Visible Fridays #2: Old Media Is Not Dead · The Visible Death Worker

Visible Fridays #2: Old Media Is Not Dead

Before you spend another hour thinking about your next reel or wondering why the algorithm hates you this week - I want to make a case for something a lot of death workers overlook.

Your local newspaper.

I know. Bear with me.

When the Blue Mountains Gazette ran a piece about the Death Café I host here in Lawson, my phone rang for weeks. People who had never heard of me. People who had been quietly wondering if there was anyone doing this kind of work nearby. Families I am now holding, because a journalist asked a few questions and wrote a story.

Local media still carries weight in a way social media doesn’t. It lands on kitchen tables. It gets passed to a neighbour. It signals to your community that you are a real person, doing real work, in the actual place they live.

And recently, I was approached about paying for an advert in a “planning ahead” feature of our local paper. Clearly they hadn’t had many takers - but here’s what struck me. It was little ole independent me, and the one big corporation-owned facility that holds pretty much the entire market in this area. Side by side. Same page.

That’s the thing about showing up in local media. It puts you in the conversation. It doesn’t matter that they have more money, more staff and a brand that’s been here for decades. You’re there too. And for the family quietly doing their research, that matters more than you might think.

This week: look at your local paper.

There are two ways in:

A paid advert. Small, well-worded, consistent. Doesn’t need to sell anything. Just needs to say you exist and what you do.

A story pitch. Think about what angle a local journalist might actually care about. Death Café hosting. Families who choose home funerals. The rising cost of funerals and what alternatives exist. Local Death Doulas. The history of burial in your region. You probably have more stories in you than you think - and journalists are often looking for them.

Write down one pitch idea this week. One local journalist’s name and contact. One small ad concept.

You don’t have to send it yet. Just have it ready.

Visibility isn’t only digital. Sometimes it’s ink on paper, landing in a letterbox three streets from someone who needs you.

We just have to keep showing up.

🐦‍⬛

Want to share a local story that’s worked for you, or workshop your pitch idea? Drop it in the comments - I’d love to help you shape it...

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