Using newspapers for promotion!

I recently wrote to a local newspaper about my first children's book. What harm would it do, right? Well, they rang me up immediately and was really interested in the story. Maybe it was lack of news or something, but hey it got my name in the paper. I think using free promotional tools such as newspapers are a great way for a first time author to gain exposure.
Has anybody else tried this type of avenue? I strongly suggest everyone who is an unknown author to try this out. I've had lots of my friends and family comment to me about the article, so it obviously has reached out to the community. Give it a whirl, like I said, it can't do any harm.
If anybody else has already tried this, feedback please. Also, has your sales increased because of this?

Happy writing.