalists have precious little time, so I know my best shot is to give them something that’s extremely easy to use.

When it comes to being quoted, less is always more (case in point). If I know, for example, that research proves we can be affected by our friends’ moods, I might say something like, “Depression is contagious.”

I’m not famous (yet), so I want to make it painful for reporters to delete my e-mail; I figure they’ll take a snappy quote from an unknown expert over a flat one from a celebrity any day, because they want their story to stand out.

It works most of the time.

Book Writing Coach: Do you start by saying who you are or by answering the question/query?

Craig: I always use the same formula, recommended by Dan Janal of PR Leads

1. Who I am (including media experience)

2. What I have to say (the quotes)

3. How to reach me

Book Writing Coach: How much info do you give? Do you often give more than one answer or tip?

Craig: I let inspiration dictate how much I write. If I’m being asked for tips, I always send a minimum of four. Don’t be afraid to send more (as long as they’re short), but bear in mind, if you send too much, reporters will probably get overwhelmed and skip even the best quotes.

Book Writing Coach: How do you make it visually easy to read?

Craig: I put my best quotes in italics and a different color. Often they have only a minute to look through hundreds of e-mails, so you want your best stuff to stand out. I also break the e-mail into three to four very short sections.

Book Writing Coach: Can you give an example of a query you responded to for a national website, magazine or newspaper and what you said that grabbed the journalist’s attention?

Craig: Here’s one that landed me an interview with Marie Claire. You’ll notice it’s extremely brief, with a few lines set off in blue italics.

___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

My name is Craig Malkin. I’m a clinical psychologist who taught and trained at Harvard Medical School. I’m currently writing a book about how we control attraction.

Despite the saying about absence making the heart grow fonder, distance rarely cranks up the heat. Don’t count on the strength of your love, alone, to keep you connected. If you can’t rely on seeing each other, you have to work to keep the connection alive in other ways.

When you’re away from one another, exciting, new people and experiences may be a dime a dozen. You’ll need to preserve some excitement with your partner if you want your relationship to compete with all that novelty.

Schedule regular phone calls, IM, or text check-ins that both of you can look forward to and expect. It doesn’t have to be daily, but it should be scheduled, to ensure that it happens—and more than once a week. If you enjoy spicing things up with sexy notes or creative video chat—even better. Exciting experiences strengthen attraction.

If either of you feels reluctant to schedule times to connect—with or without the spice—consider taking a break. You’re going to have hard time keeping up the connection without these moments together—and that leaves a lot of room for destructive insecurity and jealousy.

_________________________________________________________________________

Book Writing Coach: Wow, that’s a superb query. Catchy soundbites, but it’s substance, not fluff. What’s some of the biggest publicity you’ve gotten through HARO or PR Leads?

Craig: I’ve been quoted and interviewed twice for Match.com’s, Happen. I’ve also been interviewed and quoted by Marie Claire, The Atlanta Journal Constitution and, in December, I’m slated to appear in Women’s World. I’ve also almost landed a quote in Woman’s World twice—as a result of which I made a connection with a reporter who liked me enough to agree to be mentioned in my book proposal as a media connection.

Book Writing Coach: Any words of caution….something to be aware of?

Craig: Do your research before you respond. I learned that lesson the hard way. In one case, a reporter copied every thing I wrote and passed it off as her own. In another, I was all set for a pod-cast interview, and first the guy forgot the time, then he kept interrupting me because he wanted to hear different answers. Try to get a sense of who you’re talking to if it’s not a big name media outlet. At least do a Google search.

Book Writing Coach: Thank you, Craig.

And, dear Reader, do you have any tips or secrets to share that helped you get quoted or featured in a magazine, newspaper or online article? Please comment and share your tips, as well as your questions. Craig and I are both happy to respond.

Celebrate Your Accomplishments

December 29, 2009 by Lisa Tener

My very first coach, Wendy Keilin, taught me to end the year by celebrating the year’s accomplishments. It’s so easy to look ahead and make some crazy list of the 5 million things you plan to accomplish in 2010. You can do that.

Just, first, take a deep breath and enjoy all the gifts of the past year. Let’s start with work and purpose:

– What are you proud of doing or accomplishing in 2009?

– Did you make any improvements to your business or work life?

– Did you take any steps, however small, to make your dreams come true?

– Was it fun?

And how about your personal life?

– Did you grow in any ways?

– Experience new insights?

– Enjoy yourself?

Make a list of achievements and joys. Add everything that happened you’re grateful for. Read your list to a friend. Or sing your list as a prayer of thanks. Hang it on your fridge or keep the list by your bed and read it for the next three mornings. Revel in your list. Thoroughly enjoy it.

And on the 31st you can create your inspiring to-do list. But here’s a tip from another coach of mine, Morgana Rae: Break up your goals by the quarter that you will do them and don’t have more than 3 projects/goals in each quarter.

I did that with Morgana this year and I can’t tell you how freeing it is. I’m used to a very long goal list and I realized I’m just setting myself up to fail somewhere if there are too many things on the list. My new list is much more do-able.

Morgana also happened to introduce me to an interesting blog post by Ton Pascal that suggest that astrologically, this December 31 will be a particularly powerful time to set intentions for the next two and a half years. He even suggests a wonderful ritual for releasing the old and embracing your new intentions.

Is writing your book on your list? If so, you’ll want to join me for one or more of these upcoming free teleseminars:

Friday, January 22 at 12:15 Eastern join me for a 45 minute teleseminar to help you Bring Your Book to Life where Patty Saddallah of the Redwood Sisterhood will interview me on the secrets to start and complete your book. I’ll also share how to find and make the time to write your book and information on how to decide whether to self publish or look for a traditional publisher. Sign up here.

Or mark your calendar for January 13, where Dan Janal, founder of PRLeads.com will interview me on Write Your Book: 5 Steps to Get Started or January 18 at noon eastern when Deb Bailey of Power Women Magazine interviews me on the subject.

I’ll be in Vermont for the next few days, celebrating my accomplishments and creating my new year’s ritual. So, I’ll wish you a happy new year now. Enjoy celebrating all you’ve done, enjoyed and received in 2009. And, dear reader, please share your most proud of favorite 2009 accomplishment as a comment on the blog. I want to celebrate with you.

What To Do When Your Book Launch Falls on Inauguration Day – and Other Tips

Lisa’s Book Launch Tips

And the final lesson for today:

Book Publicity Advice from PR Guru Dan Janal

Press Releases Get New Life: An Interview with Dan Janal

How to Get Reporters to Quote You

Celebrate Your Accomplishments

Write a Book

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