Rembrandt’s Blog

With Labor Day comes back-to-school and back-to-business. With this in mind, are you dreading your old routine and the cooler months ahead?

Well, here are a few things you can do now to make a smoother transition and have more business success

1.      Check Your PR Action Plan.

Review your plan of action for the next five months.

What do you hope to accomplish, and what are you going to do to get there?

For example, now is the time to contact various publications to get in their holiday gift-guides. Many of these lists are created months in advance due to print deadlines. With this in mind, conduct some research now so you don’t miss out on any media-opportunities.

2.      Review Your Site.

When was the last time you looked at your Web site? If it has been a few weeks, it’s time for a review. Check for grammar and spelling errors and ask yourself a few questions:

• Is the content current?
• Do you provide valuable information for your customers?
• Can site visitors get the information they need quickly and easily?
• Is your site optimized for the search engines?

If you answered, “No,” to any of these questions, your site needs some attention. And if you want to save yourself time, hire a professional, SEO copywriter to help you. In the long run, you’ll save yourself from unnecessary hassles and have better results.

3.      Create Time for You.

Before things start to get hectic, create a tentative schedule. Mark your calendar for personal time. Whether you want to hang out with friends and family members, read a book, work out, go to the spa, or do some other activity to collect your thoughts, set aside time now.

Then, when your workload starts to pick up, you’ll remember to take time to relax and enjoy life – and still accomplish work tasks.

As you get your barbeque ready for the weekend holiday, your busy, back-to-work schedule is the last thing you probably want to think about right now. But, if you spend a short time preparing your action plan and Web site now, you’ll have more control, feel more relaxed and know what you need to accomplish to reach your goals in the months ahead.

For me, I’ve made my action plan and am going to take some time off to enjoy the holiday, but I’ll be back soon!

In the meantime, check out my new book, “Simple Publicity – How to do your own public relations to boost sales, awareness and credibility… fast without spending a lot of money” at http://amzn.to/simplepublicity, or the PR and SEO copywriting information I offer at www.rembrandtwrites.com. Thanks, and have a great, holiday weekend!

Ok. You may think I’m nuts, but I’m writing this at 4:45 on a Tuesday morning. I just put three loads of laundry into the washing machine, and I’m now tackling several, SEO writing assignments in addition to this blog.

Don’t hate me because I’m a morning person. I had to train myself to get into this schedule… and have a big cup of coffee on hand…

But I’ve got to tell you, I get a ton of work done before my phone starts ringing and the e-mails start coming in. Plus, I can work with my East Coast clients and the media during their morning hours. With this in mind…

What are you doing early in the morning or late at night?

If you are spending many, unnecessary hours in front of the TV, searching the Web or sleeping, you may want to rethink your schedule.

Just by reducing the amount of time you spend on the couch or in “snoozeville,” you could grow your business by thousands of dollars!

Think about it.

By adding one hour of writing, reading, learning, marketing, or strategic planning to your day, you get an additional 20 hours per month – about 240 hours per year! That’s a total of 10 whole days! (And how much is that to you in dollars per hour?)

That’s a lot of extra time that can give you the competitive edge you need in today’s economy.

… so the next time you decide to crash in front of some meaningless television program, search the Web or hit the “snooze” button one more time, take a moment to think.

By making simple changes to your regular pattern (and having a little more discipline), you can get a lot more accomplished. And while your competitors are “sleeping,” you can spend less time stressing about your business and more time enjoying higher profits and success!

Do you need help getting people to your Web site and building buzz? Please let me know here or at www.rembrandtwrites.com. I offer lots of free insights and information to help you succeed! (Plus, you can check out my new book, “Simple Publicity – How to Do Your Own Public Relations to Boost Sales, Awareness and Credibility without Spending a Lot of Money.”)

You smell the freshly cut grass and the tangy barbeque sizzling on the grill. You sip a nice, cool beverage by the pool and start to fall asleep.

Ah…summer. It’s time for rest, relaxation and fun. But wait a minute…Wake up!

It’s also a time to be aware of your business. Why?

Well, while you’re napping, your competitors may be doing something you’re not…something that can significantly squash your future sales… and even put you out of business.

What is this secret weapon?

Planning future promotions.

That’s right. Even though the sun is blazing (and you’d rather not work), it’s time to think about snowflakes and holiday sales. Before you know it, the holiday season will be here, and if you don’t act now, you will miss out on some great publicity and marketing opportunities… so what’s a business owner to do?

Here are three, quick tips to fight the holiday battle now:

1.      Figure out what your target market will want.

Start thinking about how you can fulfill the needs of your customers in the months ahead and get them to buy your products and services.

Will an updated product, discount coupon, layaway process, gift-with-purchase, or other special discount bring in more sales? What do you want to accomplish this holiday season?

Be creative and think of ways you can promote your unique benefits while exceeding customer expectations.

And even if you can’t afford a big sale, you can always provide extra customer-service, work with a charity on a special, holiday event, have a theme day, hold a contest, or create other, free activities that will bring customers in your door.

2.      Make plans now.

Got your big, promotional ideas for the holidays? Great!

Write down all of the activities, responsibilities, budgets, deadline dates, and specifics necessary for you to make your plans a reality. And don’t forget to include all of the marketing and public-relations tactics that go with each activity.

This way, you’ll know what needs to be done when, and who is responsible for accomplishing each task. Not only will this help you meet your goals, but it will help you avoid last-minute surprises and missed deadlines.

3.      Start promoting.

Once you have your plan in place, start your promotion activities. After all, many media venues are already working on their holiday issues, and you don’t want to miss out on interviews, articles and advertising placements.

Be sure to get your Web site ready too. You’ll probably need new, holiday copy for search engine optimization, landing pages, newsletters, brochures, blogs, social media, and other, promotional materials.

Got it all together?

Fantastic! Now, you can go back to the hammock and that tall glass of lemonade. You are in control and ready to take on the competition in the cooler months ahead… And if not, give me a call, and I’ll help you get it done!

Need help increasing sales with good copy and publicity? Please write to me here or at www.rembrandtwrites.com. And please keep a look out for my brand new book, “Simple Publicity,” coming soon!