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The Tip Sheet
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issue of : October 2004
- Quote of the Month
- PTA - News Conferences
- Surfin' - A great source for websites - Keeping Time, Tipping, Organ Donation and the Most Literate City in America
- SPANS's Marketing Conference - October 22nd - 24th in Philadelphia
- What Have You Done For Me Lately? - Our latest media bookings
- Tips From the Top - Our monthly advice column: Networking Magic
- Look What's Coming Up - A calendar of upcoming events
- New Feature - Putting a Face on PTA - An interview with a PTA team member
- New York Is Book Country
Quote of the Month
"Be careful about reading health books. You may die of a misprint."
—Mark Twain
If you've got a great quote you want to share, send it to us at kohand@plannedtvarts.com. Thanks!
PTA
Have a big name author with wide appeal but limited time for media?
Try PTA's TelePrint ConferenceTM - a one-hour news conference held with leading reporters from around the country.
In the last month authors General Tommy Franks (Harper Collins) and Lou Dobbs (Warner Books) both benefited from this convenient and effective publicity vehicle. Some of the participating papers included:
| Detroit Free Press | | Atlanta Journal Constitution |
| San Diego Union Tribune | Arizona Republic | ||
| Baltimore Sun | Chicago Tribune | ||
| Dallas Morning News | Cincinnati Enquirer |
PTA takes care of the entire process - from booking the media right up to running the news conferences and providing the journalists with transcripts of the entire session.
For more information, contact: Deborah Kohan @ 212.593.5885, kohand@plannedtvarts.com
Surfin'
Is your city the most literate city in America? Unless you are from Minneapolis, the answer is no! Minneapolis takes home the top prize this year as America's most literate city. Who says? www.uww.edu/npa/cities does. This interesting website ranks the most literate cities in America overall and then by individual categories. For example, when ranked by booksellers, the top 4 cities are San Francisco, Cincinnati, Seattle and Madison (WI). New York City ranked a lowly 68. The information is compiled from many resources including newspaper circulations, US Census data and booksellers. So when planning your next road tour, this useful site might influence you to send your author to Madison, WI instead of New York City!
Here's a good cause. We all know the statistics. There are close to 100,000 Americans on the waiting list for donor organs. If you are interested in becoming an organ donor you can find out how to become one through www.donatelife.net. Click on your state to get specific information.
The moment we all dread - after devouring a scrumptious dinner with some friends...the bill comes. Before you can even attempt to divide it you need to figure out THE TIP! Unless you've invited along that rare accountant friend who can actually do math, unlike the rest of us who are in creative fields, panic sets in. To our sad rescue comes, www.tipping.org a site that covers all the tipping rules, how to calculate the tip (by using tipping cards and palm pilot software etc.) and suggested tips for various industries. This site can be especially handy around holiday time when you need to tip your doorman, super, garbage man and everyone else who has said hello to you during the year.
Need to call an author in Australia but are unsure of the time difference? www.worldtimeserver.com is a fabulous site that gives you the correct time any place in the world. It will also highlight the geographic location of the city you are requesting on a map. It's easy to use and very helpful.
SPANS's Marketing Conference
Friday, October 22nd - Sunday, October 24th in Philadelphia, PA
SPAN's mission has always been to help small publishers sell more books, increase profits, and create more successful businesses. This conference is designed to provide attendees with a year's worth of marketing, promotional, and operational concepts in three days. Issues vital to authors and small publishers will include:
- Developing a dynamic marketing strategy that will increase sales
- Mastering publicity secrets to increase exposure
- Creating compelling titles and exciting book covers
- Demystifying both "Print on Demand" and traditional book manufacturers.
With nationwide book marketing experts leading the sessions, including our own Rick Frishman, the goal of the conference is updated marketing plans. For more information or to register go to: http://www.spannet.org
What Have You Done For Me Lately?
Here's a sampling of our latest bookings. They do not include all of the bookings for each campaign just the highlights.
