Are your story pitches to reporters working? If you succeed in landing an interview, congratulations! Now, you need to follow a few easy steps before and during the interview to make it a great public relations win:

Before the Interview

·Never do an interview cold. Prepare yourself.

·Learn what you can about the publication, audience, interviewer and story. Read the reporter’s last couple of stories.

·Start with a goal. Visualize the “headline.” What would you like the story to say?

·Review your 5-6 “must-say” message points that make your case.

·Practice answers to all potential questions. Have your staff grill you. They will enjoy it. You probably won’t, but it will make your answers more potent.

During the Interview

·If it is a phone interview, remove distractions. Get into the proper mindset.

·Keep message points in front of you. Repeat your messages 2-3 times during interview to make sure they get into the story.

·Speak through the reporter to your audience (see above).

·Learn to take yes for an answer. Skilled salespeople say that once you make the sale, don’t keep selling! Same goes for interviews. Once you make your point and you are sure the reporter gets it, shut up and move on. There is a temptation to embellish your answer for a few more minutes because you know so much about the topic at hand.

·Be engaging and friendly.

·Speak slowly. Remember, the reporter has to understand you well enough to explain it to others.

·Don’t repeat a negative question; it will end up as part of your quotes in the story. Stay positive.

·Don’t criticize your competitors by name – you’re giving them free PR. If you hammer home what makes your product or service unique, your potential customers will figure out the differences for themselves.

·Never lie. Just say you can’t discuss a particular topic.

·Don’t guess. “I don’t know. I’ll get back to you on it,” is a fine answer. Say you will call back and then DO it.

·Make your points easily understood, e.g., Use clarifying statements to get a reporter’s attention to make sure he/she pays attention when you give your messages:

o “The three most critical issues are…”

o “There are three main points to remember here….”

o “The most important aspect of this whole situation is….”

o “The people who will be most affected by this are…”

o “Let me summarize.”

· Let the reporter use a tape recorder for accuracy. You can use one too for verification. Might come in handy if there is a dispute later on a quote.

· In a confrontational interview, keep to the high road. Don’t be defensive. Avoid emotion.

· Always stay in control of an interview. Even if the reporter is rapid-firing questions at you, it is OK to think before you speak. They can’t quote you on something you didn’t say. In this day of one-minute TV stories that are considered in-depth, pausing to think before answering a difficult question can be perceived as being stymied. Still, go for substance over style.

· Never say flatly, “No comment.” It makes it appear as though you are hiding something negative. Always give a reason, even if it is non-committal, e.g., “We can’t discuss anything in litigation,” “We don’t discuss personnel matters,” “We don’t respond to rumors,” or “Once our new product is ready to announce, we will do so.”

Robert Deigh is principal of RDC Communication/PR and author of “How Come No One Knows About Us?” (coming out in May 2008 from W Business Books), the PR guide for organizations large and small that want to win big visibility. Deigh helps organizations increase their visibility and build their brands by creating strong and positive relationships with the press and other audiences. He is also a frequent speaker and trainer on media and PR topics. He can be reached via email at rdeigh1@aol.com, his website here

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Tags: win, media, interview, news, press, strategy

Marketing, public relations and business development or sales are not necessarily strengths of most owners. However, if you believe in the product or service you are providing, you owe it to yourself and your business to deliver that message personally. One of the most valuable roles a business owner can play is to get out of the office and promote the business to customers, prospects, and other stakeholders. It’s time to become the “face” of your business.

Remember Dave from the Wendy’s commercials? Dave Thomas successfully put a human face on his business. Even after his death, folks remember the successful advertising campaign that made him the face of Wendy’s restaurants. What about Suzanne Sommers, Jaclyn Smith, Ron Perillo, and one of my all time favorites – Frank Purdue? Remember them? They all became and still are the faces of their businesses – jewelry & food products, budget clothing, travel and chickens. The sons of Perillo and Purdue have continued the legacy of their fathers and have become the new faces of their companies.

No Secret Recipe Needed

There is no secret formula and you don’t have to be a ‘talk to everybody’ extrovert to be your company’s best marketing tool. You don’t need to be or become a celebrity. Many owners get started by simply increasing the time they spend with customers.

If you own a retail business, get out on the sales floor or go along when a customer takes delivery. Some of the most popular restaurants are those in which the chef interacts with patrons instead of staying behind those swinging doors. Learning what customers like and dislike is time well spent. Plus they’ll remember the personal attention they received.

Personal involvement is also important in business-to-business services. For example, Mike is the owner of a small commercial construction firm. Even though he has excellent foremen and project managers, Mike periodically attends weekly progress meetings with the customer’s project manager. They all know Mike and have developed a personal relationship with him, the owner, which creates goodwill for the business. He knows their concerns. It is no wonder that Mike’s company keeps getting repeat business even when he isn’t the lowest bidder.

Another strategy is to join a business owners’ networking group. These groups are great places for meeting prospects and trading leads. Participating in community organizations can reap similar benefits. All things being equal, people just like doing business with people they know.

Capitalize On Your Expertise

Becoming prominent in one’s industry is also an effective way to bring in new business. Look for opportunities to take on a leadership role in a trade association or other industry group. Make yourself available as a speaker on topics related to your business. Contribute articles to publications targeted toward your customer base. You might even follow in the footsteps of Dave from Wendy’s or Frank Purdue. Under the right circumstances, you may, personally, become an effective part of your company’s advertising.

If this all just seems like common sense, it is. Unfortunately, many owners don’t take the time or make the effort. Get to know your customers, prospects, and community and let them get to know you. They’ll know you care about their needs and the success of your business. You’ll have your finger on the pulse of the marketplace and be ready to take advantage of the opportunities that come along.

Luis Portiansky has over twenty-five year’s experience in business development, marketing and sales. Luis focuses on professional services marketing and working with minority owned businesses. His practice includes developing marketing strategies and plans, marketing communications, collateral materials and advertising. Luis also works with companies interested in reaching the Latino population in the US by developing specific marketing and advertising messaging and materials in Spanish. Luis has worked in Great Britain, Hong Kong, Singapore, US Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico.

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Tags: pr, strategy, marketing, public relations, business

The euro is making headlines and sending a serious publicity message of value with awareness. Euro coins and banknotes came on the seen in January of 2002 and is now the currency of choice for 315 million Europeans residing in the euro area. Presently there are 13 European Union countries using euros consisting of Belgium, Germany, Greece, Spain, France, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Austria, Portugal, Slovenia and Finland. Gaining popularity and selected to be the upcoming currency in January of 2008 for Cyprus and Malta.

The euro currency opens the door for online businesses to generate revenue and capture new audiences. The declining U.S. economy has resulted in many business industries seeking other revenue sources and streams of income.

Today the euro is estimated to equal 1.4745 U.S. dollars and by passing the U.S. dollar in value has captured the attention of the world. This success should prompt every online business to implement and target euro currency when launching PR campaigns.

How-to Target The Euro In PR campaigns:

1. Global PR Campaigns – Release media and press releases over Internet wires to capture global audiences.

2. Global Publicity – Promote story ideas by pitching to euro media publications; utilize the Internet as a primary research guide and email as a contact source.

3. Global Payments – Make sure that your online payment processor is setup to accept payments in euros. To ensure proper payment you should distinguish the value between the euro and the dollar when accepting the payment.

4. Global Targeting – Promote that euro currency is accepted.

5. Global Marketing – Launch online marketing campaigns and promotions.

6. Global Branding – Promote product and services features and benefits online.

It is essential that every company should start positioning their brand for global recognition and branding. The Internet has made it possible and cost-effective for virtually almost any business to establish a global brand. The euro currency is the ultimate target to add revenue generation for companies seeking to capitalize from global commerce.

“CR” Cataunya Ransom is the Co-founder of Mosnar Communications, INC. She developed a niche for Luxury PR & Global Marketing. Guiding clients on how to brand, market, and promote luxury products, events, and services. Highly respected as a luxury public relations expert! “CR” consults clients and speaks to audiences about luxury public relations and global marketing practices. Visit this site.

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CR Ransom – EzineArticles Expert Author

Tags: strategy, pr, campaign, business, marketing

Headline: “Fashion Mash Launches Clunky Outfit-Sharing Site”

What do you do when a review or an article about your company or product is not as awesome as you hoped it would be?

Here’s what I did:

1. I took a deep breath. PR is not something you can control, but how you react is under your control.

2. I read the review again & made a list to separate out the constructive criticisms from any misunderstandings.

3. Looking at the feedback, I thought, “How can I learn from this?” This person went to the effort to look at my site and took the time to write about it. I immediately thanked them for their time and I added the valid critiques to our Fashion Mash to do list.

4. Is there anything I can do about the misinformation or misunderstandings? Not directly. They allowed comments on the review, so I put in my two cents. And I started asking myself, “Is there a way to prevent this next time?”

