Solving the Publicity Tracking Mess

I have said it many times: Writing isn't inherently difficult; marketing is. Unfortunately, all too many marketing and PR folks exacerbate the problem by using antediluvian tools.

My History With PR Firms

Over the years, I've worked with several to help me get the word out when I've dropped a new book. To be sure, they were all nice people and, for the most part, competent professionals. Still, I didn't hire them for their charming personalities. I wanted them to help me gain top-tier placements. In some cases, they landed some high-profile media outlets. Appearing on CNBC in 2013 to talk about Too Big to Ignore was a highlight.

On the other hand, none of these pricey outlets used what I would consider to be an organized, contemporary system of tracking pitches and publications. Not even close. (If they did, they sure didn't share their mythical creations.) In each case, I lacked transparency into what was—and wasn't—happening. Although I received weekly or biweekly status reports, real-time visibility into my pitches constantly eluded me. Believe me. I asked. #diva

A few examples will illustrate my point:

• Firm A routinely emailed me weekly reports as Word attachments. Its employees were oblivious to the beauty of structured data.
• Firm B used Slack, but poorly. The leadership eschewed anything resembling order; chaos ensued. (Pro tip: Sending a deluge of DMs doesn't let anyone answer the simple question, "Where are we with X?")
• Firm C thought that the very idea of using Google Sheets to track media placements in 2023 was too cutting-edge.

Of course, better mousetraps existed; these firms' employees just didn't want any part of them.