Hello!! Vision Boarding Turned Chapter Book To Leave 2021 For 2022

Hellllllo!

What a holiday season! Filled with extreme highs and lows for some. At Tin Shingle, we have always liked setting resolutions. Call them what you will - visions, intentions, goals - whatever. Declaring them makes us accountable, even if it's 3 years later. Once started, we can pat ourselves on the back, saying: "See!? I knew you'd start that someday, and that day was yesterday. Good job."

One of the themes for us (well, me, Katie, the owner of Tin Shingle) going into 2022 was "honesty." Honesty with one's self. Honesty can hit in many forms. From the music you listen to in public, to how you spend your New Years Eve.

Where does "honesty" fit in? Some people like to party, decorate, have lots of people over, cook, etc. I'm just more quiet, and admitting that can be hard. It’s not meant to crash someone else’s preferences of how they like to spend the evening. But if mutual admiration for different styles can be found, then that is ideal.

For me, I prefer to be under water, turning around in the current as the big wave passes overhead. Once the wave hits the shore, I emerge, having felt its pull from underwater, playing with the rushing energy from underneath.

Once the wave crashes on land, the emerging happens. Call it emerging like a mermaid, where her tail turns to legs, and she's ready to leave the sea to walk on shore, exploring curiosities for the next creation to fulfill a purpose. Put on fresh silver glitter for the next day. I don't watch the countdown shows; I don't call people; I don't text as many people as I can type in 3 minutes until the next day.

The day is spent prepping: recycling filmy plastics, paying bills, paying invoices, declaring income goals for the new year; digging into paint; spreading new rubber cement; buying and playing with new watercolor markers.

Vision Boarding Turned Chapter Book

My neighbor and I (and our daughters) spent the evening vision boarding. When I used to have an office on Main Street in my town, one of the last events I had was a Vision Boarding Day for the community. Anyone could come in and cut up my magazine collection, use glitter, beads, etc.

My old bar/desk is in my living room now, so we gathered round and got to cutting. Each person was in their process. Talking to each other, but in our own plans. My plan evolved from a single board to a thick, lined journal. I'd wanted plain paper, but all the store had was lined. I figured I'd like the effect and could take notes.

This happened. The single board evolved into a vision journal for the year. Open for anyone to read. A friend wanted to see the results, so I made her a video. You can watch it here. My neighbor and I have discussed meeting up once a month to revisit the journal boards with new clippings/discoveries.

Highlights

Reading the highlights/intentions/resolutions in the video may be difficult. Therefore, here they are:

• Sketching
  Sketch anything. Just let your hand go and play with those art supplies.

• Boarding
  Keep vision boarding throughout the year.

• Newspaper Homework Time + Clipping
  I love reading the paper! But I need to save some of the articles for visual stimulation of new articles.

• Scheduling The Work
  I run 3 companies. Need to finally commit to mini-schedules to show up at each of them, and not be consumed by one.

• Pictures: Album Assigning + Printing
  Assign the pictures of my family to albums and print them all.

• Play With My Kids
  Sit and play with my kids more. Just sit there and do nothing or play their game or sit while they color or play Fortnite.

• Phoenix Rising: Buy a Building
  I once rented an office. But I want to own the building.

• Stay Strong + Fit
  Ever since my Pelvic Prolapse diagnosis, I have been so thankful that I started running every day and doing Pilates once per week to save my body. The extra benefits have been unexpected and amazing.

• Accept
  Practice accepting things and feelings into my life. People give, now it needs to be absorbed.

• Sunday Magazining
  For years I said I'd carve time on Sundays to only read magazines and not go on social.

• $7,000/month Income
  This is what the bank wants if I am to buy a building. Therefore, this is what the bank shall have.

• Maybe the Book: Children’s Book
  Have a couple ideas for a children's book - one with a friend. Go deeper and explore it.

• Plantings/Cuttings/Succulents
  Get more live plants in the home. Before kids, I had live plants. After kids, they were too much to take care of and water. I need them back.

Watch the video of this vision board/journal here.

