How often do you get lost because you don’t really know where you are going? You end up stuck some place you don’t want to be and in order to find your way you often must go back to where you started.
Frequently, you don’t know how to get back because you don’t know which route to take, and in the process get even more lost. And if you do get back, you may be too exhausted to start again.
Be careful—this can happen to your publicity campaign! Read More »
You’ve probably heard that it takes seven touches before a person will buy something. They have to be exposed to your product multiple times, whether through ads, word of mouth, a sales call, etc., before they purchase. Well, media coverage is the most cost-effective — and brilliant — way to get these exposures.
What media coverage does that no ad can do is build your credibility, making it easy to gain the trust of your target audience.
You have to use PR to get this coverage and anyone who’s hired a publicist or taken on a do-it-yourself PR campaign has somewhere along the way asked themselves, “Are my efforts working?” For a person who’s invested their money or time in PR this is a legitimate question. Read More »
The term “public relations” consists of two words, “public” and “relations.” Relations with the public are publicists’ inventories. Relationships are the most valuable assets in publicists’ portfolios. The most valuable relationships are those with the media because they in turn produce relationships with the greater public.
And by media we mean both the traditional media—print and television news reporters—as well as the new media—bloggers, podcasters, and social networkers.
Generally, you won’t see immediate results because these types of relationships must be nurtured. Read More »
Have you ever wondered why you didn’t land a new client? Obviously, there are a number of factors that could prevent you from landing new business such as price and experience. But what about the intangible reasons related to your own personal public relations tactics?
Recently, I was part of a request for proposal (RFP) process for a billion dollar client looking for a full service firm to redesign its corporate website. Although nine firms were sent the RFP, only three responded. In a down economy, you would think that companies are dying to be considered for this type of project. Read More »
Having problems conceiving?
Go on vacation to a resort where you can dine on pumpkin soup and drink a sea moss punch three times a day. Relax, enjoy a romantic dinner for two, get a massage and then let nature do its thing.
That was the key message in a wildly successful PR campaign for Starwood Hotels and its resorts worldwide.
Quinn & Co., its PR firm, discovered that the locals in the Bahamas had been using pumpkin soup and sea moss for generations to help make babies. Certain spa treatments and lots of relaxation also helped. So the PR firm came up with the idea of “The Procreation Vacation.” Read More »
People want you to be authentic. They want to know that what you say is true, that you will deliver as promised, and that your product or service will work as advertised.
If you hope to garner great publicity, your campaign must be authentic as well. It has to come from within and reflect what you truly believe and how you actually perform. Never promise what you can’t provide and make sure whatever you are putting out there is the truth.
Publicity never sleeps — it’s an ongoing, 24/7 battle — so you can’t sleep either. Read More »
If you’re trying to position yourself as an expert, hop on over to Amazon.com and start panning for gold.
The popular website where you can buy everything from books to wireless telephone service is one of the best places on the Internet to promote your expertise, get in front of a targeted audience of buyers, and really flaunt your stuff–even if you aren’t selling anything. That’s because Amazon gives you 17 ways to show what you know.
Just ask Don Mitchell. The management consultant ranked as the Number One non-fiction book reviewer on Amazon. He’s so well-known by business authors that he’s flooded with galleys and new books from eager publishers who literally beg him to offer his comments. Read More »
In our busy world, no one has time for the full story—they want a synopsis, a digest, a capsule that takes only seconds to deliver, is easy to swallow, and resonates in their minds. And it must contain everything they need to know.
Since publicity is about getting your message across, brevity is a must. You must create a short introductory message that will cut through the din and draw attention to who you are, what you do, and the benefit it will provide. We call these messages sound bites.
If you want to get your message across, you need a great sound bite that will immediately capture the attention of busy people. When you get an opening to deliver your sound bite, you better make it good! You must deliver your sound bite quickly, clearly, and compellingly. The more briefly you say it, the better it is. Read More »
I have been fortunate to have some great clients over the years (Microsoft, BET.com, King Features Syndicate etc., international accounting firms) and they all have been very pleased with my work.
I consider myself a traditional PR pro who actually follows the tradition of reading or watching a media outlet before pitching. I have also established myself with thousands of media placements on behalf of my clients. So when I see random people with no sort of media or journalistic experience start calling themselves a publicist, I just shake my head in disgust. Read More »
Good question. Some people believe that press releases are obsolete and that no one actually reads them. True—most press releases are not read thoroughly, but they are scanned.
People glance at headlines and bullet points and give most releases a quick once over. So there’s always the chance that yours will grab their attention as long as yours has strong headlines and easily accessible information. Read More »
