Read this document carefully to determine the best way to complete the GuestFinder application to improve your chances of gaining media attention.
Requirements and benefits of GuestFinder membership are detailed on the GuestFinder Fact Sheet. sheet. Before enrolling, you are highly encouraged to read the Fact Sheet as well as visit the web site at www.guestfinder.com.
Title Tips
Your title should be simple, e.g., "Author" or "Author/Hypnotist." List one or two medical degrees only if it's important to your subject matter. In most cases, media people will not include a long list of degree acronyms in a story.
Headline Writing Tips
The headline is the first thing someone will read about you on the GuestFinder site; the headline is your "hook." The media user is presented with a list of headlines with guest names in them. The headline will also appear on your GuestPage.
You must carefully craft this headline, and it should be
1) interesting
2) offer some type of benefit to the audience
3) have your name in it
For example, the author of online romance book, it says, "Online Romance: Lorilyn Bailey Explains How to Find it and How to Keep it." This is what may help the media decide to call you. It's good to have it include "How," "What" or "Why."
NOTE: Joe Vitale, an author and publicist, has the following words to say about writing headlines: "Headlines make or break ads, no matter where you run the ads. A change in a headline can bring you as much as 19 times more replies, so one study revealed. A tip on writing good headlines is to make your headline involving, intriguing and benefit-rich. Write a headline that pulls readers into your ad. "I have over 30 ways on how to generate headlines in my book for the American Marketing Association, "The AMA Complete Guide to Small Business Advertising," but the biggest tip of all is to make your headline *interesting*. Tie it to news, make it valuable. Another tip I've found useful is to read the headlines of magazine articles in "Readers's Digest." They are masters at writing headlines. Note how they promise benefits and create interest. It's a formula for success."
Background Writing Tips
In 100 to 150 words, describe your qualifications and why you would make a great guest for radio, TV, or newspapers. Be factual and concise. As you write this section, keep in mind the media wants to know from you the following information: "I will share with your audience how to...." or "I will explain why your audience should...." or "I will tell your audience all about..."
Think of this bio not as your life story, but as a pitch to the media to interview you. Shorter is better. A summary of qualifications is good.
For more detailed information about your educational or professional qualifications, you may wish to include that information on your own home page which you may choose to have linked from your GuestFinder space.
Consulting assistance is available from GuestFinder on an hourly fee basis if you need help to develop the most effective page possible. Email info@guestfinder.com for more info.
Interview Questions Writing Tips
List ten questions you can answer. Think of yourself in
your interviewer's place and think up ten questions that
1) sound like something someone would naturally ask and
2) when asked and answered will provide the audience with interesting information.
Practice answering those questions.
External Web Links - Writing Tips
You may have up to three external links from your GuestFinder GuestPage. That means you may link your GuestFinder page to a other web sites, such as your own home page, an online bookstore (such as www.Amazon.com) or to a general web site that has more information about your subject area that would help a media professional.
If you use www. Amazon.com, we will link only to their home page, and not to specific Amazon pages, because the links to specific books more often than not do not work properly.
By the way, if you do not yet have a home page and would like us to work with you to set one up, or to refer web designers to you, let us know at info@guestfinder.com
Contact Information - Writing Tips
You may list the guest's phone number or the number of the guest's agent or publisher. The "Location" refers to the physical location of the guest. The time zone should match the location of the phone number.
If at all possible, the guest's direct contact information should be listed.
Main Categories and Topic Areas - Tips
You should visit the GuestFinder website to determine which topics are the most appropriate for you.
Please select topics that are already listed if at all possible. If we begin listing vague or unusual topics, it will be less likely that your page will be found, and the media professional will be forced to do more searching.
However, if your topic is simply not listed and needs to be, we will consider adding to the topic list.
The Photo
You can provide us with a photo in one of three ways:
Photo Requirements:
Web Site Search Words
List up to ten words that are related to your subject of expertise. For example, an author of a book on online romance may select such words as: online, romance, love, relationships, marriage, computer, Web, Internet, cyberdating, cyber-romance. The words you select will allow a GuestFinder user to enter a word in the GuestFinder search engine and related sites (such as yours) will appear.
Questions You Can Answer During Interviews
List up to ten questions that you are qualified to discuss during a TV, radio, or newspaper interview. This list is for the use of the media professional who may print this list for use during the interview if he or she is short of time.
Tip: Think about these words as you create your list: Who, What, When, Where, Why, and How. Example: "Why do you think it is important for people to...(you fill in the blank!)?" "What advice can you give people about..." or "Tell me about..." Exclude any questions that can be answered with a simple "yes" or "no" response. Keep the audience in mind; would they want to know the answers to these questions?
Your GuestFinder listing will be posted to the Web as soon as possible. The time it takes to do so will vary according to the number of applications received. When it becomes active, if you have an email address, you (or your agent) will receive a confirmation note. The date it becomes active becomes your anniversary date. You will be sent, via email or U.S. mail, an invoice every year on your anniversary date.
When your GuestFinder GuestPage is up and on the Internet, if you wish, you may place the graphic logo below on your own web site and link it to www.GuestFinder.com. To save the image, place your cursor over the image, and click on the second button on your mouse. Select "Save Image As..." and save it as a .gif image in your appropriate directory. You also need to use the appropriate HTML code on your page. (See the code by selecting View and then Document Source on your browser.)
Note: GuestFinder reserves
the right to reject any copy with typos, bad grammar, inappropriate/unprofessional
material or links.
If you have any questions, please be sure to read the GuestFinder Fact Sheet sheet.
You may also send questions to info@guestfinder.com
or call (919) 878-9108 (Eastern time).
We are excited about this new project, and we appreciate your interest!
The membership address list of GuestFinder is confidential and will never be sold or otherwise released.
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