There are two vehicles for having your company’s information show up in a newspaper or magazine… pay to advertise or let the press do it for you. The latter occurs as a direct result of public relations (PR) efforts – actively seeking publicity as a form of marketing communications.

While each of these is valuable, a solid news story can give you with a higher ranking on the credibility ladder. Why? Because people understand that an ad is placed by you so are far more suspicious of its veracity. (Recent consumer studies confirm that most consumers think that all advertisements include outright lies and/or misleading information.)

However, articles written by others are viewed as more objective (especially if the author has no stake in your company’s success or failure) and thus, more believable.

PR Tips

It’s important to understand how this process works so you’ll be able to take advantage of newsworthy opportunities that may come your way.

Most newspapers (and other media such as TV and radio) have a designated employee (usually called an assignment editor) who has responsibility for decide what’s news and what isn’t. They are tasked with reading and evaluating press releases. The ones that make the cut are sent to another editor for follow-up and inclusions, the others are usually trashed. The vast majority, up to 90%, end up in the rubbish.

This is why it’s so important to get it right if you expect to compete with the hundreds of others vying for the same space. Here are some handy tips:

•Let a professional public relations expert write your press release and put together a press package for you. There are many freelance experts around who won’t charge you an arm and a leg. Additionally, and perhaps more importantly, good public relations professionals network well and have media contacts the rest of us don’t! Also, keep in mind there are few boring stories, but many boring ways of telling them…another reason to seek wise counsel from a professional. (Chapter Eight contains several good resources)

•Focus on content versus form… Yes, there is a proper format, but it is far less important than what you say. Remember, newspapers need information as much as you need publicity. They are looking for timely, educational and informative information… so provide it. Conversely, local radio stations may be interested in airing stories that are funnier, quirkier or more controversial.

•Human interest stories are popular across all media types… one reason talk shows are so popular. So, if you have a compelling personal story, one that others will find interesting, tell it.

•Make sure that your story is timely and not late. If your store opened three months ago, it’s old news. Also, understand that journalists work on very tight deadlines, so it makes more sense to fax or e-mail, rather than mail, your release.

•Edit, Edit, Edit… If an editor sees typos and other errors, it may cause them to question the accuracy of your content… a real killer.

•Make sure that you include accurate contact information… Provide precise and complete information so you’re easy to find – phone (including cell) and fax numbers and e-mail, website and mailing addresses. The last thing you want is to miss an interview because you couldn’t be reached!

•The more back-up information you provide the better… The easier you make it for a journalist to cover your story, the more likely they’ll be to include it. Include photos, samples, interview availability times, research backup, and the like.

•Make sure to send press releases to all media in your area, no matter how small…. It’s much easier to get local, rather than regional or national, coverage.

•Contact journalists and offer yourself as an expert in a particular field… One they can count on to provide them with accurate and objective information on the subject

These are just a few tips to get you moving in the right direction. However, as I’ve said before, best cost is not always least cost… so get a professional to help you with your public relations efforts. It will save you time, money and aggravation in the end.

Mary Eule specializes in helping small and medium-sized businesses get and keep profitable customers. Formerly a Fortune 500 marketing executive; founder of two successful small businesses and award-winning speaker, Ms. Eule is President of Strategic Marketing Advisors, LLC. and co-author of a new book, “Mandatory Marketing: Small Business Edition”. She holds a master degree in marketing from Johns Hopkins University. Log onto this website for free articles, newsletter and helpful tools, tips and templates.

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Tags: media, public, relations, jobs, training

What if public relations were illegal? Well it kind of is if you think about it; for instance if you embellish a story which is construed as advertising then it could be considered false and misleading? If you were to make a statement and someone complained to a Federal Agency or States Attorneys General Office they might come to investigate you? If you had a customer or shareholder which said they used that information to make a decision to buy your product or stock well you could be sued by an attorney in a private right of action; lawsuit? If enough people got together you could be looking at a class action lawsuit as well.

Now public relations is legal if you are a government agency, as long as you bullshit and lie to the American People. If you tell them they are safe from criminals, fraud or International Terrorism when you know damn good and well they are in immediate danger? Or if you are government agency you can tell the consumers, citizens and investors that they are safe from SPAM or Identity Theft because your forceful agency has now made a rule or law and brought 60 cases to court which will take a year to bring to trial, meanwhile there are 60,000 scoundrels out there SPAMMING and countless criminals stealing your personal information. As well as many government agencies, which make the information available to all. In fact Public Relations is fine if you are the government. And defrauding the American Taxpayers, consumers and the American People using tactics of misrepresentation and misleading information is fine as long as you are a government agency and no one can sue you either. Think on this, as we have scoundrels afoot using PR tactics to cheat us and it is not the business community doing it.

“Lance Winslow” – Online Think Tank forum board. If you have innovative thoughts and unique perspectives, come think with Lance; http://www.WorldThinkTank.net/. Lance is an online writer in retirement.

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You improve your chances of getting coverage if you understand the lead times of the various media when pitching story ideas.