5. That turned into a re-examination of my pitch/cold-call/interaction to see what can be improved to better explain my website, Fashionmash.com. Unfortunately, this is just part of learning the pitch process and only practice with good mentors is going to help with this.

6. I looked at the positives. Yes, negative PR does have positives. I learned more about pitching and about things we need to change at Fashion Mash. I still got a LOT of traffic to my site. And I can apply my new lessons to the other review and PR fish in the sea.

7. Now its time to figure out how to let go. After thinking about all that, I was still worked up. Excited about traffic and sad about the review. So I called a friend and wrote about it in my blog.

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Tags: pr, strategy, review, public relations, tips

One aspect of PR is publicity. Creating word of mouth interest in your business by getting free editorial coverage of your business in the media.

Publicity stories in the media are very effective but you won’t get one for your website unless you have a new idea, controversial story, sensational aspect to your website, something unusual or completely different. Get the idea? Some story ideas: are you the first to use this technology? Have you made a huge sale through your website? Does your website help or benefit people in any way? Are you running a unique online competition or survey? Have you a heart-warming personal story to tell? My point is that you need to have a point.

Let me give you an example of publicity that was designed specifically to attract people to a particular website.

There’s an online travel company Zuji.com.au and what they did was implement a publicity campaign to drive traffic to their website. It was a simple idea really. They put together on online competition asking people to write in their travel secrets of their favourite destinations throughout the world and they could win a valuable travel prize. They told the media about it and although a simple idea it captured the attention of the travel media.

Consequently the media promoted the competition quite heavily resulting in heaps of visitors to the Zuji website. And of course it involved real people telling their own stories so the human interest element worked. It worked brilliantly for the company. Firstly they were successful in getting lots of free publicity from the competition and they also collected the email addresses of all of the people that visited their website. Plus they captured some really interesting stories and content to put on their site. So an online competition works well but you do need tell the media about it. Once you’ve developed a good newsworthy story you’ll need to contact the relevant journalists who will help you reach your target market. Don’t contact everyone, just the media that are appropriate to you and your product.

Contact them by sending a media release (it of course includes your website address) or just telephone them. Research your target media by checking out the newspapers, magazines and wherever else your competitors are being featured. You can buy media directories.

Don’t forget to let journalists know there is a media room on your website where they can obtain further information.

Another way to publicize your website is to put your domain address everywhere. Anytime you do send out a media release or newsletter or write a letter to a potential client or sponsor an event, not only is it really important to put your name on everything but put your website address there as well. So for instance you might have some fantastic caps or t-shirts designed for your business that you want people to wear that look great and effective and but why not on the back of that cap put your domain name. Every where that you communicate, put your web address. Include on your voice mail, stickers, business cards, your car, caps, t-shirts on everything!

Sue Currie, the director of Shine Communications Consultancy and author of Apprentice to Business Ace – your inside-out guide to personal branding, is a business educator and speaker on personal branding through image and media. To learn more about how you can achieve recognition, enhance your image and shine, sign up for free monthly tips at this site.

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Tags: strategy, pr, create, online, website, publicity

Free publicity can be a far more powerful business-building tool than advertising.

Why? Well, when it comes to advertising, people are skeptical.

According to the Advertising Media Internet Center (July 22, 2007), we are exposed to an average of 288 ads per day, counting TV, radio, print and Internet ads. If you include the number of brands we are exposed to, let’s say on a trip to the supermarket, that number skyrockets to over 2,000.

In order to survive this onslaught, people have become more skeptical – they just don’t believe what companies say about themselves anymore. On the other hand, people do believe what they read in the newspapers, or hear on the radio or TV news.

The beauty of free publicity is that it puts the credibility of these trusted news organizations at the center of our marketing equation. If the news names you as an expert, you’re an expert!

Best of all, free publicity is… well, free!

Becoming the Local Expert Isn’t As Hard As It Seems

If you serve a local market, begin by compiling a list of local media that cover topics in your field. Which local newspapers include articles relevant to what you do? Which reporters usually write those stories? Write these names down.

Which local radio and TV stations cover stories related to your area of expertise? Which reporters usually handle those assignments? Write these names down as well.

Next step?

Simply send these people a letter introducing yourself or give them a call. Let them know who you are and what you do. Let them know you are always available if they need a local reference on a topic in your field.

It can be that easy…

For example, marketing expert David Frey’s brother sells hot tubs. He introduced himself to the local reporters and now gets contacted about three times a year to comment on “backyard lifestyle” issues.

To further cement your relationship with your local reporters, consider sending them something on a regular basis. If you find an article in a trade journal that might make an interesting story, pass it on to them.

Remember, though, that the goal of the press is not to build your business through free publicity – it’s to provide good information to their audience. Don’t be pushy. Instead be helpful and informative. As a result the local media will turn to you and position you as the local expert. It’s that exposure that will build your business.

How to Attract a Nationwide Audience

Another way to attract publicity, perhaps even on a national level, would be through a Publicity Referral Service.

An example of a publicity referral service would be Radio and TV Interview Report (RTIR). RTIR is a magazine sent out to radio and TV producers introducing them to potential guests for interviews from a wide variety of fields. These guests are usually authors promoting a book or business owners like you.

While it’s not free (there’s a fee to advertise), it is a good way to potentially attract nationwide publicity for your business. You can learn more about RTIR here

In addition to advertising (online and offline) and referral generation, free publicity can be another valuable tool to put to use in your quest for maximum growth and profit in your small business.

Dr. Bill O’Shea is a marketing consultant specializing in helping independent professionals and small business owners create maximum growth and profit in their businesses. For more great resources on small business marketing and a free Marketing Plan Development Guide and Special Report on “The Top Ten Advertising Mistakes Most Small Business Owners Make”, please visit Small-Business-Marketing-Success.com.

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Tags: publicity, strategy, business, marketing, advertising

From a public relations perspective, reputation is an executive’s most powerful asset. Understanding the elements of reputation will guide you in business crisis management, developing media strategies for your business and strengthening public trust in you and your company.

“Reputation management” has become a buzzword in PR circles. The idea that reputations need to be controlled also means that reputations are to be contained.

Your goal as a CEO should be to build your reputation, not to “manage” or contain it. In the world of PR, a whole industry has grown up trying to convince executives they need “reputation management.” Reputation has become overanalyzed and overintellectualized.

In fact, reputation is based on the time-tested business principle of sticking to your company’s core values.

Building Your Reputation

Every press release, media interview, speaking engagement, product launch, employees’ forum–even every hand shaken–all contribute to building reputation.

Public relations is a corporation’s primary reputation-building tool. PR makes sure the name of your company is a known entity, gets your expert opinion and comments out into the public arena and puts your face front and center when your industry or your company is featured in the media.

The two most important elements that impact your reputation as a CEO are the quality of your relationships–with your clients, employees, shareholders and the media–and the quality of your communications.

Start with the basics: it’s critical that a CEO becomes intimately familiar with the company’s mission statement. Having the ability to readily relate your mission statement to every action or communication–be it yours or your company’s–forms the foundation in establishing and maintaining a well-regarded reputation.

Talk the talk of your mission statement and then walk that walk. If your company is committed to the green movement, for example, you might illustrate this by cutting down on the air conditioning, ramping up recycling efforts and driving a hybrid car. But if your product is shipped cross-country via noncompliant tractor-trailers, you betray the public’s trust in your company by sending mixed messages.

Consider Warren Buffet, who, by the way, has been quoted as saying, “It takes 20 years to build a reputation and five minutes to ruin it.” No matter the circumstance, the year or the place, he always says the same thing: “I am a value investor; I look for long-term value.” His message never waivers and in this way he is prepared to answer any question at any time. No one can ever say Buffet sends mixed messages, has a hidden agenda or talks a good game. What he says is always the same, communicated clearly and consistently over and over again.

Doing this effortlessly and consistently will ensure that there will never be a need to “manage” your reputation. Why? In a word: Authenticity.

If your company doesn’t have a mission statement that clearly communicates its vision and core values, then, as a friend of mine says, “It’s time for a three-day retreat.”

Executive Accessibility and Visibility

Being accessible to the media leads to public trust in you and your company.

Savvy CEOs do not hide behind closed doors, corporate “spokespersons” or impersonal “statements to the press.” Savvy CEOs show their faces in the office and to the public. They speak at press conferences, listen and take questions in the open, before the cameras, before the public, and thus generate public trust. You are not afraid to take hard questions, either, and the public respects that stance.

Executive Communications

Sometimes, as leaders, we forgot that communication includes both speaking and listening. Dialogue is crucial in PR because it enhances customer and brand loyalty and adds longevity to your message through the forum it provides.

