With all that’s written about Social Media, blogging, and content marketing, it’s easy to forget that specialized niche publications, also called trade magazines, still exist and continue to have loyal readers. From a marketing perspective, these publications can still give a vendor’s message the stamp of approval that only an objective outside entity can provide. At the same time, the costs associated with getting ink for your company in these publications can be far less than commissioning an analyst firm to create a white paper.
So it should come as no surprise that many B2B companies continue to seek out coverage in these publications. Companies may pitch an idea for the publication to follow up on. Or better yet, many B2B publishers create byline articles by content experts in their company, and then propose them to an editor, who often runs them with little editing. Not only do many of these magazines have small staffs that welcome submissions, you can choose to target magazines whose readers are your target audience.
So how can you take advantage of this highly credible and inexpensive source of publicity? Follow these steps:
1. Create a list of target publications. While it may be possible to get a byline in a larger business publication, your best bet is to look for publications and trade magazines written specifically for your target niche. For example, the many publications I’ve ghost written articles for include IndustryWeek, which targets manufacturers, and Contract Management. You can find directories of specialty magazines on the web. For example, Yahoo Directory provides listings of trade magazines in a wide range of categories. Another way to find appropriate publications is to conduct a keyword search on terms of interest to your target audience.
2. Read the magazine. Get a copy of the publication and be on the lookout for sections in which your content may fit. For example, the publication might have a guest opinion spot that would be perfect for a byline article from your CEO about pressing topics facing your industry. They might publish case studies about companies solving industry problems. They might also run articles about industry trends. Use this knowledge to come up with the types of pieces to pitch.
3. Come up with a list of issues/problems that the magazine’s readers face that your solution can address. If you want a publication to publish a short article about your new product, send in a press release that can be published verbatim as a news item. But if you want to publish thought-leadership pieces, think like an editor. An editor is looking to help the reader solve problems. So pitch a story about issues the publication’s readers face and new ways to solve them. For example, I recently worked on an article about current challenges that manufacturers have in managing outsourced and contract labor.
4. Write in an objective style. I come from a specialty magazine background, having been an editor for PC Magazine, DBMS and other magazines, and freelancing for Infoworld, Software Magazine and many others. In all my years as an editor, not once have I heard an editor say, “I want to run a piece that promotes XYZ vendor.” Publications look for pieces that address issues in a vendor-neutral fashion. If you want your piece to appear with the minimal changes, talk about the types of capabilities that can solve a particular problem (that you happen to have in your product), but don’t talk about your product.
5. Hire a journalist to ghost write your article. With the slowdown in the publishing industry, many writers with a journalism background are available that can write for trade magazines. These journalists know precisely the right tone and content to include so that the piece will sail through the editing process with minimal changes and will, therefore, be published saying what you want to say.
While trade magazines may seem old school, they remain a valuable tool for establishing your company’s credibility and thought leadership. Your best bet in seeing your copy published with little editing is to know what editors are looking for and give it to them.
What have your experiences been with writing for trade journals?
Very, very nicely done!
Posted by: Timberland Boots UK | December 03, 2011 at 01:42 PM