How Tin Shingle's TuneUp Office Hours Is Helping Author Winifred Tataw

During a Wednesday Tin Shingle TuneUp Office Hour, which is open to members from 1-2 pm, I, Katie, got to meet Winnie @winsbooks! Professionally as an author, she is Winifred Tataw, and both her names are part of what we discussed SEO-wise. Winnie is a writer in the Young Adult Fantasy genre, and her book is available on her website.

Part of why Winnie joined Tin Shingle was to improve SEO on her website. “I’ve downloaded 30 SEO apps, and it’s not happening,” she told me on a call before she joined. The simple truth is that those apps won’t help! I haven’t seen everyone, but what has always helped since the dawn of SEO 20 years ago (which is when I started), is creative writing with keywords in mind, and linking out to other related web pages is the perfect combo.

First off, we discussed where Winnie had to put her name on different pages (because her website won’t rank well for her own name if it’s not mentioned anywhere...a common problem of speaking in 1st person...and having her author name on blog articles isn’t weighted enough for Google). We discussed her Author Spotlights, a service she created to spotlight other writers of color who are Black, Brown, Indigenous, and otherwise unrecognized. Being the month of Ramadan, she has been surprised to not see the author highlights of Muslim authors right now.

Winnie interviews the author and does a full feature on the book. While this is in a section called “Services,” she doesn’t charge for this, unlike others in her field. We discussed how she is creating pure publicity for these authors, and while that is a gift/service for them, in the publishing world, it is called something else: publicity ☺️💜

She is going to rename that section to Author Spotlights and feature recent interviews on its home page. Tin Shingle is adding Winnie to our Media Contacts Idea Center, and tagging her as #BlackMedia for others looking to find opportunities. Winnie is Tin Shingle’s youngest member: she is in her 3rd year at The College of Charleston! Which is where I went also! It is an honor having a student trust Tin Shingle enough with her investment. Her eye is on the prize(s).

Today's TuneUp Office Hours: A Focus On Last Minute Pitches; Limited-Run Products

Hello!

Today we are going to focus on when to pitch what.

Last Minute Mothers Day Gift Guides are on people's minds, but really prep for how you want to pitch Holiday Gift Guides (the November/December spreads) should be what you are planning for.

We can discuss how to pitch for these last minute ideas, as well as the print magazines that editors are working on now.

We will be looking at Tin Shingle's 2021 Editorial Calendar for ideas, so have that at the ready.

Additionally, we will work on what to do if you have low inventory, or are made-to-order, and how to handle that with your pitching.

If you haven't downloaded it yet, find the PR Planner and Tracking Template here. It is free for Members of Tin Shingle, and a cost for those who are curating their Tin Shingle tools.

Tin Shingle Members can attend this TuneUp Office Hour session as a way to have a micro-brainstorming session on their own marketing needs. The time will be shared and moderated. Come join us if you haven't yet! Private Training is always available with a discount to Tin Shingle Members, and group connections are always appreciated.

About TuneUp Office Hours

If you are a member of Tin Shingle, come on today's Members-Only TuneUp! These are closed sessions, and not open to the public. This is a safe space for Tin Shingle Members to come in with brainstorms to give and get feedback.

You can turn on your video camera to speak eye-to-eye, or just talk on the phone or through your computer speakers.

In this series, members of Tin Shingle with the Media Kit Membership can call in to workshop any need in their marketing campaign, including:

• Media Pitching: What a pitch to a certain media outlet should look like, and how it should read.

• Instagram: How to get sales and create PR opportunities from you posts.

• Facebook: How do you increase traffic from this platform?

• Website: The media will circle back to evaluate their website. What are they seeing, and is it clear?

• SEO: What's your game plan? Let's get one. You don't want to miss out on all that search traffic.

HOW IT WORKS:
Tin Shingle's owner Katie will moderate the call.

She will rotate through people on the call, and encourage each other to contribute to each person's challenge as a conversation.

CALL-IN DETAILS
When you are logged into your Media Kit Member account at Tin Shingle, you will be able to click this link in our Community section of the website to get the private link to call in details.

[PR] TuneUp: How To Pitch For 2021 Valentine’s Day Gift Guides - Starting In October/November 2020

It's that time of year! A monthly series where we start a new month and plan ahead for what we are pitching! October is a special month because...it's your time to begin pitching Valentine's Day. Oh yes. If you missed your chance last year, and found Tin Shingle when you were Googling "how to pitch valentine's day gift guides," and discovered that the time is not January, but is October, then this is your time to shine!

In this TuneUp, we went over ideas for national print magazines (6 months ahead), local (2-3 months ahead) and trending news stories right now.

Plus, we had a special Motivation Minute, that we're slowing down to a slow jam.

HOW TO WATCH

Anyone can watch a Tin Shingle TuneUp from their computer, mobile phone or tablet. The process is different for premium members and the public.

MEMBERS OF TIN SHINGLE (FREE)

Stream any TuneUp Webinar anytime with your Tin Shingle membership. No need to purchase it, this TuneUp is ready to play from this page! When you are logged in, you will see a big screen.