What did you do? What do you like to do? Share in the Comments on Tin Shingle's blog.

Office Hours Live Today 1-2pm, And Special Message About 2022 Editorial Calendars

Office Hours are happening live for 9/29/2021 from 1-2pm. Members of Tin Shingle can call in to get one-on-one strategy help.

Also a special message about Editorial Calendars: October is just around the corner, which means that Tin Shingle’s Editorial Calendar Database is empty as magazines finalize their 2022 plans. In the meantime, we create a production schedule style database for you, which lets you see when the right time is to pitch a magazine for specific month. For more on Tin Shingle’s Editorial Calendar Collection, click here.

To activate your membership to access it, plus these live TuneUp Office Hours, click here.

Ready To Stream: [PR] TuneUp: What To Pitch The Media In October 2021 For 2022 Coverage

What To Pitch The Media In October 2021 For 2022 Coverage

The Live Broadcast of the TuneUp is back this week!
Listen to this TuneUp for ideas on what to pitch the media during October 2021 that you can see in print in 2022! Pitching the print media is all about spotting news trends right now, and predicting how they would play out 6 months from now. Also in this TuneUp get media ideas for what to pitch now to get short-lead news coverage from digital editions of your favorite media outlets and TV.

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.

The Difference Between Pitching A Media Lead, And Your Own Idea For An Article Feature

Pitching the media is an art. Just like social etiquette is a thing in any culture, there exists an etiquette in emailing a person in the media with the hopes that they will feature your business. This act of emailing is called “pitching the media,” and there are 2 big difference ways to do it if you sell a product. Do it wrong, and you may irritate the media person. But it’s easy to do it right! Here’s how to do it right:

Pitching The Media With A Product For A Sale Or Deal

Sometimes the media will put out a call for a specific kind of product, like "Products for Breast Cancer Awareness." Usually the request will include if there needs to be a sale on the product, like 20% off or 75% off. When answering this lead with your product, you must follow the specifics of the deal request. If you cannot offer that sale, then do not pitch.

Do not use this media opportunity to introduce yourself and your business to the media person. This will only irritate them because they are reading so many emails that are sending in the sale info, that your "hey, here's why you should feature my business!" email is like a bump in the road of their inbox.

This does not mean that they never want to hear from you ever. But your job is to study the types of articles this media person writes, or TV segments that they host or produce. If they aren't meaty pieces that simply feature companies, then they are not a fit for you.

However. If something about this media person just compels you to pitch them - like you cannot not pitch them - then Tin Shingle gives you permission to pitch - but with NO ASK.

This means, you cannot ask for a feature, and you cannot ask them to talk to you. Do not ask them to schedule a phone call with you. You are sending them an awareness type pitch, and then leaving it at that. Wishing them a good day and good health. Do not offer to send them a sample. We all know what that means - it's an implication to test the product, and do something in return.

This way, the pressure is off. You've asked nothing of them. And they know of your product now. In the future, if they are working on a non-sales piece, they may think of your company.

Pitching The Media For A Feature Story

Pitching the media for a feature story on your business is everyone's dream feature. This should not be done when you are answering a HARO lead. Usually, PR Leads that just show up in your inbox - the low-hanging fruit - are asking for specific things.

Maybe make note of this media person for someone you want to cold pitch to. What does "cold pitching" mean? It means you are pitching the media person out of the blue They have asked for nothing, and you don't know what articles or TV segments they are working on. It's OK to pitch your dream pitch of the feature, but not when there is a call for a sale or deal or something really timely and specific.

For guidance on how to pitch a feature story on your business, join Tin Shingle and use our Pitch Whisperer Group to get guidance directly from me (Katie). You can also sign up for a Private Training session, which is 25% off for Tin Shingle members.

Trae Bodge Is Seeking October 2021 Deals $$$

SUBMISSION DEADLINE: 12 PM ET SEPTEMBER 21

ABOUT TRAE BODGE:

Trae Bodge is an accomplished lifestyle journalist and TV commentator who specializes in smart shopping, personal finance, parenting, and retail.

