Regarded as leadership in the corporate sense, corporate governance is meant to assist companies to manage and control risk processes within an organisation.

Inferred from its definition, corporate governance need to be more pragmatic in its operations ensuring that the company conforms to the laws and regulations.

The corporate governance structure specifies the distribution of rights and responsibilities among different participants in the corporation, such as, the board, managers, shareholders and other stakeholders, and spells out the rules and procedures for making decisions on corporate affairs. This is usually not the norm. Enron’s demise as a result of its excessive risks, conflict of interest and poor accountability on the part of its directors, does not seem to have scared other organisations. Recent events in organisations are not anything to write home about. Corporate governance is meant to govern not to be used as a witch-hunting exercise. However, the way things happen in the board room, corporate governance needs to be tightened if it can bring about the change so much needed at this time.

By the directors confirming that the company accounts comply with requirements in the Company Act, they become accountable to the entire stakeholders and responsible for safeguarding their assets and other of the Group and hence for taking reasonable steps for the prevention of fraud and other irregularities. Enron’s conduct indicated that its directors were not really complying. To date, there is increasing acceptance that in spite of legal duties remaining solely to shareholders, there is the view for companies to be more accountable to other stakeholders including workers. Even though this view is being challenged both in America and the U.K, shareholders still want to wield more powers to maintain their investment. This is evident in the recent demonstrations by shareholders describing directors as ‘fat cows’.

Considering the relevant principles missed by Enron in its operations in comparison with Next, it is gainsaying the fact that some of the mistakes Enron made are still going on in some organisations around the globe-unnecessary risk-taking; performance-related pay schemes including share options to Executives with the non-executive directors sitting aloof doing nothing. Enron’s Board’s compensation committee refused to ask any question about the award of salaries, perks, annuities, life insurance and rewards to the executive members at a critical point in the life of Enron. Sir Goodwin’s recent pension saga is a recent case in point. It leaves a sour taste in the mouth of all stakeholders to see that ‘simple’ things to be done to salvage ‘huge’ losses or scandals are clearly overlooked may be due to familiarity which breeds contempt, anyway.

The temptation to be ‘bought’ with money is so strong that the idea of independent executive directors serving on a board is not having the impact it was expected to have as they all easily get caught up in the scandal in the long run. All the so-called independent committees, directors, and auditors were there to bring checks and balances yet they failed shareholders.

People were just doing anything they want. Suffice to say that the onus of the matter is that the culture of the organisation should be linked with individual values and channelled to what the organisation is expected to do in its corporate rules and regulations. This could in no doubt go a long way to stamp out the bad nuts from the corporate board rooms.

Enron created partnerships with shell companies or subsidiaries known as special purpose entities (SPEs), enabling them to keep hundreds of millions of dollars in debt off its books, overstate and understate debt due to some very loose accounting rules. The Directors of Next plc on the other hand complied with Company law requiring them to prepare accounts for each financial year which give a true and fair view of the state of affairs of the company and the Group and of the profit or loss of the Group for that period. Who controls the monitor? A lot might have been said and written about this but it is worth commenting that auditors who are meant to control the system (and for that matter the controllers) are human beings. They have conscience and thus someone or somebody could be said to also monitor them and the cycle goes on and on. What is actually needed in my opinion is little honesty, morals and fear of God.

The four-member Next’s audit committee reviews the risk management process and significant risk issues are referred to the Board for consideration; and considers financial reporting and reviews the Group’s accounting policies relating thereto.

It must be said here that in particular, major accounting issues of a subjective nature are discussed by the committee thus zeroing in to the issues relevant to Next not just the IASB’s requirement. This procedure might have helped the position of Next in the long run and could definitely help other companies if they follow those principles.

Furthermore, the first basic rule of investing which was diversification was also breached at Enron. Workers investing pension money in company shares had their savings tied up in Enron’s stock; and there was no plan for workers to diversify those savings and government regulators did virtually nothing. This is irresponsibility on the part of the directors. Workers’ anger was evident when in France, for example some company bosses were held hostage. The G20 demonstrations in London were also other cases in point.