Newspapers, for instance, often work with no lead time. Online, radio and TV, too, are known for their immediacy. Newspaper special sections, such as a holiday gift guide, might want material one to two months in advance. Weekly newspapers, like the , have their special editions planned months in advance and begin reviewing story ideas for those as much as two to three months out. So, they might be thinking about their February 17 corporate philanthropy section in December.

Magazines – particularly those aimed at consumers – often have lead times of as much as six months. Some of those include women’s books like Ladies’ Home Journal and Redbook, as well as men’s magazines like Maxim. In December, those editors are already thinking about Easter, taxes, Mother’s Day and baseball season.

Even newswires like the Associated Press have some longer lead times for their special editions. AP’s new specials editor, Julia Rubin, begins thinking about her monthly specials more than a month in advance. She likes to receive information about products and services, as well as story ideas that tie in.

Here are some of her upcoming features and their deadlines: Fashion, 2/1/2006; Health/Fitness, 3/1/2006; Careers, 4/1/2006

One final tip, editorial calendars are a great way to find out what editors want and when. If you don’t subscribe to one of the editorial calendar services, try doing a Google search for “editorial calendars” plus your topic of interest to see what comes up.

Harry Hoover is a partner in My Creative Team. He has 30 years of experience in crafting and delivering bottom line messages that ensure success for serious businesses like Bank of Commerce, The Bray Law Firm, Brent Dees Financial Planning, CruisingTheICW.com, Duke Energy, Focus Four, Levolor, North Carolina Tourism, TeamHeidi, Ty Boyd Executive Learning Systems, VELUX, and Verbatim.

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Tags : media, relations, specialist, jobs, advertising

If you’re in Australia at the moment it is hard to miss the media frenzy created by the release of a new book described as “the biggest political news story of the year”.

Former opposition leader, outspoken Mark Latham has caused a stir in both parliament and the press with his recent outbursts, name-calling and frank opinions regarding his former party and colleagues.

These scandals, which have featured in newspapers and radio and TV programs throughout Australia, have brought attention to not only the disgruntled politician but also the launch of his new book The Latham Diaries.

And with all this drama and attention there is no doubt Mr Latham’s publicity team are celebrating rather then panicking as sales of his book have soared.

So how does a nation-wide scandal become strong, good PR rather then a crisis?

And what makes the media tick when understanding why the release of the book created so much positive PR?

Here are my Ten Reasons why The Latham Scandal generated so much positive PR and what you can learn from it.

1. Conflict

Conflict makes the news. Mr Latham’s conflict with the Labor Party, the press and direct attacks on politicians is interesting, it’s scandalous and people want to read and hear his opinions and the replies from those he’s talked about. Politics generally is about conflict and combat but Mr Latham’s personal comments add another dimension.

Students of power, influence and persuasion will be encouraged to find out the reasons behind the conflict in his book.

2. Prominence.

Politicians are celebrities. Everyone knows them by name, face and role and Mark Latham has made headlines since he was appointed party leader. His character as an outgoing, outspoken politician has captured our attention. His book tells his side of the ongoing scandals in his own words. By generating a big bang with his book launch, Latham was able to bring attention to many other scandals and note they are all contained in his book, hence boosting sales.

3. Timeliness

Since quitting the Labor Party Latham has stayed out of the media until high-profile interviews with the ABC’s Andrew Denton, name-calling and media attacking… all coinciding with the launch of his book. Coincidence, or good PR planning?

Mr Latham gained more publicity through the media for his book from comments in interviews then he ever could have through advertising. Attracting and capitalising on the media spotlight all in a condensed period of time, particularly when there’s little else in the news has worked well to his advantage.

4. Context and Relationships

The name-calling, the back stabbing, and even personal nicknames … it may seem petty that the man who once led the opposition would behave in such a way. But the larrikin, honesty and bluntness of Mark Latham is endearing to Australians. We like to see the raw, unguarded bloke and by relating to Australians, Mark’s relationship has strengthened.

Had this happened between politicians in another country, the result may not have been as positive for book sales.

5. The Media

The interview between Latham and Andrew Denton on Enough Rope has become central in discussions and media coverage of the issue. The audience of Enough Rope are generally generation X and Y, well educated professionals with young families. This target audience echoes that of his book. By selecting his media source Latham was able to access a large portion of his target audience for his book.

6. Relevance

The context of the book is set as Labor’s former leader turning his back on his party the year after a record election loss. The content in both the book and interviews is relevant, it’s history being written as it’s happening.

The conflict also makes it relevant to Labor or Liberal supporters. Those who empathise with Latham will read his book for his side of the story. Those who disagree with his statements or support Liberals will read it for the scandal, the inside information.

7. Personality

Mark Latham is a publicists dream. He’s well rehearsed in dealing with the media and very effective in getting his message across. His interviews were clear, concise and effective at promoting his book.

8. Human Interest

Pancreatitis, testicular cancer, family problems, suicide… Latham even made references to sporting teams in his interviews. It’s candid and real and endearing. Latham seemed to let his guard down completely and invite the Australian public into his mind. A connection that continues in his book.

