I.B.M. Ring 362 The Maine Mystics Bangor, Maine
Home Archive Constitution Bylaws Policy and Program Manual Index to Executive Minutes Index to Minutes Index to Ring Reports Hall of Fame		Publicity by Dr. Wilson Publicity is a very important part of being a magician. If you are organizing your own public show, publicity is the only thing that will get people to buy tickets. Even if you only perform at shows where someone else books you and pays you, publicity lets potential bookers know about you and your show. I am often surprised by magicians who are good performers, but who make no effort at publicity, probably because they don't know where to start. These notes are meant to accompany the Teaching Table on Publicity given at the September 2007 meeting of I.B.M. Ring 362.

I'm not going to read all this. What are the key things that I have to know about publicity?

• Imagine the future and make it happen. This takes lead time.
• Do it yourself. Write your own articles and take your own photos.
• Keep at it. Some events work well, some not so well, but publicity builds on publicity.

Lead Time. Getting publicity for an event, a show, or a publicity stunt takes planning. There are many deadlines that have to be met, and it is necessary to have a calendar of key dates well in advance. If you will be working with other people or organizations, they need time to meet to make decisions. My rule of thumb is that for an event of even moderate complexity, it is necessary to have a rough plan in place at least three months in advance. Anything less than this will leave you scrambling for time and failing to complete aspects of your publicity effort. Remember: People don't plan to fail; they fail to plan.

Do It Yourself. If you want to create publicity, you have to be able to write press releases and submit your own photos. If you can't do this right now, you will either have to learn how, or find someone willing to work with you. While these notes might give you ideas, they don't include instruction in clear writing or technical training in photo submission.

Keep at it. You have probably heard the term "publicity campaign," because getting publicity is a campaign. Successful publicity requires multiple, overlapping stories and events that repeatedly bring your ideas before the public. Every big corporation understands this; what is true for Coca-Cola is also true for you. Sometimes, your event, story, or photo won't get any attention because something else of greater interest is happening, or because the idea behind it does not stick in the mind of the public. You don't have to have a perfect record in order to be successful, as long as you keep at it.

Interested? Then keep reading.

Isn't publicity expensive?

Let's start with the premise that you don't have money to buy ads in newspapers, radio and television. You might have money to print some posters, pitch cards, and the like, but you are not going to spend serious money on this. If you are loaded, you don't need these notes.

If you follow the ideas in these notes, you can get things that money can't buy. The newspaper won't sell you a full-color ad above the fold on page one, but you can earn that spot with a well-planned publicity stunt.

How do articles and photos get in the newspaper?

It's simple. People write the articles and take the photos. Most people think that the people writing the articles and taking the photos are reporters and press photographers. That's true for some of the articles and photos, sure. But the simple truth is that the folks at the newspaper believe themselves to be overworked and pressed for time. They probably are. Anyway, they don't have time to write all the articles and take all the photos, which is why you will take care of this yourself.

Picture this. It's Monday morning, and our weary reporter is sitting at his or her desk thinking about a lot of stuff the boss wants. There is a phone message from someone at the school asking for the paper to send someone to the school to interview the organizer of an event (not really described) that kids are planning.

There is also an email from a magician with a complete press release ready to run in the paper. The release is exactly the right length. It is well-written and interesting, and won't require any changes at all. A brief message above the release gives contact information via phone, email, FAX, website, IM, and carrier pigeon. Several excellent color photos are attached to the message, sized to fit the exact requirements of the newspaper.

What does the reporter do? They call the school and can't reach the person who left the message. Then they paste your release with the photo into the electronic layout for the paper and go to lunch. You win!

Using the Calendar

Newspapers will make it easy for you to discover the deadlines for making it into the paper. The weekly papers on Mount Desert Island come out on Wednesday night. You must have article and photos to them by noon on the previous Friday to have any chance of making it. If your release covers an event on Thursday or Friday, you would certainly want coverage the week before as well as the week of the event.

Look at the three or four weeks prior to your event, and map out the deadlines for the submission of press releases and photos. Don't miss any deadlines.

Writing Press Releases

This isn't rocket science. The first paragraph gives Who, What, Where, When, How and Why. It is best to do this in an interesting way. The press release should be about the length of a short article in the paper. It should be three or four paragraphs. If printed out, it would fit on a single page. Proper spelling and correct grammar are used throughout the release.