In Next people are considered a key asset to the business. The Board has, therefore, adopted policies aimed at minimising risks in the Group’s activities to ensure that they do not harm employees, customers or the general public, all of whose interests are regarded as critical to business success. Shareholders have an opportunity to ask questions or represent their views at the Annual General Meeting. This is always the norm at Annual General Meetings. But half a loaf is better than none, it is said. Not all the mistakes and loopholes could be plugged overnight but communications should as usual be a two-way affair, continuous and all concerns by stakeholders should be followed and investigated by independent bodies.

Enron and its executives have contributed large sums of money to some politicians. Enron created a culture in which financial instruments was designed to turn profits into losses and taxes into tax shelters. Excessive risk was the word. It was different with Next. It conducts a weekly “Next Brand trading meeting” which considers the performance and development of the Next Brand through its different distribution channels. All business aspects of risk management in respect of the Next Brand including sales, property, product, systems, warehousing and personnel also considered here. Key performance indicators are monitored daily and weekly to help to keep in check all aspects of risk. To Next, risk management was part of their organisational culture.Next’s Board is responsible for the Group’s risk management process. It has delegated responsibility for implementation of the risk management process to the Chief Executive and senior management best qualified in each area of the business. The Board sets guidance on the general level of risk.

Next’s conduct or operations in the board room should be emulated. Corporate governance should be a continuous process and all stakeholders-focused. It should not discriminate and should be regularly reviewed by an external body appointed by shareholders in consultation with the board so that they do not take over the responsibilities of the board.

The Next’s Board takes care not to disseminate information of a share price sensitive nature which is not available to the market as a whole. On the other hand share performance-related pay contributed to Enron’s demise by pushing the executives to announce non-existent profits through the special purpose entities to deceive the market in order to keep its stock price high to enable them receive their fat pay. They paid themselves huge salaries as a result.

This practice is still continuing all over the globe; and was mainly part of the current recession. There is no doubt that Boards of companies should be made to live up to their responsibilities. With Next’s corporate governance, one could see that the main responsibilities lie with the Board. For example, the system of internal control and major policy decisions as well as the Group’s risk management are the responsibilities of the board; who in turn delegates these responsibilities to the CEO and senior management best qualified in each area of the business.

The Board at Next acknowledged that its primary role is to represent and promote the interests of shareholders; is accountable to shareholders for the performance and activities of the Group and communicates with its shareholders in respect of the Group’s business activities through its annual Report and accounts, yearly and half yearly announcements and regular trading updates to the stock exchange. Enron’s board of directors were ‘busy’ trying to mislead tax authorities in order to collect $87m from creating tax shelters. A little over the top maybe, but little drops of water make a mighty ocean. Enron could have avoided all those mess if it had listened, complied and enforced the rules to the letter instead of bending them to suit their whims And caprices. The Business Roundtable emphasised that in planning communications with shareholders and investors, companies should consider never misleading or misinforming shareholders about the corporation’s operations or financial condition. This was lack of business ethics.

Enron appears to be ‘an accident waiting to happen’. Enron’s internal controls had been very weak as a matter of fact. When an employee wrote a memo about the CEO, Ken Lay; he himself handled the matter internally by appointing a law firm which has a long association with Enron to investigate the matter. Auditors, lawyers and independent directors should be seen to be totally independent as outlined in the relevant regulations and laws. They should not be allowed to dabble in the company’s affairs where they have any interest. This must be seen to be enforced.

The main lesson to learn from Enron’s experience is there was no compliance whatsoever with Enron’s operations. Enforcement does not necessarily mean there would be compliance. Enforcement precedes compliance and could be linked together to the success of corporate governance. Enforcement means to compel people to comply with or do something by law or regulation. Unfortunately this had not been the case in most of the corporate scandal cases. No one seemed to enforce the laws and regulations; not the independent directors or the regulators themselves. The significance of this is that compliance to laws and regulations does not come easily without independent directors disciplining themselves to follow the regular review of risk management issues for the company concerned.

