The Writers Corner - Can You Handle an SMT?

So you're a writer. Then you get a book published and now you're an author. Now it's time to try your hand at media and you begin to do "phoners" or radio interviews on the phone. Next, you have a nice break and get to do some regional and even national television. Eventually, you'll progress to the point where you'll hit out of the nearest large city via Satellite and do an interview for a major cable or network station. Then, if you're among the top 10% of authors, at some point, you may be ready to try an SMT or a RMT.

A Satellite Media Tour or Radio Media Tour is where an author is interviewed in back-to-back shows for anywhere from 3 to 6 hours. It usually starts at 6:00 AM Eastern Time, which is 3:00 AM Pacific Time (my time). This means I'll wake up at 1:30 in the morning, go to the studio, go through makeup, then rehearse the interviews, then hit the first show live at 3:00 AM. The challenge is to stay alert and high energy for the next six hours through sometimes as many as 35 interviews. You won't see your interviewers, but they will be in your ear as the the morning news teams from Boston to Los Angeles. You'll hear them ask questions while you look straight into the camera and sometimes they'll stick to the question list, but at other times they'll throw you a curve ball. You will have 3 minutes for the entire interview in which you will need to deliver your points and then it's off the air with a 2 to 3 minute break and on to the next show. Forget about going to the bathroom, that's a luxury that isn't built into the schedule!

Who sponsors SMTS? Sometimes, if your publisher has a boat load of money, they'll give you media training and sponsor a book tour SMT. But those are quickly becoming a thing of the past. Most of the time there is a corporate sponsor, who will handle the bookings, pay the expense of the SMT and handle all the details. Your job is to give a good interview based on the predetermined focus of the SMT. It becomes a win/win for the author and the corporate sponsor. You get to promote your book and the sponsor gets to say "this interview brought to you by...."

SMTs are a strange breed, but I find them to be loads of fun because I like a good challenge. They're like a media marathon and at the end, you get to go back to the hotel and go to sleep. Since most SMTs are done out of NYC, you might also wake up in time to hit a Broadway show.

It's an adventure, but one that is worth it!

Ellie Kay
America's Family Financial Expert (R)

Writer's Corner -- Should I Fund My Own Travel to Go on National Media?

I’m beginning an “Writer’s Corner” for my friends who are in the publishing and media field. One of the questions that authors often ask is, “Where should I put my marketing dollars?” When you have an opportunity to go on a nice, national show and you have to fund the trip yourself, how can you make sure it’s worth what I call the “Media Investment.” So if you are invited on a show, make sure that they are a class act, with a nice set, great team of professionals, excellent production quality and easy to work with ahead of time. But NEVER pay production costs and RARELY pay for play! I do have a source that has a worthwhile pay-for-placement schedule and if you email me at assistant@elliekay.com, I'll send you her contact info. The main thing this blog is looking at is: paying your own travel costs.

When it comes to the ever present question: “should I fund my travel or should I not?” A big consideration is if your publicity dollars are tight--then you might want to pass. Instead, spend those dollars on your website, social media and radio or skype ops that can be done from your home office.

That having been said, there are some ways to make the possibility of a national television appearance more viable financially, even if you have to fund travel yourself. Here are some ideas:

1) TWO FOR ONE DEAL -- Dovetail the media trip off of a nearby major market media trip. If your publisher will pay for you to do a nearby media market tour, then let them know you’ll do the secondary show on your own. This might make your publisher more likely to fund the first market for you since they will be getting a “two for one” deal out of it –two media markets for their one market investment. Or, if you are speaking at an event near the proposed television show, then dovetail the media gig off the speaking gig.

2) MULTIPLES --Pitch the producer with the idea of recording multiple interviews. If you can do the live interview that day, then record 2 to 3 more interview segments on the set after the show, then they will have these shows in the can and you will be on once a week until these segments run out. It makes your monetary investment (for the trip) more valuable. This is how I was able to be on one international show 12 times in 3 trips. I did one live show on each of these trips and 3 recorded shows. But please note: THESE MUST BE ARRANGED BEFOREHAND. Don’t expect to make the pitch about multiple shows the day before you travel and then expect to record afterwards. Pitch the idea of multiples ahead of time, before you book the show and see if they have time in their production schedule to make it work.

3) TIMELESS – If your interview is not headline driven, then try to make it timeless by avoiding mention of events in the news, holidays, days of the week or seasons. Then tell the producer that you are going to try not to “date” the interview so they can re-air it at another time in the event it fits another show in the future and they want to drop in as a segment again on another show.

4) SKYPE - Pitch the idea of a skype interview (free for you). If the angle of your story can become newsworthy (highlighting something that is in the headlines), then they might consider a skype interview. These are usually reserved for those who have been in studio at least once and proven that they can handle an interview. But if you have media clips you could show them and if you’ve done skype interviews before, then make the offer. That way you don’t incur any travel expenses at all. Furthermore, if you go in studio (following one of the tips listed), then be sure you get the producer’s card for future skype opportunities.

NEW AUTHORS - For some writers who are new to the game, a show where you have to fund your own travel would be a good option for you if: 1) you are just starting out in media & want the experience 2) you have the money to invest, and/or 3) you really need a media clip of you on an international or national show. In these cases, it could be all right to invest in going on this show. But be sure you try to get the most “bang for your buck” by following some of the ideas I listed above.

BONUS TIP: If you are recording multiple interviews (in person or via skype) for a faith based show, then try to make one of them a bit more generic (or crossover friendly). Oftentimes these clips are required by national shows like The Today Show, the Nate Berkus Show, ABC News, CNN, CNBC, MSNBC, etc, when they are exploring the idea of having you on a show. These mainstream producers might come calling (or if your publicist pitches them) and they will ask for a media clip to see how you look and act on the air. If you have a clip that is more mainstream (and less evangelical), then you’re more likely to get the media booking.


Ellie Kay
America's Family Financial Expert (R)
www.elliekay.com