Proof that you can succeed at Newsjacking too

Several months ago I connected with Trent Silver, a young Internet entrepreneur, who wanted to test some of the ideas I talk about in my free World Wide Rave book and in my Newsjacking book.

Trent has been building Web businesses since he was a 15-year-old high school student(!!). He's 22 now.

I thought this would be a fun experiment so I waited for him to get back to me with a success. It didn't take long!

Cash for Purses

One of Trent's businesses is Cash for Purses, where he serves as CEO. Cash for Purses finds new homes for high quality designer purses and handbags (brands like Gucci, Prada, Hermes, Chanel, etc.), generating cash for the former owners.

In the past few days, Trent has enjoyed a barrage of press because he tied his business with cash-strapped but designer bag laden starlet Lindsay Lohan. Trent recognized that Lohan is sitting on a goldmine and doesn’t even know it! So he crafted a pitch to celebrity Web sites that cover Lohan, saying that his company would purchase her extra handbags to help her pay her bills. He even offered to donate his profits to charity.

Brilliant newsjacking

Trent understands that celebrity sites are always looking for exclusive stories, so he pitched the top sites first. Since Lohan's financial troubles have been in the news, that was his newsjacking hook. Radar ran with it: We'll Buy Your Purses, Lindsay! Company Offers Big Money For Cash-Strapped Lohan’s Leftovers.

Once the story was out, other sites started to pick up on the resulting buzz including Huffington Post: Lindsay Lohan Offered Money For Used Handbags By Fundraising Company and the Inquisitr: Lindsay Lohan’s Purses May Be Key To Financial Freedom.

Interestingly, people who read celebrity sites seem to also be people who want to sell their purses because since the story broke, Trent has received several hundred new leads from people ready to sell their designer bags.

Trent's advice

"I've found it helps to have a legitimate position to take when going to the media," Trent tells us. "I really want Lindsay Lohan to sell me her purses. I really want to donate the same value of all her bags to charity. It's not a publicity stunt, it's a real offer."

Trent is a news junkie, so he enjoys looking for something interesting in the news that he can tie his business to. "I read voraciously because I know that I have to get the word out for my businesses in a way that people will understand," he says. "I make sure I am up-to-date on what's going on in the world to see if somehow I can align my businesses in a positive, interesting way. It's definitely an art and a science."

Since Trent runs his own business, he has the luxury of being able to put the word out without getting multiple approvals from people in the organization. If you run your own business too, take his advice.

But if you work at a larger organization, don't use that as an excuse, you can still get buyoff from others to generate interest in your company and its products.

"Don't be afraid to try something different," Trent says. "Different gets noticed. If you don't get noticed, you're not doing your job."

Thanks for sharing with us, Trent. Keep up the great work and let us know about your next success.

Comments

[Dave Whelton]

That's a great hook! I remember pitching an incredibly sad short film to a blog on the "most depressing day of the year"! These days I find if you keep a close eye on your twitter feed and tools like Spike (http://spike.newswhip.com) you can inject your message into the discussion so long as you're quick off the mark!

[David Meerman Scott]

Dave, Thanks for these tips on ways to find stories.

I find opportunities pop up all the time. My favorite tool is Google News with all the personalization turned off. https://news.google.com

[Magento Consultant]

You have to be genuine and relevant to truly ride the wave. It felt like lots of brands were just jumping on the brandwagon without them adding any value to the conversation. It turned into Twitter spam. Adam Kmiec's comment is spot on. We've been tracking the real-time and 'Newsjacking' trend for the last few years.

[Angela Booth]

What an inspiring story. I've been meaning to read your Newsjacking book, David. It's moved to the top of my To Be Read pile. (I'm a fan of your "New Rules" book. :-)

[David Meerman Scott]

Thank you Angela. I hope you enjoy it.

[Lewis LaLanne]

You've gotta love it when someone takes what you taught them and they run with it! I know I do. :)

It's been too long since I've paid attention to harnessing the news. Learned from some masters like Hartunian and Dr. Jeffrey Lant.

Email Autoresponders is the perfect place for me to use this Newsjacking strategy but I don't.

Ben Settle is very good at riding the news in his daily email autoresponders. I highly recommend people check him out for an example of how to do so!