When I first got into journalism back in the 1980’s I had to be very persistent. I applied for a junior reporter post at the Loughborough Echo but didn’t get the job. I was a young mum of two at the time and my youngest had just started school and I wanted to be a journalist, even though I’d only worked in factories and restaurants and offices up to this point and of course been a busy housewife for the last 7 years. But I’d been studying while the boys were growing up and this was my dream. So what did I do? Well I didn’t give up. I’d met the news editor at my interview so I rang him up and asked him if I could write the village news section for where I was living. They already had a correspondent for that though. Then I remembered we had our Easter bonnet parade coming up (this is the kind of thing they still love nowadays!!) so I offered to take some pictures and do a piece on that for them, they said YES and I had my first assignment. To cut a long story short, I ended up writing more and more for them, did holiday cover, and eventually worked there for four years before being head-hunted by an agency that supplied stories to the national press and I went off to work for the likes of The Mirror, The Sun, News of the World (which was always fun) as well as magazines like Bella, Woman, and Chat. So you see my persistence paid off. I wouldn’t take no for an answer and kept coming up with new ideas to get myself into the paper and that’s exactly what you need to do with your press releases. If you keep sending them out and nothing ever gets into your local paper, don’t give in. Journalists themselves are very persistent people and will keep tapping away until they get their story. You’ve got to do the same. The journalists will notice you, they will complain about you “oh bloody fitness guru Suzy’s sent in another press release about another boring fitness class, why doesn’t she ever send anything interesting?”, they may even give you a nickname, “oh bloody media whore Suzy’s sent ANOTHER press release” but do it week after week and you are on their radar, so when that big health story breaks and they’re trying to think of a local person to contact they don’t have to think very hard (journalists like that!) They will be ringing “media whore Suzy” because they know she’s always trying to get in the paper so will be good for a quote. It is also worth adding onto the bottom of your weekly press release that you are willing to talk about any health issues in the news, especially helpful for local radio stations that have to act more quickly than a weekly newspaper as they will be looking for someone to talk on that day, sometimes within that hour. Also if you hear a breaking health story, call the newsroom at your local station and offer to talk about it. This only works with news that’s just broken though as reporters often package their stories a day in advance. Another good tip is to contact your local news rooms and ask them to put you on their list of contacts for health stories – try if you can to talk to their health correspondent. If you can become their go-to person it’s going to raise your profile in the local community. Also, remember to make your stories current, tap into whatever is happening in the world at that moment, like right now Summer holidays are right around the corner so if you’re planning some kids classes get that out there now and include some quotes from mums raving about how good the sessions are, even get some pictures together if you can, you’ll need the parent’s permission if you’re using the kids in the photo. Maybe you’re doing a Beach Body Blast, have you got some amazing before and after shots of customers, interview your customers and tell the story from their point of view for a change. You are changing people’s lives; there are good stories to be told out there. Good luck with your press releases this week and next week I’ll be revealing where to find stories from.