Nevertheless, corporate governance could be the hub to the reputation of company and its directors regardless of other equally important issues like corporate social responsibility (CSR) for the reason that it has widely been embraced for its apparent economic health of companies and society in general. Like Total Quality Management, corporate governance should be made company-wide, stakeholder-focused and rated given awards like the ISOs.The ratings should be published regularly. This could benefit all stake holders and bring back the trust shareholders in particular have lost in both executive and non-executive independent directors.

Reference:

1.’In search of Gates’; Fortune, October 4, 2004 pp76

2. Elkind, P; Bethany, M; ‘They’re getting close’, Fortune November 24, 2003 page21

3. Fortune Europe Edition No.24, December 22,2003pp 40

4. Gunther, M; ‘Boards Beware!’ Fortune November 10, 2003 page 80

5.’Inside The Head of BP’ by Nelson D.Schwartz, Fortune, July 2004, page 56

6.’LEADERS: The real Scandal’ the Economist January 19th, 2002 page9

7. Next Annual Report and accounts, January, 2002

8. Sellers, P. “INNOVATION SPECIAL; P&G: Teaching an old dog New Tricks”, Fortune; May 31, 2004 page36, 37, 60-63

9. Taylor III, A., THE AMERICANISATION OF TOYOTA, Fortune, December 8, 2003 pp56

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Your reputation is an important part of your business success. Companies and individuals want the public to notice and remember them for the positive aspects of their operations.

In an offline businesses setting you have a little bit of control over the opinion that is being expressed about you. A simple strategy such as leaving comment cards for your customers will help you to gauge what their impression of your products and services are. It is also easier to monitor customer satisfaction in a face to face meeting, where you can simply ask them if they were pleased with your product or service.

When you conduct business online, it becomes a little harder to monitor what customers are saying about your business. Given the shear vastness of the internet it becomes an overwhelming task to monitor customer response.

The internet also offers a veil of protection to many people, some people would never say in public the types of comments they express on their blog or web page. The internet can also be a place where individual members of your company may be scrutinized. It is hard to know if an individual with whom a customer has come into contact with will be subject to backlash on the web.

This too can paint your company in an unflattering light. With the increase in social media sites and the large number of people who can now easily create a website in mere minutes, comments or poor reviews could be located in any number of formats.

How then do you protect your business from these types of online activities? With reputation management and by working with a company who has a firm grip on how to protect you from the people on the net who want to paint your business in a negative light.

Careful monitoring through specialized systems will help to alert you of when these instances occur. It is also important to create positive information about your company through the same mediums that your customers frequent.

This is best achieved through a strategic, optimized plan to use social media, blogs, forums and community sites to publish company information that enhances your reputation. Being proactive is a very important part of this complex puzzle; by doing this alone your chances of being negatively impacted are far less.

Can your business benefit from social networking and social media marketing? To find out, visit us here.

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Tags: public, relation, internet, business

While many people only use press releases to get free publicity, learning how to write an effective pitch letter can dramatically increase the amount of publicity you get.

A media pitch letter is a brief proposal addressed to editors containing an idea or article that you would like them to use in order to help you get free publicity. It is important to write a good pitch letter in order to properly get your point across.

It is important to do some simple research before sending out your letter. Research the editor’s name and the publication’s name and be sure to include these in your introduction. This will keep your letter personalized, will show the sincerity in your intentions, and will keep the editor from assuming that this is a letter you sent to other publications as well.

It is also essential that you open your pitch letter with a statement that is attention-grabbing and will make your reader instantly interested in what you have to say. If your reader is instantly hooked on what you have to say, he or she will go on reading.

For example, if I were to write a pitch letter about my adventure selling the Brooklyn Bridge in 1983 (yes, I really did sell the Brooklyn Bridge), I’d start my letter by saying:

“In 1983 I caused an international media sensation by becoming the first person in history to REALLY sell the Brooklyn Bridge — one square inch at a time. Now, 25 years later, I’m doing it again, even bigger and better than before.”