Making your in-house PR campaign a priority is one of the most cost-effective efforts you can take to support and enhance your company’s reputation. If you are visible and accessible and encourage conversations easily, your staff and your Board of Directors become your biggest proponent and mouthpiece.

Corporate policies should be in synch with what you say to your employees as well. If you advocate cancer awareness as part of your mission statement, make sure you allow and encourage employees time away from their desks for cancer screenings. Consistent messages–in words and actions–bolster your reputation.

Projecting the Right Message

How do you tailor the right message for the public? Ask yourself what you want to accomplish. Are you sharing good news about productivity within the company? Do you have some high-profile resignations to address? Have you just signed new contracts with China? Have you completed cleaning up the asbestos found at one of your factories?

Remember that if communication is not direct and consistent, messages get filtered down, and just like in that old game of “Whisper Down the Lane,” what is said initially is never what is heard if it isn’t communicated directly.

Keep it simple. Remember your company mission statement. If you live the principles of that mission statement and closely guide your company from that philosophy consistently, no one can ever ask you a question you can’t answer; no outside force will ever prompt you into an action that is in opposition to it.

If you ever find yourself or your company off track, go back to your mission statement. Your mission statement is the message you give to your communications department and that becomes the basis of their PR and Marketing Plan. It’s the same conversation you have with your employees and that becomes how they speak about the company for which they work.

The company’s vision and core values are always at the forefront of each level of communications. It’s the position you take with your clients and that position becomes your promise to them.

Taking Responsibility

There’s nothing more distasteful and inauthentic than a CEO whose first response to a media crisis is making excuses. Always remember, when it comes to PR and reputation, the first line of defense is to live up to the leadership role with which you’ve been entrusted.

Today’s Media Landscape

The biggest change we’ve seen in today’s media landscape in the last couple of years is the speed and ease at which everything becomes public these days. Today, there’s no downtime between what we say or do, and when and how it goes public.

Blogging

* Bloggers exposed Southwest Airlines when the company allegedly refused to let an overweight man with hepatitis C board a flight unless he bought two seats-even though he’d gained weight because of the disease and was traveling to a lifesaving operation.
* Bloggers also exposed fake blogs that a prominent PR firm had created to boost the reputation of its client Wal-Mart. The blog was supposed to be written by real-life fans of Wal-Mart.

YouTube

* The video showing Taco Bell’s rat-infested New York City locale was posted on YouTube within minutes of the story breaking.

MySpace

* All the political candidates have MySpace pages.

Search engines

* Search engines such as Google also make it impossible to hide anything because their crawlers are constantly at work, crawling through news stories, blogs and YouTube postings. Bloggers and online writers are also diligent about linking to other relevant sites.

Crisis Management – 8 Tips for Handling a Crisis

Everybody always thinks of reputation when it comes managing a crisis. Let’s review a few basics. The speed in which news happens and our immediate access to it increases the chances of a CEO having a media crisis on her or his hands.

Here are eight tips for handling these, based on the simple actions.

1. Mantra’s mantra for crisis management is to tell it all, tell it fast, tell the truth. Otherwise, the crisis and all of its repercussions will continue to damage you and your company’s reputation over and over again.
2. As mentioned above, information is distributed these days with the speed of light, but some of it is based on hearsay. At times it’s almost like the water cooler has exploded onto the Internet, and now people gossip in a more public forum. Your crisis response must address and correct any rumors and hearsay.
3. It doesn’t matter what created the company crisis or whether the accusations are true or false, you’ve got to get front and center ASAP. Address the issue immediately and support your position with visible actions. Make sure your verbal communications and the corresponding actions are positioned in accordance with the company’s core values. Remember that mission statement?
4. When you are front and center, remember to tell the good news first, followed by the bad news.
5. In PR, a distinction is made between “opinion” and “belief.” Opinions are easy to change but rarely is there a chance to alter a belief. Approach crisis situations with that in mind. Change public perception while it’s still at the opinion level.
6. Consider a public forum on your Web site, or hang a bulletin board where customers and/or employees can ask questions and submit comments. Starbucks has a section on their Web site where they actually address rumors about the company. By offering a public forum, two positive impressions about your company are made: You aren’t afraid to draw attention to the fact that rumors are a part of business; and you identify which pieces of information are incorrect and thereby nip rumors in the bud.
7. Hidden Agendas. If you’ve got one, sooner or later you or it will be revealed. The fear that comes from hiding something makes you do everything wrong and sets into motion a series of actions that are very hard to recover from.
8. Remember the 55/38/7 Rule developed by Albert Mehrabian: 55% of communication is based on your physical demeanor, 38% is how you sound and only 7% is what you say.

Summary

The overriding principle upon which I guide my own business and our client campaigns is that all public relations efforts fall into the category of reputation “management.” Every relationship and communication impacts public perception. Strive for clarity, authenticity and consistency. If you lose your way anywhere along the line, go back to the basics.

Gaye Carleton is the president of Mantra, Empowered Public Relations. For more information on the benefits of public relations, see Mantra Public Relations.

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Getting your news story featured in the newspaper or talked about on the radio is iffy at the best of times – getting coverage on the day or week that’s optimal for your business is even more problematic. But you can optimize your chances for timely coverage by mastering the concept of media lead times.

Lead time refers to the time a reporter needs to prepare a story for publication. Most media, including radio, newspapers, magazines and television, have some sort of lag between when a story idea or press release is accepted and when it is actually aired or printed. This could range from a couple of days to a few weeks, depending partly on the urgency or timeliness of the story and partly on the particular publishing constraints of the medium chosen.

For example, in print, a reporter may need to do further research and check sources, then prepare the story for the editor, and then make whatever tweaks or edits the editor requires. The story will also need typeset, proofread or any of a number of other tasks to get the story ready for public consumption – and if it’s a magazine or newspaper, there’s distribution time too.

So if you want to get publicity for your latest trendy gadget or most innovative new service, you need to plan ahead, keeping your preferred release date in mind as well as the appropriate time frame for media preparation. Aside from being smart, it’s also simple consideration to the writer or reporter.

Lead times vary by media, but the following guidelines are fairly reliable.

* Daily newspapers will need a few days to a few weeks for feature stories. The same is true of calendars and newspapers online.
* Daily newspapers will need one to two days for hard news.
* Monthly magazines usually require two to three months from the date they receive your story idea or press release.
* Major national magazines (like Newsweek or Good Housekeeping) usually require four to six months of release date.
* Radio is often very flexible, with the timeliness of your news playing a more major role. You may get a call today for an interview spot tonight. However, coveted syndicated radio shows require more lead time.
* Similarly, you can sometimes get same-day coverage on television if your news is timely, especially if there’s a local angle. Television variety shows require more advance notice than news shows.

Again, these are general guidelines; if you want to ensure that you don’t miss a deadline for a specific publication or media outlet, call or visit their website and request a media kit from their advertising department. Since advertisers need to know when their ads need to be submitted, the lead time will be clearly stated in that kit.

Smart media-seekers make use of several other strategies to maximize the chances of receiving coverage.

For example, rather that submitting news that may or may not be of interest, some people actually tailor news releases to fit the demands of their target publications. One way to do this is to check out a media outlet’s Editorial calendar for the month. This will allow you to see precisely what they are looking for that month. Armed with that information, you can then call the publication, ask for the reporter assigned to that story and contact them explaining how you can contribute.

Another strategy is to plan your publicity to coincide with what the media is looking for during certain times of the year, as described below.

January to March Publicity Topics

Annual trends, previews and predictions. Tie-ins to Super bowl, Easter and the Academy Awards can be well received.

April to June Publicity Topics

No holidays to worry about, so just about anything goes. Events you could associate with are baseball startup, end of school (beginning of summer), Memorial Day and summer vacations.

July to September Publicity Topics

Typically a slow time of year for the media. Light news, back to school and trends are popular topics to tie into. Events include July 4th, summer movies, travel, and entertainment, and back-to-school topics.

October to December Publicity Topics

A very busy period for the media – and as you might suspect, strong tie-ins to the holidays maximize your chances of exposure. Post-holiday and end of-year topics are also good (the week between Christmas and New Year’s Day is traditionally very slow).

Internet entrepreneur Diana Ratliff reveals the secrets of using offline publicity to generate online traffic in her newest ebook, The Publicity Traffic System. Very few online marketers are using this method of traffic generation, so it’s easy to gain an advantage over your competitors this way! Free stories of web masters who’ve generated sales and traffic using publicity – visit the website today!

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Tags: strategy, publicity, coverage, news, newsworthy

Free publicity can be a far more powerful business-building tool than advertising.

Why? Well, when it comes to advertising, people are skeptical.

According to the Advertising Media Internet Center (July 22, 2007), we are exposed to an average of 288 ads per day, counting TV, radio, print and Internet ads. If you include the number of brands we are exposed to, let’s say on a trip to the supermarket, that number skyrockets to over 2,000.

