“Operating like outlaws in the old west gold rush days, has been the order of the day for most residential mortgage loan originators the last several years as everybody now finally sees, and can no longer avoid acknowledging. An epidemic of greed and fraud prevailed nationwide for several years, with our industry got flooded by unethical and unbelievably poorly educated, trained and supervised personnel who were the industry’s front-line, exploiting the public – a virtually frenzied wild-west gold-rush mentality.

Those heady days of this last cycle have at last ended. From an industry high of over 500 thousand employed, which grew since the last correction in 1998; recently we have lost only 100,000 people so far. 200+ thousand of the half million people, rushed into our business during that period, incorrectly thinking they were going to be in a “sales industry.” When both you and I know, the customers believed they were speaking with a professional mortgage expert who would look out for their best interest and treat them with the utmost good faith, and not compromise their rights or interests in favor of another’s, including a right or interest of the loan officer/mortgage broker.

But instead borrowers more often were talking with a ‘used car sales Big Commissioned closer type’ individual – that fact of life cannot be seriously denied at this point, by any industry observer. There’s a major conflict as between big commissions/greed on the one hand, and ethical behavior on the other, an issue I have written about several times in the past. Because, for example, certain foul-hearty loan products ‘could’ be originated doesn’t mean they ‘should’ be.

I think everybody who survives this correction crisis, and particularly the various industry discussion boards, need to STOP enabling substandard, mediocre, and ethically challenged originators, they need to be given the boot so they don’t infect the business for everybody else this next go around, wherever they are found. You know what I mean, those with weak values, little integrity, and poor or on-existent ethical standards – the ones where the commission check and how much money the make, is their focus. On these boards we all can see a post that says “”which wholesalers are easy to get approved with, or which ones don’t pull broker’s credit or how about ‘what subprime lenders are left that do high LTV’s with 580 FICO stated wage earners?’ or lenders who don’t do appraisal reviews? or who disregards co borrower’s scores? Or who doesowest score for stated income on foreclosure bailout? There are literally thousands of examples I have seen, and if you frequent these boards so have you.

They basically say ‘what is the path of least resistance so I can make a big score (commission) and what can I do to ensure I do the least amount of work possible ….’ And, not just those questions, but all the ones that reveal they don’t belong in the biz. I see questions like those on all the boards I read. ENABLERS then jump up and say “”Hey I can help!”" and then direct those brain-dead clowns to the answer … and the cycle continues … we all need to stop Enabling those that do not belong in our industry! People that ask these sort of questions are the ones that stuff loans into wholesalers, which then move upstream, become part of securitizations, which then become downgraded, and at a final point hurt all of us! People’s retirement funds, and many money fund investments buy MBS’s (many recently loaded up with crap loans).

These people are easy to spot and it’s up to YOU to protect the industry from them. Just look what they did to us this last cycle! I’ve written about this before, you ARE your brother’s keeper in this industry! They’ve been a major contributing factor in tanking 150+ lenders, closing down countless brokerages, and putting homeowners in situations where their families must face possibly living in a tent!

I think another terrible example, are some in the industry training sector as well. Especially the podium pitch-man types, who mostly work to pump up your ego – you know the ones that say they will ‘reveal the secrets of how to predictably, reliably, and repeatedly get $10,000, $20,000, and even $25,000 checks on every mortgage – month in and month out, while only working part-time!’ Or how about this one ‘Discover How You Can Quickly And Easily Make An ADDITIONAL $100,000/Yr. Even in this Down Market – GUARANTEED!’ Or even those that promote (RESPA violation) paying kickbacks to friends, for referrals etc. When recommending that other originators access these types, or you even speaking positively about them, tends to help contaminate the industry with more problematical originators dealing with the public. If you’re one of them and you say “the wholesalers did it with their reckless programs!”

In small measure you are right, many of them were indeed tempting – but the bottom line there, is that the guidelines didn’t read “”ignore USC 1001 and section IX of the 1003 ….”" Fraud is fraud and bad loans are bad loans … if you ever put income on an application that was not your borrower´s (solely) and/or if you wrote an option arm for someone who was on salary or fixed income then indeed YOU were the problem and I hope you change your ways and join with me and be an ethical partner in our industry. Let me say it a bit bluntly. More than 100,000 front-line originators made a killing (income wise) the last 7+ years. Now because of their ethical short-comings, most are gone or are on their way out. Without strong moral values and high ethical standards you cannot last in this industry for four decades like I have.

Article by Peter Samuel Cugno, Chairman & CEO of Secret! University, the educational division of Americas Money Center, Inc. with 40+ years experience in the subprime industry niche. Questions or comments may be directed online here.

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Tags: ethics, management, strategic, planning, thinking

Corporate social responsibility is a company’s duty to have a positive effect on society, the environment and its own employees. It has risen in importance as world issues have come to the fore – for example, child labour making clothes for western shops is quite rightly not allowed – companies have a duty to make sure that all their employees, no matter where they are in the world, are not exploited. If a company uses someone else’s land for its operations (again this is usually in a poorer country) they should provide schemes for native inhabitants such as schools, healthcare and employment opportunities. Companies are now judged by the general public based on their policies so it’s never been more important to be socially responsible.