Afterwards, get to the point. Explain to the editor what it is that you want to do-whether suggesting a new product or recommend a person to feature. Make sure that your story or idea is perfect for the publication’s target market, then tell the editor why this is so.

Now that you’ve got the editor’s attention, explain your concept in the most clear and concise way possible. It is important not to put out all your ideas in one media pitch letter for two reasons: first, your letter will not drone on and bore the reader, and second, you will pique your reader’s interest and keep them wondering and wanting more. Make sure that since this is the bulk of your letter, you’ve gotten your main points across-all while keeping your letter within one page. Ideally, the letter should have 200-400 words.

Make it clear to the editor that you are the best person to do the job. You can take this opportunity to cite a few of your past works or significant experiences that may be to your advantage in handling this subject matter. Don’t be too cocky, but confidently explain that you have quality information this person can use and pass on to his or her audience.

Lastly, make sure that you leave your correct contact information. Sounds simple, but you’d be amazed at how many people screw this up.

Include a phone number (cell phones are fine too. Just indicate that the number is your cell number) and an email address that you check frequently. State that you may be reached at those numbers or email addresses anytime should the editor be interested in your idea. You can also include additional press materials with your letter in order to avoid having the editor do some extra research on your topic.

Once you send out your media pitch letters, be sure to check your email and voice mail services often. The media people are happy to leave a message or send an email, but they won’t wait long for you to get back to them. If you don’t get back to them within hours, you risk losing your opportunity for an interview.

If you follow these steps and learn how to write a pitch letter, you’re on your way to getting free publicity that can drive new customers to your business at little to no cost to you.

Do you need more help getting free publicity for your business? Paul Hartunian has all the help you need here and also here where you’ll find free publicity tips, free articles, free coaching call replays that will make getting free publicity for your business a snap!

Plus you’ll find information about Paul’s Million Dollar Publicity System, the whole story of how he sold the Brooklyn Bridge and plenty more.

And, for just $7 you can get 3 issues of Paul’s publicity newsletter, 3 of his best strategy reports, personal coaching from Paul and your very own, authentic piece of the world famous Brooklyn Bridge.

No need to hunt for top quality information on how to get free publicity. Paul Hartunian has it all for you.

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Tags: media, relation, letter, publicity, tips

Great news! You’ve been invited to be on your local morning news show.

So, how do you prepare, especially for an in-studio TV interview?

The first four steps in preparing for an in-studio interview are the same as preparing for any TV interview:

1. Consider who watches the show. What they are interested in, especially in relation to your topic?
2. Decide on your desired result for the interview. What do you want the audience to do?
3. Create your message. Keep it simple and pertinent to the viewers.
4. Craft powerful sound bites so your listeners will remember what you say and act on it.

If you’ve never seen the show, watch it. If you have seen the show, watch it again. This time pay attention to the mechanics of the interview.

Hear are some specific things to observe:

1. Where will you, as the guest, be sitting?
2. What will you be sitting on?
3. Notice other guests. How do they sit? Do they appear engaged in the conversation? Decide how you will sit to look engaged. Tip: leaning in slightly toward the interviewer usually projects engagement. Sitting on the front edge of the chair helps.
4. What outfits and colors look good on guests? [This usually applies more to women than men, as women are a) more interested, and b) have more options than men.]
5. What is the interviewer’s style? Does the style change depending on the guest or topic?
6. If there is more than one host, how do they interact with each other and the guests?
7. Is there a live in-studio audience? If there is, what are the demographics of its members?
8. Does the host take questions from the audience?
9. Do viewers call in to ask questions?
10. How long do the interview segments last? (3 minutes is fairly typical.)

With this information, you will be prepared to enter the studio already feeling at home and confident on the set.