In order to survive this onslaught, people have become more skeptical – they just don’t believe what companies say about themselves anymore. On the other hand, people do believe what they read in the newspapers, or hear on the radio or TV news.

The beauty of free publicity is that it puts the credibility of these trusted news organizations at the center of our marketing equation. If the news names you as an expert, you’re an expert!

Best of all, free publicity is… well, free!

Becoming the Local Expert Isn’t As Hard As It Seems

If you serve a local market, begin by compiling a list of local media that cover topics in your field. Which local newspapers include articles relevant to what you do? Which reporters usually write those stories? Write these names down.

Which local radio and TV stations cover stories related to your area of expertise? Which reporters usually handle those assignments? Write these names down as well.

Next step?

Simply send these people a letter introducing yourself or give them a call. Let them know who you are and what you do. Let them know you are always available if they need a local reference on a topic in your field.

It can be that easy…

For example, marketing expert David Frey’s brother sells hot tubs. He introduced himself to the local reporters and now gets contacted about three times a year to comment on “backyard lifestyle” issues.

To further cement your relationship with your local reporters, consider sending them something on a regular basis. If you find an article in a trade journal that might make an interesting story, pass it on to them.

Remember, though, that the goal of the press is not to build your business through free publicity – it’s to provide good information to their audience. Don’t be pushy. Instead be helpful and informative. As a result the local media will turn to you and position you as the local expert. It’s that exposure that will build your business.

How to Attract a Nationwide Audience

Another way to attract publicity, perhaps even on a national level, would be through a Publicity Referral Service.

An example of a publicity referral service would be Radio and TV Interview Report (RTIR). RTIR is a magazine sent out to radio and TV producers introducing them to potential guests for interviews from a wide variety of fields. These guests are usually authors promoting a book or business owners like you.

While it’s not free (there’s a fee to advertise), it is a good way to potentially attract nationwide publicity for your business. You can learn more about Source

Tags: publicity, strategy, business, marketing, advertising

Emotional branding is considered by some to be a relatively unique field, yet in the PR world we have been using it for years. The PR process is not only effective as a media placement tool, innovative companies and entrepreneurs are utilizing the basic methodology, understanding that it is one of the most powerful and effective brand building tools available. A company builds a lasting successful brandby developing and creating an effective story. It is not about the

hard-sell, or being the biggest, or the flashiest, or even the coolest; it is about making a deep powerful connection, about communicating on a basic human level

Having worked as a journalist, editor and producer, I know from the media’s perspective what makes a powerful and compelling story. Having served as president and CEO of Anthony Mora Communications, Inc. forover sixteen years, I also know from the perspective of a public
relations consultant what creates a story the media will respond to.

The two criteria are generally quite similar. For a story to work it must be engaging, interesting and hit a basic human core, and public relations is the only form of marketing that lives or dies on how compelling the story truly is. Unlike advertising, with PR you cannot pay to have a story placed in the editorial section of the media (well, at least it shouldn’t work that way). You must craft and pitch a story compelling enough to capture the media’s attention – a story that in essence is strong enough to become the news.

PR is a process and using that process is the most effective and powerful way to create and develop an effective brand. Generally companies have turned to marketing firms to build their brands and whereas these firms can be effective, it is the PR mindset and methodology that truly creates the most powerful and lasting brands.
As a PR Consultant my job is to communicate, to be a consummate and effective storyteller, which is what branding is all about. A successful brand tells a company’s story both emotionally and narratively, which is why PR consultants who truly understand the process are the most effective brand creators around.

Copyright (c) Anthony Mora 2007

Anthony Mora
President & CEO

For further information visit this site

Anthony Mora began his media career as a freelance journalist for such publications as Us, Rolling Stone and other local and national publications. He also served as editor-in-chief of two Los Angeles-based entertainment and lifestyle-oriented publications. In 1990, Anthony formed Anthony Mora Communications, Inc. a Los Angeles-based media relations company that specializes in media placement, image development, and media training. AMC Inc. has placed clients in: Time, Newsweek, 60 Minutes, CNN, The Wall Street Journal, The Oprah Winfrey Show, The New York Times, Los Angeles Times, and other local, national, and international media outlets. Anthony has been featured in: USA Today, Newsweek, The New York Times, The Los Angeles Times, The Wall Street Journal, The BBC, CNN, Entrepreneur, Fox News, MSNBC, and other media. He has written three books. The most recent, “Spin to Win,” is a step-by-step guide on how to define goals and utilize the power of the media to achieve success in any field.

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Did you ever wonder why your news release never resulted in an article or story in the media to which it was sent? Or did you ever wonder if the release was ever read? Do you know why some news releases always get tossed into the wastebasket? Your strategic thinking business coach shares the following tips for your news releases that will help get them on the news desk instead of in the news wastebasket.

Strategic Tip #1: Make your news release sound like news, not like an advertisement.

Strategic Tip #2: Send your news releases only to the media that are related to the topic of your news release.

Strategic Tip #3: Develop an attention-getting headline for your news release.

Strategic Tip #4: Strive to always keep your news releases to a single page.

Strategic Tip #5: Always place your header, contact information and release date at the top of your news release.

Strategic Tip #6: Use short sentences in your news release.

Strategic Tip #7: Double-space your lines in your news release.

Strategic Tip #8: Always carefully proofread your news release for spelling and grammar errors.

Strategic Tip #9: Write a news release about new products and/or services and their unique benefits.

Strategic Tip #10: Write a news release about the results of an online survey or poll you have conducted and highlight interesting trends or impacts.

Strategic Tip #11: Write a news release about an award you or your business has won.

Strategic Tip #12: Write a news release about a famous person or celebrity endorsement of your product or service.

Strategic Tip #13: Write a news release about a celebrity or well-known speaker you are hosting at an event.

Strategic Tip #14: Write a news release about a new book or newsletter you have authored.

Strategic Tip #15: write a news release about an appearance or speaking engagement you have before a well-known or recognized association, club, professional society, etc.

If you would like to learn how to have your news releases end up on the news desk and avoid having your news release thrown in the trash, increase the probability the releases will be read and used and how a strategic thinking business coach can facilitate and guide you in that endeavor, please contact Glenn Ebersole 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 web site here

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Tags: public relations, strategy, pr, advice, tips

Businesses can often feel that getting press coverage is out of their reach unless they have big budgets – this is not the case. It does time and effort but it is really about knowing what journalists want and the best way to present what you have to offer. Here are some handy tips to help you on your way.

Understanding what journalists want – It is easy to get caught up in what the business is focused on and believe that a journalist will be interested too. A new product, service or website may be of value to the company and customers but journalists may not, necessarily, be bashing down your door to get an interview. Human interest is key – journalists want the people angle – the personal story, the impact the news has on people. There are many other ingredients but this is key. If your widget is ten times faster than the last one then specialist journalists may well be interested but what will really get attention is the impact it will have on people – will it make the queues at airline security move ten times faster?

Know the audience – Journalists are only interested in stories that are relevant to the publication’s audience. There must also be a ‘peg’ for the story – a reason for the story. Usually, it concerns something that has just happened. You can also ‘create’ a ‘peg’ for your story by linking it to, for example, anniversaries or forthcoming events. It is worth researching your target press to get a feel for the types of stories that will be of interest, as well as the profile of the readership -age, demographics etc.

Building your press list – You’ll probably be familiar with many of the publications that are relevant. There are also a number of sources to help you add to your listing. The Guardian Media Directory is a useful reference guide – it lists the contact details for 10,000 individuals and companies in the UK press and media – including digital television, magazines and regional newspapers. There are also many online listings. As part of your list building you should check out the most relevant person to contact/send information to at your target publications, as well as their deadlines.

Issuing press releases that have punch – a press release is a useful way to get your messages across. If you do write a press release then it must answer six questions: Who? What? Why? Where? When? How? You need to present it in a way that makes it as easy as possible for the journalist to use your story. There are some basic rules it is worth abiding by:

* Get your story into the first paragraph
* Avoid jargon and keeping to the facts
* Use statistics to back up your story where possible
* Avoid using hyped up language ‘it’s the best ever’, ‘this fantastic product’ – journalists want facts
* Include contact details at the bottom of the release and ensure that you are available for follow-up calls.

Supporting the press release – Give some thought to how you can support any press release or approach you make to a journalist. Offering an interview, case study, third party quote or photograph are all worth considering. Your research will give you a good idea of what will be appropriate.

If you can provide journalists with news that gives them exactly what they want then you stand a good chance of getting attention and securing interview opportunities. By researching your target press, and packaging your news and ideas to suit, you put yourself in the best position to get press interest and boost your profile.