Social responsibility is a difficult thing to pin down however, and it’s often unclear what the effects will be. Providing a school for the children of workers abroad for example might be great for the workers, but customers who buy the company’s products may never even know that school exists. This responsible scheme then has no knock-on effect on the company’s image. Similarly, making sure that the company abides by international laws is socially responsible, but no-one ever hears about anything like this unless the company breaks a law (in which case it’s all over the news).

Social responsibility is only good for the company if people know about it, so many companies try to publicise their good work or get something back out of it. For example, sponsoring scholarships for poorer students is a generous act, but those students might have access to fast-track schemes within the company when they finish their education. Sponsoring a charity event for a local hospital can be publicised in the news and helps to show customers that the company does a lot in the community.

When a company’s social actions pay off, they manage to present themselves as a caring brand and this can spell good times for the business. More people want to work for them and consumers recognise their brand as someone it’s ok to buy from.

It’s important for corporations to look after existing employees too, as this is also part of their social responsibility. Childcare schemes, extended leave options and even gym memberships all come under this umbrella. When a company offers benefits to its employees therefore it’s being socially responsible. It’s a business tenet that the more benefits a company offers the more likely staff are to stay with the company, and the more people will apply for available jobs.

Because of all these positive effects, companies have to look at social responsibility as an essential part of their PR and not just an expenditure. Some companies don’t participate in schemes unless they’re going to get some sort of positive PR out of it and whilst this does make economic sense it also comes across as a little cynical. Other companies do good just for the sake of it, but also make sure that they get something back most of the time. Whatever path a company takes, social responsibility is inescapable no matter the economic climate. In fact, it becomes more important as people start to struggle financially and the company that looks after its employees and dependents in bad times will have a head start in the good.

Bert Steiner has manufactured everything from worktops to plastic products He has owned a few small companies and likes to write about the issues faced by company managers.

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Tags: ethics, marketing, strategic, management, corporate

Each of us is ultimately responsible for our own actions. Although in today’s business world, I imagine many skeptics would take exception to that statement because there is evidence that people are not held accountable for their actions, even when they are unethical. And even more disturbing, some are even rewarded for unethical actions. Each of us makes a choice to act ethically or to act unethically.

It is essential that we know what is ethical and what is unethical. But, more challenging and difficult than knowing what is ethical, is knowing what is right and then doing what is right. Always doing the right thing is required for long-term success in your business and personal lives. So what advice and guidance are available to check if the action is right before implementing a decision to act? Well, your strategic thinking business coach has a set of questions to provide guidance to you for ethical decisions and actions.

My advice as a strategic thinking business coach is to ask the following ten (10) questions about any action and idea you are contemplating. And if you cannot answer yes to any of these questions, then you must develop an alternate strategy or seek advice and counsel from others.

+ Is the idea or action congruent with your core values and guiding principles of your business life and personal life?

+ Is the idea or action legal?

+ Will the idea or action be fair to all concerned?

+ Will the idea or action pass the Golden Rule test (Do Unto Others Test)?

+ Would the idea or action stand up to a critical public review if brought out into the open?

+ Will the benefits of the idea or action exceed the costs?

+ Does the idea or action comply with your company or organization’s rules and regulations?

+ Will you feel comfortable and without any feelings of guilt if you follow through on the idea or action?

+ Does the idea or action meet stated goals and objectives?

+ Would the most ethical person I know follow through on the idea or action?

These are very practical and useful questions to test your ideas and actions. You may develop other questions and add them to the list. If you use these questions to test your ideas and actions and remember that acting ethically is a requirement in everything you do, you will greatly increase your potential to be very ethical and successful.

If you would like to learn more about the importance of business ethics in your business and how to foster an environment of ethical behavior, please visit Glenn Ebersole today through his website

Glenn Ebersole, Jr. is a multi-faceted professional, who is recognized as a visionary, guide and facilitator in the fields of business coaching, marketing, public relations, management, strategic planning and engineering. Glenn is the Founder and Chief Executive of two Lancaster, PA based consulting practices: The Renaissance Group, a creative marketing, public relations, strategic planning and business development consulting firm and J. G. Ebersole Associates, an independent professional engineering, marketing, and management consulting firm. He is a Certified Facilitator and serves as a business coach and a strategic planning facilitator and consultant to a diverse list of clients. Glenn is also the author of a monthly newsletter, “Glenn’s Guiding Lines – Thoughts From Your Strategic Thinking Business Coach” and has published more than 250 articles on business.

To find out more about the benefits & rewards of effectively working with a strategic thinking business coach, please contact Glenn Ebersole through his website

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Executive summary

Its revenues made up US $139($184) billion, assets equaled $62($82) billion, and the number of employees reached more than 30,000 people in 20 countries around the world.

While Enron Corporation was so highly praised by the outside observers, internally it had highly decentralized financial control and decision-making structure, which made it practically impossible to get coherent and clear view on corporations’ activities and operations. Of course, the problem was not exclusively due to poor managerial performance, all the departments of the corporation were involved in the ruining corporate ethical values and principles, but executives and managers bear primary responsibility for the absence of corporate culture, clear accountability and transparence of the company. If operations management worked properly, in its full force, and if it was given possibility to work in such a way, there could be a chance of escaping the tragedy.