Jack LaLanne Turns 90 (HR Marketing/TriStar)
NBC-TV, "The Today Show"
CNN-TV, "American Morning"
Fox News Channel, "The Big Show with Rita Cosby"
Fox News Channel, "Fox and Friends"
The Tony Danza Show
Who Shot Goldilocks? How Alan Greenspan Did in Our Jobs, Savings and Retirement Plans. By William Rutherford (Crown Point Press)
Knight Ridder Syndicate
San Diego Union Tribune, Sunday edition
USA Today Magazine
Weight Watchers Launch of TurnAround (Ruder Finn/Weight Watchers International)
For Karen Miller-Kovach, Chief Scientific Officer of Weight Watchers:
CNBC-TV, "Power Lunch"
FOX News Channel, A Health Feature
MSNBC.com
For the Duchess of York:
Fox News Channel, "FOX News Live"
MSNBC-TV, "MSNBC Live"
The Tony Danza Show
Hallelujah! Welcome to the Table: A Lifetime of Memories with Recipes By Maya Angelou (Random House). The following are some of the Satellite Television Tour bookings:
| Los Angeles, CA | | KABC (ABC) |
| Chicago, IL | WLS (ABC) | |
| Dallas, TX | WTVT (CBS) | |
| Denver, CO | KUSA (NBC) | |
| San Diego, CA | KNSD (NBC) | |
| Minneapolis, MN | KARE (NBC) |
Tips From the Top
An excerpt from Rick's new book NETWORKING MAGIC: Find the Best - from Doctors, Lawyers, and Accountants to Homes, Schools, and Jobs by Rick Frishman & Jill Lublin with Mark Steisel.
Turning Contacts into Partners
After you've made an interesting new contact that you would like to know better...how do you capitalize on that contact and make that person a member of your network? The answer is by following up. Most adults find it hard to follow up. Some are shy, are afraid to be a nuisance, or appear to be groveling. They see networking as selling and although all of us sell something, they don't want to be perceived as salespersons. Following up promptly isn't just good business, it's smart business. The big surprise is that following up can be fun and it can produce rewards beyond your expectations.
Create a System: First of all, you really must save business cards, contact information and other contact literature. Treat them like receipts you might need for an IRS audit. Then buy or create a system to prioritize and file contact information.
Learning to Prioritize: Ideally, it's best to enter contact information in your files as close to the initial meeting as possible. Then communicate with your contact within two or three days to follow up. If you have collected a bunch of business cards, prioritize them to determine whom you want to call first. Move first to communicate with:
| 1. | Those you promised to call or e-mail. |
| 2. | Contacts who could be important to you. |
Making Your Move: Send a handwritten note or an e-mail including where you met, and a reference that will make the connection closer and more personal. Attach articles, cartoons or information that might interest your contact. Make sure what you send is relevant; otherwise you'll be sending irritating spam.
Always Say "Thanks": Whenever someone introduces you, recommends you, endorses you, speaks well of you, or helps you in any way, quickly and clearly express your gratitude. People remember your gratitude; it makes them feel happy that they helped you. The best way is by writing a handwritten note. Phone calls can also be effective and personal. E-mail is les personal than notes and phone calls, but is quick. Remember, the method you choose is secondary to saying thank you promptly.
Look What's Coming Up
These are dates that just might relate to a Morning Drive or Satellite TV Tour topic:
January 2005
| 1st | New Years Day |
| 1st-7th | Diet Resolution Week |
| 3rd | J.R.R Tolkien's Birthday (1892) |
| 8th | Elvis Presely's Birthday (1935) |
| 11th | "Designated Hitter Rule" Adopted Anniversary (1973) |
| 12th | National Handwriting Day/John Hancock's Birthday |
| 13th | Radio Broadcasting Day Anniversary (1910) |
| 15th | First Super Bowl (1967) |
| 17th | Martin Luther King, Jr. Day |
| 17th | PGA of America Founded Anniversary (1916) |
| 22nd | Roe v. Wade Decision Anniversary (1973) |
| 27th | Vietnam Peace Agreement Signed (1973) |
| 28th | Bubble Wrap Appreciation Day |
| 30th | Superbowl |
February 2005
| African American History Month | |
| American Heart Month | |
| 1st | Car Insurance First Issued (1898) |
| 1st | First Session of the Supreme Court (1790) |
| 2nd | Babe Ruth voted into the Baseball Hall of Fame (1936) |
| 2nd | Groundhog Day |
| 8th | Jules Vern Birthday (1828) |
| 9th | Chinese New Year |
| 10th | "All the News That's Fit To Print" Anniversary (1897) |
| 11th-12th | FINA Swimming World Cup (New York) |
| 12th | Abraham Lincoln's Birthday (1809) |
| 14th | Valentine's Day |
| 15th | Baseball Spring Training Begins |
| 18th-20th | Luge World Championships (Park City, UT) |
| 21st | President's Day |
| 22nd | George Washington's Birthday (1732) |
March 2005
| American Red Cross Month | |
| Irish-American Heritage Month | |
| National Nutrition Month | |
| National Women's History Month | |
| Save Your Vision Week (First Week of March) | |
| 1st | Lindbergh Baby Kidnapping Anniversary (1932) |
| 1st | Yellowstone National Park Established (1872) |
| 2nd | Read Across America Day |
| 2nd | Dr. Suess (Theodor Geisel) Birthday (1904) |
| 14th | Albert Einstein Birthday (1879) |
| 17th | St. Patrick's Day |
| 20th | First Day of Spring |
| 27th | Easter |
| 30th | "Jeopardy" TV Premier (1964) |
New Feature
Jared Sharpe
Jared Sharpe has been with PTA a little over a year, coming aboard from one of our competitors, Newman. He's an assertive publicist who carries a heavy workload at all times but always shares a good witty comment with us. He plays on the Killer Bees softball team when he's taking a breather from rooting for the Red Sox. This Brooklynite has a strange but adorable pet -- a hedgehog called Ziggo. He sat with PTA News! recently:
How long have you been in PR? Since college, really. My work-study job was in Boston University's Sports Information Department, which handled PR for the school's Athletic Department
What school did you graduate from/degree? BU with a Bachelor's in Communications in 2000
What do you like best about your job/PTA? I like the people here a lot. Plus I enjoy the variety of clients and topics that I get to pitch.