NON-MEMBERS ($65)

Once you buy a TuneUp, you own it forever. The video or audio recording will appear on the TuneUp page that you just purchased from, and all you need to do is press play.

Ready to Stream: PR Planning for September: What to Pitch the Media Each Month

Just dropped into Tin Shingle’s Training TuneUp Library! “PR Panning for September: What to Pitch This Month”

Hints: you’re going to hear that some Holiday Gift Guides are still options for you. You’re going to learn how to chunk this out so that you are preparing pitches for both the big glossy magazines you want, plus the social media reach of your own posts. Go stream it now! Link in bio and click on TuneUps. Tin Shingle Members of Level 3 gets all Training TuneUps for free (hey that rhymes!) or you can buy as a single purchase.

New Class Available to Stream: Tin Shingle's Ultimate Holiday Gift Guide Pitching Guide

Training TuneUp Available Now:
Tin Shingle's Ultimate Holiday Gift Guide Pitching Guide Online Class

There are 3 submission deadlines of the year when your business has as chance to be featured in one of the most coveted magazine issues of the year: The Holiday Gift Guide Issue that hits newsstands in November and December.

Those deadlines are:

• July (right now!) for national print magazines like O, The Oprah Magazine and Real Simple.
• September for regional print magazines.
• October/November for last minute blog submissions and TV shows.

What Businesses Are Good for Holiday Gift Guides?

Yours, most likely. You just need to think of the right angle.

• Products: Obviously!
• Books: Magazines will be recommending must-reads on those holiday reading lists.
• Gift Cards: Got a boutique fitness studio? Yarn shop?
• Experts: In the same magazine issue as the Holiday Gift Guide, the magazine still fills other pages with holiday advice. This is the time for New Years Resolution stuff.

 
Magazines Are Collecting Holiday Gift Ideas Now for December Issues

So here's the thing...if you want your business featured in the December issue, you must email the magazines of your dreams now. Yes, think big. But how will you do it? Here are the answers!

Watch This TuneUp Webinar - We Tell You How!

In this Training TuneUp that just released into Tin Shingle's Training TuneUp Collection, we partnered up with our dear friend Sabina Hitchen of Press for Success. Tin Shingle's owner Katie interviews Sabina for the inside scoop on how Holiday Gift Guides work, and the best ways you can email an editor with the suggestion that they consider your business in their recommendations. Tin Shingle does have a list of magazine editors in our Media Contacts Database to make this job a little easier on you.

Hot Tip: Go Niche

There are SO many gift guides possibilities:

• "Gifts for Moms"
• "Gifts For Nerds"
• "Gifts For Guys Who Love Gear"
• "Gifts For Yarnbombers"
• "Gifts For Self-Help Addicts"

The sky is the limit! Part of your job when pitching your brand to be considered for a Gift Guide is to suggest a great theme, or reason. Liberate yourself here. Identify the magazines you want to be featured in, and go for it.

The best way to liberate yourself to pitch your brand into a magazine is to watch or listen to our Training TuneUp: The Ultimate Holiday Gift Guide Pitching Guide as Katie and Sabina explore the ways you will accomplish this mission. If you are a member of Tin Shingle at Level 3 (Online Classes) or 4 (Media Lists), you can stream this TuneUp for free any time. Otherwise, you can just purchase it!

Covered In This TuneUp:

• The Big Picture – Inside a Magazine
• What Makes a Holiday Gift Guide
• 1st Chance for Holiday Gift Guides (Magazines)
• 2nd Chance for Holiday Gift Guides (Local)
• 3rd Chance for Holiday Gift Guides (Websites)
• The Pitch - What It Should Look Like
• The Photos - How Important Are They?
• Packaging - Worth It?

Tin Shingle Member Price for Levels 3 & 4: FREE
Non-Member Price: $65.00

Next TuneUp: The Truth About Press Releases

TuneUp: "The Truth About Press Releases"

It used to be the best way to introduce or announce a brand, event, product, or service, was to create and distribute a press release. Many times, this leads to paralyzing hours of writers block behind the computer, at the drawing board, or just lost in thought trying to create a perfect masterpiece.

Times. Have. Changed. 

You no longer need to  write a press release.
But if you wanted to, you could hire Tin Shingle to write and send a press release for you!

Feel liberated! Learn about this #TruthBomb in Tin Shingle's next Online Class, "The Truth About Press Releases." We will put that secret, and the power it contains, straight into your hands so you can work at getting more press with less stress!
 

You Will Learn:

• What is a Press Release? What does it look like?
• What do they really do?
• When should I use one?
• What opportunities am I missing by using a press release?
• How else would I communicate with the media?
• Simple Strategies you should be using instead
   

Details on How to Stream Coming

Once this storm passes, we'll have the date and time at which this TuneUp can be streamed.

If you want to connect with Katie right now, join Tin Shingle at the Community Level, and start chatting your question in our Facebook Group.

Online Classes Now Streaming

If you're a Training TuneUp Webinar Member of Tin Shingle, you can press play on these from any device when you're logged into Tin Shingle.  If you're not a member, you can buy your favorites and keep them forever!

