Tuesday: How do you know when your PR/media relationship is reciprocal vs. transactional?
Good morning!
I hope everyone is having a solid start to what seems to be a SUPER event-heavy week. I am personally extra excited about one I have later this afternoon — I’m going to brush up on some culinary skills with a sushi-making class!
More on that soon…but before I get into today’s content, some housekeeping: Today’s newsletter will be a normal daily free email (business as usual!) but if you scroll down to the bottom of the email (beneath the call for sources and everything else, of course, because that’s always free!), there’ll be some additional industry insights available for paid subscribers…and it’s on a very popular topic, too!
Golden Social Agency
Are any of your PR clients looking to elevate their social presence?
Golden is a social media agency focused on wellness brands with a proven track record of creating beautiful, thoughtful, and strategic content and high-touch management. They especially love partnering with brands that have a strong PR foundation to amplify their press.
They offer generous affiliate referrals to our PR partners who connect them with aligned clients. Take a look at their capabilities deck and see if Golden is a fit for any of your clients!
Get in touch: rachel@golden.nyc
Limited-time deal on ad placement!
I’m also 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!
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!)
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.
Travel & Leisure: 6 Best Business Travel Airplane Outfits, From $12
Yahoo Life: Best sleep tracker for 2025, tested and reviewed
Forbes.com: 6 Ways To Honor Culinary Wanderlust This Father's Day
Forbes.com: How To Plan The Perfect Father’s Day For The Carnivore In Your Life
YourTango: Frequent Travelers Are More Likely To Succeed At Work Because They Share These 7 Traits, Experts Say
YourTango: 14 Budget-Friendly Home Upgrades That Instantly Transform Your Space, According To Experts
Saatva: Top Tips on How to Fix a Squeaky Mattress & Bed Frame
Yahoo Life: The best cooling fans of 2025, tested and reviewed
Forbes.com: 10 Pride-Inspired Cocktails To Make At Home This June
Southern Living: Popeyes' Latest Menu Addition Comes In 3 Bold Flavors
Forbes.com: New York City's Best Salads To Enjoy This Summer
Southern Living: Can You Freeze Cabbage?
Travel & Leisure: I’m a Travel Writer, and This Seat Cushion Is My Secret to Arriving at Destinations Pain-free
Travel & Leisure: Travelers Swear by This Personal Safety Device
Travel & Leisure: 13 Best Solo Travel Safety Devices on Amazon From $10
Forbes.com: The Dirty Martini Has Entered The Breakfast Game
Southern Living: Can You Eat Unripe Avocado?
Southern Living: Can You Freeze Baked Beans?
Food Network: 11 Restaurant Deals for the Grad in Your Life
Forbes.com: 17 Lemon-Centric Cocktails To Enjoy All Spring
Today.com: Best drugstore wrinkle creams 2025, according to experts
Forbes.com: Chefs Nationwide Are Honoring Ramp Season In Some Delicious Ways
HerMoney: How To Get Cheap Hotels When You Travel.
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: This Flight Attendant-approved Jumpsuit Is My Go-to Comfy Airplane Outfit — and It’s Only $25 Right Now$150 and Under
Apartment Therapy: I Tried the “Weight Rule” for Decluttering, and It Keeps My Small Apartment Clutter-Free
Travel & Leisure: This Flight Attendant-approved Jumpsuit Is My Go-to Comfy Airplane Outfit — and It’s Only $25 Right Now.
Travel & Leisure: I Travel Solo Often, and I Won’t Stay in Another Airbnb Without Packing This 1 Safety Device
Travel & Leisure: I Found the Perfect Walking Shoes to Prevent Sore Feet During Travel — Score Styles on Sale Up to 62% Off
Travel & Leisure: In-flight Theft Is Unfortunately a Thing, but These 12 Items Give Me Peace of Mind When I'm Traveling by Plane
Southern Living: The Unexpected Reason I Always Travel With Duct Tape—And You Should Too
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.
Forbes
National Lobster Day and National Martini Day are fast approaching. I’m also rounding up some creative sushi rolls/presentations/dishes around the US in honor of National Sushi Day. Creative spins on omakase are great too. Have anything fun for me for any of these? Email me with a description, location, chef quote, and an image. Thanks!
When it comes to the sometimes-complicated relationship between PR and media professionals, things get a little shaky as terms such as “gifting” are used when something is not actually a gift and a transactional relationship seems to have formed — and with that, the inherent focus on reciprocity.
We know that in our lives, we should never allow ourselves to accept otherwise in our personal realities, but we don’t always consider it in business: The concept of reciprocity in a transactional business relationship being: Hey, I gave you something, and now you have an obligation to reciprocate in some way.