And now to keep you focused during your interview, I invite you to claim your Free Instant Access 400-year-old tool I’ve adapted to help you stay on message by visiting this site

From – Lou Hampton, The QuoteAbility(tm) Coach and Speak to Lead.com

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Tags: pr, interview, relation, studio, tv, step

Getting publicity for yourself and your online business is not as difficult as you may have previously thought. Since web 2.0 took a firm hold a couple of years ago, we are now able to control much of what information we give out and receive. This is the perfect time to promote what you are doing to others in the world you are interested in your topic and ideas.

There are many ways to be your own publicist. One way is to send a press release whenever you do something newsworthy. The important thing to remember is to make news, not make news or press releases. You must have a hook of some kind if you want others to have an interest. Once you find that hook, your information can go viral online.

Many magazine and newspapers have either folded or at least cut way down on the number of people who are reporting the news. My local paper uses stories from the Associated Press wire and other services to fill up their pages. People like you and I are in a fantastic position to be able to get our information out to others.

You can post your stories to your blog, and then use social networking sites such as Twitter and Facebook to get the word out as well. I do this for myself, my business, and the non-profit groups I am associated with.

Make sure that anything you send out on the internet is exactly the way you would want to be quoted and represented. Once you press send, it is out there forever.

Download a free teleseminar on building your online business by visiting this Site to learn how to write articles, blog, become involved in social networking and learn the technology needed to build a profitable online business.
Connie Ragen Green has been online since 2005 and teaches people how to build their own online business in record time, offering free teleseminars weekly, as well as online courses in a workshop environment with webinars.

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Tags: public, relation, worldwide, publicity

Knowing how to write a press release gives you a boost ahead of other entrepreneurs. A successful press release generates enough interest in the media, whether offline or online, to write about your company. That means increased visibility with potential customers. While publicity may not lead directly to increased sales it does lead to the increased probability of sales. Here are 3 tips on how to write a press release.

1. Keep your approach newsworthy. How many times have you seen a headline that says “Big Company Announces the Release of New Product”? Probably many times, however that headline doesn’t snag the attention of anyone. It’s boring. The purpose of the headline is to entice the news media to actually read the release. If you can tie your release to current events so much the better, the odds will increase it will get read.

Stress the benefits of your product or company, rather than the attributes. If your new system runs 50% faster than competing systems a reader may not be interested, but if you tell them they can accomplish twice as much in half the time that may perk up their ears.

Look at the release from the point of view of the media and their readers, not from your point of view as to how publicity can benefit your company.

2. Pack all the important information in the first paragraph of the release. That may sound counter intuitive, but sometimes only the first paragraph is read before the decision is made whether there is media interest. Answer the questions of who, what, why, where and when. Expand on the answers more fully later on in the release.

3. Keep the release to one page which is about 350 words. The release isn’t supposed to tell the entire story for your company but to get the media to be interested enough to call and write a story. And don’t send the release as an attachment. These days most attachments are deleted unread, even if labeled “press release.” Don’t link to the release as a pdf file. Reporters have short attention spans. If they have to take the extra step of following a link, they may just go on to the next release in the pile.

Follow these three tips when learning how to write a press release and your releases will be more effective in generating media coverage for you, your company, and products.

Get Your FREE report How to Unleash the Write Press Releases Tips, tricks, and techniques to get your company the publicity it needs for success. Dee Power is the co-author of several nonfiction books including “The Publishing Primer: A Blueprint for an Author’s Success,” “58 Ways to Find Money for Your Business, “Inside Secrets to Venture Capital” and “Attracting Capital From Angels.” More Internet marketing tips.

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Tags: public, relation, press, release, strategy

Hiring a PR firm can bring attention to your company, its services, products and people. But public relations is not a hit-and-run venture; long-term strategies combine with short-term tactics to create a strong brand and positive reputation. Therefore, it is to everyone’s benefit that the relationship between the client company and the PR firm is a lasting one.

Occasionally, however, the relationship doesn’t work out, and while there are often various reasons cited, the problem usually boils down to a flawed vetting process when the firm was first hired.

Avoiding the following pitfalls can lead to a truly successful collaboration between client and firm.

