Monday: Productivity tip of the day has returned! Also: Everything on my desk on this first week of February + fresh job leads!

Good morning!

Hope everyone had a fabulous weekend and is ready to gear up for a productive week.

I spent much of Friday in recovery mode following what was an EPIC (but wonderful) Thursday — was so grateful to be able to spend some meaningful time with some of you at the RPZLxALY launch party (and you all looked BEAUTIFUL in your headbands and bows!).

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Aly Walansky on Instagram: “Just a few snaps from last night’s amazing RPZLxALY launch party - I think it is fair to say @liseyrichards and me collabing has magical results! So incredibly grateful for the amazing crowd who came out (the place was packed!) - you all looked adorable in your pink bows and headbands!”

February 5, 2024

This weekend though was all about catchup, and aside from sending out the weekend Industry Insights email, I also caught up on a few assignments and recorded a podcast guest appearance (it was a fun one and it’ll be streaming in just a few days!).

Lots of new content going into this week, including for Travel & Leisure: In-flight Theft Is Unfortunately a Thing, but These 12 Items Give Me Peace of Mind When I'm Traveling by Plane, and for Forbes.com: 25 Creative Pies To Try On National Pizza Day, 25 Cocktails Perfect For A Super Bowl: Taylor’s Version Viewing Party, and 30 Hot Pink Cocktails For A Fetch ‘Mean Girls’ Viewing Party. (Looks like there’s a lot of reasons for viewing parties right now!)

But I’m going into this week with a few pending assignments due over the next few days and a lot to get done — so lets get right into it!

So honored to see Muck Rack included me in their 2024 list of top ten most popular freelance journalists. Check out the list here.

Today’s productivity tip

We’re all so busy, it can feel really overwhelming at times. I know it does for me. I’m stressed…all…the…time.

And we’ve all been that person at one point that has so many things we need to do, we don’t know where to start, and end up paralyzed with indecision — which then wastes time and takes away from getting anything done. It's not just the work tasks but all the tasks you hope to check off in a day. Even the little ones that feel small but are actually pretty significant to your overall routine. When all those tasks do get checked off, you feel so great!

Keeping to a personal agenda will help with that. It's all about managing your life, one task at a time. And making sure you leave nothing out. Sometimes I will put these to-do lists in priority order, with the biggest tasks on top and the smaller or less important on the bottom, but you can also design your list from what is easier to knock out to what is more demanding. Whatever works for you!

Job leads

Quinn PR is looking for an Account Coordinator in LA as well as an Account Executive in LA.

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.

This list will live on my Substack URL and be updated as necessary. That way, you can see what I’m doing at any publication, at any time, from types of stories to general structure of stories to even volume and frequency of my content at that outlet.

This can also help you to target pitching a bit better. That makes your job easier, and mine too!

• Travel & Leisure: In-flight Theft Is Unfortunately a Thing, but These 12 Items Give Me Peace of Mind When I'm Traveling by Plane

• Forbes.com: 25 Creative Pies To Try On National Pizza Day

• Forbes.com: 25 Cocktails Perfect For A Super Bowl: Taylor’s Version Viewing Party

• Forbes.com: 30 Hot Pink Cocktails For A Fetch ‘Mean Girls’ Viewing Party

• RetailMeNot: 5 Superstar Ingredients for Your Meal-Stretching Pantry Starter Pack

• Forbes.com: 40 Romantic Cocktails That Will Add A Little Love On Valentine’s Day

• Today.com: Say goodbye to wrinkles with these expert-approved drugstore creams — starting at $12

• Food Network: Oreo’s New Cookie Will Take You to Outer Space

• Clean Plates: The Healthy Trader Joe’s Sauce I Use in *Everything*

• RetailMeNot: Affordable Valentine’s Day Gifts That Show Lots of Love on a Budget

• Martha Stewart: 8 Storage Mistakes That Are Keeping Your Home From Being Organized

• Forbes.com: Valentine’s Day Gift Guide 2024: The Most Romantic Kitchen Gifts

• Today.com: 27 healthy fast food items at popular US chains, according to dietitians and doctors

• Southern Living: Can You Freeze Brussels Sprouts?

• Forbes.com: Valentine’s Day Gift Guide 2024: The Best Heart-Shaped Food Gifts

• Forbes.com: Valentine’s Day Gift Guide 2024: The Best Bougie Culinary Gifts

• Clean Plates: 7 Mediterranean Diet Dinner Recipes in 30 Minutes or Less

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.

Clean Plates

How to Clean the Fridge: Obviously, tied to spring cleaning, this is a piece on ow (and why) to clean the fridge, and I’d love home/kitchen organization or cleaning experts to weigh in as far as how long it can take so you can plan, what types of products to use to clean (if any), and then how to reorganize.

In preparation for the spring holidays, I’m working on a story on how gathering with loved ones is good for our mental health (we all can relate to how big an issue loneliness can be!). For example, the Passover seder tradition — it’s very much about tradition and eating and drinking, but it’s foremost about gathering, and I’d love to speak to some experts about why that’s so important.

RetailMeNot

Grocery Saving Tips That Actually Work: I’m working on a detailed guide on ways you can save on groceries. Looking for experts to weigh in with actionable tips, anything from actions to take wherever you shop, to suggestions on particular stores/chains to shop.

Meal Prepping Products That are Actually WORTH It: TikTok and Instagram are full of meal-prepping products (storage, kitchen tools, etc.) But there's always the possibility someone might be inspired, buy a bunch of this stuff, use it once and then let it collect dust. I’m looking for chefs/food writers/grocery shopping influencers to weigh in re: some products you swear by to keep meal prep easy. It can be aspiration stuff, or just simple things that are not glamorous.  If sending thoughts, be sure to include: Why it's a meal-prepping essential: what this thing does and why it helps with meal prepping. Why it's a good value: Maybe it's durable? Multifunctional? A good price? Where to buy it.

Forbes

I’m looking for romantic dishes at restaurants nationwide in honor of Valentine’s Day. Perhaps something special on the menu just for the weekend or the month of February that SCREAMS date night. If you have anything that may be a fit on the menu at your restaurant, please email me by Thursday, Feb 8 and remember to include the name of the restaurant, location, description, quote about the dish from a chef, and an image of the dish. Thanks so much!

Also: is anyone doing any fun ANTI-Valentine’s Day cocktails or dishes at their bar/restaurant? If I have enough of those I’d love to do a roundup!

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!)

Virtual (and now in-person!) consulting sessions...

Looking for a consult as you plan your next event or trip? Or just want someone to take a look at the pitches you’ve been sending and give some feedback? I’m available for PR team virtual meetings to answer questions about pitching, events, and trips from a media perspective.  Note: I’m also available to travel for consulting sessions as long as travel expenses are covered. We can chat! This is available for entire agencies or smaller group lunch and learn type concepts.

Have a great day!

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