Excerpt from The Ultimate On-Camera Guidebook: Hosts*Experts*Influencers by Jacquie Jordan (@TVGuestpert) & Shannon O’Dowd (@theshannonodowd)
This unspoken trade- out refers to the value of your television appearance as real estate. The exchange for your time and talent is your “plug,” aka the “For Sale” sign you get to hang on the lawn. A plug can be your book, your website, your business, or your event.
Plugging is what celebrities do every time they are on a late- night show. They entertain you with one or two personal stories, but they always plug the upcoming film they’re starring in.
Most shows, networks, and stations will give you a direct or an indirect plug. A direct plug is when the host mentions your book by title and shows a picture of it, or, better yet, holds the book up in her hands toward the camera.
An indirect plug is when the show, network, or station directs the viewer to the show’s website for your information. Usually on their site, they will include more information about you as the expert, with the topic written out and a possible hyperlink to your web page.
Appearances featuring indirect plugs usually do not pay. They are considered promotional appearances because you are receiving your plug in exchange for your expertise and time.
This is a win for the show and a win for you. This nonfinancial arrangement allows the network, show, or station to not pay for your content. In news this is particularly important as it allows the program to be neutral of buying a point of view.
The problem in advocating our clients or Guestperts in these situations is when the client doesn’t have a well-defined plug, i.e., a clear call to action, or a pressing need for the viewer to respond. This can be an event or the release of a book.
When we advocate for business owners or experts who are in the process of building their media platform, having a good plug and the infrastructure to properly process the call to action is important. This is the value of translating the appearance to the business or client’s goals.
We once tuned in to a guest on a popular SiriusXM radio show, then listened in horror as the host poked fun at the fact that the guest had no online or social media presence. That left the host with literally no place specific to direct his listeners for more information to find out about this fabulous guest. This also means that our paying client missed out on the opportunity at hand to translate the publicity value to his own platform. Other guests booked on the show have received business calls and instantly had more followers, business, and follow-ups to their appearance.
This is why we call ourselves a media development company and not just a public relations firm; we are interested in helping our clients cultivate and develop their platforms through the judicious use of plugs.
About the Author
Jacquie is the founder and CEO of the 15-year-old cutting-edge, media and content development, promotions and booking platform, TVGuestpert that offers full-service promotion, marketing, business strategy and media services for her clients, partners and collaborators, TVGuestpert Publishing – a NY Times Best Selling publishing house, and The Guestpert Academy – an online program offering visibility, media training and TVGuestpert On-Camera Training. She is also a two-time Emmy nominated TV Producer, three-time author and the host of Front & Center with Jacquie Jordan, a broadcast podcast.