9. Carefully Constructed Interview Subjects

In his interview with Andrew Denton, Latham touched on a number of subjects from his book, offering a preview but leaving the audience wanting more information. This interview would have been carefully planned and controlled by Latham, although not obvious to the viewer.

10. Novelty

It’s something people can talk about around the water cooler at work or whilst on a bus. Little shock waves then ripple out and cover a wider area. Everyone has an opinion or view on the matter and this transfer of information between people, or viral marketing, will also help book sales.

Thomas Murrell MBA CSP is an international business speaker, consultant and award-winning broadcaster. Media Motivators is his regular electronic magazine read by 7,000 professionals in 15 different countries. You can subscribe by visiting 8mmedia and his blog.

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Tags: public, relations, books, firms, jobs

Early in my career as a public relations consultant, I remember standing in a group of people at a business function and listening to one man’s tale of woe. It seems the founder and president of a small and growing business was bewildered about his lack of media attention. He organized an event to launch a ground-breaking new product and couldn’t understand why no one covered the event.

“Why didn’t they (reporters) come?” he asked. “I sent out press releases!”

I smiled sympathetically.

This is not an isolated incident. Too often, many notable products and services are ignored by reporters and subsequently, by the public. Time and again, small business owners believe they can run the publicity activities for their companies. How hard could it be anyway?

The problem is, performing the mechanics of publicity tasks without understanding it will not achieve desired results. There’s more to PR than sending out a press release.

And trust me, the quality–or more accurately, the lack thereof–of releases I have seen lately from do-it-yourselfers ranges from the sublime to the ridiculous. It would make any professional publicist nauseous!

As a PR consultant for many years, I have often wondered why people want to do it themselves. After much thought about this phenomenon, I attribute it to one justification: a cost-cutting measure. This is a common pitfall.

PR is not something that achieves an immediate return like running a two-for-one sale. It is a long-term commitment that often can’t be quantified. Publicity is one aspect and often, instead of letting a PR professional develop an integrated campaign, releases are sent haphazardly with an eye on costs rather than results. Piecemeal publicity—sporadic releases or placements, often after the fact—is rarely effective. Sound public relations is a concerted effort and an investment a company makes in itself. Consultant’s fees are based on time and activities required to build a comprehensive program.

The idea that companies even think they can take this in-house and delegate it to an administrator without hiring a PR professional is deceiving.

I once asked a career consultant about this. Her reply was startling. She responded by saying that some people are so technically expert, they make it look easy enough for others to take on their duties! This probably explains why there was a huge increase in duffers at golf courses after Tiger Woods won his first Masters. It also explains why there are so many people taking on their own home repair and decorating projects since HGTV became a cable mainstay.

The truth is Tiger Woods and other pro golfers work at their sport the way most of us work at our jobs, and home repairs and decorating are far more time-consuming and complicated than a version compressed into a 30 minute segment.

The same can be said of publicity . . . and that’s the relatively easy component!

What if you’re on the negative end of publicity? Do you really think you can handle that alone? Remember, a lawyer will protect you legally; who will protect your image and reputation? After the tragedy of September 11, I remember an interview with a very emotional company executive caught up in the moment. Several of the things he promised in an excited moment came back to haunt him several months later. If he had a PR consultant, he never would have been permitted to give an interview, let alone promise anything, at that time.

Even if you think you’re just sending out press releases, there’s more to writing them and emailing or snail mailing them. It’s called pitch and place. There’s also a vetting process which, to summarize, prevents amateurs from crying wolf. Not everything you do or accomplish is newsworthy!

If you do-it-yourself, potential customers are likely to think you’re penny-pinching because you have cash-flow problems, too impoverished to hire a consultant or an appropriate employee to adequately accommodate your needs and staff your operations. They can also question your business acumen if you think you’re proficient enough to do this properly. This alone can make or break your future growth.

If you think you’re saving money by doing-it-yourself, you’re not. A good PR program with an experienced consultant is far more cost-effective than doing-it-yourself. Remember, perception is reality.

You’re vying for attention and credibility in an overcrowded marketplace. People have to know you exist before they can beat a path to your door. Good PR can enhance your operations so your products or services are accepted.

© 2005 F.N. Rosenstock. All rights reserved.

For more than 20 years, F. N. ROSENSTOCK has worked in the field of public relations holding a variety of positions before starting her own consulting firm. Rosenstock has served as a presenter on panels and at workshops, and has produced seminars and given instruction about public relations.

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Tags: consultants, pr, marketing, jobs, consulting

Yup — it’s hot and sticky and you don’t feel like doing much of anything — let alone working on publicity for your business.

But the summer months can actually be a great time to get publicity. Think about it. In these lazy days of summer, chances are your competitors have slowed down their efforts considerably, so you’ve got the edge. And with not much going on right about now, media people are probably more receptive to a fresh story idea — hopefully your story!

Here are some ideas you can think about while you’re relaxing with family or friends on a summer evening. Have a brainstorm session and see what great ideas come out of it.