Using PR to build your profile and protect your reputation can help you influence the audiences that are important to you – I invite you to access more free articles, tips and information on this, and other subjects related to public relations, by visiting this website

Debbie Leven – Profile Matters Ltd PR Consultants UK

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Tags: strategy, coverage, journalist, press, news

There is a huge tendency in today’s competitive environment for businesses and organisations to focus on Public Relations (PR) tactics without giving any thought to strategy. Issue a press release has become a mantra whenever there is a sniff of a story or an idea to create a hook for one. The worst offenders are those that think that PR is just about securing coverage in the press and media – it’s not.

In the midst of sending out your hundredth press release – stop. Ask yourself – what am I aiming to achieve, who do I want to influence, how do I want to influence them, what are the messages I want to get across? If you can’t answer the questions then you should not be going anywhere near PR until you’ve worked them out.

It’s pretty useful to start with your objectives. How will you know in six months, a year etc, whether you are successful unless you know what you are aiming to achieve? You’ve got to know where you are going first before you can plan out how you are going to get there. And no, stating that your objective is ‘to achieve press and media coverage’ is not good enough. Do you want to educate, build reputation, change perceptions?

Why are objectives so important? Because they help you identify what you don’t know. How can you change and build perceptions unless you know what they are currently? If you don’t know then you need to get out there and find out. It’s only then, when you have identified where you are now, that you can look forward and put an objective in place with regard to where you want to be. It’s only by having this information that you can also put benchmarking in place to support evaluation of your efforts.

There is huge pressure on press offices and PR departments to churn out books of press cuttings but what does that really tell you? How many PR departments can actually tell you about the impact of your communication on the audiences that are important to you? There are so many publications – on and offline that there are a huge range of opportunities to secure coverage. Achieving exposure to audiences that are not relevant, however, is a waste of time and money. People get carried away with the idea of five minutes of fame and getting onto mainstream broadcast media. It’s a numbers game but one that does not always make sense if you are a niche player.

Understanding that PR is about perception, not coverage, is key. You just need to decide what you want to do – create, change or reinforce perception. Once you’ve got that cracked it’s more than likely that your focus will move away from just press and media relations to include other tactics that will be beneficial. But it’s the strategy that must come first. For many people it’s shift of focus – thinking about the audiences you want to communicate with first rather than your own organization. Personalities and culture can muddy the waters in larger organizations where egos and history can dominate. Focusing on PR strategy is brave – but it also makes good business sense.

Using PR to build your profile and protect your reputation can help you influence the audiences that are important to you – I invite you to access more free articles, tips and information on this, and other subjects related to public relations, by visiting this site.

Debbie Leven – Profile Matters Ltd PR Consultants UK

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Tags: public relations, pr, tactics, strategy

If you’re a small business or service, an artist, or non-profit organization with limited dollars for marketing and promotions, not to worry: You can still get media coverage for your special event. Even if you’re just starting a business, planning your first art exhibit or music video viewing, there are PR strategies that can result in publicity for an activity you’re not certain the media will support.

One thing that many people seem to forget is that for a press release to be effective, it needs to provide real news. Despite the overuse of the press release as a marketing tool, it’s still one of the most cost-effective ways to get your messages to influencers: web content producers, editors, reporters, and radio and TV producers.

Imagine you are watching the six o’clock news on your favorite TV channel. The news celebrity says, “XYZ Corporation today announced it will be releasing its first product, a high-speed, left-handed smoke shifter.”

How fast can you punch up another channel on your remote?

That’s not news. Thousands of companies release new products every day. What’s different about the XYZ smoke shifter? The fact is, you have little chance of getting a story like that covered anywhere, unless you follow some basic rules.

Sell It In the Headline

Leading off as rule number one: write a killer headline. In fact, the headline should be able to tell enough of the story to get an editor to read the whole release. At influential trade journals and consumer publications, an editor sometimes receives more than a thousand releases each week. That editor is going to spend a fleeting moment scanning each headline. Just as you would, if you were faced with the same task.

The headline has to resonate with a benefit. For example, “Smoke Shifter Spells Relief for Southpaws” demonstrates a benefit in the headline. Another might read, “New Product Eliminates Deadly Smoke Faster to Save Lives.” Again, a benefit speaks volumes about the contents of the release.

Formatting the Release

Press releases follow a fairly standard format convention. Your contact information should be at the top left of the release. Immediately following the contact information, include the line For Immediate Release. This lets the editor know that the information is time-sensitive. If you want the story to run on a later date, then I recommend sending the release at a date closer to that date.

The headline follows. Make it bold and use a standard font, like Arial or Times Roman. You can make it a little larger than the body text, say, 14 points. Sometimes, it’s appropriate to include a smaller subheading that gives more information. Start your story with the location, in all caps.

Here’s an example of the beginning of a standard release:

Contact:

Jane Doe

XYZ Corporation

555-787-0021

jdoe@xyz.com

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

XYZ SMOKE SHIFTER PROMISES TO SAVE FIREFIGHTER’S LIVES

New Jersey Company Provides Leading-Edge Solution to Fight Deadly Killer

WYCLIFF, NEW JERSEY-Test results released today show conclusively that as much as 98% of all deadly particulate matter in industrial waste fires is effectively removed from the air within ten minutes by the XYZ Smoke Shifter. As many as 1000 firefighters and civilians are victims of smoke inhalation in industrial fires, each year.

“We’ve seen the results and we’re ecstatic about the possibilities,” says Wycliff, New Jersey Fire Chief John Doe. “We’ve been using a prototype of the Smoke Shifter for about 3 months now and it’s an impressive piece of equipment.” XYZ pioneered the use of smoke shifters in…”

Include Quotes and Keep It Short

Include a third-party quote, if possible. As with any kind of testimonial, a quote adds credibility to the release. At the end of the release, include a brief description of your company.

Keep the release to one page. If the editor wants additional information, she’ll call you or send an email. Make sure you call her back as soon as you hear from her.

In some cases, editors will use well-written releases as is with just a bit of editing to make the release match their publication’s style standards. That’s why it’s so important to follow the pyramid approach: the most important facts come first in the article. Less important facts belong lower in the story.

Editors are as rushed and overworked as the rest of us. If you can save them time by providing a well-written release with a quotable quote and correct contact information, you will improve your chances of seeing your release in print.

Submitting Your Release

One of the most comprehensive lists of news contacts is offered by the Gebbie Press. You can send a release directly, targeting the specific outlets you’re interested in. Or, you can also pay to have your release sent to thousands of outlets using any of a number of services like PRWeb.

Focus on Niche Outlets

If your product or service serves a niche market, you can achieve more effective results by contacting trade journals and web sites directly. For example, if you know of any web sites devoted to firefighters, fire prevention, industrial safety, or public safety, contact them about your smoke shifter product using the contact information you find on their website or on the masthead of a copy of the publication. Because these sites and publications are geared specifically to your niche, you will find it more cost-effective to target them directly, rather than sending out a blanket release to thousands of unrelated outlets.

Publish the Release on Your Own Site

Be sure to construct a News or Press archive on your own web site. You can keep copies of your press releases there, in addition to links to actual articles or mentions on other sites. Visitors often like to review the press releases on a company’s site to see just how credible the company is. The presence of press releases adds yet more credibility, even if they did not result in any press.

If you write a concise, benefits-laden release, and target it to specific markets, you’re bound to find somebody who will consider it newsworthy for their readers. Remember, though, once it’s out there, you can’t take it back, so make sure you get your facts straight.

For more than 25 years, Mark Smallwood has worked as a writer, marketer, small business owner, and software industry manager and executive. You can read Mark’s regular blog at this site on real world issues facing solo entrepreneurs and small businesses.

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Tags: public relations, strategy, press release, write, article, news

The press and media love an expert. It provides them with a valued opinion on a story and also helps them to move the story on. Making yourself an expert in the eyes of the press and media is hugely valuable. It gives you exposure to many people and used wisely will help to support your business. So, what can you do to make yourself an expert?

* Demonstrate your expertise – If you are good at what you do then you should be able to demonstrate your expertise. This could be through awards, how you have helped individuals, businesses etc, your past experience in providing comment, your years of experience, the major projects you have been involved in. Very often it’s what you might say to other business people when networking to illustrate how you have helped customers.

* Shout about your credibility – It’s no good being shy – no one will think you are an expert if you avoid talking about yourself and what you and your business have achieved. Your position as an expert must filter through to everything you do and every piece of marketing material. Demonstrate your expertise on your website and through other promotional literature.

* Submit articles to directories like EzineArticles – It’s important to get your name out there. Journalists, just like everyone else, are searching for information on the Internet – they want background information that will help to support a story. Submitting articles to directories like ezinearticles will help to establish your expertise.

* Approaching relevant publications to offer comment – In addition to submitting articles to directories, you should consider approaching target publications with ideas for articles and comment you can provide. Online publications, in particular, are on a constant search for material. The nature of the Internet is that these publications are always looking to keep their sites fresh with new material to draw readers back. Articles for online publications give you access to key target groups as well as helping to build credibility with journalists.