Enron Corp brief history

Enron Corporation was one of the largest global energy, services and commodities company. Before it filed bankruptcy under chapter 11, it sold natural gas and electricity, delivered energy and other commodities such as bandwidth internet connection, and provided risk management and financial services to the clients around the world.

Enron was based in Houston, Texas, and was founded in July 1985 (though company with Enron name emerged still in 1930 (Swatz, Watkins, 2003)) by the merger of InterNorth of Omaha in Nebraska, and Houston Natural Gas. Enron Company quickly developed from merely delivering energy to brokering energy futures contracts on deregulated energy markets. In 1994, the company started to sell electricity, and in 1995, it entered European energy market. By the middle 2001, Enron employed about 30,000 people globally (McLEan, Elkind,2003).

Questionable accounting methods and techniques provided Enron with possibility to be listed as seventh largest United States company and was expected to dominate the market which the company virtually invented in the communications, weather and power securities (Bryce, 2002). But instead the corporation became the largest corporate failure in the global history and an example of well-planned and institutionalized corporate fraud. Enron became wealthy due to its pioneering marketing and promotion of power and communications bandwidth services and risk management derivatives, including such innovative and exotic items as weather derivatives.

In 1999, Enron launched an initiative of buying and selling access to high-speed Internet bandwidth, and also Enron Online was launched as a Web-based trading site, making Enron e-commerce company. In 2000, the reported revenues of the company made $101 billion. It had stakes in almost 30,000 miles of gas pipelines, either owned or accessed 15,000 miles of fiber-optic network and had stakes in global operations on generating electricity (Thomas, 2002).

In the result, for five years in a row, from 1996 to 2000, Enron was named “America’s most innovative Company” by Fortune magazine, and headed the list of Fortune’s “100 best companies to Work for in America” in 2000. Enron reputation was undermined by rumors on bribery and political pressure with the objective of securing contacts in South and Central America, Philippines and Africa. The Enron was blamed to use its connections with Clinton and Bush administrations to express pressure in their contracts. The events were followed by a series of scandals involving irregular accounting methods bordering on fraud which involved Enron and Arthur Andersen accounting firm and led Enron on the verge of undergoing the largest bankruptcy in economic history in November 2001 (Emshwiller, Smith, 2001).

Since Enron was always considered a blue chip stock, the bankruptcy was a disastrous and unprecedented event in the global financial world. Enron’s downfall was definite when it was found out that a considerable share of its profits resulted from deals with so-called special-purpose entities, limited partnership under control of Enron. It resulted in the possibility of not reporting many of the company’s losses in its financial statements. The final plan of Enron’s bankruptcy included creation of three new businesses which would be spun off the company.

The reorganization process started in 2003 with the creation of three companies – CrossCountry Energy, Prisma Energy International, and Portland General Electric. CrossCountry Energy was sold to CCE Holdings L.L.C., with the money to be used for the repayment of the debts, while Prisma Energy International and Portland General Electric should emerge as independent companies descendant of Enron (Swatz, 2003).

Operations management scope of functions

To understand the reasons of this bankruptcy and the level of managerial implication in the quality performance of the company, particularly that of operations management, it is necessary to outline the main functions of operations management and impact it should have of functioning of the organization.

The principal task of operations management is effective transformation of inputs into “desired outputs” of the company (Shafer, 1997). The outputs are traditionally understood in manufacturing and profit-making context within the organizations. But recently it has been recognized that operations management is a discipline which is not limited with such narrow functions; it can be deployed in practically any area where the organization aims at achieving its objectives (Barnett, 1996). For instance, non-profit or public sectors have to learn to optimize their internal operations and processes in the situation of limited resources; service companies come to conclusion that by reappraising their delivery process they can revolutionize and significantly improve their approach to manufacturing companies and their marketplace. Robin Wood (2001) gives the example of such operations management implication in Daewoo company, which understood that it can specialize and differentiate its product by adding definite bundle of benefits to its product which includes additional supporting services. Operations sector is the heart of these changes that are made by leading companies to improve their performance and increase customer base.

The survival of commercial company depends on ability of the organization to focus and shape its operational resources to meet the expectations of its stakeholders: customers, employees and shareholders, expressed in organizational strategy (Russel, 1995) . Irrespective of economic sectors the company operates in, the ability of operations management of this company to fulfill those above-mentioned tasks depends on their understanding that it is necessary to make trade-offs. They cannot avoid the situation of working under constraints and have to understand their capabilities and constraints to provide significant inputs into strategic decision-making process involving further resources of the organization.

Operations managers in the organizations are not empowered to make strategic decisions, but they play important role in shaping the organization’s strategy and contribute to the strategic thinking ( Pasternack, Viscio, 1998). Operations managers should be able to translate strategic aims and objectives into clear operational objectives and actions and to implement, design and improve the products of the company themselves and the processes of their delivery. They have to know how changes incorporated to external factors influence the operation and how changes in one aspect of the operating system influence other aspects.