The press release is also written in the correct "voice." The release refers to the subject of the release in the third person, as if a reporter had written it.

Three things can happen:

1. They run the release as written as an article. You win!
2. They get very interested in what you have sent them, and send a reporter and photographer to cover you. Buy a cigar!
3. They don't run the release or contact you. Take it in stride. There is nothing personal here. Many things compete for newspaper space. Keep at it.

Now we come to the big question: What is in your press release? Why should the newspaper run this?

You must have a very clear picture of the purpose of this press release. Examples would be:

• Contests and Awards: You just won a contest or an award, and are sending the release to cover that as a news event.
• Public Shows: You will be appearing in a public show, and are sending the release to inform the public of the event.
• Publicity Stunts: You are staging a publicity stunt.

Contests and Awards

Bragging rights, right? So brag. Winners of Ring 362 contests have received press coverage in the paper covering the area where the contest was held, as well as back in their hometown.

Public Shows

The newspapers want to cover events open to the public.

You should send an event listing to the calendar section of the paper. This is often a separate email address. Study their calendar listings and write in that style with that word limit. If you send a regular press release to the calendar section, they often won't edit it down to an event listing and your event will not appear.

You should also write a short press release with some good photos about the event. Try to incorporate a couple of "hooks" (see below) into the story so that they will want to run it.

Consider a publicity stunt to promote the show.

Publicity Stunts

Publicity stunts are public events designed to trigger press coverage. Most of the time, these really work, especially in a small news market where not much usually happens.

Why are you doing this publicity stunt? You must have a very clear answer to this question. Maybe you are promoting a public show, raising money for charity, attempting to set a world record, and so on. If you are doing a publicity stunt for press coverage in the hopes that people will book you, it probably won't work. Even if more bookings is what you are after, you should at have at least one other reason for the publicity stunt that you can give out publicly. The reason for this is that the newspapers would rather sell you an ad than run an article about you.

What are your hooks? Hooks are things about your event or stunt that make it fun to talk about. People just can't get this story out of their minds. I have had people who I had never met before stop me on the street to ask about an upcoming stunt because the story was compelling. Here are some hooks:

• Novelty
• Danger
• Scale
• Charity
• Children
• Local Interest
• World Records

Novelty. Things that are unique get into the newspaper. We expect magicians to do unusual things, so novelty is relatively easy for a magician. By novelty, we do not mean that the event or stunt is unlike anything in the history of civilization, just that the event or stunt is unlike anything that has happened in the area in living memory. Magicians have learned to do several types of publicity stunts that are in all of the books: a blindfold drive, a headline prediction, a Houdini seance, etc. Because these have been done so often, it is important to come up with a really fresh approach to them. The Perilous Garden was my approach to the blindfold drive: walking instead of driving, and all of the peril focused on the magician rather than the people around him. It worked out very well. On the other hand, The Two Paths, my take on the headline prediction, pretty much flopped as a publicity stunt because it was too hard for people to understand.

Danger. Nothing draws public attention like the element of danger! This was Houdini's great contribution to the art of publicity. Escapes associated with danger make terrific publicity stunts.

Scale. It is possible to turn a standard feat of magic into a publicity stunt by changing the scale. George Schindler once got good publicity by sawing a man in two, because he used the world's fattest man. The sawing rig had to be specially constructed. The big television illusions are also examples of this. David Copperfield vanished a jetliner, and later the Statue of Liberty. Have a look at some of the magic that you do, and imagine changing the scale to make things very much bigger, very much smaller, or making the objects much more numerous.

Charity. A publicity stunt or event with a charity component is irresistible to newspapers. Basically, either they run your story or the kids don't get their playground. They will run the story.

Children. Newspapers love kids. Kids in magic class, a kid smiling as you do magic for him or her, or a kid's charity is a sure winner.

Local Interest. Every place has many things that are strong local interests. A famous person from the area, the main business of the city or town, a historical landmark, all can serve as great hooks.

World Records. If you set a world record, you are making history. It has become easier to set world records doing unusual things. The Guinness World Records folks have a reputation for being picky and difficult to deal with, but it is really worth it. There is an alternative record organization, Record Holders Republic, which is quite a bit easier to deal with, and many of the records relate to magic.