1. Great Expectations

Public relations is not a magical enterprise. It involves creativity, hard work and dedication to the client’s interests. And it often takes some time before you see results. What can happen in the first meeting between the PR firm and a prospective client is an unconscious collaboration: the client wants to think the public relations person can make his company successful overnight, and the public relations person lets him think this because he wants him as a client. This can only lead to disappointment on both sides.
Most experienced public relations professionals will tell you what is – and is not – possible to achieve for your type of business and your budget. A long-term productive relationship is more satisfying for both the client and the PR firm than a short-term honeymoon.

2. Choosing the Wrong Size Firm

One frequent complaint that clients voice about their PR firm is that the top executives presented a wonderful proposal to them, but they rarely heard from those people again. Instead, their account was assigned to someone new to the firm, and they didn’t feel they got the attention – or the results – they deserved.
PR firms survive for the most part on the billable hours that make up the client’s fee. If your company is paying a fee at the low end of a firm’s fee schedule, you will probably get assigned to one of its less seasoned staff. Larger firms usually charge higher fees to cover their higher overhead costs. PR firm fees can range from $5,000 to $30,000 per month or more, so if a fee of $10,000 per month seems like a huge expenditure to you, it’s best to choose a smaller firm.

3. Not Knowing What You Want

From the point of view of the public relations professional, the most difficult clients to satisfy are the ones who really don’t know what they want. Meetings abound, ideas are put forward and shot down – as the public relations person tries fruitlessly to read the client’s mind. In the end, everyone is frustrated.
This outcome can be avoided with some advance planning. Before your first meeting with a firm, do some internal brainstorming and be ready to state your goals and the principal audiences you want to reach with your messages. If you are doing a small project, such as a brochure or website, show examples of the kinds of things you like, your current stationery or logos, and some of your competitors’ materials. You will save time and money by being prepared.

4. Being Cagey about your Budget

Some business owners think that if they talk about their budget upfront, the PR firm will “spend it all – and then some.” But the cost of public relations programs can vary greatly, depending on your goals and your budget. Be clear about both. If you outline goals that require extensive work with expensive outside services and act like money is no object, expect the PR firm to present a proposal for a big program that costs a lot – maybe more than you can afford. If you are honest about how much you have to spend, you have freed the firm to discuss what can be accomplished within your budget. Give the firm a chance to show you what they can do with a smaller budget. Then you will have a more accurate picture of the firm’s resources, creativity and capabilities.

5. Hiding Negative Information

When you are interviewing a PR firm, be open about the possibility of any negative publicity that may be on the horizon involving your company. Public relations people need to know these things – not just at the beginning, but throughout the relationship – in order to plan accordingly. Managing negative news is much more effective when done early on, before it festers and grows into a costly crisis.

Finding the right PR firm doesn’t have to be a shot in the dark. Check with your local chapter of the Public Relations Society of America. Ask other business people for their recommendations, and visit the firms’ websites. Interview several firms to see if they might be the right size and have the right background and experience level to do the job. Ask for a written proposal. Once you feel comfortable that a firm understands your business, your budget and what will be needed to achieve your goals, take the plunge. You will probably be pleasantly surprised.

Margot Dimond is an accredited public relations professional with more than 30 years of experience in the field. Currently a principal with DoubleDimond Public Relations in Houston, Texas, she has been on both sides of the public relations firm hiring process.

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Tags: public, relation, mistake, firm

Should you handle your own public relations campaign? No, not if you don’t know the process or truly understand the intricacies launching a PR campaign. Can you? Yes, at least to a point.

Effective media placement is a full-time job. It takes skill, know-how, persistence, and contacts. The art of effective PR entails more than writing releases and putting together press kits. If you do it haphazardly or incorrectly, you’re better off not doing it at all. The last thing you want to do is alienate the press, which is usually what happens when well-meaning but inexperienced individuals try their hands at running their own media campaigns.

Media placement is a skill that needs to be learned and understood. None of us would suddenly decide to give open-heart surgery a try, or to overhaul a car transmission – well, at least most of us wouldn’t, but every day people decide that they can handle their own PR without any prior knowledge or training whatsoever. An effective media placement campaign is well strategized and thought out. It is a cumulative process that builds day by day and month by month.

