Ten Articles to Jump-Start Your Public Relations in Business

It has been a while since I posted anything on Women’s Media Pages and I thought it would be a good idea to share my top ten Media and Publicity Articles for the Week.

They include tips for free publicity, how to strike it rich with publicity, how to create a media relations strategy, word of mouth publicity, leveraging the power of publicity, and tools for publicity success.  And more!

Check them out today!

8 Tips for Fast and Free Publicity by  Melanie Rembrandt

GETTING FREE PUBLICITY!

How To Strike It Rich Using Publicity Strategies & Success Principles

by Annie Jennings

How to Use Articles to Create Publicity For Your Business by Lisa Mason

Connecting with Bloggers as a Media Relations Strategy by Drew Gerber

I Can?t Afford a Publicity/Public Relations Campaign — Can I? by TODD BRABENDER

Crash Course In Creating An Online Media Room For Outstanding Publicity And Promotion by Annie Jennings

Word of Mouth Publicity by Sue Currie

How To Think Like A Publicist To Achieve Like A Star Anne Marie Baugh

Meeting the Press: Effective Media Relations by Linda Pophal

Leverage the Power of Publicity for Your Small Business by Isabel M. Isidro

SUPERCHARGED PUBLICITY – 21ST CENTURY PUBLIC RELATIONS TOOLS Bruce Prokopets

If you have not done so, be sure to check out GET MEDIA SAVVY! – The Woman’s eGuide to Promote Your Products, Services and Ideas To the World by Shannon Cherry, Rhonda Day, Catherine Franz, Dina Giolitto, Paul Hartunian, Penny Haynes, Michelle Howe, Annie Jennings, Nancy S. Juetten, Meredith Pond, Lori Prokop, Heidi Richards and Rosalind Sedacca.

Excerpt from the book: “Before you even begin to think about contacting the media, you need to know what it is you want to gain from the connection. Once you’ve decided your goals, laid out your strategy and started making your list of which media you want to get attention from, then it will be easier to start building those valuable relationships!  Once the media gets to know about you, your brand and what you stand for, the more better your chances of being showcased to their audience.” GET Media Savvy will help you get the EXPOSURE you deserve!

July 10th, 2010 Posted by admin | FREE MEDIA RESOURCES, Heidi Recommends, PR & Media Resources, PR and Media Tips, Self-promotion, Small Business | no comments

Press Releases Still Key to Promoting Small Business

When you think of public relations, the first thing that comes to mind is a press release. A press release is, and will always remain to be an important tool for reaching the media and getting the word out about your business.”

But there are other ways to tap the media, and here are some strategies you can use for your business:

• Bullet articles
• Talk radio
• Article Reprint
• Market Studies “ (note: check out the Women Business Owners Survey results to see a study done by the Women’sCommerce Association)

To read the article by Isabel M. Isidro at Power Home Biz, visit: http://www.powerhomebiz.com/blog/2008/01/public-relation-pr-tools-for-your.html

Check out Media Marvel for a list of Media featuring Red Hot News: http://www.mediamarvel.com/

And for some great all around Media Ideas download your free copy of GET Media Savvy.

Here’s what one reader had to say about GET Media Savvy:

When I first started reading, “Get Media Savvy”,  I quickly recognized the table of contents even got my attention. Then I began to read the pages and almost on every page, I learned something new about media, pr or marketing. This guide is full of great tips, strategies and techniques to help any business owner “get media savvy”. Teresa Morrow, Owner of KeyBusiness Partners http://www.keybusinesspartners.com Virtual Assistance & Online Promotion for Coaches, Speakers & Writers.

April 21st, 2009 Posted by admin | FREE MEDIA RESOURCES, Heidi Recommends, Press Release | no comments

How to keep your press release out of the Round File

Distributing your press release is just as important as writing it if you want it to be seen, and more importantly, written up in the media.Follow these tips shared by Marketing Concept, Inc. and reach your goals quicker and with more success:

1. Target your audience. Only contact editors who write about your industry or topic. If you send your story to the wrong editor the only file it will end up in, is the “round file.”
   