Fantasma Magic organized a World Record Magic Show shortly after opening. A number of people set world records in new categories for a very newsworthy public stunt. Here are some interesting records from Record Holders Republic:

• Card Cutting: One Hand: Three records by Simon Lovell from Fantasma Show (9/2006)
• Coin Manipulation: One Hand: Three records by Justin Style from Fantasma Show (9/2006)
• Light Bulb Eating: Fastest time to eat a light bulb (50.06 seconds) by Todd Robbins from Fantasma Show (9/2006)
• Quickest Magic Tricks: 30 tricks in 2 minutes 19 seconds by Joel Dickinson (5/2007)
• Fire Eating: Inverted: Fourteen torches extinguished orally in one minute while hanging inverted by The Great Cindini (2/2007)
• Bed of Nails: Chinese Water Torture: Endurance of Chinese Water Torture for 61 minutes while lying on a bed of nails by The Great Cindini
• Straitjacket Escape: Under Sand: The Great Cindini was placed in a straitjacket and buried alive with sand in a two foot deep trench; she escaped in 125 seconds (1/2007).

Let's see how all of this applies by looking at some examples of press releases and publicity campaigns.

Cliff Gerstman, a fellow escape artist, is the President of I.B.M. Ring 96. I know Cliff from his participation in the first Worldwide Escape Artist Relay in 2005. He sent me a press release and asked for help in fixing it up.

Hi Doc,

I need a favor if you have time.

I have never written a press release in my life, and I am trying to now. Would you be willing to look it over and give some pointers and opinions? Remember, if you can help me, be brutal and honest. Telling me it is fine really doesn't help me do a better job.

Thanks Doc,

Have a great evening!

Cliff

LONG BEACH MAGICIANS TO HELP LOCAL SCHOOL

Long Beach California, May 11, 2007. Magicians of Ring 96, the local chapter of the International Brotherhood of Magicians has agreed to perform a show in an effort to raise funds for Patrick Henry Elementary School.

The members of Ring 96 are beginning a series of benefit show to help schools and local community groups enhance their dwindling budgets. Performing either for free or for a small stipend, the magicians believe their shows will be successful. "Every one loves magic" says Cliff Gerstman the president of the group, "Why not introduce another generation to the joys of watching good magic? Especially if we can do some good for the community at the same time."

The Principal of Patrick Henry Elementary, Claire Alvarez is quite enthusiastic about the event. "This show should help improve morale among students, teacher, parents and staff!" When asked about pricing the event, the Principal was not yet sure. She does not want the price to prohibit a large family from coming to the event.

The show will being at 6pm on Friday, May 11th in the Patrick Henry Auditorium. The auditorium seats 230 people and has an excellent lighting and sounds system

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Dear Cliff,

Your press release kind of works, but it's boring.

Have you ever read "Elements of Style" by Strunk & White? They have a great rule: prefer the specific to the general. Let's look at your release:

WHO: magicians of Ring 96
(That's not very interesting.)
WHAT: an effort to raise funds for Patrick Henry Elementary school
(An effort? If it doesn't work, at least you tried! They need funds for what? New chairs for the faculty lounge?)
WHERE: OK, that's fine
WHEN: Friday, May 11, 6 pm.
(You absolutely need ticket prices, not hand-wringing from an indecisive principal.)
HOW: A show.
(Does the show have a title? For free or for a small stipend? What's wrong with just free? Donated sounds better.)
WHY: You need a much better why.

For example (I am faking the names and acts because I don't know what's in your show; I also gave your show a title):

MAGICIANS PULL MONEY FROM THIN AIR FOR SCHOOL

Claire Alvarez, the Principal of Patrick Henry Elementary School, was faced with budget cuts that eliminated the school's art and music programs. One of the teachers told her that she wished she had a magic wand to save the programs. Ms. Alvarez thought about it for a moment, then called the local wizards at Ring 96 of the International Brotherhood of Magicians. Could they help?

Cliff Gerstman, President of the group, responded by putting together the Cavalcade of Magic, a show that features a wondrous array of local talent. T. Nelson Downs will pluck silver coins from thin air, filling a pail with money to be donated to the school. Chung Ling Soo will restore battered animal skins to full life using a magic cauldron. Cliff Gerstman will escape from seven pairs of handcuffs while being suspended over a pit of flames. All of the magicians are donating their performances to help the school.