1. Dream up a unique holiday that ties into your business. That’s just what Jacqueline Whitmore, Founder and Director of the Protocol School of Palm Beach, did. She created “National Cell Phone Courtesy Month” in July, 2002. And she keeps on receiving lots of publicity every year for this. You could get ongoing P.R., too — whether you think up a special day, week or month relative to your business. Note: To create your own holiday, go to “Submit an Entry” at this www.chases.com, the Web site for Chase’s Calendar of Events.

2. Pitch summer stories that tie into your business. In June of 2002, my Hair Restoration Vacation pitch was well-received and led to a subsequent story for Dr. Alan Bauman, hair restoration surgeon, in July, 2002. The pitch, while unique, probably wouldn’t have worked at other times of the year.

3. Create a “must-go-to” event for your business. Most other businesses are not planning events now, so if you host one it will stand out. As an example, in Boca Raton, FL, the off-season is summer. Yet every August, “Wine and All that Jazz” — an event held at a top resort — is sold out!

Read more about Jacqueline Whitmore, Dr. Bauman, and how to create successful events in my Do-It-Yourself Public Relations Kit™, visit this website

Copyright 2008 Margie Fisher All Rights Reserved

Margie Fisher, President of Zable Fisher Public Relations, is the author of the Do-It-Yourself Public Relations Kit. For more information on the Kit, the Pay for Results Publicity Program, and to sign up for the complimentary PRactical P.R. newsletter, visit this site

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Tags: public, relations, services, jobs, firms

A press kit is an essential press relations tool. While it can be used to support a special event or promotional activity, it is most helpful in strategically positioning an organization or product. On a website, the “press room” is the on-line equivalent of the traditional press kit.

More expansive and educational than a press release, a press kit/room includes a variety of supporting materials from fact sheets to photographs. Their purpose is to provide a media contact with a plentiful source of current and archived information from which stories can be created.

Traditional press kits are usually presented in a custom binder or portfolio with the name, address, phone number and logo of the organization on the cover. On-line press rooms often contains links to pages which may also be reached from other areas of the site. Depending on the industry, most companies use a combination of the two to meet the needs of the press.

It’s important to regularly update press kits.

A press kit can include any or all of the following items:

• “Press releases” are the most common press communication tool. In a press kit, only current releases should be included. On-line you have the luxury of providing a press release archive to assist reporters in developing stories.

• “Backgrounders” may take several different forms and will typically support your position, mission, goals, history and/or track record. Research or article abstracts and fact sheets are two common backgrounder styles.

• A “Fact sheet” provides an “at a glance” bulleted overview of the organization. It is a bullet list of the organization’s activity, key employees, services or products, etc.

• A “Calendar of Events” is self-explanatory.

• “Bio’s” of significant leaders or key players within the organization or, if it’s an event, the celebrity attraction.

• A “Reviewer’s Guide” is important, especially if you are going to have your product included in a round-up with competitive products. It can cover your products strengths and weaknesses against the competition’s in a factual manner. Or it can just cover your company’s technical points.

• Photos can accurately present the impact of your programs and services. Make them interesting, pertinent, and personal. Avoid boring “check passing” events. In a traditional press kit, black and whites can be used in a 3 by 5 or 5 by 7 inch format. Color photos are best provided in a transparency or slide format. For website use, photos should be made available in quickly downloadable compressed .gif, .tiff or .jpeg files.

• Position statements are helpful, particularly if your organization has a political direction.

• A “Quote Sheet” provides five or six significant quotes that are approved for media use. It allows the reporter to flesh out a story without having to interview a lot of people.

• “Brochures and newsletters” provide a reporter with “another look” at your organization. It is typical to include one or more issues of your corporate newsletter in a press kit.

• It is useful to include samples of previously published articles (“clips”) organization or programs to provide credibility and demonstrate the news-worthiness of your organization’s activities. With an on-line press room, you can provide links to the media’s own press page or provide a copy of the article on your own site. If you chose to do the latter, you MUST receive permission to reprint the article.

• Media should always be provided with an easy means with which to contact you. Make sure to include a phone number where they can contact you after business hours.

• Annual reports provide valuable background information.

Remember, the purpose of a press kit is to let the outside world into the inner workings of your organization. Paint a picture. Tell your story. And do it all with your audience’s listening in mind. Speak to their listening. Do they want to see your experience? Are they more interested in finding out your credentials? Or how well known you are in your community? When you are clear on what your audience wants to see from you, you can mix and match the above ingredients for maximum media coverage.

Monikah Ogando is President & CEO of Ogando Associates, Inc., a business consulting and coaching firm that works with start up and expanding businesses to implement action driven and results oriented strategies for profitability and a rewarding company culture.

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Tags: press, relations, jobs, public, media

Most people consider getting publicity the most important part of public relations. It’s also very mysterious to many people. Here are my top five publicity myths, to help make publicity better understood.

1. Who you (or your publicist) knows at the media is more important than the story idea. Sure, it’s easier to get a reporter or writer that knows you to listen to your pitch. But unless the pitch is good, it doesn’t matter if your contacts are your best friends — they won’t risk their jobs on your bad idea.

2. The amount of time spent on an interview determines how much publicity you will receive. I know people who have been interviewed for an hour and a half, and have only received a line in a publication (or none at all). I also know people who were interviewed for 20 minutes who received a half-page profile. It all depends on the story the writer is putting together, who else they are interviewing, and editorial decisions.