2. Don’t send your press release to a “nameless editor with no interest in your topic. It too will get released to the “round file.”
   
3. When you do discover which editors cover your topic area, find out the best way to send it to them.  For some email is optimum, others prefer faxes and some still do prefer to receive “news” via pony express (snail mail).
   
4. If you do send your releases via email, never send with an attachments – let me repeat that, never send an email to a journalist with an attachment (unless they ask for it that way). It will be deleted.
   
5. Unless the editor specifically asks for follow up, don’t!  With the hundreds of press releases they receive, it will only annoy them if you call and ask if they have received it.  If you wrote your release well, sent it to the correct person in the way they expect it to be sent and you made it compelling enough to want more information, let your press release do its job.  
   
6. Check editorial calendars and deadlines.  And adhere to them. If you send a release to a magazine about an event taking place after their deadline, you are wasting your time – and theirs. Ask the media how much lead time they need to properly research and cover a story.
   
7. Post your release to your site so it can be found there by journalists “looking” for information on your topic.
    
8. Be sure and update your website before sending your release especially if you are writing about information to be found there ~ journalists will often go there first for more information before contacting you.

Tracking Your Press Release Performance

The following services can assist you with monitoring the coverage and reach of your press release.

Google News – GoogleNews crawls news stories and headlines from 4,000 news sources worldwide, and searching is free.
Bacon’s Clipping Bureau – Bacon’s Information provides a wide range of information and assistance for anyone needing to research, contact or monitor the media.
Dow Jones News Retrieval – A pay service that archives more than 60 million documents and 3,400+ trade and business publications. CustomClips® feature scans more than 2600 media outlets for specific information.
LEXIS-NEXIS Communication Center – The world’s largest provider of credible, in-depth information. From legal and government to business and high-tech, our products and services provide direct access to an enormous information universe.
Luce Online – An automatic, electronic news clipping service provider delivering up-to-the-minute stories from over 7,000 print publications, newspapers, wire services, magazines, trade publications, and Internet/Online news sites. Receive full text articles and abstracts of stories matching your custom news criteria via email or website delivery.

Source: Marketing Concept Inc.  http://www.marketingsource.com

July 16th, 2008 Posted by admin | FREE MEDIA RESOURCES, Pitching to the Media, Press Release | no comments

eMarketer talks about Blogs and Traditional Media

eMarketer Daily has an interesting article today called Blogs and Traditional Media and how the media uses (or not) blogs to gather information, find experts and more.

 According to the article: “Of the many interactive features of the top 100 newspaper and magazine Web sites in the US, reporter blogs rank near the top, as do comments on blogs, according to a study by the The Bivings Group. A full 95% of the top 100 US newspapers now offer reporter blogs (up from 80% in 2006), while 58% of the top 100 magazines provide this service. ?

To read the full article visit: http://www.emarketer.com/Article.aspx?id=1006327&src=article1_newsltr.

Be sure to subscribe to eMarketer Daily for the latest news about Media, Marketing and More!

May 22nd, 2008 Posted by admin | FREE MEDIA RESOURCES, Heidi Recommends | no comments

Monday Media Marketing Minute: A reporter’s little black book

Shannon Cherry of Be Heard Solutions has another great tip at Start up Spark!

 Here it is:

 Are you looking for a way to get noticed by reporters to share your expertise and get media coverage?

Then you need to checkout this week’s Monday Media Marketing Minute, where you’ll learn how to be the go-to person when reporters need someone to interview.

Go to Startup Spark and click on the MP3 icon.

 While you’re at it, get Shannon’s  free special report: “Be the Big Fish: Three No-Cost Publicity Tactics to Help You Be Heard” by signing up for Be Heard! the free ezine with marketing strategies you can put to use today. Go to http://www.beheardsolutions.com/freestuff_3.htm

And don’t forget to check out her blog, Startup Spark, named one of the top 100 business blogs in the world.  And don’t forget to check out my blog, Startup Spark, named one of the top 100 business blogs in the world.