Also, operations managers need to know how technological changes impact organization’s capability of delivery, and to incorporate their conclusions into strategic process (Peters, Waterman, 1982). Therefore, the heart of operations thinking includes the ability to think dynamically and systematically across time and space (Miller, 1998). Besides traditional tasks of operation management, new perspectives and objectives emerge connected with the emergence of new trends and developments of operations management, such as total quality management, shop floor control, global supply chain management, manufacturing planning software, and others.

Total quality management has become one of the most important developments of the operations management. The quest for higher level of products and services quality is caused by the globalization of markets, on the one hand, and increasing litigation over service or product failure. The relationship between quality and market share performance is doubtless. Those firms that fail to understand the issue of quality find themselves on the bottom of their industry hierarchy. A significant share of the responsibility for quality standards rests on the operations manager. Global supply chain management is another very important component of operations management. The world economy is becoming more global than ever. Looking for lower production costs, more flexibility and local risk reduction, companies are seeking to outsource and produce services and products on global scale (Heizer, 2004). Operation managers are responsible for fulfilling the task. Project management is yet another task of the operations management department. Operation managers bear responsibility for numerous projects which range from considerable capital projects to specific ones such as installation of new information system.

Effectively managing projects involves fulfillment and delivery them in timely manner and within the budget (Stevens, 2001). In a word, operations management is indispensable component of the organization, since it fulfills numerous important functions of the company. Operations manager handles daily running and functioning of the organization.

The implication of poor managerial performance for the collapse of Enron Corporation

Now it is necessary to find out and analyze whether operations management of Enron Corp performed all the functions mentioned above and what was the quality of their activity.

The Enron did have operations management department, which, according to their official source, fulfilled the following functions: setup accounts and notify utilities, agency agreement from customer, verify the format of invoice, setup invoice data transfer, test algorithms of invoice and file transfer to the customer, determine the reporting requirements of the customer (Enron Energy Services, 2000). As it is seen from the source, the functions of very operations management department are very limited. There are other management departments which perform the functions of operations management stated above: operations facility management, commodity management, energy asset management, financial operations, and capital management. Though, most of functions performed by these departments, according to the source, are purely executive and lack integration, systematic vision, responsibility, control and creative aspect. Besides limited scope of functions assigned to operations management in Enron Corporation, another important point concerns the quality of their performance and overall corporate culture and atmosphere created within corporation. As it was mentioned above, ideally, the functions of operations management include creating ethic values, integrity, competence and clear accountability within the organization. Enron’s management failed to comply with these tasks.

Anastasia Kurdina is a person of manifold gifts. Almost every her writing is followed by lavish testimonials from satisfied customers. Anastasia specializes in marketing, management, sociology, history, world cultures, literature and art.

Anastasia Kurdina is not an essay writer in a common sense. She is a Poet, an Analyst, an Artist, a Critic, … . Anastasia is one out of a few writers who remember “how it all started” :) . It is she who sometimes accomplished every second order when Your Personal Writer was nothing more nor less than 3 writers and one webmaster; it is she who has still been accomplishing special orders, which naturally go beyond regular write-me-an-essay orders.

Get to know Anastasia better, click the site.

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Tags: ethics, article, issues, management, strategic

In the Information Age, a good public relations campaign will include a solid strategic communications plan. This plan should include information about all of the ways that your business interacts with the public. When your company reaches out to your customers, you want to make sure that you are creating, strengthening or preserving a positive impression with them.

To do this, it is important that you relay a consistent message that is in sync with your public image. Your website, your radio spots, your mission statement all should have a consistent feel to them. If the public perceives that your business says one thing, yet does another, they will not believe either thing fully. This sort of inconsistency can ultimately wind up costing you business.

A good, solid strategic communications plan will provide your business with the opportunity to portray itself in the best possible light, which will in turn attract further business. Your plan should include information about what type of public image you want your business to have. Once you have developed this plan and image, it is important that all of your public relations activities are consistent. If they are not, you risk losing credibility with your current and potential customers. A company that promotes itself as being family friendly would lose consumer confidence if they suddenly started marketing on only dating websites!

Developing a strategic communications plan may require enlisting the help of a public relations firm. A good firm can properly advise your business on how to translate what you do and who you aim to do it for into a public image that will help sell consumers on your company. The plan can include everything from what the graphics in your logo should look like, to what kind of music hold music your customers should hear when they call your business. Though these things may not seem important by themselves, when put together, they are important components of your public image.

Consumers today try to be much more aware of the corporate culture of the companies with whom they do business. They want to do business with companies that have the same ideals as they do. Consumers want to be able to relate to the businesses that they use. Having a strategic communications plan in place can only help ensure that you are portraying a consistently positive public image, one that will inspire confidence and loyalty in your customers.

Virgil W. Magee is the Deputy Director of Media Analysis for Strategic Communications for the North Atlantic Treaty Organization’s International Security Assistance Force in Kabul, Afghanistan. In his position he is responsible for the identification and analysis of local, regional and global media trends pertaining to multinational ISAF and North Atlantic Treaty Organization’s (NATO) alliance missions and strategic objectives for 42 partner nation defense and foreign affairs ministerial-level organizations, NATO and United Nations mandated missions.