3. You have control over the information presented. One of the differences between advertising and publicity is that you pay for advertising and publicity is “free.” Another difference is that by paying for advertising, you control the message. The publicity you receive may contain an inaccurate quote, or may present your information in a different way than you had intended. These are possibilities, and should be taken in stride.

4. A publicist can guarantee media coverage. Unless it is paid for, there is no guarantee of coverage. Even something that has a target broadcast or publication date can be moved if a hot story overshadows yours.

5. The media will jump on a great idea and work on the story immediately. What may seem like the greatest news in the world to you (and might actually be) is just one of many “hot” pitches that the media receive. Unless it is a major event (usually a grim one), the media takes their time determining their interest in a story. That’s why constant follow-up is so necessary for all pitches.

Margie Fisher, President of Zable Fisher Public Relations, is the author of the Do-It-Yourself Public Relations Kit. For more information on the Kit, the Pay for Results Publicity Program, and to sign up for the complimentary PRactical P.R. newsletter, visit here

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Tags: pr, links, firms, agencies, jobs

Before you even think about writing a press release, there are a few things you need to know about the media. Here’s the first – and most important – of them:

1. Journalists receive hundreds of press releases every week

Depending on the publication they’re writing for, they may even get hundreds of press releases every day. So you’re up against some pretty stiff competition. Obviously you’re going to have to make sure your press release stands out, and grabs her attention. But how?

2. The vast majority of these press releases remain unread.

Luckily, the situation isn’t quite as desperate as it may seem. You don’t really have to compete with all of these hundreds of press releases. You only have to compete with the good ones. The reason? The rest of them go straight to that round metal filling cabinet on the floor…

When I worked as a reporter, it was my job to plough through the huge pile of press releases we received every day. Pretty soon I realized that only around 5% of them were ever any use to us. The rest were either transparent attempts at self-promotion from local business owners, or were on subjects which our newspaper just didn’t cover.

What can we learn from this? Well, two things:

* If you want your press release to be read, you have to give the journalist the kind of news they’re interested in covering

* In order to do this, you have to actually READ their newspaper.

Back to our journalists, and the final two things you need to know about them.

3. Journalists are very, very busy

Unfortunately, the newspaper industry is similar to many other industries in that there’s a tendency to hire fewer staff than are really needed. This is bad news for journalists, but it’s also bad news for your press release, as it basically means that the journalist you send it to will probably not have time to read it properly, and will simply scan the first line. If that first line doesn’t grab their attention, they’ll file it straight into the bin.

4. The media don’t owe you anything

Here’s something that most people forget: newspaper owners are running a business too. Their business makes money by selling copies of their newspaper, and trust me, they’re in it for the money: they’re not providing a public service.

When I worked on local newspapers, we would get a lot of phone calls from people who seemed to feel that it was our duty to print the stories they gave us, whether it was about their child winning a prize at school or their business winning a new client.

The problem was that as much as we’d liked to have helped these people, we were running a business. The success of that business depended on us providing news that people actually wanted to read, and, sadly, no one really wants to read about a child winning a book token or a business signing a new contract. (Unless, of course, you’re the child’s parents or the owner of the business.)

So, now you know a little bit about the media, it’s time to sit down and write that press release…

(This article is an extract from the ebook “PR Power: How to Write a Killer Press Release – and make sure it gets published” by Media Relations Expert Amber McNaught.)

Amber McNaught is the author of “PR Power: How to Write a Killer Press Release – and make sure it gets published!” Buy the ebook online for $9 (£4.99) here.

Amber also offers an affordable press release writing and distribution service.

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Tags: media, relations, strategy, jobs, public

If you’re like most of my clients, you’re probably interested in getting the media to cover the success of your business. These “business success stories” can be used for future marketing efforts — including reprints of the story in your marketing materials or on your Web site, or framing the article and hanging it in your office.

Well, I’m all for that, of course.

But … did you know that the media is often more interested in the story behind the story — not necessarily a standard business profile?

What do I mean by the “story behind the story?”

Sometimes it means the reason why you started the business in the first place. Often, this is more interesting to the media’s audience than the business itself. For example, my client, Christine King of Get Fit! Functional Fitness Studios, was the subject of a Fort Lauderdale Sun-Sentinel Sunday Fitness Profile, not so much because she was the owner of a fitness studio, but because she was in an accident years ago that left her temporarily paralyzed, and she used functional fitness moves to rehabilitate herself. This led her to leave her corporate job and start a functional fitness studio.

Another “story behind the story” might be a major event that catapulted your business to incredible success. Some magazines, such as Fortune Small Business, have a regular feature on that subject. Local newspapers also often run these types of articles. For instance, client Lori Karmel of We Take the Cake was featured in a recent Monday South Florida Sun-Sentinel Small Business Profile in the Business Section. The main theme of the story was how her appearance on last November’s Oprah Winfrey Show, in which she was featured offering one of Oprah’s Favorite Things (the company’s Key Lime Bundt Cake), helped We Take the Cake’s sales skyrocket.

