Google News Alerts:4 Ways to Use Them as Free, Easy PR for Your Book or Product
By Susan Kendrick
What are Google News Alerts?
Google News Alerts are updates of Web news on topics of your choice, delivered right to your email.
How to get Google News Alerts
Go to http://www.google.com/alerts. On that page there are just four boxes to fill in:
_ Your Search Term
_ Type of news you want
_ How often you want to receive them
_ Your email address
That's it. You're ready to have news on your topic delivered to you once a day, as it happens, or once a week.
4 Ways to use this service as an author or expert:
* Keep up on news in your field
Use Google News Alerts to keep up on news in your industry or field of interest. This information can enhance your research for the book or product you are working on and let you know who else is active in this field.
* Think like a PR person
Each time you read what shows up in your email, think like a PR person and see how it relates to you, your business, or your book or product. Given your expertise on this subject, what do you have to offer? The writer or editor of this article may report on this topic frequently.
* Get recognized by being helpful
You can make a writer or editor's job easier and get some visibility for your expertise at the same time. Contact this person and let him or her know that you are available to provide additional information, perspective, examples, statistics, success stories, and advice. Writers and editors of publications are always looking for good sources of information and experts they can quote. Again, make their job easier.
Approaching writers and editors this way, because you have read their articles and think you can help them, is a much better way to "pitch" your expertise than simply to cold call and tell them what you have to offer. Approach people with a genuinely helping attitude and you can create relationships that will help you both.
* Have your book title and subtitle ready
This is good time to mention once again the wisdom of developing your book's title and subtitle early, while you're still in the manuscript stage. By doing so, you can tell writers and editors you talk to that you are the author of a new book on this topic and that the title of that book is "Your Title and Subtitle." This has far more credibility than just saying you are working on a book, but having nothing to show for it. If you have the front cover designed, all the better. You can show someone your complete book cover--that this is a real book in production and is expected to be released in (date).
Imagine getting all that advance recognition for your book or product. Imagine being quoted in a publication as the author of a forthcoming book. Even if your final title and subtitle change before you go to press, a good working name for your book is priceless.
If you are not quite ready to reveal information about your book or product, you can still respond in the way described above as an expert who has credibility because of your business, background, speaking, seminars, retreats, consulting, etc. Use what you have!
Google News Alerts on "Book Titles and Subtitles"
This is one I get. If you are in the process of or even thinking about writing a book, consider getting these same news alerts as well. It is one more way to see how often news about books has to do with how good or appropriate the title and subtitle are. Ultimately, you want your book covered in the media, so it's helpful to see what's being said about other books and authors. You'll learn a lot.
Get more Book Cover Coaching articles
I've posted two articles on this site so far that are commentaries on Google News Alerts on Book Titles and Subtitles. To see these articles, type "Google" in the "Search Blog" box at the top of this page.
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