If you are thinking of launching a media campaign for your business or career, you basically have four options: hire a media relations firm, hire someone in-house to do your media relations for you, hire a media relations consultant, or launch your own media relations campaign. If you decide to handle your own media relations, you have a big learning curve ahead of you; you want to learn the hows and whys of putting together a successful campaign. If you are looking to hire a company or consultant to do it for you, you still have homework. You need to learn the right questions to ask in order to hire the right firm. PR is not a one-size-fits all service. But the greatest mistake businesses owners make is thinking PR is a luxury, not a necessity. Those are the businesses owners who generally wonder why their competitors keep being featured in the media.

Anthony Mora began his media career as a journalist and magazine editor. In 1990, Anthony formed Anthony Mora Communications, Inc., a Los Angeles-based public relations company that has placed clients in: Time, Newsweek, 60 Minutes, CNN, USA Today, Oprah, The New York Times, Vogue, and other media. Anthony, who is the author of “Spin to Win,” has been featured in: USA Today, Newsweek, The New York Times, , The Wall Street Journal, The BBC, CNN, Fox News, and other media outlets.

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Tags: public, relation, campaign, pr

There is no question that media coverage will boost business for you. It’s a proven way to put your business in the spotlight in a major way. A perfect example of marketing 1 to many, which if you know my teachings, you know is the ideal marketing model. Media coverage will also:

• Raise your public profile.
• Improve your credibility.
• Establish your authority.
• Generate new customers.
• Make it easier to convert prospects to customers.

Getting your product or service in the media has it’s process and that’s where many small business owners get stuck. They don’t know how and they don’t have the budget to hire a public relations firm which can get pretty expensive.

The good news is that doing your own publicity is very doable. In fact, it’s quite easy. You just have to know the steps, plug into it, and work it until you get the coverage you are looking for.

Here are the basic steps to getting free media coverage for your business:

1. Identify the media venues (print or broadcast) that your target audience is most likely to consume. For instance, if your product is for women you want to target programs and publications watched and read by women.

2. Contact the Producers and Editors of these identified venues. This is easier than ever. Every publication and program has a website with contact information. So look that up and ask for the key person you are looking for by department or segment and get that persons contact information so that you can start calling them and sending them information.

3. Send consistent press releases that are very catchy and even SEXY! I call press releases the necessary evil. Producers and editors get so many of these a day, that many get tossed. However, it’s also what needs to be sent out consistently to create a buzz about your product or service. The key is making it so catchy and sexy that it’s irresistible and provides valuable content to the producer. I use “sexy” because the media loves “sexy”. So find creative ways to hook them by pitching your story with a “sexy” tip.

4. Position Your Business Virally- The best way to hook the media is by being everywhere. Today, that is extremely easy with all the tools available with the internet. So position your business on the social networks, write articles and publish them online, put up videos on Youtube, and blog away. When you contact producers with your press releases, if they go on to research you and find you all over the net, you are more likely to be considered.

5. Have a Media Kit (online version works!) Websites have become the new media kits. If you have a page with a picture of you and your product, great content, articles and credentials, then you are set to go. Having a conventional media kit (a package you send out) is still great to have but if you don’t have a budget to get it done yet, your website can do the trick.

6. Be consistent. Like everything, getting on the media takes time. Working on your publicity everyday will get you the coverage eventually. And the best part is that once you get on, you have already established a relationship with key people who will continuously help you get more media coverage throughout your business.

If you want media coverage for your business do not fall into the trap of believing it can’t be done without a publicist or agency. Believe it or not the media needs you. So come up with the value in your product, spin it into a story and start working the system.

See you on TV!

© 2009 Synergy Communications, Inc.

Entrepreneur Julissa Fernandez a.k.a “The Sassy Media Guru” is a Business Communications Coach visit this Site. and Consultant, To learn more visit this Site.

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Tags: public, relation, firm, media, coverage