Another type of “story behind the story” is how you or your company helped another company become successful. This was the subject of a recent “Case Study” feature for client Bob Garner in the Wall Street Journal. A client of Bob’s told how Bob’s trade show presentation had increased the client’s trade show ROI significantly.

If you’re wondering if these types of stories are as effective as pure business profiles, the answer is a resounding YES! Here’s why:

1. These stories are often more interesting to readers and viewers, so the audience understands more of the story about you, which leads to better retention of your company’s products and/or services.

2. These stories often incorporate a great deal of your company information, often in a very flattering way.

3. These stories show a different side of you and your business that is often hard to describe to others.

So if the media is interested in the “story behind the story”, eagerly embrace the idea. It may very well lead to your best, and most effective, publicity coverage ever!

Copyright 2008 Margie Fisher All Rights Reserved

Margie Fisher, President of Zable Fisher Public Relations, is the author of the Do-It-Yourself Public Relations Kit. For more information on the Kit, the Pay for Results Publicity Program, and to sign up for the complimentary Practical P.R. newsletter, visit this site

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Ideally, you will have two types of quotes in your press release. A quote from yourself is mandatory. To give your release extra impact, get a quote from a third-party.

Quoting yourself may seem unnatural to you at first, but it’s what every reporter expects. Your quote should be about the information in the press release, not about how great you are. As I always say, the key to getting publicity is to build your story around information, not around yourself.

A good quote: “This tip is the single best advice for homeowners,” said local attorney Nicole Jones.

A bad quote: “I am the best lawyer in town,” Ms. Jones said.

If you are having trouble coming up with a quote, try interviewing yourself. I often use this technique when I need to come up with an appropriate quote. Think, “What would a reporter ask me?” Probably something about why you are doing what you are doing, what the significance of it is, or how it will change the lives of your readers.

It’s often helpful to quote (with consent) clients, customers, colleagues, other experts in your area who complement your story. It shows the reporter there’s more to the story than some hot air blowing their way. And it makes it easier for them to assemble a complete story.

Ned Steele works with people in professional services who want to build their practice and accelerate their growth. The president of Ned Steele’s MediaImpact, he is the author of 102 Publicity Tips To Grow a Business or Practice To learn more visit MediaImpact.

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Tags: public, relations, about, jobs, books

Everyone has something that drives them up a wall. You may be surprised at what aggravates reporters.

They deal with horrors like jargon-filled press releases, poorly-written news advisories, and gimmicky pens and mousepads, but reporters consistently and overwhelmingly name one habit of publicity-seekers as their number one peeve.

What is it? It’s when someone calls after a press release has been sent and asks “Did you get my press release?”

This is the single worst way to follow up after sending something.

When you make this no-no call, the reporter thinks: “If I wanted to call you, I would” or “Doesn’t this person think I know how to open mail?” What’s worse, they may even say this to you right over the phone. If they weren’t interested in your story ideas before, they certainly won’t be now.

You think: “Unfair! These guys lose half the stuff they get sent!” True, but remember, they do own the printing presses. If you want to reap the many benefits of free publicity, you have to stay on their good side.

What works better is to find a credible reason to follow up. For example: “Hi, Jen. Since I sent you that release last week on how to buy U.S. Government bonds, Congress passed a new law that makes it even easier.”

Ned Steele works with people in professional services who want to build their practice and accelerate their growth. The president of Ned Steele’s MediaImpact, he is the author of 102 Publicity Tips To Grow a Business or Practice To learn more visit MediaImpact.

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In my travels around the country while building my business I have had the pleasure of meeting some of the greatest community volunteers in our nation. I never missed an opportunity to meet community leaders and learn all I could about every market my company franchised in. One event in particular was a standout; the Austin’s Annual Charity Event with KVET.

Part of my mission statement in my company was always to give back to the communities we serve and to be a community based company. I urge all business entrepreneurs to think like this. We are always interested in ways we can help the communities that our team serves. It is for that reason I joined 10′s of thousands of others in the Austin Charity Event. When President Bush suggested that all American’s put in their 2000 hours, that was not lip service, he meant it. So when we found out that KVET of Austin, Texas and the Highland Mall were putting on this event, we decided to find out which charities were their to receive the many Texans who came to volunteer their time and what our local franchisee could do to help, how we might offer our services or time to help the community.

I wanted to personally thank the Program Director at KVET, a Channel Communications Station and M. Darlene Corum the Retail Marketing Coordinator for Highland Mall in Austin for organizing an event, which every single community in the nation should put on at least twice per year. Who was there; all the local charities, which serve the community day in and day out. As many know funds are in short supply now as the economy has not fully arrived at its natural strength, there is less money to go around.

We talked with some of the most potentially devastating issues of the near future with the spread of AIDS and other serious illnesses. There on hand was a very knowledgeable group of people with Interfaith Care Alliance. We talked with Violet Leos, the Community Resource Director for the Austin Girl Scouts and volunteered our car wash fundraiser services. We made sure to point out that we did not want to replace their number one fundraiser The Delicious Girl Scouts Cookies (especially Chocolate Mints), but if they needed help in a car wash fundraiser to give us a call since I run a carwash business.

