Baseball great Reggie Jackson, who often got more publicity than he wanted, once said, "The media are like birds on a wire. When one flies, they all fly."

Everyone in the media monitors everyone else, because NO ONE wants to miss anything or leave the impression they're falling behind current events.

You can use that competitive spirit to build a free publicity machine for yourself. Especially on radio.

How to get attention the first time requires a whole separate article (I have one on our website), but here's what you do to get producers and talk show hosts to love you--and to invite you back often.

***Be available. When former HUD Secretary Henry Cisneros was a San Antonio City Councilman, he could always be found on short notice. When a guest canceled at the last minute, many a frantic host breathed easier when they saw Henry's beat up old Volkswagen pulling into the station lot just before airtime. No wonder Cisneros later became one of the most popular mayors in San Antonio history.

***Speak Your Mind. Radio hosts LOVE guests who have the courage to be controversial. "Dr. Laura" was originally scheduled to be a one-time guest on an LA radio station some years ago, but she was so engaging and fearless, she got invited back again and again. Of course, now she has her own syndicated show.

***Use Your Imagination--and the vast resources of the internet. Got a spaghetti dinner coming up at your church that you want to plug on the air? Are you wondering just how you give a spaghetti dinner some radio "sex appeal?"

"Go to the internet," says veteran morning drive personality Sonny Melendrez. "Look up spaghetti. Talk about the history of spaghetti on the air. Keep your tongue firmly planted in your cheek, and make up whatever you want. Look up food jokes. Church jokes. Put it to work for you in a fun way."

And don't worry, you'll get your chance to give important details...date, time, place phone numbers, etc...

Do these things and you'll be amazed how often you're invited back...and how often you start getting invitations from other stations. Remember what Reggie Jackson said about "birds on a wire." Keep that in mind, and you'll soar to new heights as a popular radio guest.