What Do PR Professionals Actually Do?

No matter who they’re working for, public relations professionals aim to inform and persuade the public by the thousands and millions through newspapers, radio, television and the internet. Many individuals – politicians, athletes, celebrities, authors, filmmakers, etc. – and almost every organization can benefit from hiring a PR professional to help get out their message.

PRs Can Help You Get Started

PR professionals aim to grow, guide and manage the consumer perception of your company, book, movie, self, or anything else. In regards to books, the hardest step after writing it is getting it published. PR professionals can work as publicists and help you get your book published, and then help it sell.

PRs Spread the Word

Even before your book is published, a PR professional can craft intriguing press releases and generate a positive buzz for you and your book. PR professionals spend a lot of time cultivating relationships with journalists and members of the media, so they know how to get your story published where it counts.

PRs also work to have your book reviewed in trusted publications, in addition to creating press materials for your website and to send directly the press, such as a bio, photos or a Q&A. The end goal is to secure as much media coverage as possible, as people can not buy your book if they don’t know it exists.

Keeping it Positive

Although coverage of your book is better than no coverage at all, PRs also work to keep your image positive. PR professionals are experts in media relations and are trained to manage crises, so they can help you stay prepared for interviews and can respond quickly and proactively if potentially damaging information is published.

They Understand the Market

In order to sell, you must understand your target market. Working with a PR professional early on allows you to work with a market expert, and someone who can help you plan how to best market and sell your book to your target audience. Who your audience is will greatly determine PR strategies, so it’s important to work with someone who is experienced and reliable.

Milton Kahn has a proven PR track record and provides affordable and unique PR services as a book publicist and publishing consultant. After years as one of the entertainment industry’s premier PR professionals, today Milton Kahn is helping authors and publishing houses achieve their book publicity goals. If you need help getting your book the attention it deserves, contact Milton Kahn Associates, Inc. today.

Effective Book Marketing Tips

Before you can sell your book and expect people to buy it, you need to market your book. We’ve come up with a few key marketing tactics to help you come up with a great strategy for promoting your new book.

Use Social Media

No, Facebook isn’t just for high schoolers and Twitter isn’t just for activists. Social media is versatile and in some way or another can be used for almost anything. Using social media to connect with consumers and promote your book is easy, cheap and effective.

When signing up for social media accounts remember to create a short, interesting bio and include a link to your website. You can use a photo of yourself or even of your book, and start interacting! On Twitter you should “follow” people, such as celebrities you like or fans you’d like to engage with, and you’ll get people “following” you back. With time, as you become more active and post more interesting tweets, you’ll receive more followers and “re-tweets” and your marketing efforts will expand without having to spend a penny.

Networking is Key

Like with almost anything, it’s all about who you know. Positive word-of-mouth is essential to any marketing strategy. You can start telling your friends and family about the book and ask them to share it, then broaden your reach to coworkers and acquaintances. Using social media to network is a great way to kill two birds with one stone, and the internet is full of organizations and groups interested in all kinds of topics, such as the topic your book covers. Utilizing the world wide web really does open up a whole new world of possibilities.

Put Yourself Out There

Although bookstores were once the most common venue for authors to set up meet and greets, many authors and publicists now realize people won’t go out of their way to go to a bookstore. Instead, it can be a good idea to plan events in venues such as a bar or restaurant where the event feels more social than formal and the turnout will almost certainly be high.

Hire a Professional

Yes, you can go on Twitter and tweet about your new book or sit in a bar and talk about your new book, but there’s an even easier way. Milton Kahn has years of experience as one of the entertainment industry’s premier public relations and marketing specialists. If you really want to get noticed, don’t take a chance with someone who doesn’t know what they’re doing. As a professional author you write, and as a professional marketer, Milton Kahn can promote your book. Don’t take the chance your book goes unnoticed, learn more about Milton Kahn today!

Book Publicists Come and Go…But Milton Kahn Remains

Superstar entertainment PR agent turned book publicist Milton Kahn has had enough experiences in Hollywood to fill a blockbuster autobiography, but for now, his fans must be content with the occasional recollection and amusing anecdote. One of the publicity impresario’s greatest capers was for Hollywood star and Milton Kahn client Glenn Ford.

Co-star to Rita Hayworth in the classic of cinema noir Gilda, Ford went on to star in films with Bette Davis, Gene Tierney, Lee Remick and others. Especially famous for his roles in timeless westerns like The Fastest Gun Alive and 3:10 to Yuma, Ford also enjoyed numerous starring roles on television in the 1980s and early 1990s until health problems forced his retirement in 1992.

Remembering a lunch date with Mr. Ford, Milton recalls their conversation, where Mr. Ford confessed his greatest idol was the Marine Corps General Chesty Puller. As a World War II hero himself within the Marine Corps, Ford had experience as well as a Navy location scout in Vietnam.

His admiration for the general came as no surprise to Milton, who was familiar with the numerous military commendations Ford had received for his service overseas. Considering his declaration, Milton decided that Glenn should produce and star in a movie based on Puller’s life-and so in keeping with his reputation as the nation’s premier entertainment publicist, he managed to plant the story with every major entertainment newspaper column in America.

While the film never got off the ground, the publicity garnered from the announcement led to Milton Kahn PR getting Glenn Ford a television advertising gig with Valley Forge Veterans Life Insurance Company as their television pitchman. It was a lucrative position, securing Mr. Ford a hefty and enduring payday.

As a friend to Mr. Kahn, Ford also introduced him to such luminaries as Rita Hayworth, Judy Garland, and William Holden. Milton went on to represent many of cinema’s all time greats, including Gregory Peck, Michael Landon and Roger Corman. His greatest regret? Passing on Warren Beatty as a client. But that’s a story for another day!