* Propose an expert column – As well as providing articles there is often scope for suggesting an expert column to publications, or that you might be a worthy addition to the current panel. That in itself brings huge kudos and helps to build your profile – with readers as well as editorial staff.

* Approach the press and media on the back of a breaking news story – Once a news story breaks journalists rush around to get comment from experts – you need to ensure that they know what subjects you can comment on. There are a number of ways to approach this. You can submit your details to expert databases that journalists subscribe to. Or, you can be the first off the mark when a relevant story breaks and directly approach the press and media. The latter is more time consuming and relies on you having a good idea of the press and media and those likely to cover a particular story. In an ideal world you would do both.

* Secure speaker opportunities – The more speaker opportunities you can secure the more you can build your profile and demonstrate that you have something worthy to say. Certainly, if you can amass a number of speaker opportunities then this can look very impressive.

* Don’t forget your local press and media – National journalists do pick up stories from local papers and never forget that many local journalists have ambitions with the national press. If you can build relations with local press and media then that can be hugely valuable. In addition, it’s useful to get experience of handling the press and media at a local level before embarking on targeting national journalists.

* Call yourself an expert – If you don’t call yourself an expert then no one else will. How do people know unless you tell them and demonstrate it to them?

* Be available – It’s important that when press and media call you for comment you can make yourself available. Do this on a consistent basis and you will build a healthy working relationship – a ‘win-win’ relationship that will encourage them to come back to you time and again for comment.

Journalists need you as much as you need them. Give what they want – well-sourced and credible opinion and views and you will be one step ahead of many of your competitors.

Using PR to build your profile and protect your reputation can help you influence the audiences that are important to you – I invite you to access more free articles, tips and information on this, and other subjects related to public relations, by visiting this site

Debbie Leven – Profile Matters Ltd PR Consultants UK

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Tags: media, strategy, expert, business, press

All of you would know that word of mouth is a very powerful public relations weapon. But not everyone realizes that one of the best ways of generating it is through publicity. Publicity is getting free editorial coverage in newspapers or magazines or being talked about on radio or television.
It is very effective when it happens – they say publicity is seven times more effective than advertising.

What is Public Relations?

Public relations includes a variety of tactics that strengthen your credibility, enhance your image or influence public opinion. These tactics, such as speeches, special events, promotional activities, product launches and product give-aways; sponsorship, newsletters, annual reports, articles and media releases are targeted to an audience. PR involves communicating who you are, what you do, why you do it, and how you make a difference.
The terms public relations and publicity are often misused. Publicity is only one function of public relations. It is media coverage – news stories, feature articles, radio talk show interviews, television appearances, editorials and reviews.
Publicity can be gained through effective media relations such as media releases or news conferences; press kits, press tours and personal letters or phone calls to editors and journalists.
PR for You
Most large businesses even those with substantial marketing and advertising budgets devote considerable resources to public relations because they realize it is one of the best and most cost-effective ways for them to attract customers and increase their business. Small businesses should look at the benefits of PR and positive media coverage because it can:
• Attract customers
• Increase demand for your products or services
• Gain an edge over your competitors
• Enhance your credibility and prestige
• Get your message across without the expense of advertising
• Create goodwill in your community
Free Publicity
Reading an article about a product or seeing a story on the news has a lot more credibility but there are no guarantees that your story will get a run.
One of the unique characteristics of publicity is that you have little control over whether your media release or news conference will be covered. Editors have complete control over a publicity item. They are the ones who decide if it will be used and they also have the editorial license to alter or use only part of it.
This is where an expert can help – one who understands how to make your media release stand out and be noticed and also someone who has good media contacts and strong working relationships with various journalists and editors. Free publicity is really misleading as it does cost money to employ an expert to promote your product or to pay a staff member or yourself (time is money) to handle what is involved.
The Five W’s
Here’s a few tips on how you can write your own media release and attract interest in your product or service:
• First and most important thing – have something interesting to say – consider the Unique Selling Point
• Write a catchy headline – short, punchy phrase
• Bright opening – strongest point first
• Content – the 5 W’s – What, When, Where, Who and Why
• Use memorable quotes
• Title it Media Release and always include the date
• Include contact details of telephone, mobile, email and website address
• Use letterhead and keep content to one page
• If emailing use strong subject heading and copy and paste release in body of email
• Send your release to the appropriate person – do your research
• Follow up – media liaison
• Suggest a photo or photo opportunity that will add to the impact of having your information publicized
Coordinated Approach
To ensure the success of your public relations campaign, PR objectives should be clearly defined and developed as part of the overall marketing strategy. The best results will be obtained through a coordinated approach to all your marketing, advertising and public relations activity. Your key messages, information and branding should be included on all your marketing and PR collateral.
Publicity is a very valuable tool but is often overlooked as a true means of creating interest in a product or service. Normally public relations is an afterthought to an overall marketing campaign and can represent only a small percentage of the overall budget but it can work very well and produce tremendous results.
Not all publicity will help to increase sales but it can generate public goodwill and promote corporate images, product awareness and help to build the overall company brand.
Sue Currie, the director of Shine Communications Consultancy and author of Apprentice to Business Ace – your inside-out guide to personal branding, is a business educator and speaker on personal branding through image and media. To learn more about how you can achieve recognition, enhance your image and shine, sign up for free monthly tips at this site.

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Tags: pr, marketing, strategy, reporter, press

Creating buzz for keeping your organization top-of-mind to the media is the ultimate goal of public relations. So, how do you do it? The following are seven tips for carrying your organization’s message and image to the media.

1. It’s not just about promotion – it’s about supporting and managing your overall brand

From an integrated marketing perspective, public and media relations is one tool in the marketing toolbox. Whether you are talking about a brochure, program mailer, media kit, press release, postcard invitation, email blast, newsletter, web pages, or other communication piece, it’s all about engaging the customer through your brand. Listen to the customer and find out their objectives and issues. Then respond by addressing their marketing needs and opportunities.

When identifying which events, programs or initiatives to promote, consider which activities will support the strategic positioning of the organization. How can a press release support what the ad or collateral piece is trying to accomplish? What PR activities should the creative team be keeping in mind as they develop print and radio creative ads? What cross-promotional opportunities should all who work in the marketing function be thinking about? What elements of the organization’s signature boilerplate can be incorporated into your news releases or other PR materials? Which PR activities will best align with the point of difference of the organization? What PR tactics will produce high value vs. limited payoff?

2. Prioritize your PR efforts

A well thought out PR plan that identifies audience groups, consistent key messages, story concepts and targets, timeline for targeted media sources, and prioritized top media stories is important. However, you also want to be flexible. If a great opportunity arises, drop your plan and run with it!

Always be thinking and brainstorming about the stories, messages and tactics that will keep your messages fresh and relevant.

Make sure your media materials line up with and support your organization’s strategic plan and mission. Before you send out that next release, ask yourself whether it is building awareness of your organization’s core mission.

Be mindful of the media materials that are going out when. For example, sending out multiple releases on different topics in the same week can result in overexposure and dilution of your message. However, in situations where the organization is promoting a major program or event with an overall theme, more than one release in the same week may be the right strategy for getting the word out to media.

As you develop the plan, always be asking the question: what’s realistic and doable, recognizing that you don’t have unlimited time and resources.

3. Be proactive

Cultivating strong media relationships is at the heart of public relations. Here are some tips for working proactively with the media:

1) Develop a timeline of story ideas, story angles, topics, and visuals and pitch to the media to keep your organization in the news throughout the year.

2) Brainstorm on new types of segments to tease reporters and peak their interest.

3) Infiltrate editorial opportunities for regular broadcast segments or newspaper columns.

4) Be available. Respond quickly. There’s usually a narrow window of time to respond to reporter’s requests, so a less than quick response can cost you the story.

5) Provide easy access for journalists to help them tell the story. Set up a dedicated media room with photos or online media kit. Online media kits are the current trend over traditional media kits. Media people are web savvy and don’t need that glossy press kit. One advantage is that you can track the media visiting the site and follow up with them in a timely manner.

6) Reporters want to be singled out. Set up your distribution system so that each journalist receives releases as an email that is addressed by their first name.

7) Determine the best strategy for contacting reporters, e.g., best day of the week and time of day to send press releases, phoning broadcast reporters just before or after their respective newscasts, and, of course, not calling reporters when they’re on deadline.

One exception to being proactive. Personal pitch calls are fine, but there comes a point where you need to stop the pitching and wait for a response. If a reporter is interested in your story, you’ll hear from them. Don’t bug ‘em.

4. Be armed and ready

Avoid scrambling when news producers call and want to create a segment within a couple of hours prior to airing or editors call for photo images to supplement a feature story. Plan ahead so that you can respond quickly to requests for broadcast (B-roll) footage and images. Develop an online media kit so that you can provide a web link to reporters when they request press materials.

