Pictures, Personal Notes Frame Her Successful Publicity for Products

As a USC theater major, Deborah Rhein learned all about the art of self-promotion. Showing up for auditions, sending pictures, answering casting calls, mailing out her resume--Rhein said she was very disciplined during her two-year acting career. When she started making and selling dried-flower picture frames in 1991, she took that same persistence and discipline into her company’s marketing efforts. Her approach has garnered plenty of free publicity for her company. Rhein was interviewed by freelance writer Karen E. Klein.

My products have been featured more than 200 times in gift and furniture industry publications, trade journals and publications that target the children’s market and the gardening market. We’ve also been in In Style, Bride’s magazine and several other mainstream publications.

I build relationships with the editors I meet at trade shows, and I keep a list on hand of all the publications that might be interested in using our pieces. When I have new products coming out, I contact the editors and send them press packets and slides. I try to focus on what I think would be best for what they’re writing about.

If I feed them interesting and beautiful products, I know they’re likely to use them. In the trade journals, we are often mentioned as being trend-setting in terms of color and design because our products are very fashion-focused and I tend to follow the fashion industry trends.

I never hired a public relations firm, because I’d rather use the money to pay my in-house sales and marketing director a little extra and inspire her to do a really great job. She keeps in touch with the magazine editors so they are always posted on our new products.

Every month she stays on top of the industry publications, sending out pictures and personal notes, and about twice a year we go broad and send out new-product promotions to the mainstream publications, like Vogue.

Now that we have such an established relationship with the trade journals, they will call us when they’re planning a themed spread and ask what we’ve got that could go into their photos. It’s fun and it’s a real ego trip to see our stuff featured.

I never had the money to place ads, but I send our customers a postcard every month or every two months with a very pretty picture on the front that is themed to an upcoming season or holiday. I have a 1-year-old son, and I put him into some of the photos so I can keep the company very personal.

I still go to the trade shows myself and I write personal notes on as many of the postcards as I can, even though we now make 4,000 frames a month and we are expanding into home furnishings as well.

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At a Glance

Company: D. L. Rhein

Owner: Deborah Rhein

Nature of Business: Manufacture and sale of decorative home accessories

Location: 318 W. 9th St., Suite 310, Los Angeles, CA 90015 Year founded: 1991

Employees: 25

Annual sales: 1.3 million

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If your business can provide a lesson to other entrepreneurs, contact Karen E. Klein at the Los Angeles Times, 1333 S. Mayflower Ave., Suite 100, Monrovia, CA 91016 or send e-mail to kklein6349@aol.com. Include your name, address and telephone number.