Friday: Are you vetting the journalists on your media list? Also: Several big new assignments I'm working on going into the weekend.

TGIF!

Whew yesterday was a lot — actually, this whole week.

Yesterday, we announced our big annual Zoom workshop webinar event where participants can ask us anything about all things related to pitching holiday gift guides — seats are going fast and we have limited capacity, but you can still register! — and then, in the midst of all that, I had a virtual meeting to discuss the run of show for a panel I’m speaking on next week, then recorded a podcast appearance, and then had dinner with some LA-based PR friends that were in town. (And yes, I will be in LA soon!) - and yeah, in between, I wrote some stuff and answered some emails. Thursday was Thursday-ing.

No doubt it was a busy, but productive and fulfilling day - but man, am I glad today is Friday.

This week has been a lot. (However, today is National Caviar Day and I’m up eagerly anticipating a breakfast delivery of the very exciting Marky's Caviar x PopUp Bagels collab and today is looking sweet. well, savory. But sweetly savory.)

But the week IS still ongoing in one way — I have a few new pending stories going on and I’d love to send some sourcing requests your way before you disappear for the summer weekend!

Meanwhile…

Today’s (hopefully helpful) tip: Remember that a journalist’s Muck Rack profile is a great (and easy!) way of instantly vetting them…see what they are working on, what sort of content they write, and how often they produce content.

For example, if you look at mine, you can see it’s being updated a few times daily!

If a journalist reaches out to you asking for samples, a hosted stay, a media dine, or anything of the sort, this (or a simple Google search filtered by week or month) is a great way to do a quick 30-second verification system on them.

Lots of people will misrepresent their credentials, reach, or breadth of work and pretend they are a whole lot more prolific or accomplished than they are — or currently regularly write for outlets they wrote for once years ago or never once at all — just to inflate their own value and create a faux impression for what could be rather nefarious purposes — and then, of course, are unlikely to cover it in the long run. (Liars who lie, as I like to call them.) Protect yourself and your interests by taking nothing at face value.

(And you’ll STILL have to do your homework even then: We all remember that travel writer identity scam situation that happened!)

Book your summer consulting session!

I still have some space available for late July and August! I can join your team on Zoom, a phone call, or in-person and do a team Q&A and answer any of your questions about planning events, mailers, trips, pitching, followups, etc — giving you a very necessary media perspective.

I just recently teamed with my friends at RPZL to help them plan a really cool recharge and refresh lounge they will be hosting during NYFW — complete with blowouts (obvi) and martinis (of course!)…I’ve also helped PR friends plan press dinners, press trips, and more. Let me help you with your needs as well! Email me at alywalansky@gmail.com <3

(PS: This is the lounge I helped create…doesn’t it sound fun?)

Did I mention I’m now a contributing journalist on the Yahoo Creators platform?

It’s an exciting program where the journalists who are accepted maintain creative and editorial control over their own content, all within and with access to the huge audience and network that Yahoo embodies. It’s an amazing way of telling the stories I really want to tell and writing the content I really want to write, and I’ve been having a blast. I’ve been involved for just a few weeks now but you can already see I’ve been writing a pretty wide range of fun content, from commerce to fun features — check out my author profile to see some of my most recent pieces!

(You’ll see even after just a few weeks, there’s already a lot!)

Obviously, I still have all my other outlets as well, and none of that is changing (we pray ever!), but at a time where publishing feels pretty tenuous and scary a place, it’s always exciting to have, well, new news that’s positive!

PS: Yahoo Creators has been getting a lot of attention lately - check out this Fast Company piece or this one in Digiday (that our gal Alesandra (Alice) Dubin is quoted in!).

Limited-time deal on ad placement!

I’m offering a seasonal special on advertising in this newsletter. I’d love to place your sponsored posts and advertising in this Substack, which goes out to nearly 10,000 media professionals every single day.

Note: I do limit advertising to only what would be of interest to my readers, but am open to both short paragraph blurbs and dedicated posts - if you are interested in chatting details and scheduling something, please email me at alywalansky@gmail.com today!

