Suggest You - Business

What's Your Story? (Part 1 in a Series of Yet-to-be-Determined Length)
A friend’s daughter asked me the other day what it was that I did for a living.Given that she is 7 years old, my usual answer, “I own and run my own marketing communications agency,” wasn’t cutting it.I could tell by the blank stare I got in return for that answer.Considering my audience, trying again I said, “I help companies market their products and services so they can sell stuff and make money.”Better – she seemed to be considering that.“So how do you do that?” she asks.“I create websites and brochures, I write direct mail packages and newsletters and I help my clients get these things in front of their new customers,” I said.“So that’s all you have to do to get people to buy stuff?” she asked me.“Well, no,” I said. “It’s more than just the brochures and websites and stuff.”“So what do you really have to do then?

handbag designer whose claim to fame is making good-quality, attractive accessories at affordable prices, your release can mention how fashion-conscious women are demanding a balance between style and budget.

Tap into human interest…
Is there something in your press release that speaks to an emotionally popular issue? If so, make that a selling point. For example, a client of mine followed her passion/dream when she left her teaching job to open a tutoring center for middle- and high-school students. For her press release, I suggested playing up the “pursuing what you really love” aspect—and pointed out that the teaching thing didn’t hurt, either—as being “for the kids” wins extra points in the human interest area!

Target (and I don’t me

Social Medias as Business Tools
Nowadays, many companies are using social medias as business tools to market their products and services.With easy-to-publish web tools such as blogs, forums, rating site, and social networks, individuals can openly and honestly provide opinions, thoughts and engage in discussions about products or services they frequently use. The barriers to entry are internet access and basic tool knowledge.The car manufacturer Toyota has launched a site at toyota.com/hybrids for hybrid owners, giving the proud owners of its hybrid vehicles their very own social network in order to better do so by inviting them to create profiles of their reasons for owning a hybrid vehicle. Like other social networks, such as Myspace and Facebook, the site allows hybrid owners to post videos, share photos and discuss their reasons for buying and driving a hybrid vehicle as to give some st

So, you and your business have a great product, event or “rags-to-riches” story that you’re dying to spread the word about--because you just know that once people hear the news, they’re goin to want to know more about what you have to offer. You can already hear the “cha-ching!” sound as new customers beat a path to your door. The question is…how are you going to get the word out?

The answer…a great press release.

A press release is a great way to gain free publicity (and who doesn’t want that?) for your business & services. How you write one can make all the difference between getting media coverage for your business—and your crumpled-up press release covering the bottom of an editor’s trash can. So, here are some tips on how you can hopefully achieve the former.

Use the proper setup…
Most press releases are between 200-500 words, and no more than a page long—since most editors and reporters are pressed for time to the 9th degree. Print your release on company letterhead or use your company's logo, and right underneath in the page's upper right-hand margin, put the words "FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE" in all caps (or "FOR RELEASE ON…" if you want the media to hold off on releasing your information until a certain date.) On the right-hand side, list your company's contact info (name, phone number, email/website/mailing address, etc.). Add your headline underneath, then begin the body of your release with a dateline (for example, "CHICAGO, Illinois--March 2, 2004"). After the end of your press release, type either "-30-" or "###" to indicate the story's end.

Grab ‘em quick & fast…
Media people barely have time to breathe—so whatever you send them has to grab their attention as quickly as possible. Start off with a catchy, one-line headline that makes them want to read more. For example, “Five Ways to Live Rent Free” is much more interesting and less wordy than “Local Real Estate Agent Offers Tips to First-Time Homebuyers on How To Increase Equity in Upcoming Seminar.” Follow your to-the-point, lively headline with a brief, clear first paragraph and about five to seven bulleted main points.

“So, what’s in it for me?”
This is the question going through an editor’s mind as she reads your release—the media is all about dispensing news that’s of the utmost interest to the public. The more your press release fits within that category, the better. Does it offer a fascinating story, fabulous event or dynamic interview? The aim is to let producers and journalists know that if they run an article or segment on your business, their audience is in for a real treat, as it would contain information that’s important & interesting to them.

Be a trend keeper-upper…
Another way to pique the interest of your media contacts is to tie your press release’s news in with a current trend or hot topic. For example, your announcement of the new online classes you’re teaching can piggyback on the growing popularity of adult continuing education (both on- and off-line). If you’re a handbag designer whose claim to fame is making good-quality, attractive accessories at affordable prices, your release can mention how fashion-conscious women are demanding a balance between style and budget.

Target (and I don’t me

Why Web Directories Are So Important
Many website owners do not understand the importance of directories, some even question if directories are effective in their overall marketing campaign for their website. Many online businesses can increase web traffic, probability and rankings on search engines by just submitting sites to popular directories.By submitting your website to directories there are so many benefits associated with this. The first benefit to acquiring free traffic from web directories is that it is an economical way to obtain website visitors.Search engines continually search out new sites using robots or spiders, they follow the links on sites to other sites, and they then update their database with the new site that was found. A great way to market your website is to create free incoming links that point to your website, once you do this visitors will visit your site.. Posting links on

ly achieve the former.

