LAUREL, Md. — Dry cleaners looking to raise their profile with local media may not need a big advertising budget or a PR firm. What they really need is a good story — and an understanding of what makes something newsworthy in the first place.

Ray Kroner, owner of Cincinnati’s Kroner Dry Cleaners and president-elect of the Drycleaning & Laundry Institute (DLI), and DLI Communications Director Harry Kimmel recently shared their insights during a webinar, “Getting Noticed by the Media.”

The two offered a practical road map for dry cleaners who want to get their businesses in front of local reporters, editors and TV producers without spending a fortune.

The starting point, Kimmel says, is understanding what “news” actually is.

“Anything that interests a publication’s audience” qualifies, he says. It’s about gathering and presenting factual information in a way that connects with readers or viewers. And in the current media landscape, Kimmel believes the odds may be more in a cleaner’s favor than they realize.

“In today’s environment, it’s a little easier to get pickup because the newsrooms are understaffed,” Kimmel says. “If you are able to send a decent or amazing press release, you’re very likely to get easy pickup with that because they don’t have the resources to do a lot of work. If you do it for them, they’re eternally grateful.”

One of the most reliable ways to generate media interest, Kimmel says, is through community involvement, and particularly with seasonal charitable efforts. Programs like prom dress drives in the spring, “Read to Ride” literacy programs in the summer, blanket drives in the fall and “Coats for Kids” in the winter give cleaners a reason to reach out to local media that goes beyond self-promotion.

“This has always been my favorite topic in the whole drycleaning universe — how dry cleaners give back to their communities,” Kimmel says. “This is a great way to attract attention to your business.”

But before reaching out, cleaners need to ask themselves a fundamental question: Is this actually newsworthy? Kimmel says editors and reporters are constantly asking themselves why their audience should care about any given story. A new product or service, by itself, may not clear that bar. But framing that same story around the community impact — who benefits and why it matters — can make the difference.

Timing also plays a role. Kimmel recommends promoting an event to media outlets at least a month in advance, then following up with a second release two weeks out. He also cautions cleaners to be aware of what else is happening in the news cycle.

“You can get undercut by something else that happens in the world,” Kimmel says, pointing to a memorable example from 1997, when Mother Teresa’s death was overshadowed by the passing of Princess Diana just days earlier. “A lot of people didn’t even realize that she had died at the same time.”

Building relationships with local media is another key puzzle piece, Kimmel says.

Partnering with a TV station for a coat drive, for instance, gives both parties a reason to collaborate and extends the reach of the cleaner’s message far beyond what they could achieve alone. 

Making lasting media contacts is also a way that cleaners can amplify their message. The key is getting the press release to the right person — not a generic newsroom email address, but the business editor or local news editor by name.

“That’s your last resort,” Kimmel says of generic news tip addresses. “You want somebody’s name at the news organization, not something an intern’s going to read.”

Come back Thursday for Part 2 of this series, where we’ll look at the nuts and bolts of writing an effective press release — from headlines and leads to quotes and photos.