Days in March to Get Publicity

Use the Calendar to Promote your Food

The Oscar Awards came and went, but not before mixologists across the country created interesting Oscar-themed drinks to celebrate that special night. Drinks with names like "Avatar", "District 9", and "Julie and Julia" came into being and were enjoyed by movie-going fans everywhere.

How do I know this? Because there was an article in the Arizona Republic newspaper that talked about the Oscar cocktails. This article came out *before* the Oscars, so it gave patrons plenty of time to go try the drinks.

How You Can Use This:
The AZ Republic had to get this information from someone. Why not you? The media is always looking for an unusual twist on food stories, and every month is filled with special days and events that you can use to tie into your food or your wine (or both!). By thinking up interesting ideas and submitting them to the media, you have a good chance of getting some coverage.

(I know I've talked about this before, but it bears repeating over and over again). Before you spend a lot of time trying to come up with some fancy message or spectacular event, take a look at the calendar and see what day or event is coming up that you can take advantage of.

Food Related Days in March 2010:
March is:

• National Nutrition Month
• National Sauce Month
• National Noodle Month
• International Hamburger and Pickle Month (!)

Select Days in March:
March 15: National Pears Helene Day
March 20: National Ravioli Day
March 21: National French Bread Day (good for artisan bread-makers)
March 24: National Chocolate Covered Raisins Day (my favorite!)
March 29: National Lemon Chiffon Cake Day
March 30: National Hot Dog Day

C'mon gang...you should be able to think up some interesting foods for those days. After all, this is International Hamburger and Pickle Month! As an example, there's a place in Surprise AZ that makes an excellent Cabernet Burger, and they used it to get front-cover billing in Phoenix magazine!

So put your thinking caps on, come up with some ideas for these special days, and submit a press release to your local TV stations and newspapers. You'll be pleasantly surprised to find out that many of them will be happy to find out more about what you have to offer.