Other National Organizations with big local Austin representation were the Salvation Army, always out in force during the holidays, The United Way promoting their seasonal Angel Tree, United States Marine Corp’s “Toys for Tots” program and Safe Place for domestic violence and sexual abuse victims. Our company has been active with the Safe Place groups in AZ and NV.

We were very happy to see the Austin State School, which helps mentally retarded adults in training, social services and medical care, this is so important that we do not forget them in our society. Also next to them was the Austin Children’s Shelter, which provides emergency shelter and high quality care and a hope for the future for our abandoned kids in the Austin Community. Speaking of Kids, a great program called Insure-a-Kid was present helping kids who need health care insurance, and we would personally like to thank Michael Dell, Founder of Dell Computers for his extremely active role in getting this one off the ground. This is an incredible program and it is our belief this should be duplicated whoever possible, great program, good people and inspirational story of leadership and creativity in the midst of adversity, WOW.

Children’s Advocacy Center was there talking about what is being done about something no one wants to talk about, child abuse cases and it’s effect on kids. Very heavy subject and extremely dedicated people, a real tear jerker and they are there for the kids and were actively recruiting volunteers and promoting awareness.

Real everyday family issues were there in force also, including; Literacy Austin, teaching people to read, write and speak English; Live in the Game, providing fifth grade girls with adult female mentors; RIF-Reading Is Fundamental, motivating kids to read books; and Capitol Area Homeless Alliance, a day shelter for the homeless and yes the Bush’s have volunteered to work in the food lines before and the people there made it clear Austin is serious about find the necessary means to help those people on the street transition into both employment and housing. Also on scene was Lone Star Equine Rescue, which helps improve the lives of equines throughout Texas and neighboring states.

We would like to tell every one how great it was to see Americans sign up to volunteer and do their part, to put in their 2000 hours. And we too felt proud volunteering our team to car wash fundraisers to help the kids groups. We are all in this together; we should never forget that. I urge every American and every small business model to seek out ways you can give back to your city or town and promote an ownership type community. You will be leading by example and doing what’s right for the betterment of mankind and the future of your community. Volunteer and even if your town does not have such an awesome event, seek out ways to help. Maybe you can organize all the non-profit service clubs in your town and get others to volunteer too. Think on it.

“Lance Winslow” – Online ThinkTank forum board. If you have innovative thoughts and unique perspectives, come think with Lance. Lance is an online writer in retirement.

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Let’s say you’ve called a reporter with some ideas for stories about financial planning, and they seemed interested. Congratulations! First, pat yourself on the back. It takes intelligence and gumption to come up with ideas that reporters like.

Next, consider how you are going to follow up. Reporters are usually working on several stories at once, and unless they are coming to meet you today, there’s still a considerable chance that it will fall through the cracks. You need to try, without being annoying, to keep that story at the front of their mind.

If your call went great and the reporter’s interested – tell her you’ll send something by fax or email to summarize what you discussed. Whether you send a fax or email, keep it brief and on point. Don’t use it to raise new topics – close one deal first!

After you’ve had a good call, or sent something to a reporter, follow up about a week later. If you get no response, assume the idea’s either dead or filed for later consideration. No amount of follow-up calls is likely to change this cold truth – and it will actually lower your stock. Don’t be viewed as pestering – if the initial idea doesn’t fly, wait a while, then float a new one.

Ned Steele works with people in professional services who want to build their practice and accelerate their growth. The president of Ned Steele’s MediaImpact, he is the author of 102 Publicity Tips To Grow a Business or Practice To learn more visit this site

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As a mobile detailing company it is important to have some key corporate accounts where you can show up weekly and wash and detail cars for executives. One promotion you can do to help secure such accounts is to join in with the United Way in their promotion. The United Way depends on employees of large companies to donate 1% or 1.5% of their income through payroll withholding.

Many employees obviously might be reluctant to do this. So along with representatives from the United Way, you take your mobile washing rigs to the corporations and let the company managers wash the cars of the employees that agree to withhold money from their paychecks so as to make a contribution to the United Way. The employees get a real kick out of watching their bosses slave away washing their cars. And they will be doing it using your rigs. Therefore you get the Public Relations plug. Any employee agreeing to the deduction gets their car washed by their boss.

Since they are using your equipment you can be sure to block off the storm drains to prevent pollution and this gives another public relations plug to the event as completely EPA compliant. This works well and a great synergy takes over. We also recommend to have the United Way representative call all the newspapers. The employees, managers and executives love it. It’s also great P.R. for you. Who knows maybe your auto detailing company will be on the front page of your newspaper the next day. That is what usually happens to us.

“Lance Winslow” – Online ThinkTank forum board. If you have innovative thoughts and unique perspectives, come think with Lance. Lance is an online writer in retirement.

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Small Business Owners should send press releases out at least once a month to local newspapers, cable TV, local magazines and radio stations. You will be surprised how often they get published or air time. After doing this a while you can figure out what types of news get the best results. Some typical and simple press releases can be new employee hirees, new accounts with large local corporations or non-profit endeavors you are assisting with.