The Cavalcade of Magic will be held on Friday, May 11, at 6:00 pm in the Patrick Henry Auditorium. Admission is $8 for adults and $5 for persons twelve years of age and under. Special family tickets, good for the whole family, are $20. For more information, contact Jane Doe at (666) 666-0000, or visit www.magicmoney.org.

###

People need to know that the magicians are donating their performances. Why should they give if the magicians aren't? The miser's dream angle is nice. You don't actually donate the coins, just make sure the gate is worth what's in the bucket. Or have a separate fundraiser beforehand, and produce the money magically. The story is about the bighearted magicians helping the kids save their art and music programs, not about the Ring making a mild effort to hand a bureaucrat more money to waste.

This is just one way to approach it. There are a lot of different angles. What kind of acts are in the show?

Yours,

Paul

---------

Hi Doc,

The principal liked your pricing suggestion, and gave me a dwindling theater arts program as a cause. Here is how your press release looks as modified.

I think it looks a wee bit better.

Thanks again!

Cliff

MAGICIANS PULL MONEY FROM THIN AIR FOR SCHOOL

Claire Alvarez, the Principal of Patrick Henry Elementary School, was faced with budget cuts that would restrict or eliminate the school's Theater Arts Program. One of the teachers told her that she wished she had a magic wand to save the program. Ms. Alvarez thought about it for a moment, then called the local wizards at Ring 96 of the International Brotherhood of Magicians. Could they help?

Cliff Gerstman, President of the group, responded by putting together the Mystical Magic Night, a show that features a wondrous array of local talent. Frank Yee will perform the second oldest Chinese magic trick. Janan Sirhan, the youngest member, will pass metal rings through solid objects. Gary Grayson will play magical games, and Cliff Gerstman will escape from a device designed to restrain the criminally insane! All the magicians are donating their performances to help the school.

The Mystical Magic Night will be held on Friday, May 11, at 6:00 pm in the Patrick Henry Auditorium. Admission is $8 for adults and $5 for persons twelve years of age and under. Special family tickets, good for the whole family, are $20. For more information, contact Patrick Henry Elementary School (562) 421-3754.

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So what are the hooks here? This is a charity event to benefit kids with a strong element of novelty and good local interest. This release promotes a public show. It would have been good to do a publicity stunt two or three weeks before the show to generate interest and to keep the story in the news.

It's Not About You. Look at these examples and the ideas for the hooks. Notice that they are not primarily about the merits of a performer available for hire. The newspapers don't want to run that story. They want to write about things that their readers are interested in. Sadly, this isn't you. They are more interested in reading about themselves!

Cliff's School Show story is about how nice the locals are in helping the kids. Instead of trying to raise the property taxes to support the school, some magicians are putting on a show for a modest admission price. That's the kind of community we are! We support families and kids!

The Perilous Garden reminds us that there are local fishermen, firemen, and cops who risk their lives every day to make our community what it is. Even some magician is doing what he can to save the old hall in Otter Creek. What a bunch of brave, caring people we all are!

Rumford is Maine's Capital of Magic because people who aren't even from Rumford know about a famous local figure and honor him. They care more about our town than some of us do sometimes! And look, they want to help kids too. They even spent some of their own money to tell us how great we are! We must be something special!

Additional Resources

Tarbell Course in Magic
     Volume 2, Lesson 20, How to Please Your Audience. Just go read this right now!
     Volume 3, Lesson 35, How to Make People Laugh. Being funny isn't easy; have a look at this great essay and see why.
     Volume 5, Lesson 71, Publicity and Promotion. A bit dated, but very solid advice here.

Thirteen Steps to Mentalism by Corinda. Step Twelve, Publicity Stunts. Very good ideas for mentalists here.

The Life of of P.T. Barnum, Written by Himself. Barnum did things that people had done before him, but on a scale that was previously unimagined. Barnum invented the age of hype that we currently inhabit.

Publicity Stunts by Jon Jensen. Superb, detailed advice. A fantastic resource!

The Shiels Effect by Doc Shiels. Not for the faint of heart! This is a work of deep insight into publicity on a scale that you never imagined. Life-altering!

Any of the many excellent books on Houdini, a master at publicity.

Record Holders Republic (www.recordholdersrepublic.co.uk). Set a world record for something!