Dear Nancy,
We hope you enjoy our
newsletter.
The New Year is just around
the corner.
What a wonderful opportunity
to turn
your business into a
publicity machine that
generates favorable
headlines that shine
a light on your winning
ways.
In doing so,
you can get known, build
buzz, earn credibility,
and generate a path
of qualified leads to
your door. What growing business doesn’t
want more of all of
that?
If you are a newbie to
public relations and
need to jump-start your
PR know-how, I invite
you to subscribe to
some excellent and FREE
ezines that will deliver
useful, powerful, and
proven ideas to your
email box on a regular
basis.
Ezine is short for “electronic
magazine.”
It offers news
your readers (clients,
prospects and referral
sources) can use to
run better businesses
or live better lives
as a result of your
expertise.
It can be as
simple as a free email
tip sent to a list of
people who have given
you permission to market
to them online (absolutely
no spamming!) or as
elaborate as a longer
electronic newsletter.
Ezines are powerful
because they keep you
in front of your audience
26 times a year if you
send them biweekly,
and 52 times a year
if you send them weekly.
That means you have
52 chances to connect
with your readers with
quality tips, information,
and resources, while
using 20% of the content
to sell your products
and services.
Here are a few of my favorite
ezines.
Make a habit
of reading them regularly. You’ll learn a lot and be
inspired and equipped
to get into action with
new ideas and resources
to catapult your growing
business to a higher
level of awareness and
success.
The Publicity
Hound - Joan Stewart:
http://www.tinyurl.com/psf3c
PR Secrets - Media
Coach and Marketing
Strategist Susan Harrow:
http://www.tinyurl.com/y6sjyy
Suzanne Falter-Barns
- Get Known Now:
http://www.tinyurl.com/y74fdg
Paulette Ensign
- Tips Products International:
http://www.tinyurl.com/utubk
The beauty of ezines is
that you get to learn
from the masters of
their craft, and you
get to know the authors
and their unique perspectives
over time. When you need to turn to an
expert to solve a problem
or pain you are experiencing
with your own business,
these are the experts
who you will call first. It will be as though you’ve
been working with them
and getting to know
them for months just
because you have invited
their ezines into your
own inbox.
Speaking of which, do
you write an ezine of
your own? If not, give that consideration.
Mine is among
the most powerful tools
in my lead generation
toolbox. If you need help identifying
a supplier, consider
www.constantcontact.com and www.aweber.com. Both come highly recommended
by ezine publishers
from coast to coast
and around the world
who reach audiences
large and small.
These ezine authors have
become my colleagues
and co-collaborators. In preparing this column,
I asked The Publicity
Hound Joan Stewart and
Media Coach and Strategist
Susan Harrow of PR Secrets
to share their best
tips to help business
owners jump-start their
2007 publicity results. Here is what they had to say:
Joan Stewart:
Many businesses, from
one-person shops to
big corporations, should
start blogging. The
search engines love
blogs, and blogs pull
in traffic like a magnet
and draw visitors to
your Website. If you
don’t know what blogs
are or how to start
one, do a search on
Google and get as smart
as you can as fast as
you can, or your competitors
will leave you in the
dust.
Start building valuable
relationships with media
people, and identify
at least one media contact
at each media out where
you want coverage. Ask
“How can I help you?”
Listen. Then do what
they say.
Don’t limit your publicity
activities only to traditional
media. Bloggers, podcasters
and other “new media”
are in a position to
spread the word about
you much quicker than
traditional media can,
and to a wider audience.
Susan Harrow:
Your headline dictates
whether a reporter will
read your release. The press releases that make
the media call are those
that incorporate a strong
story idea about a topic
that includes, but is
not directly about them.
One of my copywriters
came up with this headline:
While most kindergarteners
are picking their noses
and feeding their broccoli
to the dog, six-year-old
Jace Richards was publishing
his first book.
Do you notice how specific
that is? Most publicists
and people doing their
own PR make the mistake
of creating a headline
that's big and broad.
Wrong. Make it small
and specific. The narrower
your topic, the more
arresting it will be.
If you are among the many
who want to get on Oprah,
visit her Website at
this link: http://www.tinyurl.com/vp64m
get a sneak peek at
what Oprah producers
are looking for. Tie
your story, service,
product or cause directly
into what they need
and you've got a chance
of getting on the show.
Submit your 2000 character
(about 350 words) idea
through her Website.
Producers are standing
by. One client of mine
got called back within
an hour.
When you submit an idea
to Oprah, never pitch
yourself, your product,
service or cause. Pitch
a topic that will resonate
with her audience. Map
out who the guests will
be, how you imagine
the segment to unfold
and what visuals you
plan to use. The producers
need to SEE your idea in order to
understand if it's right
for them or not. Make
sure to include your
credentials--why you
and only you would be
the best guest for the
topic you're pitching.
As for my own best advice
to you, here it is.
Brainstorm your
own top ten list of
media outlets that would
offer the most credible
and far-reaching platform
from which to highlight
what is special about
your expertise and your
growing business.
Pay attention
to these media outlets
throughout the year. Ask each for their editorial
calendar, and identify
how your own story fits
into their editorial
plans.
Then, get into
action to suggest winning
story ideas that will
serve their audiences
and bring attention
to your own company’s
winning ways.
One year from now, with
your diligence and follow-up,
you might find that
you’ve earned quality
media placements in
many of your top ten
media outlets. Then, you’ll be convinced
beyond measure that
public relations really
does pack a powerful
punch to help you get
known, build media buzz,
earn credibility, and
generate a path of quality
leads to your door.
With these benefits
well within reach, you’ll
wonder why you didn’t
begin your public relations
effort sooner.
To unsubscribe, please
follow this link.
|