May 19th, 2008 Posted by admin | FREE MEDIA RESOURCES, Monday Media Minute, PR & Media Resources | no comments

Creating a Who’s Who Directory Part two

 In November I wrote about getting known by creating a Who’s Who directory which was inspired by reading about a local woman, Pamela M. Hutchinson of Davie Florida, the creator of Who’s Who in Black South Florida – a directory of black professionals. She recently passed away and the article focused on how well-received her directory was and also talked about who would take over her legacy. I thought it was a terrific idea which inspired me to let you know what I and my staff have done. Which lead me into my marketing and self-promotion tip which was to create a Who’s Who Directory of a specific group of people or organizations in your community. It is a great way to gain local media attention, exposure for your business and to become the go-to person in networking.

Recently I created the Who’s Who Directory of Women in eCommerce. If you are a woman-owned business (online for at least one year) and would like to be listed, you can learn more at http://www.whoswhoinecommerce.com. Deadline for submission of the 2008 Edition is next week March 24^th!  We have received more than 400 listings to date!  Best of all, a BASIC listing is Free.

To see a directory I created in the mid ’90’s (I compiled a list of Women’s Organizations in my county that in 3 years time grew from 72 to over 450 in our tri-county area).  This year we decided to create the directory as a downloadable PDF simply because of the cost and time involved in printing. It has positioned me as a resource for professional women – especially those moving into the area.   The interesting thing is that local libraries, high schools and Chambers of Commerce have the directory and Chambers often refer women to me to learn more about the directory and groups pertaining to women.

 It is called the South Florida Network Directory of Women’s Business & Civic Organizations and is available online at www.southfloridanetworkdirectory.com in case you would like to check it out. If the link does not work, try http://www.speakingwithspirit.com/SouthFloridaNetworkEdition7.asp

In addition to creating your own, I highly recommend you submit your listing to several online directories (if they are free, all the better). One word of caution – two really – make sure the directory is one that reaches your target audience and that it draws enough traffic to warrant spending the time (and in some cases money) to submit a listing.  Don’t waste your time on those that don’t. How will you know if it’s right for you?  Find out who else is listed in the directory, what types of people and professions are included.  Look around the website or blog promoting the directory.  Ask for references or read testimonials and comments on the site. This will give you some indication of the value of the listing in the first place.When you’ve done your homework and you feel confident that the listing will get your name out there, submit away!

Wishing you much success when you do!

Heidi  Heidi Richards, Founder & CEO – The WECAI Network – http://www.wecai.orgPresident & Chief Goddess – Eden Florist & Gift Baskets – http://www.edenflorist.com – We send flowers around the corner or around the world!Publisher & Editor-in-Chief, Check out the latest issue of WE Magazine for Women! http://www.wemagazineforwomen.com

March 22nd, 2008 Posted by admin | FREE MEDIA RESOURCES, PR & Media Resources, PR and Media Tips, Self-promotion | no comments

New Media Women Entrepreneurs Scholarships Available

New Media Women Entrepreneurs (NMWE)  will fund three women-led start-ups that will generate new ideas in the world of news and information and model a spirit of journalistic entrepreneurship. Winners will be given $10,000 to launch their ideas and blog about the process over the next year.NMWE seeks to map the creative assets of women and validate new ideas.

It is an initiative of J-Lab: The Institute for Interactive Journalism at the University of Maryland.

The funding is part of a unique initiative to address issues of opportunity and innovation, recruitment and retention for women in journalism. Funded by the McCormick Tribune Foundation, the New Media Women Entrepreneurs (NMWE) initiative will:

1. Provide $10,000 each to help launch three women-led news ideas.
2. Honor a New Media Woman Entrepreneur of the Year in an awards program.
3. Research women’s consumption and creation of news and explore creative opportunities in today’s newsrooms.
4. Produce a day-long Women Entrepreneurs Summit to unveil pilot projects, spotlight other entrepreneurial ideas, and release research findings.
5. Collect new ideas, research and more at www.newmediawomen.org.