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Tags: communications, information, public relations, pr, strategic

The economy goes up and the economy goes down but one thing is for sure if you are in business you need to bring in customers or you won’t be in business for long. You could spend more on advertising and marketing, you could reduce prices, have sales and a whole slew of other techniques that will work and bring in some more sales.

Today I want to talk about something that I believe helps every business. It doesn’t matter whether your business is online or a local sandwich shop, you can benefit from this as well.

So what is this big business secret? Well it’s not really a secret. It is the power of a testimonial. A testimonial is a written account of a previous customer stating something positive about your business. For example you might receive an email or letter stating how great the product or service was or how helpful the customer service might have been. Whatever the testimonial is, you need to use it towards your advantage.

I walked into a jewelry store recently and all over their walls were photos of people who had made purchases from their store with small letters telling about how much they loved dealing with them. This is a perfect example of using testimonials. I also found out that this particular jewelry store also puts some of these testimonials in their monthly newsletter.

Do you have customers that have had nothing but good things to say about you? Then you need to let others know about it. Post those testimonials on your website, place them in the window of your store, hand them out on flyers. Whatever it takes you need to let others know that people out there really enjoyed what you had to offer, and the testimonial tells them why.

So get those testimonials today and post them!

About the Author
Bruce Tucker is a contributing writer to Indocquent, an online advertising and social networking medium where you can promote your business, products and services for sale and hire throughout the world without pay-per-click prices or auction fees.

Don’t forget to download Indocquent’s free social bookmark utility

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Tags: strategic, marketing, customer, business, sell

More and more these days’ people are worried about the environment. You will find that many more companies are now launching public relations campaigns in order to show their customers and the rest of the potential customer market that somehow they are changing their ways and going green. This is a great move for companies to show that there is more to worry about than just the bottom line.

If you own a business and you want to let your customers know about your new green strategies, environmental public relations will come in handy. This is more than just regular PR; instead, it is a type of PR that is focused solely and preparing and presenting your company with green initiatives.

There are many companies that believe that green marketing would be a competitive advantage, yet many companies are still avoiding coming up with a green marketing plan that will prepare their customers for the possibility of higher prices in products, inform them of the company’s green initiatives, and provide updates on how these green initiatives are working.

Environmental public relations are something that every company should consider. You will find that with environmental public relations, the company you own can now be well prepared for the possibility of questions about the environment. You will also be able to prepare all of the evidence of your green initiatives. This will come in handy when you are asked about it from the press at any given time. With environmental public relations, you will have a friend in your corner.

Many of the questions that the press will ask to companies that have not already announced that they are going green usually deal with the company’s future plans. Even if green initiatives are years away from being present or implemented in your company, you should still create a plan and get it out to the public before the press comes knocking at your door. What the press wants to know is if you take part in corporate social responsibility. Make sure to them know that you are responsible and have the evidence to back it up.

Your specific environmental PR team will be able to aid you in all of the issues that come along with going green initiatives. Not only will they help you to understand the impact of your choice on the public, they can also find ways to let the customers know that because of these environmentally friendly choices, prices might be going up. It is important to let an expert in environmental PR prepare your company to answer all of the important questions that will not just come from the customers, but the press as well. This preparation will make your company knowledgeable about your projects and have a leg up on most of the competition that have yet to use the services of environmental public relations.

Jordan Mcpelt is a professional author who specializes in Environmental PR and Green PR. For more information on Utah PR please visit this Site

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Tag: public, relations, plan, strategic, sample

It’s the thought that counts. At least that’s what many people say when they’re given the wrong gift. It’s the polite retort when you open a beautifully wrapped package sweating from excitement and you get – a garish six-inch tall eggplant figurine. Some people like eggplant but I think it’s meant to be eaten, not placed in you mantelpiece.

Companies are one of the most generous gift-givers, next to Santa, of course. They do this not only because of the goodness of their hearts but also to get something in return. Call it psych war, call it creating brand awareness, call it marketing, whatever you want to call it. It’s an important tool in the business world.

But a company doesn’t automatically reap in the fruits of their marketing labor by throwing a mug here and a pen there. It requires great planning to create the right promotional effect. Some companies go to great lengths to produce the most highly innovative and unique business gifts to be given to the most important people in their business – their customers.

Choosing the right item could be a hit and miss opportunity. The trick is to find a logical marketable connection between your company’s products and services to the item. It is just rational for a company specializing in office supplies to give out free pens and papers or for a clothing company to give out free t-shirts. But how about companies that has no products to speak of, like a real estate company or a plumbing service? They would need certain items that will reflect the kind of service they offer and give out information necessary for patronage. A great suggestion would be a spill-proof mug that has been the ‘it’ item in business gifts. It’s a necessity for today’s fast-paced lifestyle. Dads can make their homemade coffee to go and since its spill-proof, it can be placed in cup holder in the car without him being late for work. Moms would appreciate the fact that this is a flexible item that can hold little Tommy’s orange juice or her favorite cocoa when she goes to the park.