She has appeared on TV hundreds of times; including NBC Nightly News with Lester Holt, Inside Edition, CNBC, and local network affiliates nationwide.

Trae has been named a Top Voice in Retail by LinkedIn and a top personal finance expert by GoBankingRates and FlexJobs. She is a contributor at Woman's Day magazine, Newsweek.com and CNN Underscored, and her writing and expert commentary have appeared in Forbes, USNews.com, Kiplinger, Marketwatch, MSN, Yahoo Finance, and numerous others.

Category Themes (Deals $$$ outside of these categories will not be considered):

• Early Fall Apparel

• Clearance

• Breast Cancer Awareness

• Pizza

• Halloween

SPECIAL FORMATTING ALERT:
This lead has a very specific formatting requirement. Details are listed in Tin Shingle's PR Center which is accessible by those who have the Media Kit Membership.

SALES & DEALS ONLY!!

This is not a pitch for a feature story on your business. This is a pitch for sales and deals only, and has very specific formatting requests. Please do not pitch Trae with anything other than a sale. Members of Tin Shingle can get help with their pitches to make sure they are on the mark.

• Brief description: 1-2 sentences describing the product/brand ​

• ​Price: The original price, or a general base price, i.e. $45 and up

• Savings: 20 percent off, $10 off, BOGO, etc. (A gift with purchase or free shipping alone is not enough to qualify.)

• Coupon code: if there is one

• Dates: when does the sale begin and end?

• URL: Please NO tracking links. This will cause problems for me with my editors.

• No images needed
  
  Tin Shingle is not affiliated with any lead unless otherwise specified.

People with a Media Membership of Tin Shingle can log in to Tin Shingle to get the Contact details.

Black Girl Nerds; A Podcast Highlighting Your Geeky Guide To Pop Culture Entertainment

If you need a good podcast to listen to, this is it! Black Girl Nerds is Your Geeky Guide To Pop Culture Entertainment. In this episode, they interviewed Emmy-nominated actor, comedian, and author Yvonne Orji. Going to need to listen to and buy the paper version of her book Bamboozled By Jesus.

On television, she stars in HBO’s critically acclaimed comedy series 'Insecure'. A distinguished standup comedian, Yvonne previously opened for Chris Rock on various stops of his Total Blackout Tour and headlined her first comedy tour, Lagos To Laurel, at the top of 2020. She subsequently debuted her first one-hour HBO standup special, Momma, I Made It!, in June 2020. Earlier this year, Orji released her faith-based advice book, Bamboozled by Jesus: How God Tricked Me Into the Life of My Dreams, and can currently be seen in the Hulu film 'Vacation Friends', alongside Lil Rel and John Cena.”

Ready To Stream: [PR] TuneUp: What To Pitch The Media This Month: August (For January 2022 Coverage)

[PR] TuneUp: What To Pitch The Media This Month: August (For January 2022 Coverage)

Hello Hello!

Tin Shingle's planning ahead programming continues, with this broadcast of the monthly TuneUp "What To Pitch For August 2021 (For Media Coverage In January 2022).

During this TuneUp, we focused on standard themes you can rely on for pitching angles that could land your media placement in January 2022 (think "New Year, New You!"...you know the drill). We also focus on "short leads" and "medium leads" ideas, which are story angles you can use now to land your media coverage tomorrow or in a month from now.

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.

LIVE TODAY: What To Pitch The Media This Month: August (For January 2022 Coverage)

Hello Hello!

Tin Shingle's planning ahead programming continues, with this live broadcast of the monthly TuneUp "What To Pitch For August 2021 (For Media Coverage In January 2022). During this TuneUp, we focus on standard themes you can rely on for pitching angles that could land you media placement in January 2022 (think "New Year, New You!"...you know the drill). We also focus on "short leads" and "medium leads" ideas, which are story angles you can use now to land you media coverage tomorrow or in a month from now.

Register Here >

More BLOGGERS in Media Contact Land!

Hello all!