Check out existing research, suggest new research, and read the funding guidelines at www.newmediawomen.org.

Deadline for proposals is May 1, 2008.

March 5th, 2008 Posted by admin | FREE MEDIA RESOURCES, Heidi Recommends, PR & Media Resources | no comments

Create Your Media Bio for Publicity

Create Your Media Bio for Publicity By National Publicist, Annie Jennings of Annie Jennings PR

An excerpt from GET MEDIA SAVVY – The Ultimate eGuide to Promote Your Products, Services and Ideas to the World!

Create A BIO That Tells The Media What They Need To Know In A Nutshell  & Learn What Does Not Belong In Your Media Bio

Follow these simple steps to creating a powerful media bio designed to get you booked on the media of your dreams. Annie Jennings PR is a major provider of experts to the media and the PR visionary who has led the industry to all new levels of performance.

1.  Your bio should always begin with your credentials, academic achievements, professional and academic affiliations.

2.  If you are the author of books, papers, and/or studies note those next along with the names of the papers and studies and where they appear etc so the media can document them.

3.  List your areas of expertise.

4.  List the years you have been active in these areas and your fields.

 5.  List any involvement in any association, achievements or awards you have received in your field.

To read the rest of this chapter and others, visit: GET MEDIA SAVVY and download Your FREE Copy today! 

February 28th, 2008 Posted by admin | FREE MEDIA RESOURCES, Media Interviews, PR and Media Tips, Pitching to the Media, Press Kit | no comments

How to Create a Press Kit That Attracts Positive Media Attention

How to Create a Press Kit That Attracts Positive Media Attention
By Dina Giolitto

An excerpt from GET MEDIA SAVVY - The Ultimate eGuide to Promote Your Products, Services and Ideas to the World!

Do you promote your business via press releases that you submit on the Web and/or to newspapers? Then you should ideally have a company press kit. A press kit is, in essence, a media-ready promotional package. Your press kit should be as professional-sounding as possible, and accessible via PDF download format from the PRESS or MEDIA page of your Web site.The purpose of a company press kit:

1. Provide basic information about your company such as key contact names and address details.
2. Communicate the company mission and philosophy.
3. Describe the key market you’re targeting.
4. Detail the biographies of company principles.
5. Share company news.
6. Include high resolution photos of key people, logos and products.

Having a press kit on your site makes it easier for members of the media who spot your name out there to grab what they need quickly. For example, let’s say someone comes by and decides to run your story. If for some reason they can’t locate the short version of your company bio or your photo, they should be able to access these in your company press release with no problem. Should they have a question, the press kit will tell them exactly who to contact for answers.

To read the rest of the chapter and others, visit: GET MEDIA SAVVY and download Your FREE Copy today!

February 23rd, 2008 Posted by admin | FREE MEDIA RESOURCES, Media Interviews, PR and Media Tips, Press Kit, Press Release | no comments

GET MEDIA SAVVY Excerpt

From the Foreword by Raleigh Pinskey

“Without promotion a terrible thing happens, nothing!” is a phrase coined by circus impresario and entrepreneur P.T. Barnum. He made millions in the 1800’s from his promotional efforts. Did you know that Promotion is one of the top five driving forces for a successful business?  Promotion includes the terms PR, Publicity, Public Relations, Branding, Marketing, and Advertising. Each may have a different application and strategy, but they all have a common goal. That goal is to make enough noise to attract a buyer of your services, convince them of your value to them, funnel business to you that will make your cash register say Cha Ching! 

Promotion was very different in Barnum’s day than it is today. The only mass communication available was telegraph, telephone and newspapers. This didn’t stop him from creating The Greatest Show on Earth which made him one of the USA’s first millionaires, and an international force to reckon with. 

Want to read more?  Visit GET MEDIA SAVVY and download Your FREE Copy today!

February 20th, 2008 Posted by admin | FREE MEDIA RESOURCES, PR & Media Resources, PR and Media Tips | one comment