5 Ways to Become a Local Celebrity and Get Free Publicity for Your Brand

1. Help others!  

This simple word is the basis for so much marketing success.  If you offer help to local charities you will reap the benefit of name recognition and celebrity.
Reading the book the Barefoot Spirit really encouraged me to see the importance of community service. The authors Michael Houlihan and Bonnie Harvey founded the beverage juggernaut – Barefoot Wines.  They coined the phrase “Worthy Cause Marketing” which encourages businesses to connect, volunteer and get involved with community minded events that line up with their brand.

For instance if you are creating a product that prides itself on using only environmentally friendly products, find a way to volunteer your services with a grass roots group like the Sierra Club, Wildlife Conservation Network or better yet checkout Meetup.com for local leaders who are reaching out to your community.
The authors point to a time where their marketing budget was zero but they had plenty of wine and will power so they beat the pavement offering their services to local events. “We aided hundreds of nonprofits with our wine, energy and time, and their members spread the word about Barefoot.”  They add that “As we grew we never did advertise, we just supported more worthy causes and they made Barefoot one of America’s most popular brands.”

Helping out at local events will get you in the local newspaper and begin to establish you as a reliable resource for residents.  Local press is invaluable.

2. Join the Chamber of Commerce

Joining a local chamber is a great way to partner with other business owners.  A recent survey shows consumers are “63 percent more likely to want to purchase goods or services from a small business that is a chamber member.”  Usually chambers have a website which needs new content. Offer to write a piece for their blog that would be of importance to their readers rather than a puff piece extolling the greatness of your product.  You must add value!

If you are creating a new leather bag, offer to write a piece on tips to working with manufacturers.  Remember the purpose is to help their readership and add value to their website; also, you can link it to your social media which gives you credibility as a business owner.

3. Offer Your Services to Speak at Local Events

Yes, the local PTA, Girl Scouts, YMCA and STEM groups need speakers.  Volunteer your services to speak on a topic of their choosing and you’ll be a rockstar.  For example if you’re specialty is creating tech packs for would be inventors then you can offer a short speech on the power of technology in the fashion industry.  Young girls want to be Tyra Banks or Christie Brinkley but you can show them there is more to the industry than being a 6 foot supermodel.

4.  Sponsor a Special Night at the Local Ball Field

If your new product is aimed at the little tikes then this is the way to go.

In my town there’s a minor league baseball team called the Bowie Baysox. The small stadium is always filled with families who want a night out without breaking the bank.  Every year we notice there’s a local dentist who sponsors a night at the field and he walks around dressed up as a toothbrush. At first it was funny, but now I realize that this one stop at the local ball field is a gold mine for this dental practice.  There are tons of moms and dads there who are not thinking about dental hygiene but now his name is synonymous with local charity and he has a captive audience for a few hours.

So the next time you’re looking for a marketing idea, sponsor the Boy Scouts night out at your local ball field.  You don’t have to dress up as a toothbrush but put on your thinking cap to find a way to connect to the consumers.

5. Make Sure People Can Find You

I recently had the pleasure of sitting down with a local reporter who covered our annual event.  I found that she had spent a lot of time reading our website, blog, magazine articles etc. She was definitely prepared.  After our time together she asked for further specifics such as links to our latest videos, stats on our viewership and more. The great part about it is that within a few moments I emailed her several links and the article was published the next morning.  

Our team was able to push out that newspaper article which appeared in 3 local papers, to thousands of participants and partners.  In an instant we had credibility with new event attendees.

So the moral of the story is “Be Ready”  for the attention you will receive. If you want to be a local name then you must have a few things in place.

Please master the basics like a domain name that matches your brand.  Make it as easy as possible for local reporters, charities and new customers to find you.

Alegra Hall is a Producer and Guest Booker with more than a dozen years in media. Alegra has vetted thousands of guests for TV, radio, print and social media interviews. She is also the editor of Living Wisely Magazine. Alegra@mymediabuzztv.com, @MyMediaBuzz or facebook.com/MyMediaBuzzLLC.