What would you do if you weren't here? In a dream? Playing goalie for the Ottawa Senators of the NHL. In reality, probably still working at the Boston Herald, where I was an agate monkey before I came here.
If you could work for the news media, for whom would it be? I loved working for the Herald's sports department, but I would love to work for PBS, NPR or ESPN.
What do few people know about you? I started life as a woman. Seriously, I think I'm pretty open with everyone I know, so if you know me, you know pretty much all about me.
Any hobbies? I love sports, primarily the NHL, MLB and NASCAR. I actually started to collect NASCAR die-cast cars over the last few months, and the damn things are way too addictive. I think most people will probably be laughing too hard now about the fact that I spend four hours on Sundays watching 'cars go around in circles,' though.
Biggest accomplishment professionally or personally? Professionally I've booked the Today Show, and have hit with CBS' Early Show twice. Personally, I'd say my biggest accomplishment so far has been staying with my girlfriend for as long as I have. Three years is a really long time when you're in your mid-twenties.
Who is your hero -- aside from me? My younger brother, who's serving with the 1st Infantry division of the US army in Iraq. The kid still looks and acts like he's 14, but he's seen and done things that would probably keep most people from getting any sleep for months. Before he went to Iraq (he's currently in the National Guard) he served six months in Kosovo with NATO's forces during their civil war a couple years ago.
Most embarrassing moment? I have one pretty much every week, so picking one is pretty tough. I did just get locked out of my car in the parking lot of a Taco Bell in Newburgh, NY, a couple of weeks ago. Wouldn't have been so bad if it wasn't 11pm, or if I didn't have to wait 3 hours for someone to come jimmy open the door for me. I'm a chump.
Please list a few major bookings? Big accounts you've worked on? At PTA I've placed negotiation expert Marty Latz on the Early Show for his book "GAIN THE EDGE." I've also hit with the LA Times and tons of other print outlets, including in-flight magazines like Southwest Spirit and American Way. Some big clients I've worked on include best-selling author Harvey Mackay, OLN's Tour de France commentator Bob Roll, and the Motley Fools.
New York Is Book Country
New York is Book Country, celebrating it's 26th anniversary, took place the weekend of October 2-3, moving for the first time to Washington Square and New York University in Greenwich Village. As part of the festival, many lectures, panels, discussions and signings took place. Thousands of people came to the festival to meet their favorite authors, including R.L. Stein, Pete Hamill, Frank McCourt, Jamie Lee Curtis, Julie Andrews, David Baldacci, Maureen Dowd and others.
PTA's David Thalberg, a board member of NYIBC, moderated the following discussions:
The writers from Comedy Central's "The Daily Show with Jon Stewart" read from the New York Times best seller, "America: The Book" (Warner Books) and then fielded questions from the audience.
Amy Sohn "My Old Man" (Simon and Schuster) and Chuck Hogan "Prince of Thieves" (Scribner) discussed their latest novels and answered questions about the writing and publishing.
Marc Eliot "Cary Grant: A Biography" (Harmony) and Jean Nathan "The Secret Life of the Lonely Doll: The Search for Dare Wright" (Henry Holt) discussed the process of researching and writing biographies.
For more information, please visit: www.nyisbookcountry.com