Have you ever watched a CNN or Fox News Channel report on a small business or entrepreneur talking about his or her company? Readers ask all the time how can I get my small business on CNN? If you’re a regular reader of this blog you’ll know what I’m going to say next:
Do you know that you CAN get that kind of coverage?
All you have to do is really understand two very important things. We cover this in the PR Toolkit for small business, but the difference between all the cable television opportunities and also how to get their attention are the two key elements. This isn’t all that difficult. Here’s a quick breakdown of cable television and the PR opportunities for small business.
Cable Station
An example of a cable television station (or network) is simply CNN, MSNBC, FOX News Channel or Bloomberg. Here’s an example of an up-and-coming business being interviewed on a CNBC show:
It’s important to keep in mind that many of the larger cable television stations typically discuss the largest news events, often on an international scale. This is where you’ll often discuss topics such as global politics and national business events. This isn’t to say an entrepreneur doesn’t have an opportunity to play in this game, though. If you’re asking ‘how can I get my small business on CNN’, well if you can tie your company into the topic of the day, you’ll have a good chance of getting a producer’s attention.
Cable Television Show
This is often broken down further into two areas: news shows and special interest shows. A cable news show example is Power Lunch (CNBC). Understand this is different than pitching CNBC’s news desk because it’s an entirely different show with its own producers and reports. If you want to score an interview on Power Lunch, you can’t just call up CNBC and ask to speak with any reporter or producer. You must make sure to ask for the Power Lunch show. From there you’ll be patched in with a producer that works only on Power Lunch. Donny Deutsche had an amazing cable show on CNBC dedicated to entrepreneurs but it’s no longer in production. Here’s hoping it comes back soon!
An example of a special interest show on cable television is Anthony Bourdain No Reservations, a travel show where Anthony himself travels the globe in search of good food. The opportunity here may be if you’re a restaurateur and you’d like Anthony to visit your restaurant. You’ll want to pitch the show’s producers on why Anthony coming to your restaurant would make for good television. I will warn you, though, it’s very difficult getting on these kinds of shows.
Regional Cable Channel
Some regions have a 24-hour news channel dedicated only to that community. One of my favorites is Bay News 9 in the Tampa Bay region. Bay News 9 is a fantastic resource for small businesses and entrepreneurs because of their 24-hour news format, which favors story pitches since they’re always looking for ideas. You’re best opportunity here is to make sure your story caters to the local scene, perhaps with a sniff of national trend. A word of caution, though, if your business is not located in the region you’ll have to work extra hard at convincing a producer of your local angle (here’s a hint: find a customer in that area).
Cable Bureau
The large, national cable networks often have bureaus in the larger metropolitan areas. For example, CNN has a bureau in Miami and Los Angeles. This means if you have a local story in that market that has a heavy tie in with a national trend, you’ve got a great chance to call up a producer or reporter in that bureau to pitch a story. And if you are granted a story, you’ll still be shown all around the country and even the world.
To learn more tips on how to get your small business on CNN or any other cable news opportunity, download the PR Toolkit for small business. It offers all kinds of tips and insight to help you achieve publicity for your small business.
What show would you like to get your small business on?
