Getting Your Product Out There:
Five free (or inexpensive) ideas to get publicity for your product, website and company

By Kim Barker, Safetygirl.com

In my first year of business, I made a lot of mistakes. Some were little mistakes that were easy to turn into opportunities. Some were big and expensive and would make your head spin. Fortunately, there were some things I felt I did right - and they've given my product a huge boost while keeping expenses low. It would be great if we could all afford publicists to work full time getting our name out there, but with a small, new business, that's not always possible. Here are my five tips for getting great exposure for your product without breaking the bank.

1. Add a "media only" page to your website.

Having a press kit is essential. Press release, product photos, and even a CD with high resolution images are all great to get in the hands of people who can get you exposure. What I found, however, is that a great deal of media requests for these items were last minute -- they needed a press kit by the next afternoon, or they needed high resolution product images asap. Each time, I would rush to put together a press kit, FedEx it, then just hope it would arrive on time and that the expense would be worth it.

To keep expenses down, and to make sure I wasn't missing any media opportunities, my fabulous web designers created a "press" or "media only" page on my website. Customers visiting my website will never see this page because you can't link to it from within my site - it's not mentioned anywhere. The only people who find the page (other than a few who may accidentally happen upon it) are the people I give the link to. From this press only page, people can download high res photos, and I could also put my press release on there as well. Obviously it was intended for press purposes, but I've also found it to be handy when a retailer carrying my product needs images for a catalog or ad. Having this page has saved me a lot of time and countless dollars. Of course I still have actual press kits - but the press page is what has saved me time and time again. If you'd like to take a peek at how it works, here's the link to my press page: http://safetygirl.com/press/

2. Become a Stumbler.

I found out about "Stumble Upon" accidentally. I was checking my website stats and discovered that I was getting literally thousands of hits from one page within the Stumble community. When I looked into it further, I found out that Stumble is an online community where people all over the world tell each other sites they like. It's the ultimate "word of mouth" site. One person within Stumble mentioned that she liked my site and it resulted in more website hits than when my product was featured on national tv - and it didn't cost me a dime. I've since joined Stumble myself and have found it to be an unbelievable networking tool. At first, I found it a bit overwhelming, so I'll give the overview to make your intro to it a bit easier.

In the broadest sense, think of Stumble Upon like this - it's a bunch of people who tell each other sites that they like. All of those people are also describing their interests, so it results in a lot of people who are, for example, interested in crafts hanging out with other people who like crafts and sharing their favorite craft related sites. Joining the network will do a few things - it will help you find other great sites, it will give your own site targeted exposure, and it will provide you with hours of distraction which will cause you to curse me for telling you about it. Consider yourself warned! It's highly addictive - but fortunately, it's all for the sake of your business so it's time well spent.

Here's how you get started. Go to the Stumble site (links to follow) and sign up. It's completely free (but has a sponsorship option if you want some extra features). Signing up causes two things to happen. First, it will create your own page on Stumble - this is where you specify your interests, and you can list your own site as well. Listing your interests in crucial here because it will connect you with other people with similar interests, and you'll all be sharing the sites you all love -- so pick stuff like crafting, maternity, online commerce, fashion, or anything else that could possibly be connected with your site and product. The second thing that will happen is that it downloads a new toolbar onto your browser. Fear not - it's a friendly toolbar.

Now that you're registered, here's what you can do:
i) Whenever you find a site you like, you can click on the "I Like it" thumbs up button on the toolbar -- which will tell other people you like that site. There's also a thumbs down "not for me" button. These 'thumbs up' sites will all appear on your own Stumble page.
ii) There is a dialogue button on the toolbar - and when you're on any page, you can click on that and see what other stumblers have said about that site. This is amazing because it also allows you to see what other people are saying about your site. Yes, that information has been there all along and unless you're a Stumbler, you have no idea. I've gotten good comments and bad comments - all valuable.
iii) You can also click on the toolbar button "Stumble" which randomly takes you to other pages that people with similar interests have said they liked. I have found tons of useful sites this way.

So it works like this -- you're just surfing the internet as usual and once in a while you give the thumbs up to certain sites, and those will automatically appear on your own Stumble page. And here's the fun part -- you can also go to an image on a page, right click on it, and you'll see that you have the new option "StumbleUpon PhotoBlog" -- and that takes that image and posts it on your own Stumble page -- so that you're not just telling people you like a site, you're showing them. That grabs attention so much better - and is exactly what that person did with my product that got me thousands of hits.

Also, you'll see the names of other Stumblers who have the same interests -- you can click on their name and see what sites they are recommending. If you like their links, click on the "add as a friend". You want to have friends with similar interests, with a good following (a lot of fans/friends). That gives you access to their friends, and the friends of their friends, and so on and so on… You see how quickly your circle grows. And every time they click on your Stumble page, they are seeing the link to your site!

If you'd like to see an example of a Stumble page, here is mine.
http://texaspete.stumbleupon.com/

Here's the Stumble homepage where you can sign up for the community:
http://www.stumbleupon.com/

3. Be your own sales rep.

If you're like me, you don't have sales reps that cover all of the U.S. - and there's a huge untapped market out there. A wide mailout can be incredibly expensive - and how do you even know where to send your product info? Obviously we want to spend as little as possible to target the stores which are most likely to be interested in our products. Doing a little "backwards research" can help you narrow the field.

What kind of products would your product look great next to? Once you determine those products, find their websites. Many companies list the stores their products are sold in - and there's your mailing list right there. This is a great way to find small, single stores that you'd normally never hear about - and in those stores, the person who opens the mail is most often the same person who does the buying.

You can also use this same technique with the websites of the stores you're already in (or want to be in). Find out which other products they're already selling, then go find the websites for those products, and if they have a store listing, once again, you've got a great list of stores who are likely to be interested in your product. This is a great way to narrow down your mailout - keeping your expenses low and your return high.

4. Be your own publicist.

A professional PR firm can provide your company with a huge boost, but most of us aren't at the point where we can afford the expense - yet. While it may seem intimidating at first to do it yourself, remember that the people who write for fashion magazines, newspapers and style webzines are searching for products like yours all the time. Make it easy for them to find your product. Promise yourself that you'll devote at least one hour a week to finding those experts and getting your product in their hands. Some of the best press I've gotten has the been the result of sending a style expert a casual email introducing myself and my product, and requesting permission to send a sample. Sometimes I haven't gotten a response at all, sometimes I've gotten an enthusiastic yes - but never once have I gotten a no. Remember, they're already looking for you!

5. Do Good.

The week my product launched, I contacted two charities that are close to my heart - the Canadian Breast Cancer Foundation, and Mothers Against Drunk Drivers. These charities are a natural fit for my product, but more importantly, they're a natural fit for me personally. I'm not Microsoft - I can't write a fat cheque to these organizations, but what I can do is donate product to be used in charity auctions or for door prizes at their various events. Yes, I can write off these products, and yes, it gets my product some great exposure among women - but that's not the point. The issue is how you feel about yourself and your business and your place in the world at the end of the day. There are a gazillion great charities out there. Find one that means something to you and see what your growing business can do to pitch in. If you think the small amount you can contribute couldn't make a difference, think again. Every little bit helps. And good karma is better than good press, any day of the week.

Visit Kim's web shop, Safety Girl, to find the perfect car emergency kit for all the women in your life.