Tools of the trade

Looking to up your affiliate marketing game?: Affiliate marketing is complicated, and it seems that the landscape keeps changing. If you are looking to be prepared for gift guide season and all other shopping-related content, you may want to try the Ultimate Masterclass and Introduction to Affiliate Marketing for Publicists. It's a brilliant course and it'll answer all your questions (including some you didn't know you had!)

Press Hook is where journalists, newsletter writers, and podcasters source expert quotes, hi-res images, product samples, affiliate info, and brand story angles — all from vetted brands in one searchable hub. It connects journalists and brands in what feels like a really user-friendly, organic way and I use it often to browse for sources and products aligned with my current projects and I’ve often found precisely what I need, when I need. Give it a try!

Newly published or freshly updated

Since people are often asking about the status of stories from a while ago, and I only share stories in this newsletter that were published or updated in the current week, I have created a list of my author pages at various publications to which I contribute. Bookmark it and make your life a bit easier.

• Food Network: Popeyes’ New Signature Sauce Goes With Just About Everything

• Forbes (exclusive!): Iron Chef Morimoto To Open New Montclair-Based Restaurant Concept

• Forbes.com: Expert Ideas For Your Summer Picnic Charcuterie Board

• Apartment Therapy: I Bring These Brilliant Insect Repellent Wipes Everywhere I Go (They’re Travel-Friendly!)

• Southern Living: The One-Pan Cheesy Meal I Make Whenever I'm Too Tired To Cook

• Forbes.com: 13 Delicious Ways To Enjoy Caviar

• Apartment Therapy: 10 Things I Got Rid Of After 45

• Apartment Therapy: Summer Packing Tips from People Who Travel for a Living

• Travel & Leisure: 6 Best Business Travel Airplane Outfits, From $12

• Travel & Leisure: I’m a Travel Writer, and I Swear by These Packable Ballet Flats for Comfort, Support, and Long Days on My Feet

• Travel & Leisure: I Found the Perfect Walking Shoes to Prevent Sore Feet During Travel — Score Styles on Sale Up to 62% Off

If you or your client are featured in any of these stories, I super appreciate any social media shares! Please remember to tag @alywalansky and the outlet.

Here’s what I’m working on:

Be sure to read the below list carefully. Many are stories I posted about yesterday, but some of yesterday's stories are no longer listed and a few new ones have been added since yesterday. This (below) is everything that is still a currently open opportunity as of today.

Please remember when pitching me: Email me at alywalansky@gmail.com - do NOT just hit reply on this newsletter, or there’s a good shot your email will be lost in the heap. Give your email a subject line that makes it clear which story you are pitching me for — it’ll help you in the long run.

Please consult my industry insights guides on submitting expert commentary, sending emails that will catch a journalist’s attention, how to craft pitches journalists will say ‘yes’ to, and the right and wrong way to submit photos, if you need any extra guidance before sending your pitches.

Southern Living

Working on: I Asked Southern Chefs To Name the Best Potato Chips, and… - this will be along the same lines as the baked beans story I worked on recently. I’d love chefs who originate from or currently work in the south to share their favorite go-to potato chips (stuff you can buy at the store, not like their homemade restaurant potato chips) and why they like them, if they have ny nostalgic memories attached, how they like to enjoy them, and why.

Also: We Asked 5 Southern Mixologists Their Go-To Summer Cocktail— - I’d love if southern mixologists (those are those based in the south or from the south!), can share what their go-to summer cocktail is, tell me about it, tell me why it’s their go-to for summer, what’s in it, etc - classic cocktails, modern cocktails, all are fair game.

Yahoo

I’m looking for chefs to weigh in on factors that will make them instantly be turned off when they enter a restaurant or fast food spot or even a grocery store. Have something to share? Email me! You obviously don’t have to share which restaurants turned you off, but more, what you saw there that made you not want to eat there.

Forbes

WRAPPING BOTH THESE UP TODAY: I’m accepting pitches for fun and unique presentations of CHICKEN WINGS in honor National Chicken Wing Day and BURGERS in honor of National Hamburger Day at restaurants/bars nationwide. To pitch me for any of these, please make sure your pitch includes ALL of the following in this specific below format.

• Name of dish

• Where found (so: restaurant name, city, state, URL)

• Description of dish

• Quote about what makes this presentation special (plus name and title of person being quoted)

• Image of dish and appropriate photo credits

<3

aly