[Warning: this article is not for the easily offended or faint of heart]

I will probably get some nasty emails about this but that’s okay. I believe that this is one of the best examples of using PR to promote a service type business that I’ve seen in a long time. And it would be letting down my loyal readers if I don’t share this example and the behind the scenes story that goes with it.

Paul Marturano is the younger brother of a good friend of mine. He’s a comedy musician and a great guy as well.

Recently, he got an audition with American Idol and made the most of it. His You Tube video of his Idol performance got over 43,000 views in the first 48 hours alone.

If you decide to watch his video, please keep in mind that it’s completely a PR act…an act that will probably bring him a million dollars worth of publicity.

One other important point: while he’s appearing on a “reality” music show, everything is taped beforehand. All acts are pre-approved by the production team before any act performs them.

Paul was able to get nationwide attention almost instantly. How? Well, Paul did a song that he’s been doing for a long time as part of his musical comedy group, The Hairy Areolas. It’s a humor-based band that Paul helped formed back in 1997.

Now this song he performed is about stalking… which is a pretty serious subject. In fact, Paul wrote this song years ago as a way to make fun of stalkers and their irrational behavior.

Some of his band’s other crazy original songs have titles like: Fat Guy in a Speedo, Midget, and Wet Fart at My Girlfriends house when I was eating dinner with her parents.

Now, songs with titles like these are a lot harder to not tip off that they are a humor-based song. So their song about stalkers was easier to disguise by calling it a “love song” instead.

Remember, the song was approved by the production crew before Paul ever stepped in front of the camera. The judges just weren’t told that it was an act because the production crew wanted to get their “real” reactions on film.

Well, the production also didn’t want Paul to tip off his act, so Paul also used his real name instead of his stage name “Pauly Nipple”. And once in front of the judges, he performed his Stalker song… pretending to go from serenading to “stalking” one of the judges Paula Abdul.

One judge started laughing uncontrollably.

One judge (Paula Abdul) started blushing and then looked away.

The third judge interrupted the song and yelled for security.

In less than 48 hours, Paul’s performance was up on YouTube and people were commenting on it with dozens of links to his website. His website paulmarturano.com has gotten flooded with new traffic. His business phone started ringing for new interview and concert requests.

Only time will tell how well he can parlay his American Idol appearance.

Again, Idol was a PR gimmick for him. Paul was looking to take his band from a local prescense to a national one which he did from a 2 minute spot on Idol.

Think about it: How much would it have cost to run an ad on the most watched TV show in America? My guess would be a million dollars or more. Yet, Paul got a 2 minute “ad” for his comedy band for a just few hours of his time to go do an audition for the show.

According to PR Expert Paul Hartunian, there are 4 Ways To Get Publicity For Your Business:

1. Be Controversial
2. Create or Have A Pet Rock
3. Be a Nut Case or a Criminal
4. Solve A Problem

Wouldn’t pretending to be a stalker of one of the judges on the U.S.’s most popular show be controversial? YEP.

Okay, so how does Paul’s example apply to your local massage business? Well, you will probably not want to be controversial. I don’t recommend acting like a nut case or criminal either.

I’d suggest using the Solve a Problem option instead.

No matter what option you choose, you will use the same steps that Paul used to promote his band.

First, plan your publicity act. Decide in advance what you want to do. An easy option for massage therapists to do would be the “Solve a Problem” by partnering with a charitable cause to raise funds for them.

Maybe you are offering $1 from every massage you do in a month for that charity. Or you and several other therapists do a “massage marathon” to help the fight against something like breast cancer. The list of possibilities are endless.

Second, publicize that you are going to do your act beforehand. In Paul’s case, he landed an audition on the most popular U.S. television show but chances are, you don’t need national attention.

Focus your attention on your local and regional TV, newspaper and other print publications instead. Send them a press release about your upcoming promotion. Make it sound newsworthy and not like an advertisement.

Third, tell everyone you know what you are going to do. Alert your friends, family, business allies, and clients of your plans. Give them the opportunity to help support your efforts by telling other people in their network. This will create a viral marketing effect for your business.

Next, do your publicity act. Get it on video if at all possible. You can use that video help promote your business at a later date.

Finally, promote what you did to every media source and network contact you have. Let people know what you did for a worthy cause.

Used correctly, PR is a powerful marketing weapon that you can use to grow your business. Stick to using it locally and your business will reap the rewards.

Until next time,

Michael