When you’re sending out a release that profiles an in-house expert, start to think about conducting media training sessions, coordinating institutional key messages, and developing talking points for speakers. Teach spokespeople to deliver key messages consistently and effectively and prepare them to answer difficult questions.

5. Chase down the story … and get it!

1) Call or send a personalized letter or email to reporters, news producers, or radio/TV hosts. A good way to start pitch letters is to stroke reporters a bit and demonstrate that you’ve read their publication or listened to their show. It’s gratifying when you do get a quick response about your story idea.

2) Get creative and identify the interesting story ideas and story angles that will be good personal pitch projects and worthy of your extra time and attention.

3) Find out which print publications and broadcast segments are the best match for the story that you’re pitching.

4) Be flexible while going after that story. Invite press to attend an event, but be ready to offer an alternative if they are unable to attend. Invite media for a preview day, however, it may be more feasible to do one-on-one interviews — have a plan for both.

5) Reporters like to know about trends, so pitch a broader trend story, not just the organization.

6. Send another press release? Think again.

The best PR tactic may not be a news release. Keep in mind that the majority of press releases don’t get picked up. The press release, while the key PR writing vehicle, is only one component of an effective PR strategy. Think about the end goals of your project. The most effective way to get your message across may be to send a customized letter with a flyer highlighting your client’s program or initiative.

Instead of a release with a broad distribution, a better vehicle may be a calendar listing that goes out to a narrow, targeted print source. You may want to send a media alert a few days prior to an event to grab media attention. Consider community access stations’ message boards, public service announcements (PSAs) to local cable public affairs shows and regional radio shows, news stations’ websites, and other free website listings.

Be aware of timing. Generally, the timeline for newspapers and other short lead media is 3-4 weeks, the target for longer lead magazines is usually 4-5 months, and the deadline for local and community calendar listings varies with the publication. The earlier you can send in a release for inclusion in calendar listings, the better the chances that your story will prominent. If you miss the reporter’s deadlines, you’ve lost the opportunity.

7. Give staff the inside scoop

Don’t forget internal staff when getting the word out to the media about your organization. Employees need to know what’s going on, where the organization is going, and where they fit. An organization’s internal home page can include sections for print, radio, direct, on-site ads, as well as press releases. Web pages can drive staff to get updates on the organization’s marketing plans for the year.

Providing frequent updates on the company’s external site that would not be communicated to the general public also helps to engage staff and make them feel that they are key players within the organization. Include copies of advertising and indicate where the ads are running on the website, so that front-line staff is well informed to answer customer questions. Share key messages to be used consistently in written and verbal communication with staff, FAQs, as well as overall company messages. The message to employees is that we’re all ambassadors, not just the marketing and PR staff.

Public relations is the conduit to engage your audience with the product or service you are selling. While there’s always a tradeoff for not paying for your message to be broadcast, a PR campaign that focuses on building relationships and successfully building brand and awareness can be a powerful and credible force alongside your advertising efforts.

Noreen Kelly is a communications consultant with extensive corporate experience in public relations, internal communications, and change and transition management.

She can be reached at this site.

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Tags: public relations, strategy, organization, media, image

Today’s businesses and business professionals wonder how they can possibly know if they need to hire a publicist or a public relations firm. Obviously there are many factors to consider when making this decision. To provide some guidance to businesses, here are ten top reasons that provide confirmation you need to hire a publicist or PR firm.

1. The news releases you have prepared and submitted never or very rarely are used by the media.

2. There is a significant lack of PR savvy internally within your company.

3. Your media kits are not designed to be consistent with the firm’s image and are not designed with the flexibility to be tailored to varying media needs.

4. There are no significant relationships established with the media and therefore you are easily ignored. And there are no solid media contacts lists.

5. There is no real strategic communications and public relations plan for the company.

6. The efforts put forth in opinion pieces, “pitch letters” and actual media kit content are totally ineffective.

7. There is no follow-up on any news releases, story pitches, etc.

8. Your competitors are constantly in the print and electronic media and you are nowhere to be found in the media.

9. You are turning down interview opportunities because you are not prepared and do not have someone to manage the interview requests.

10. You are not benefiting from increased awareness of your business, products and/or services through exposure in the media.

If you and your company identify with these reasons and are unsure of what to do, how to do it, when to do it, and who to do it with, please contact Glenn Ebersole 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 225 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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Tags: strategy, public relations, publicist, firm, pr

You all know what I am referring to and I’m sure you are as fed up as I am with all the parsing of common words to misrepresent something, someone or both. The parsing of commonly held words is stupid and will not be tolerated by the masses any longer! If an advertiser wants us to dance a jig or jump through hoops to receive their low cost, almost worth nothing, free or freebie item all they must do is simply say so. Rather than parsing of words to mean almost free or free if you are new to our service, or free for the taking but it will exclude you from future almost free or freebies items, just simply say so.

Most adults are capable of understanding that you are a business because you want to feed your family. As adults most people don’t want you as a business to lose any money. As adults most people would like to know that you are making a fair profit and will be in business for years to come. As adults we simply wish for you to not parse words in an attempt to take advantage of anyone! We are giving you businesses, big and small, fair warning that we consumers are fed up with the parsing of words to take advantage of consumers and we are not going to let it continue any longer. We promise to embarrass you and your company if you continue in the future of parsing words to not mean what everyone takes them to mean. Just so that everyone is on the same page, we have listed what we understand these certain common words to mean.

1) The word free or freebie means simply that – zero exchange of money, postage stamps or anything of value.

2) The word free and freebie mean no exchange of money now or latter and also mean the same for new as well as existing customers.

3) The word free and freebie do not mean that we will be branded to lose out of or to be excluded of any special price or deal at a later time if we take advantage of your free product or service now.

4) The word free and freebie simply mean free, zero cost and zero exchange of valuable information such as our email address or the email addresses of six of our friends. This would also include any personal telephone numbers. Time of year or season does not change these commonly held meanings.

5) The word free or freebie means that we don’t have to do anything or offer anything in exchange for your free or freebie product or service.

Now that we have stated clearly what these commonly held words mean to us at large; we expect you businesses, big and small, to understand that we consumers will penalize any company by broadcasting it over the internet to everyone that said company has tried to parse these commonly held words. We believe there is no reason to parse these commonly held words other than to take advantage of another. Therefore we will broadcast across the internet via e-mail, via blogs, via bulletin boards via forums via any way possible now and in the future any company and/or individual that plays games with or parses the meaning of these commonly held words. For the record the meanings of these words are the same whether you are giving us a great or not so great of free or freebie item.

We also wish to state for the record that we consumers understand that you businesses must make profit in order to stay in business. We are not opposed to the fact that not every free or freebie item will be of great worth. We however expect the meaning of these commonly held words to remain just the same, regardless of worth of free or freebie item. May this article serve as fair warning to all businesses, big and small, that we consumers are fed up with all the parsing of commonly held words to take advantage of any consumer!

As a consumer, if you agree to this writing then it is expected of you to hold all businesses to these rules and if some business does not, you have the responsibility to make said infringement known to the masses via one or more methods listed above. Every concerned consumer should print out this little article and keep it handy and ready to post or serve such business and/or individual that breaks these rules. This article is free, zero cost, will not exclude you from future freebies, and will not require you to post personal information or the personal information of six friends. You need not do anything to print it out and post it. This article is completely free of charge regardless of time of day or season of year. This article is simply, FREE!

Theresa Twogood is Executive Director of OLIN e-Publishing Company – visit site -Denver Colorado-USA

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Tags: internet, ethics, strategy, language, websites

It doesn’t matter whether you hire a PR company to get exposure, or write your own press releases and submit them, there’s a way you can generate much more PR exposure, with little effort.

You know that if you send your press release to every editor under the sun (even if your article is of no interest to their readers), that is the easiest way for you to turn off your media contacts. That’s for sure. However, there are many ways you can increase your press release coverage in a targeted way, via the Internet.

The following method is one of the key ways I use to drive large numbers of traffic to my websites.

1. Submit to Newsgroups

On the Internet you’ll often find hundreds of thousands of newsgroups. Many of these newsgroups may be interested in your particular topic, with some of them freely accepting submissions. Some of these are un-moderated, while some are moderated. While a good 55%+ are largely rubbish and full of advertised get-rich-quick schemes, some of them are really genuine industry or interest-specific newsgroups. You just need to know where to look.

2. Banks of Articles

Many websites freely accept press releases and other informative articles on all types of topics, as a way of building up the value of their site and to increase repeat business. This helps drive traffic to their own sites. There is a benefit to both of you. The organizations increase their traffic and you increase your exposure and generate traffic to your website by a link placed at the bottom of the article. It’s a Win/Win situation for both parties.