But let’s be conventional and think of something that will be in the hands of the customer for years to come. Key chain anyone? A key chain is the perfect business gifts because your company logo can easily be engraved in any material of your choice. It becomes an important part of their lives and it can serve as a daily reminder to your valued clients that you are there when they need you. It’s all about finding ordinary items and making them advertising space. Also consider the functionality of the object. Companies should aim to make the customers, upon receiving their business gift, say, wow, I could use one of these! In the cutthroat world of advertising, it’s not always the thought that counts.

Lottie Carrot is an expert in the field of business gifts. Working at Argon Promotions, she specialises in helping companies create brand recognition and value through promotional marketing tools.

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Tags: marketing, strategies, strategic, company, article

Conservatives are already calling Hillary Clinton a Communist and she has not even thrown her hat into the ring for the Democratic Party Presidential Election yet? Many others are calling her a socialist, but her own far-left party members are calling her a traitor for her stance on International Terrorism and her leanings towards the middle.

What does Hillary Clinton need right now to over come all these labels, many of which are contradictory in nature? Can her political team over come these early on attacks? Some say it makes sense for Hillary Clinton to wait before answering these scandalous comments about her personal character and her vision for America.

Of course, Hillary Clinton cannot wait to long to take a stand against her opponents and detractors and yet on the other hand she cannot afford to show her hand in the high-stakes game of human politics. Will Hillary Clinton try to appease the far left in order to get the rabble rousers to support her? If she tries too hard will she alienate any potential crossover voters in the future if she happens to win the political primary for the Democratic Party?

If Hillary Clinton takes a moderate stance early on during the Democratic Party primary will she have a chance of securing her party’s nomination for president of the United States of America? Hillary Clinton will obviously have the top public relations people on the planet working on her campaign. But can she win? The future holds many clues and the answer to that question. From a public-relations standpoint it is an excellent case study. Please consider all this in 2006.

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

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Tags: strategic, public relations, politics, communication, vision

PR without SEO may soon mean no PR at all. A front-page story in a major newspaper might boost your ego, but a top 10 Google ranking will boost your business; if you have any doubt — read on…

The Wall Street Journal is the world’s most-esteemed and widely read business publication. With about two million readers, what could be better than getting your company on its front page? Before you answer, consider this:

Yahoo!® News has almost 25 million subscribers;
Google™ News has more than seven million subscribers;
33 million Americans use search engines every day; and
Google™ estimates it receives more than 10 billion business searches per year.

At staggering heights now, the popularity of search engines keeps climbing. News aggregator site MSN® Newsbot, now in Beta, figures to capture a hefty audience, despite its late entry. To filter the massive information output of business blogs, new types of engines are popping up all over. Google™ Blog Search, only in Beta, already pulls enormous traffic. Ice Rocket™, Technorati™, Feedster™, and Blogdigger™ are other blog-centric engines delivering information to news-hungry audiences.

Even journalists have become search engine junkies: a whopping 98 percent look at search engines daily, scouring them for article research, new sources, blog postings and press releases.

Conclusion: your PR message will rarely and barely be heard unless you optimize it for the search engines. Here is how:

Find an SEO partner to help you analyze potential keywords and key phrases. Selecting the right ones for your Web site content and press releases will make or break you when your audience is searching;
Write press releases fully optimized for search engines. Since this requires a completely different style from that used for print media, professional copywriting assistance may be helpful;
As you and your SEO partner develop a linking strategy for your Web site, make sure it includes measures that drive traffic to your PR pages;
Build an article bank for your Web site. Besides providing customers with useful information about your company and industry, article postings give your site the fresh content that search engines crave; and
Speaking of fresh content, consider launching a blog. Blogs have the power to reshape attitudes like no other news medium can. Microsoft and GM are two well-known examples of how blogging turned around very negative customer perception. Search engines reward blogs because of their frequent content updates; connecting a blog to your main site will lift its rankings.

Even small companies can attract a wide audience by orienting their PR to search engines. Thomas Mahon, a struggling but passionate Savile Road tailor, grew his business to unheard of levels with a blog, The English Cut, and by cultivating on-line news sources. Companies no longer need huge PR budgets and cozy relationships with newspaper editors to get noticed. All it takes is an appealing, honest story and expert SEO.

Aaron Wittersheim is president of Whoast Inc., a suburban Chicago search marketing firm. For more information, visit this website

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Tags: strategic, public relations, pr, ceo, strategy

Many organizations and businesses want media coverage of their activities, and at the same time many newsrooms are looking for local (or even national and international) topics to cover. If you’re belong to an organization that wants coverage, you can increase the odds of getting it by following a few simple news release (or press release) conventions.

First, you must have something new or different to say. As the name News implies, the media want information that’s new or at least updated. At the same time, reporters and editors want information that’s relevant to their readers; choose your media targets carefully, and tailor the content of the release to their audience).

Second, your headline should be as interesting as a newspaper headline. It should promise something new, dramatic, or timely. Make the editor or reporter want to know more. Remember, though, the claim should be credible and relevant.

