Wednesday: Terminology matters -- samples vs. gifts, and understanding the difference.

Also: Are you a restaurant offering a fun promo tied to tax season? Email me (but check out my sourcing instructions first)

Good morning!

Manifesting today being the best day — and I hope it is for you as well.

Have a few sweet chef-driven pieces in the works for various major publications, so scroll down and see if you or your client may be a fit!

In today’s newsletter, lets take a second to break down an email I got a while back from someone I haven’t communicated with before. I’m not sure if she was new to that particular agency or new to that account, but it went along the lines of…

“Hi, Aly. We’d love you to try out our sandals. Samples are available. Please tell us where to send!” Followed by “We’d be happy to gift you this pair. When can we expect to see this featured in a story?”

I wrote back to this person and gently broached the topic of how samples for consideration and products being gifted are completely different terms — and those terms really shouldn’t be used interchangeably because not only do they come from a different place of intent — but are given, we assume, with different sorts of goals and expectations.

Ultimately, the response I got to my explanation of the differentiation in terms was very interesting: “… for some clarification we tend to use the term “gift” when it comes to sample products, but understand where the confusion can lie with that term.”

Having a dialogue helped us to get on the same page — communication is important.

Now, in the case of the sandals, I fully interpreted the sandals as a media sample for potential story consideration and was having the conversation regarding the product in that context - it was suddenly pivoting to call it a gift — but also following up on it regarding coverage expectations simultaneously — that led to the contextual discrepancy.

Let us take a second to delve into that.

Historically, a gift is something given with no transaction (or, well, anticipated result other than relationship building) expected. A gift is a gift. A review sample, though, is more: “We’re sending you these sandals so you can try it out and consider writing about it if you enjoy it and it ends up a fit for an upcoming story.”

Now, have I ever written about something that I was given as a gift? Of course! TONS OF TIMES. If it’s a fit, it’s a fit - it won’t ever be excluded or not considered because of how I it came into my possession. BUT when someone calls something a gift that was meant as a sample (or vice versa, really) it muddies the waters.

But the issue comes in the expectation and the wording. Whether you are sending a gift to develop a relationship, raise awareness, or just because, remember — it’s only a gift if you don’t expect anything in return. No strings attached. Otherwise, the intention and spirit behind it is lost.

Something to consider in all areas of our life.

(I realize this post may ruffle some feathers, but I hope some also find it helpful!)

Limited-time deals on consulting sessions and ad placement!

Reminder: I’m offering a limited-time special consulting session discount for paid subscribers: If you are a paid subscriber, you can for a limited time, get 25% off a virtual consulting session (where we can have your own private or agency-wide AMA session on anything you want to chat about!) — I have some slots open in the next few weeks, so if you or your agency is interested in booking one, email me today and we’ll chat details.

Flash sale: If you book a group subscription for your agency, you may be eligible for a FREE consulting session for your team (if you buy 12 or more seats as part of your annual group subscription). Email me so we can discuss!

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!

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Thank you for helping get the word out!

We had an amazing turnout at our recent Mother’s Day gift guide pitching workshop — and there’s a full recording available for paid subscribers. If you are interested in me sending you the video link, drop me an email. Thanks so much for your support and happy gift guide pitching!

Related: We loved how many of attended you took the time to attend our webinar event last month, covering the upcoming ShareASale to Awin migration. We covered an overview of the migration process and timeline, pricing of networks, and choosing a network for your specific client needs. If you missed it, we do have a recording available for paid subscribers. Email if interested and I’ll share how to grab that recording as well!

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.

• Yahoo Life!: Best pedometers of 2025, tested and reviewed

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

• Apartment Therapy: The $3 Cleaning Gem I Use in Almost Every Room of My Small Apartment

• Apartment Therapy: I Asked 3 Plumbers What They Wish You Would Stop Doing Immediately

• Taste of Home: Yes, Costco Chicken Nuggets Taste Exactly Like Chick-fil-A's

• Saatva: The Benefits of NASA Naps

• Today.com: Do drugstore wrinkle creams really work? Experts weigh in

• Food Network: Popeyes Is Bringing Its Most Popular Sauces to Grocery Aisles.

• Southern Living: KFC Is Bringing Back Their Most-Requested Side—But For 2 Weeks Only

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

• Apartment Therapy: I Asked Pro Travelers to Share Their Packing Tips for Spring Break

• Southern Living: What Exactly Is "Check-In Chicken" And Will It Actually Help You Get A Better Seat On A Flight?

• Travel & Leisure: Frequent Fliers Say This Genius Hack Makes It Feel Like They've Upgraded Their Seat — and It's Only $30.

• RetailMeNot: How to Save Money on Groceries in 2025: 10 Tips That Actually Work

• Southern Living: The Unexpected Reason I Always Travel With Duct Tape—And You Should Too

• Apartment Therapy: We Asked Experts for the Best Way to Store Sex Toys — Here’s What They Said

• Apartment Therapy: I Tried the 30/30 Rule, and I Discovered Something Unexpected

• Travel & Leisure: A Travel Writer's $10 Amazon Packing Hack for Shoes

• Travel & Leisure: I Travel Solo Often, and I Won’t Stay in Another Airbnb Without Packing This 1 Safety Device

• Southern Living: The 9 Best Bottles Of Bourbon, According To Southern Chefs And Bartenders

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

Southern Chefs Share The Best Cooking Advice They Received From Their Mom - really excited about this piece I’m working on as we lead up to Mother’s Day. For this one, I’m looking for one cooking tip/method/hack they learned from their mom/grandma (or any important female role model in their life) that informs how they cook and run their kitchens to this day. Even better if they happen to have some classic kitchen photos of them and their mom to share! Would love to hear from some notable celebrity chefs based in the south or from the south originally for this one.

Food Network

For FoodNetwork.com, I’m rounding up national restaurant chains offering food deals/freebies/promotions in honor of tax day/tax season. If this is you, please tell me what the deal is, how to claim it, and any disclaimers. Would also love imagery or links to social media posts advertising the promo if you happen to have it. Thanks!

Forbes

I’m rounding up Kosher for Passover treats/snacks/beverages (must be certified as SPECIFICALLY kosher for passover and not just regular kosher certified - a reminder that these are completely unique certifications and this differentiation is crucial for anyone observing the holiday. Please email me if you have anything!)

I’m also looking for Passover or Easter themed cocktails, as well as spring-themed and Mother’s Day-themed, that are on the menu or will be over the holiday in either restaurants are bars. If you have anything, please send me all the following info:

• Name of drink/where it’s found, city, state, URL

• description

• quote from chef/bartender

• image (and who to credit)

I’m also looking for sustainable cocktails at bars and restaurants for Earth Month. These are cocktails that minimize their impact on the environment in some way — perhaps using local and seasonal ingredients, ugly produce, root to tip, waste reduction, sustainable alcohol, sustainable bartending techniques or such. Please email me if you have anything!

…and Mother’s Day gift guide assignments are coming soon. Maybe as soon as next week. So keep your eyes on this space!

<3

aly