Target (and I don’t me

The Office Romance: Ooh La La or Oh No No?
Connie and Joe are inseparable. They exchange knowing glances over their morning cup of coffee. They share the morning paper - he grabs the Sport section while she thumbs through Business. Connie playfully bumps Joe’s shoulder as they pass each other in the hall. Connie and Joe are coworkers. To See or Not to See According to Vault, a media consulting service, 58% of polled office workers have witnessed extramarital affairs in the workplace, 38% have dealt with unwanted sexual advances, and 20% have dated a subordinate. These numbers are up all across the board from 2005. Office relationships used to put the human resources administrator in a bind. ‘Small organizations suffer more than large companies do’, states Arlene Vernon of HRX, in Eden Prairie, MN. The office romance can turn the peace of a closely-knit little group inside out.

press release, type either "-30-" or "###" to indicate the story's end.

Target (and I don’t me

What is a Key Performance Indicator (KPI)?
A Key Performance Indicator (KPI) is neither a Goal, nor a Key Result Area (KRA), nor a Target, nor a Result nor a Critical Success Factor. And yet these terms are often used interchangeably with a KPI.A KPI defines itself, to a large extent, by its name; it is a performance indicator, i.e. the performance of the process it is measuring should be clearly indicated by the KPI.This should clarify that the purpose of a KPI is not, for example, to measure the risk of a process, nor its age, nor its length, but its performance.Further, a KPI should be key, not just any casual measure of a process (or a business as a whole); this can be taken as the KPI being closely correlated with the objectives of the process being measured.An important and often overlooked aspect of a KPI not contained wi

dispensing news that’s of the utmost interest to the public. The more your press release fits within that category, the better. Does it offer a fascinating story, fabulous event or dynamic interview? The aim is to let producers and journalists know that if they run an article or segment on your business, their audience is in for a real treat, as it would contain information that’s important & interesting to them.

Target (and I don’t me

Dig a Deeper Well - How to Tap the Power of Your Brand Image
Many business owners sincerely believe they understand their company brand. They can describe it, quantify it and explain its place in the market. They can recount corporate history and accomplishments and detail future plans and goals. These are all necessary items for communicating a company's brand message, but they are also the most superficial ones. These descriptive attributes tell us about what the business does, but not who the company is. The true power of a brand does not come from the what, where, when and how. It comes from the "who" and "why."Think about it for a minute. Almost every organization can cite what they do, where their offices are located, when they started and how they do what they do. It's the same in science and many other fields. Experts explain how things work, but not why they work. The real effort, the real sweat and tears, comes from digging

Target (and I don’t mean the store)…
If you want your press release to hit home, you’ve got to aim well. That means sending it out to a very targeted list of contacts. If you’re a business coach with a release about your new seminar series, the health and beauty editor at the Huntsville Gazette is probably not only going to pass on it—he or she will probably be annoyed that you didn’t research your contact list first. So, you get the picture—health related events go to health editors & reporters, business releases go to the business desk, and so on. Sometimes, you can be a little creative in your distribution, however—as your release might fit into several different areas. If you’re a female business owner, there may be something of interest in your release to a newspaper’s “women’s” section, as well (i.e. a growing business trend among female entrepreneurs.) Study the publication and make sure you direct your release to the right person, re-working your headline & first paragraph for the individual, if needed—and limit your release to one contact per publication.

Be a distribution machine…
Now that you have your press release written, it’s time to get it out there. There are many different options available, depending on your time and budget. Distribution services can send your release to up to 10,000 media contacts at a time (you can also specify particular markets that you want to reach). Fee based services include Business Wire, Major News Wire and I Media Fax, and the usual cost ranges from $150 to a few hundred dollars. However, if you have a little more time and a little less money, you can distribute your press release yourself. There are places on the Internet where you can post your press release for free, such as PRWeb.com, 24-7PressRelease.com, Free-Press-Release.com, PRLeap.com, and PR.com. You can also do a Google search on "free press release distribution" (to find additonal sites like the ones just mentioned), research newspapers, magazines and TV/radio shows that you’d like to distribute to, visit their web sites and find the appropriate contact person (you’ll usually find a staff list in the publication’s “About Us” section). These days, email is an increasingly popular contact method among members of the media.

Once you find your contact’s email address, send your release in the body of the email, prefaced by a quick introduction and query (no more than a few lines long). Avoid attachments when possible—because of virus scares, journalists aren’t likely to open them if they’re from an unfamiliar source.

The big follow-up…
So, you’ve sent out your release…now what? It is okay to follow up with a phone call to an editor to see whether he or she received your release or has any questions about it. However…don't push it! A sure-fire turnoff for editors is when they get multiple phone calls pressuring them to commit to a story or badgering questions on when a story is going to run. "Short 'n polite" is the best way to go--"I just wanted to see if you had any questions" and "th

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Too many women find themselves unprepared and incapable of supporting a family or themelves alone.

With all the examples of modern technology surrounding us today - e-mail, iPods, toaster waffles, etc. - I have to say that the one I find most amazing, is the cell phone. No longer do passing motorists and their good for nothing children smirk as we carry on our solo, animated discussions- today, they simply assume we are on the phone. I mention all this to you, because in my experience, rehearsing what you're going to write and then reading what you've written out loud, is a surefire way to craft simple, understandable, authentic text (the holy grail of E-Newsletter copy).

Even if you never place a cold call, you still have to reach people by phone. That customer who was so interested last month never called you back, and now you must call her. You call once, twice, th...

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