Third, in the first paragraph of the body, get in what journalists call the Five Ws: Who, What, Where, When, and Why. In fact, try to get them into the first sentence, and if you can’t, at least start with a clear concise statement that summarizes the story.

Traditionally, reporters have tried to get the essence of every story into the first paragraph because they didn’t know where, or whether, their stories would be cut. So, they start with the most important information and end with the least important. That way, no matter where the story was cut, the best material stayed.

Fourth, write and rewrite your news release many times before ‘releasing’ it. Use active verbs and transitions (from sentence to sentence, and paragraph to paragraph). Boil down the content as much as you can; two pages is acceptable, but one is better.

Fifth, follow this standard format: At the top of the page, write this, in all caps: FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE (Usually this will be left-justified)

Or, if you want the release to be held until specific date/time, write something like this: FOR RELEASE AT 10 A.M., AUGUST 23 (But don’t necessarily expect the embargo to be honored)

Skip a line and then put in contact information, as in: Contact: Robert Abbott Telephone: 403 555-1234 Email: robertabbott@anycompany.com

Skip another line and add your headline (centered, and use title case or all-caps): Perpetual Motion Machine Unveiled

Now, the body of your news release, which should not exceed two pages.

At the end of the body, add three number marks with single spaces between them, as in:

# # #

Repeat your contact information at the end , as in:

Robert Abbott welcomes your inquiries at 403 555-1234 or by email at: robertabbott@anycompany.com

Sixth, prepare yourself for reporters’ questions

It goes without saying, of course, that you would prepare yourself for questions from reporters if you send out a release. I would recommend you write out a list of questions that seem likely and prepare bullet-point answers for each of them. That way you’ll be ready for most of the questions. However, don’t read the answers back to reporters; just use them as a guide. At the same time, assume you’ll get questions you simply can’t predict. Answer them as well as you can; and if you can’t answer, your best bet is to tell the interviewer you’ll need to get more information, and will call back after you do.

Robert F. Abbott offers three free chapters from his book, A Manager’s Guide to Newsletters: Communicating for Results at http://www.managersguide.com/free-sample.html. He also offers free subscriptions to Abbott’s Communication Letter, a free newsletter that helps you enhance your career through improved business communication, at this site.

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Tags: strategic, public relations, news, press, news release

Every non-profit organization has the best of intent to promote and foster a greater good in our communities. The time spent raising dollars, dealing with administration tasks and actually helping people take precedent over the important component of advertising and promotion. Did you know that your local radio stations air commercials specifically about non-profit organizations for free?

Scott Radio has worked in the traditional radio industry for over twenty years and understands that the fact that each radio station is required as part of their license with the Federal Communications Commission to air public service programming. The reality is that few stations ever “sell out” all the available air time every day and thus have room to air public service commercial. The fact is few organizations take the time to have a well constructed and produced public service announcement (PSA) to take advantage of this unused “Free” airtime.

As a former radio station general manager, I know first hand how hard it was to find good “filler” commercials. I can tell you this, the PSA’s that were quality, received enormous amounts of free airtime. works with many organizations to assist them in determining the elements required to make a quality message. Each organization has a smile it needs to share with the world.

Scott Perreault, CEO of Scott Radio, Inc. (Click here for more information) is a radio and narration voice veteran with over twenty years of broadcasting and voice work experience. From the writing, production and development of radio advertising and political campaigns to the recording of a two-hour audio book, Scott has experienced many facets of the voice business.

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Tags: marketing, strategic, consultant, agency, communications

In the ‘Age of Scepticism’ gaining media coverage is one way of cutting through the ever increasing noise to get your message across.

Research shows the average consumer receives between 1500 and 3000 marketing messages a day.

Editorial generated by media coverage is more credible than advertising and can help cut through the clutter.

It can also help build your reputation.

But how do you get media coverage?

Here are 10 tips for harnessing the marketing power of the media.

1. Know Your Strengths.

What are you an expert at? What is your specialized area of expertise? What unique services or information can you offer? Position yourself as the expert. Even in a crisis this can position you or your organisation as the ‘go to’ person. This builds credibility.

2. Clarify your communication objectives?

What do I want to achieve? To inform or entertain? To provide information? To build a profile? To influence public opinion? Personal marketing? Marketing or launching a new
product or service?

3. Define your target audience?

Who is my target audience? General public? Customers? Competitors? Suppliers? What age are they, what level of education, what beliefs and values, geographical location, how do they use the media? What influence do they have?

4. Identify the best channels of communication.

What is the best way to reach your target audience? TV, Radio, Internet, newspapers – local or Statewide, specialist or generalist, industry publications, community newsletters?

5. What is your key message?

Distil what you want to say into three key points. Remember less has more impact. Be disciplined and stay ‘on message’. How can this message resonate with, influence or tap into collective attitudes among relevant consumers?

6. Build your case?

What are the features, advantages and benefits of your message for your target audience? What evidence and proof do you have? This helps overcome what I call ‘the hump of cynicism’ entrenched in many journalists when they ask ‘why is this news?’.

7. What is the hook?

What will make your message or news release stand out from the rest. Be creative. Use a media release to control the information flow.