All press releases should be typed double-spaced with two clicks between each word. This makes it easy to read and retype. This saves aggravation for the person retyping it into their word processor. You should use Arial font because it is easy to read and 13 to 14 point font size. This is because many newspapers will scan typed material into their computers these days and it makes it easier for their optical character recognition software (OCR) to read it. They will change the font later anyway to match whatever font they use in their newspaper.

You can fax a press release to them but we recommend dropping it off if you have time and it is convenient. You can also wash cars while you are there. Once again you will save them OCR headaches because things come out blurry on a fax. The very best is to e-mail it to them because it’s already in their computer ready to be edited by their staff. The easier you make it on them, the better your chances of getting your press release or news item published.

After you get to know the editors over many months you can email them directly. Eventually you want to think about getting to know the local program directors on a first name basis also. I had run a small business for 20 years before I learned how easy it is to keep your name in the local media. We spent hours and thousands on advertising, when our competitors simply sent in small snippets of information each week. Think about it. Be a winner in your small company.

“Lance Winslow” – Online ThinkTank forum board. If you have innovative thoughts and unique perspectives, come think with Lance. Lance is an online writer in retirement.

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As the name suggests, it tells potential clients what you, or your organisation and staff are capable of. It highlights what your future capability is and reflects on your past successes.

These are usually produced as brochures or booklets and are now increasingly appearing in online formats eg, HTML, PDF and self-executable ebooks. (The Entrepreneur Magazine section of “The Weekend Australian” of 25 Feb 2005 ran an article advising that legal and other professional firms are now using electronic media for their capability information). Include your logo, corporate colours and graphics so that your market develops corporate identity and branding recognition.

Some organisations and individuals prefer to call them Corporate Brochures, Organisational Profiles, Prospectus’ etc. This seems to be the preferred terminology and is, in my opinion, more accurate and descriptive.

The better Capability Statements produced as printed documents are graphics intense, professionally laid out and attractively produced on hiqh quality papers. The simplest form can be produced in black and white or colour on a cheap laser or inkjet printer.

Why have a Capability Statement?

When prospective clients enquire about your services or products, you send them a Capability Statement. If they visit your Internet site and don’t want to spend time reading about you and your organisation, they can download your file and read it when more convenient.

Clients may pass it to others when recommending your services. You can send one with your proposals, publicity materials, and on other occasions when the opportunity presents.

Clients may have dealt with you for years, but only buy the same service. They may have no idea you also provide other services they could use. It spells out what you can do in addition to what you do for them now.

If you don’t tell people what you do, how can you expect them to call you when they want something done?

What’s in a Capability Statement?

It’s not a dumb question! There are two trains of thought. One suggests that it should be chock full of verbage about how you can help your clients or prospective clients. The other view is that you simply tell them what you can do and let them decide whether they want your services.

The latter option would suggest you include the following topics and any others you feel are relevant, not necessarily in the order shown:

History: When did your firm commence operations and what has it done since commencement? (Keep it very, very short and succinct)

What You Do: What can you do for clients or what do you sell? Do you need any special accreditations, certificates or licences to do what you do? If so, mention them.

Our Staff: Who is your staff and what special qualifications, experience, awards etc has each staff member got that will help you provide services that are better than your competitors?

Your Equipment or Resources: If you are renting training venues, hiring out equipment, or rely on resources to earn a living, place some photos in your brochures. As some smart fellow said, ‘A photo tells a thousand words’.

Similarly if you have a special way of doing something, try to find evidence that supports it as being the best way, most economical, safest or whatever. For example, if you clean carpets for a living you’ll need to use cleaning materials that don’t cause fade, are not noxious, don’t harm animals or plants, are environmentally friendly and so on. You get the drift.

Where You Find Us: Where is your office, venue, factory, or whatever? How does your client find you? Do you need to include a map?

Contacting Us: Where can you be contacted by phone, fax, mobile telephone, letter, or email? Do you have an Internet site? Where?

Client Testimonials: You can place a list of your clients here under the heading ‘Clients’ or you can write to your clients and ask them to provide testimony to the quality, cost effectiveness, or whatever of your service. Several of your longer term clients may be willing to accept telephone calls from people who are considering buying your goods or services. If so, include their contact details so that potential clients can talk with them.

While a few, carefully chosen testimonials are good, too many can bog down an otherwise excellent Capability Statement. Don’t make it look like a testimonial contest! Nobody will read more than five or six.

Finally …

Once you have your Capability Statement, whether online, in hardcopy or both, make sure you have sufficient copies to circulate and a plan to upgrade it periodically so it remains current. After all, the last thing you want is for a prospective client to telephone you about a service you no longer provide.

Copyright Robin Henry 2005 – 2008

Robin Henry is an educator, human resources specialist and Internet marketer whose firm, Desert Wave Enterprises, helps individuals and businesses improve their performance by using smart processes, smart technology and personal development. He lives at Alice Springs In Central Australia.

Visit Desert Wave Enterprises. Download a copy of our Capability Statement in Adobe PDF format.

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