I’m back with a quickie update on what’s been going on in Media Contact Land! Tin Shingle collects helpful details about people who produce content in the media and make it available to our Media Kit Members for 24/7 access.

More Bloggers Added To Tin Shingle’s Media Contact Idea Center

Bloggers and influencers have gained major traction and credibility over the past few years. It seems that the blogging industry is finally getting through the “awkward stage” and filtering out those only in it for the “free stuff” (companies aren’t gonna play that game anymore).

Particularly for the product-based businesses, and those in hospitality who are approached for free stuff, there is a major cultural shift happening in the blogosphere, so everybody has to behave and offer something of true substance to be taken seriously these days. “The concept of ‘free stuff’ has always been in blogging, and in magazine publishing as well,” said Tin Shingle’s publisher, Katie Hellmuth Martin, who is also a local blogger. “Businesses pitch bloggers by offering free facials or hotel stays, and if the blogger is running a business, with mouths to feed in her family, she is going to say ‘No free stuff’ and respond with a price to pay to play.”

Those businesses who don’t want to pay to play can get free coverage by pitching the right story angle to the writers. Something really compelling that the writer cannot ignore because it’s so good. That’s what Tin Shingle teaches in our educational platform.

On the other hand, bloggers and influencers who approach businesses for free stuff….eh. Tin Shingle has never been a fan of free stuff because nothing is free, so pick your collaborations wisely, should you elect to go down this path. “I don’t even accept free stuff, even if it’s a spa treatment,” said Katie. “It sets an expectation that I can’t promoise to deliver on, and I’d rather the bank see the income dollars for when I need a loan to invest in my business, rather than how many spa treatments I got. With 3 kids, I don’t even have time for the spa treatment, least one that comes with strings attached. I pay to zone out in my spa!”

Bloggers In The CEO and Finance Industries

We are adding to our database bloggers from every industry for you to connect with starting with Finance, namely blogs by CEO’s so you can pick their brains at your leisure by reading their blogs. Yes, CEO’s blog! Blogging can be a great business strategy for any business. Usually smaller blogs who are very niche have loyal followings who take to heart what they read.

Penny Herscher

First on our list is Penny Herscher. She is a former Silicon Valley CEO who currently blogs, mentors, and consults businesses. Her passions include achieving economic equality for women. Check her out at The Grassy Road and on her travel blog Rapt Roaming. Her writing is easygoing and is very much like reading the thoughts of a supportive and warm friend.

George Colony

George Colony is the founder and CEO of Forrester Research, well-respected research, and advisory firm. George’s mission is simple. In his own words, he has one mission, “To tell them something they don’t know.” Find him at The Counterintuitive CEO and on Twitter at @gcolony.

Search our media contact database using the terms “finance,” “CEO,” and “business” to find others in the finance and CEO niche! You can also search Tin Shingle’s Database using the Search By Media Outlet tool.

Picture of Tin Shingle’s Media Contact Database when searching by “Media Outlet Type.”

Today's Office Hours :: Gift Guide Questions; Strategy Guide In General

Office Hours
Open Today

When: Wednesday, July 28th
Time: 1pm EST
Where: At your computer or on your phone.
How: Follow the directions on this page to get the registration link.
Or, if you're a Tin Shingle Member and are already logged in,click here to get the special registration link.
Required: Media Kit Membership with Tin Shingle. Join today.

Hello!

What are you working on, in terms of getting featured in the media?

What is your social media campaign looking like?

And your newsletter? How are you using it to back all of this up?

We can discuss on Today's TuneUp

GIFT GUIDE ALERT:
The time is now to pitch Holiday Gift Guides to print publications, which drop in November/December. Tin Shingle has several TuneUps to prepare you in our Classes section that you can watch on-demand (free for members, buy-as-needed for non-members)
We can discuss ideas for any which way to pitch your products in. If you don't want to, or don't have time to, use this Wednesday time slot, you can use the member-only Google Group to type your thoughts, or book a Private Session with Katie.

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!

If you can't make this time, you can book a Private Training session for 25% off for a personal phone call.