8. Develop long-term relationships with the media.

Visit and meet them face-to-face. Network and get to know them.

9. Use the Three Golden Rules to Perform at your Best = Know Your Topic, Be Prepared, Relax.

10. Seek Professional Help.

For maximum impact, effectiveness and value seek the advice of a media and communications professional.

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 this Site. Visit Tom’s blog Here

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Tags: marketing, strategies, plan, strategic, management

Press release” seems to be a bit of a buzz word that’s floating around at the moment. Everyone says you need to have one, but many people don’t really know what they are. Well, kind reader, I’m here to clarify a few things about press releases, and why they can be useful for your business.

A press release, also known as a ‘media release’, is a piece of writing you can do yourself or have done for you as a means of gaining exposure. Written in the style of a news report, it is based around some kind of news-worthy thing you are doing, such as:

* Your grand opening
* Being involved in charity, such as donating a portion of your earnings
* Stocking an exclusive product
* An involvement in local community
* Running a service or selling a product that no one else is
* Any kind of thing that sets you apart, like your age, gender, race, socio-economic status, etc.
* Any kind of human interest

You can employ a writer to generate news-worthiness for you, or you can become involved in anything I’ve listed above in order to create news-worthiness for your business.

The idea is to have the release distributed to media outlets who will be interested in what you’re doing and consequently publish your news – for free. With this in mind, it is obviously incredibly important to have a well written, interesting and interest holding release that will appeal to the outlets targeted. What you are presenting to them must be truly news worthy if you hope to gain free publicity from it (conversely, you can send it to really desperate publications, but that might not reflect to well on your business!).

So there are two options.

Hire a writer/distributor. This person will take care of writing the press release for you, and then send it out to the appropriate avenues. Some will also take charge of following up the contacts they have made, to further increase your chances of securing a publication. The thing to make sure of here is that the writer/distributor excels in both areas! Better still, find a firm that has two different specialists taking care of each part of the process for maximum impact.

Hire a writer, then hire a distributor. Some writers have a particular style that appeals to certain people. You may have a writer in mind and believe they’ll really get through to the publications you’re targeting, and if that’s the case you should use them by all means. Once you have the perfect press release, you can then work with a specialised distributor to get your name and story out to the right places.

The option you choose is completely a matter of taste, though budget might also be a factor. There is some debate as to the importance of each component – can you get publicity with a crappy press release if you have a great distributor; does the release speak for itself and the distributor is thus merely a vessel?

Websites such as PR Web provide some excellent examples and ideas for effective press releases, as well as ways to distribute and market your release on the Internet. If you have never even considered approaching the media for publicity, this is a good place to start.

Overall, they are an excellent way to gain exposure and interest in your business. The outlay is generally quite small, and the opportunity for gain is enormous. A risk well worth taking!

Anna Spargo-Ryan is a creative, slightly insane writer and designer from Australia. She runs a brand consultation firm specialising in brand consultation, identity design, web development and copywriting. Please see this site for more information.

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Sometimes a phone call isn’t intimate or long enough to convey all the information you have for a reporter.

Two examples would be: if you have a dozen or so story ideas, or if you’d like to explain an extremely complex financial concept or strategy to a reporter.

If this is the case, you should consider offering to meet the reporter over coffee or for a quick lunch, for a “backgrounder” on your topic.

It’s a relatively common event in the media world. Many reporters jump at the chance to pick a knowledgeable expert’s brain. You may be able to get information from them about what types of stories they are interested in, and what other reporters at their outlet might want to use you as a source.

And, as I’m sure you’ve recognized from your years of client service, meeting a client in person jumpstarts a personal relationship that can cement a professional one.

One caveat: Whereas you might take a client to an expensive restaurant to emphasize your financial planning success, don’t do this with a reporter. No lavish, expense-account spots. It looks like you’re trying to buy favor.

Most publications have pretty strong ethics codes—the reporter will probably be obligated to pay for their own meal, and they won’t like shelling out for filet mignon. Suggest too fancy an establishment and they probably will turn you down.

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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Tags: media, relations, plan, strategic, marketing

Just because a publication is small doesn’t mean that getting your name in it won’t have great impact.

Trade on the reputation of the trades

Some of the trade publications have very loyal audiences who are much more likely to trust someone they see there than someone on the local news or in The Wall Street Journal. Now I’m not talking about the trade publication for your profession – the only people you’ll reach are your competitors. Get yourself in the publications your prospects and clients read!

Don’t forget the Sewer Cleaner Association’s newsletter

It’s a great to get yourself in the newsletters of the associations your prospects in that niche belong to. Whatever your market is, you can bet it has a professional or trade association. Sure, their newsletters are “smaller.” But there’s nothing better or more tightly focused on reaching your targets – and no one else!

Offer yourself as a guest columnist

Unlike the major publications, which receive 100 times more material then they could ever print, smaller publications usually scramble to get enough content. Ask one of those industry publications, or your local paper, if they’d like a guest columnist to write advice articles on your topic. Or offer to answer “reader’s mailbag” questions.

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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Tags: media, relations, skills, marketing, strategic