Get Featured in The State

Space in a local publication goes first to public affairs, emergencies, schools and sports. That leaves little room at The State for a business owner or professional who sends in a story idea cold, even when the story has a real local tie. A guaranteed placement works differently: it is arranged with the publication before any writing starts, you sign off on the draft, and it goes live on thestate.com within a window stated in writing, usually three to five days. It is a real article on the site that you can put in a proposal, a deck or a profile.

What The State covers

What does a local news publication cover? Whatever matters to the people nearby. For The State, that means news for readers in South Carolina: the kind of reporting on local government, business, schools, roads, real estate, events, sports and community life that larger outlets leave alone. A story earns its place by being relevant to the area, not by being big. Its reporting is published at thestate.com.

Local reporting treats a community as a set of people and places with names. In that setting, an opening, an expansion, an award, a new hire, a charity drive or a new service is news, provided it is told with facts. Owners, professionals, nonprofits, event organizers and creative people with a local tie are all familiar subjects of this kind of coverage.

Who reads The State

The State’s readers are people with a stake in the area: residents, families, business owners, local officials, professionals and people thinking about moving to or investing in the community. The publication serves readers in South Carolina, and they read local news for practical reasons. They want to know what is happening near them, which businesses are new, and who is doing work worth knowing about.

That matters for anyone whose work depends on local reputation. Real estate agents, advisers, physicians, attorneys, contractors and restaurateurs all win business through familiarity and word of mouth. A story in The State adds to both, and it can be shared on your site, in your office, in proposals and across your social profiles.

Why coverage in South Carolina matters

For most companies, the people who matter most are within driving distance. A feature in The State speaks to that group directly, because its readers have a stake in what happens in South Carolina. Coverage there can support word of mouth, give your sales conversations a local reference, and show up when someone in South Carolina looks for information about you or your company.

Those who ask for coverage in South Carolina are often professionals whose work depends on reputation in a defined area, such as attorneys, physicians, financial advisers, builders and agents. Event organizers, schools and hospitality venues are common as well, along with national brands that are launching a new location in South Carolina.

Local news runs on specifics. A story that says a clinic opened on a named street, hired locally and offers a service the area lacked will hold a reader. A story that says a company is passionate about excellence will not. Before anything is written, the facts, the place and the timing need to be clear.

We start by choosing one of the angles below. Most businesses and practices have two or three that would work, and the best choice is usually the one with the clearest local connection and timing.

What weakens a pitch

• No local connection. If the story could run unchanged in any town, readers of a community publication have little reason to stop on it.
• Sales copy presented as news. Readers come for information about their community, so a list of offers and slogans reads as out of place.
• Vague claims. “Best in the area” and “top-rated” mean little without something a reader can verify, and everything we write must be true.
• Too many messages. One opening, one milestone or one person, told clearly, is stronger than a tour of every service you provide.