The general business rule is that marketing departments are out to increase brand awareness and build solid sales leads for their company. Many of these professionals are unaware of the power that PR can bring to their marketing efforts. What happens in place of public relations? Thousands of dollars are spent on advertising in print and in the electronic mediums. But there is a much more cost effective answer: being interviewed as a guest on talk radio. This is an excellent way for companies to gain excellent local and national consumer exposure. No matter what your business is - talk radio will get you fantastic local or national attention for your business. " Make sure to do as many shows as possible ", says Marsha Friedman, Managing Director of Event Management Services Incorporated , a national public relations firm. " Appearing as a guest on a talk radio show will gain you some fabulous media attention ." So let's have Marsha Friedman educate us as to why appearing as a guest on a talk radio show is such a public relations goldmine:

1. Demographics and Target Audience. "On AM radio listeners are 55% male and 45% female with many of them college educated or with at least a high school diploma ", says Marsha Friedman. " Also there are so many different shows focusing on anything from finance to relationships so you can easily identify shows whose listeners are a match for your company ."

2. Cost Effective Promotion. A common misconception about talk radio interviews is that they all happen in the studio. Marsha Friedman says, "Nowadays all of the interviews are phone interviews. This way you can hold your interview from the comfort of your home or in between meetings at the office. If you are a highly inundated businessperson you can benefit from being able to fit these interviews into your busy schedule!behind your desk at the office! "

3. An Effective Sales Tool. Although public relations is absolutely not advertising , if you get good coverage, it can increase the effectiveness of your sales and marketing . " On talk radio, the majority of interviews are live, so it's like having a conversation with hundreds, thousands or even tens of thousands of people while on one phone call", says Marsha Friedman. " By executing your interview on talk radio successfully you have been able to communicate your message to consumers in a way that they will remember it! People who are listening to your interview want to know exactly where they can get your product. The best part is that many times the host will plug you website or phone number to take the stress off of you. What a great endorsement! "

4. A Terrific Endorsement from a 3rd Party. As you can imagine, talk radio shows have loyal followings in order to maintain their terrific ratings. And listeners tune in daily to hear what their favorite host is talking about. Marsha Friedman says, "Hosts are many times viewed by their listeners as great friends and sometimes even mentors , when you appear as a guest on their show, so when you appear as a guest on the show, you get a fantastic endorsement almost instantly. Credible by association if you will. "

5. Credibility. Talk radio supplies this in bucket loads. Marsha Friedman says, "One of my public relations firm's clients told us, '!when I have appeared on talk radio - the talk radio show guest is not afraid to boast about my accomplishments and how excited they are to have me as a guest ! Of course, the more important I am as a guest, the more important the host appears to be. As far as promotion and credibility goes - it just doesn't get any better!' What a great testimonial! "

6. Enough Time to Tell Your Whole Story. If you choose to go with advertising on tv, radio or in print you are faced with specific constraints in terms of budget and time to tell your story. "The great thing about talk radio is that many times you will have up to 30 minutes of times, if not more, to educate the audience about your message. " says Marsha Friedman. Well there you go: 6 reasons to be interviewed on talk radio that will gain national or local public relations for you, your company, products or services. If you would like to learn more about gaining national and local media exposure for your company, product or service, without the financial burden of monthly retainers, Marsha Friedman is here to help . Feel free to contact her directly at mfriedman@emsincorporated.com or visit her firm online at http://www.emsincorporated.com. As a public relations expert Friedman has the ability to get the media attention that you desire without monthly retainers .