People today are immune to advertising.

Just consider the last time you picked up a magazine or newspaper. Do you remember any of the advertisements? How about when you lasted watched television? Do you remember a single commercial? By now, we are so used to seeing advertising that we subconsciously ignore it.

Here are three things we know:

• people read blogs
• people use social networks to communicate
• people watch a lot of television (and they skip over advertisements with the help of TiVo)

So what does this tell us? It’s simple. Companies need to focus on getting their messages out using alternative, and more modern, methods. Whether it’s developing a corporate blog or reaching out to the media, new and free communication channels are available in today’s business world and companies need to take advantage of them.

As an example, I recently helped a client gain exposure on CNN.com’s homepage as a response to a media campaign announcing a poll they were hosting. Being on CNN.com resulted in over 5,000 additional unique visitors each day to my client’s website. If you compare this to traditional advertising, this same amount of exposure would have taken thousands of dollars.

There are several ways in which you can help leverage your company’s media exposure. Here are just a few examples:

Develop a catchy hook: When developing a media pitch, it’s time for you to think outside the box. What can you add to your story that will bring it to the next level? Put yourself in the shoes of a journalist and ask yourself, “Would they care about my story?” If not, then it’s time to rethink your message.

Become an industry expert: Do you manufacture widgets or do you offer a service to the public or to other businesses? It doesn’t matter. If you do business at all, it’s important to build your reputation as an expert in your industry. For those that know how to do it, it’s not difficult. Offer free articles to industry trade journals, volunteer to participate in open panel discussions or launch a blog. The media always needs expert sources. Being known as an industry expert will open you up to serve in this role.

Follow the news: Stay up-to-date on the most recent news in your industry. Set up Google Alerts for certain keywords and phrases. If a phrase comes across the wire that relates to your industry, follow-up on it and offer your expert insight and perspective to your local media outlets.

Most importantly, the next time you consider spending money developing a large advertising campaign, consider this: The Body Shop was built using publicity with no advertising at all and Starbucks built its brand through PR. Starbucks now has approximately 12,000 retail stores and annual sales over $9 billion.