3. Publishers of E-Newsletters

Some publishers of E-Newsletters worldwide accept articles free-of-charge. They publish these articles in their E-Newsletters in exchange for a link to your site. Publishers of some of these newsletters have over 100,000 subscribers. One article of mine on proposal writing was featured in an e-newsletter and generated 150+ hits to my site, 34 subscriptions to my newsletter, as well as an increase in product sales and enquiries for our copywriting services.

4. News Services – Online

Online news services sometimes will allow you to post press releases on an ongoing basis, sometimes free of charge or for a small fee; these news services are a valuable source for offline newsletter publishers and offline magazines around the world.

5. Include a News section on your websites, featuring all your press releases on your site.

6. Send your press release to your clients by email. When you manage to gain coverage in an offline publication, email the scanned news article to your clients.

For more tips and information about increasing your PR exposure go to this Website

Kristina is a successful and internationally acclaimed Copywriter, Internet Entrepreneur, Author and Speaker. Kristina has also pioneered many business success stories.

Words that Sell services and products include:

Secrets of Freelance Copywriting Success course
Website Copywriting Mastery course
Direct Mail Copywriting Mastery course
Press Release writing
Direct Response Copywriting
Proposal writing
Yellow Pages ads
Website and SEO content writing
Newsletter writing

Visit this website to read more about this topic.

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Tags: internet, marketing, strategy, traffict, websites

There are many different press release companies that offer both the writing and distributing of press releases on the World Wide Web. We have used some of these companies and we have seen very little results and paid for it through the nose. As a matter of fact, as a locally based service company, we have seen much more results from writing and distributing our press releases to local publications ourselves. Getting a press release published in many small local newspapers at one time is sometimes just as effective as getting your press release published in a major publication. Regardless of what you hear, the fact is that newspapers still beat local search methods on the Internet when it comes to driving customers to your door that are ready to purchase. The only difference is the price of the advertising. Newspapers are very expensive to “advertise” in but they will publish your press release for free!

Writing a good press release and mailing it to the right people is usually the quickest and least expensive way for any small business to generate a lot of exposure, new customers and orders. Unfortunately, a majority of small businesses do not write or distribute a single press release ever. You should make writing and distributing press releases a part of your well rounded marketing scheme.

What a lot of small businesses don’t realize is that many magazines and newsletters depend on press releases to fill their pages. They will use your writings as “filler.” And all you have to do to get you press release printed in some publications is to usually mail the publisher a copy of your press release.

We utilized many free press releases when our company was new back before we had enough money to buy advertising. We still use press releases today for any newsworthy reason we can. Over the years we’ve learned that when writing a press release, these are our main objectives:

1. To get the press release accepted by the newspaper editor and printed in the publication.

2. Once printed, to get the press releases read by people who get receive the publication that the press release is printed in.

3. To get the desired reaction from people who read the press release and are potential customers. The desired action is designed before we write the press release.

We’ve discovered that writing a press release that looks and reads like an article from the magazine has a better chance of ending up as a featured article in the magazine than one that reads like an advertisement.

Here’s how to write a press release that will get your company noticed.

Guide to Getting a Press Release/Article Published

1. Identify magazines, newsletters and newspapers whose readers are specifically interested in the product or service your press release will be about. Although “carpet bombing” does work try to avoid the general interest publications that cover a wide range of subjects and target just the publications that reach your potential customers.

2. Once you’ve identified a particular publication that reaches your target audience, call and ask to have a sample copy of the publication mailed to you.

3. With the Sample copy of the publication in hand, look through it and identify all the press releases or press release/articles printed within it.

4. Use the sample press release or article already printed in the selected publication as a guide to write your own press release. Structure your press release so that it closely resembles ones already printed in the publication. Include all of the elements found in the printed press release. This includes photos, typestyle, total length of Press release, length of headline, everything.

5. Once you’ve written and proofread your press release, print it out in a format that fits in the magazine. This is so you’ll have an idea of how it’ll look if the magazine accepts it. If the press release is too long or too short, fix it. You want to be sure your press release/article is just right for the magazine.

6. After you’ve done all this, print the press release on your laser printer using your best paper, attach a high quality black and white photo, write a short cover letter, and send the press release to the editor of the publication.

7. Repeat this same process with several other publications.

General Notes:

1. On all press releases (but not on articles) include the phrase, ‘Review copies available’. This gives the editor a chance to decide to write a full review of the product. Don’t do this on articles because they should be the equivalent of a review for the product anyway.

2. Always include a photo with the press release. We go to great lengths to pose the photo in a manner that is most likely to appeal to potential customers.

3. Always send a press release in a 9 x 12 envelope, with a cardboard insert to keep it from being bent.

4. Always call the magazine and identify the proper spelling of the name of the person the press release article should be sent to.

Always be prepared to answer questions about anything printed in the press release. The editor may call, and if the press release is printed customers will call. Always treat these calls like they are the most important ones you’ll ever get, because they are.

Affordable Concrete Cutting provides concrete cutting, sawing, breaking, core drilling and has offices in both Massachusetts Concrete Cutting Wellesley MA and in New Hampshire Concrete Cutting Salem NH – We specialize in cutting doorways and windows in concrete foundations.

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Tags: pr, strategy, guide, press release, publish

It’s a challenge to write messages that will stick with people and motivate them. People are bombarded with so many messages, how can you try to make sure you penetrate through all the clutter? Too often we see nonprofit literature that is internally focused, or not focused at all, leaving readers grasping for the purpose of the piece.

The key to nonprofit communications can be simplified if you focus on three key questions:

1. Define your audience:

Create a mental picture of one individual. Write personalized language directed at your mental model.

2. Define your purpose.

What do you want your audience to DO?

How do you want them to RESPOND?

• Call for a free brochure?

• Stop in for an initial consultation?

• Visit your website?

• Mail back a reply card?

• Read to their children 20 minutes a day?

Have a clear action step in mind!

3. Make an offer.

• This step is often neglected.

• This step shapes everything else.

• Offers may include: Availability of matching funds to double your donation;
Acknowledgement in your newsletter; A premium item (mug, tote bag, CD, etc.); Dozens of other standard offers.

If you are unsure what you are offering, STOP until you come up with a clear offer.

If you focus on these three things, the ideas will flow and your nonprofit communications materials will be easier to produce and more effective, every time.

Steve Cebalt of Bottom Line Public Relations is Founder of the Social Marketing Leadership Roundtable in Fort Wayne, Indiana.
Visit this site.

Copyright Steve Cebalt 2007 May be used with author acknowledgment

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Tags: public relations, steps, nonprofit, communications, strategy

Most of us grew up with the concept of “Don’t talk behind someone else’s back”. A similar philosophy is “If you’ve got something to say, say it to their face”.

But this is not how the world works.

Especially when it comes to your clients and prospects.

In most cases you will be the last point of contact. Before they speak with you, your prospect will have asked their friends, colleagues, neighbours and advisors. And they will have reviewed your web site – all before they pluck up the courage to speak with you directly.

You see, people are generally scared of making decisions. And the bigger the decision, the more scared people get.

So they search for answers. For reassurance. For understanding. And for the confidence that they will make the best decision.

That is where word-of-mouth comes into play. Word-of-mouth is simply the act of one person speaking to another. It is natural – and unavoidable.

Some people say you can control word-of-mouth. As a marketing consultant I say that at best, you can try to influence it. Controlling word-of-mouth is a tall order for anyone. But you can be successful in guiding the development of word-of-mouth.

You can do this by:

Having a system to satisfy clients. Do a fantastic job.

Letting clients know you really care about the outcomes you provide. Be interested in their results.

Stay in touch with clients via reminders, newsletters, or personal contact.

Impress them so much that they will want to tell their friends and colleagues.

Tell them who would make ideal new clients for you.

Prepare your clients on what to say when they talk about you and your services.

And they will remember you when someone asks them for their opinion.

You can also attempt to activate referrals (referrals = word-of-mouth that results in someone contacting you) by using incentives of one sort or another. This needs to be done in a careful manner. You don’t want to pressure your clients, or offer what might be seen as inappropriate rewards. You don’t want to seem desperate either.

Importantly, don’t make the mistake of relying only on referrals for the development of your business. We all want business to roll in on it’s own. But we also know we need to guide the acquisition of new clients. We need to choose carefully. We need to develop new markets. Relying on word-of-mouth doesn’t always give us this power over our future.

When it comes to getting more clients – you really do want people to talk about you behind your back.

Stuart Ayling runs Marketing Nous, an Australasian marketing consultancy that specialises in marketing for service businesses. He helps clients to improve their marketing tactics, attract more clients, and increase revenue. For additional marketing resources, including Stuart’s popular monthly newsletter, visit his Site

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Tag: public relations, strategy, organization, media, image