Activate your membership today, or select your favorites and get excited to take your business in new directions with fresh marketing ideas!

PR Planning For February 2018

This is the Online Class for people who make their own luck. There are those who sit back and wait for opportunities, and then become one of hundreds of people who all try to get that opportunity at once. And then there are the rest of the success stories who are staying ahead of the media and suggesting ideas - suggesting ways that they may feature our business in a way that would delight, captivate, and solve their reader's problems. This class gives the latest story angle ideas that you can use right now in February to pitch your business for PR in April, May or June.

How Do We Know This? The folks at Tin Shingle are in touch with publishing houses to get their "Editorial Calendars," which are the monthly plans that magazines generally follow.

Have a Media Contact or Editorial Calendar Request?!
Send an email to member@tinshingle.com.  

Want Access?
 Join Tin Shingle as a Level 4 Member now!

Interview With An Artist Who Quit Her Day Job

This is an incredible story. Tin Shingle’s owner Katie will interview Megh Knappenberger to hear her story of leaving her graphic design days behind her in order to pursue her painting full time. But, her graphic design days come back into play a major part into how she found success so soon. Not long after making her big decsion to become a professional fine artist, Megh produced some paintings, and made a sale of $150,000! Publicity happened quickly after that, and she she needed to take the rest of the month off to keep up with new orders.

Living the Dream (Job)!

How did Megh do this? With a combination of tapping into her city's love for sports - the Kansas City Jayhawks - and landing the only licensing agreement from the Jayhawks to an artist. We are going to find out how she did this, and tap into the chutzpah that makes all of this happen. 

Iron Sharpens Iron - One Story Helps Shape Another

Megh will tell us all about her inspiration, determination, and collaborations in Tin Shingle's exclusive interview, to help you make your own success. Covered in this interview:

• Licensing Artwork
• Getting Sales
• Getting PR
• Changing the Mindset
• What Is Life Like Now

SEO Tips & Tricks for Google Rankings

What happens when a creative writer gets a hankering for loving SEO and Google Rankings? Really great content that ranks highly in Google's search engine! Do you want to know something even better? In this class, you get an SEO expert that can explain it to you in plain English, using metaphors to help you understand that are way more fun than charts and graphs! Tin Shingle's owner, Katie Hellmuth Martin, is such a person, and will lead you through this Online Class. Here is what she will cover:

• What is SEO
• What Does and SEO Friendly Website Look Like (A step by step guide)
• Tips For Service  and Product Based Companies
• How to use Social Platforms to Your Advantage
• Why Google Reviews are important and how to get your clients to do it
• Getting SEO from other websites
• What the Normal Person is Seeing and how you to optimize that
• Keyword Clues you can use to boost your rankings
• When and If you should by an Ad
• What to do when you rebrand

Listen to this online class to see how you are going to make your website SEO delicious for Google and get found by new and old customers and clients.

Today's Online Class TuneUp: PR Planning for February

Today's Free Online Class:
PR Planning For February

When: Thursday (Today), Feb 8th at 3 PM EST.
Where: The place most convenient for you. Watch at your desk or listen on the go.
Price: Free for all on the live broadcast.

This is the Online Class TuneUp for people who make their own luck. There are those who sit back and wait for opportunities, and then become one of hundreds of people who all try to get that opportunity at once. And then there are the rest of the success stories who are staying ahead of the media and suggesting ideas - suggesting ways that they may feature our business in a way that would delight, captivate, and solve their reader's problems. Register for this Online Class today that airs today at 3pm to get the latest story angle ideas that you can use right now in February to pitch your business for PR in April, May or June.

Newsflash: If you dream of your business being featured in a magazine, you can make this happen - on your own. All you need to do is email them with an idea. Ok, there's more to it than that, (like a really effective Subject Line, a Great Followup, and a Killer Idea), but the real trick is knowing the right time to pitch the right article angle.

Hot Topics Right Now: Magazines work 3-6 months ahead of time. So you must think that way also, and suggest a timely idea for the future. This doesn't mean simply planning ahead. This means actually executing it right now. Magazines are working on things like this right now:

• Summer Fun
• Camping
• Star Wars Origami ("May the 4th Be With You" is coming up!)
• Bridal Budgets
• Disruptive and the revolutionary people behind the idea
• Italian Cooking

Do you want more ideas like this? Then Register for this Online Class today that airs today at 3pm. Today is Tin Shingle's monthly PR Planning class, and tells you what to be pitching in February if you want PR in May or June.

How Do We Know This? The folks at Tin Shingle are in touch with publishing houses to get their "Editorial Calendars," which are the monthly plans that magazines generally follow.

Normally the story angle deadlines are available to our Media Contacts and Editorial Calendar Level 4 Membership only. But during this PR Planning class series, we share with you some of these deadlines. Get in the class today and you'll hear them, and/or activate your Level 4 Membership level to access these and more any time you want.

This Class is Computer & Phone Friendly

• Call on the phone to listen.
• Watch from the phone app - do nothing - it just works!
• Click to watch on the computer