Halloween promotion ideas to generate publicity

Here are some ideas on how to promote a product, service, cause or issue by tying it to Halloween, the second largest retail holiday of the year. They’re courtesy of TV producer Shawne Duperon, one of my guests during next week’s media plan teleseminar series:

—Sponsor a pumpkin-carving contest at your company.  Challenge participants to carve the call letters of a certain local TV station.  Then contact the station, invite them to bring their camera and film the carvers whittling, cutting and slicing.

—Pitch the fear angle.  What’s our cultural fascination with being frightened, watching horror flicks or going to haunted houses? Experts, pitch away!

—Do you own a specialty shop?  Do you create customized cookies or cakes?  The pumpkin-carving idea can also apply here.  Bakers, create a spooky confection with the call letters of your local TV station.  Send it to the “Queen Bee” in the TV newsroom.  Your confections and store could catch their eye for a story.

—The media always want to know about healthy alternatives to trick-or-treat or tips on how to inspect candy and make sure it’s safe.

Shawn explained how to identify the Queen Bee in every TV newsroom, how to make the QB interested in your pitch, and the little extras you can offer to get yourself on TV during the teleseminar she conducted with me called “How to Get on the Local TV News Tomorrow.”