Publicity Hound Jennifer Raaths of Barrington, Illinois writes:
“I am working on a Mother’s Day gift idea for my client, DiCarlo Fine Wines & Spirits, a liquor store. The gift idea is a handmade purse by my friend, Carrie, a local stay-at-home mom. Each purse is unique. No two are the same. And they’re filled with a bottle each of red and white wine. The wines happen to be from Argentina and are very popular at resorts and spas.
“I plan on taking photos of this and sending press releases soon, but here’s where I’m stumped. What would be a catchy way to promote this? And would this be worthy of going after the national shows? If so, what angle? You can see the bags at the Bags by Carrie website.”
Online trend magazines and blogs (even nationally popular ones like Slate.com and DailyCandy.com) tend to have a shorter lead time, so you may still be able to promote this in time for Mother’s Day for gift guide or pick of the day.
For a light-hearted angle (more appropriate for Daily Candy), just talk about the uniqueness of the gift. If you’re pitching a deeper piece, talk about the trend of women becoming more sophisticated about wines and the trend of South American wines as good & cheap and how this gift is a nice sampler.
A New Bag for the Old Bag?
Sorry, I just couldn’t resist that awful line! But thanks to you, you just sparked a great idea for us for Father’s Day promo.
We have a book and DVD and are throwing in an embroidered hat for a small extra fee and were just calling it a Father’s Day promo, but now it’s a “Hat’s Off to Fathers!”
Thanks, Joan, I love your newsletter and have to tell you how much I love Port Washington. We discovered it last fall when my photographer/author husband was doing speaking programs in Milwaukee.
Send to the wine critic at your newspaper. Also, why not the fashion department, too? In
addition to the bag, why not add a small toy straw hat?
Thanks for the tips so far – I really enjoyed Joan’s, H.C. and Miriam’s. I’ll have to let everyone know how it goes!
Here’s my own idea. If the bags are customized, how about making separate bags for Katie Couric, Diane Sawyer and the other female celebrities who host the morning TV talk shows?
You’ll score extra points if your friend does a little research and ties into the design their favorite color, or something that represents their favorite hobby.
Or, since Carrie hosts make-your-own purse parties, pitch a segment in which Carrie teaches Katie or Diane how to make their own customized bags. (Note: Katie might jump ship and become an news anchor for CBS.)
Here’s another idea.
It’s less than six weeks until Mother’s Day, so you’ll miss out on the chance to pitch this as a Mother’s Day gift in most magazines. So consider promoting the bag as a birthday gift or graduation gift.
Many media outlets have gift guides, special sections that specifically feature articles and products that would make great gifts. The Gift List is the only resource I know of that gives contact information and pitching tips for Publicity Hounds who want to promote items for the holidays.
It also has a “late leads” feature that tips you off to media outlets that have decided at the last minute to create a special gift section. I still think there’s time to get into some of the gift guides for newspaper.
Learn more about this at http://tinyurl.com/9es8y
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