Local press: the lever most craftsmen overlook (and how to use it)
Key takeaways — Local press is a powerful, underused visibility lever for craftsmen. You don't need a budget or a press agent: you need a story, the right local outlet, and to make the journalist's job easy. The full, detailed account is available in French.
Why craftsmen miss out on the press
Most craftsmen never use the local press, for two reasons: they think it's out of reach, or they wait for a journalist to find them. Both are wrong. A local newspaper is constantly looking for stories from its area, and it's up to you to bring one.
The 3-step method
1. Identify 2 or 3 accessible outlets
The local daily, your district's weekly, a community radio. Find the correspondent for your area: their name and contact are often at the bottom of articles.
2. Find the angle that interests their readers
A journalist doesn't want your product, they want a story. Yours: a family legacy, a career change, a rare craft, a workshop anniversary. Ask yourself what, in your journey, will resonate with local readers. Then learn how to tell that story in your own words, without reciting it, in craftsman storytelling.
3. Make their job easy
Offer a ready-to-publish draft they can adapt to their editorial line. You save them precious time, and you keep control of the message.
Why an article beats an ad
Everyone knows an ad is paid for. An article isn't: someone else is talking about you, and that's exactly what gives it value. This credibility signal works for your future clients, for Google, and for AIs like ChatGPT and Gemini, which increasingly rely on these sources to answer. It's one pillar of an online presence built to attract higher-end clients.
The full story, with the real example behind it, is available in the French version of this article.
Your turn
You have a story. The hardest part is often seeing it yourself. This is the lever I shared at an evening among artisans. If your craft deserves to be seen, let's talk.
