Rembrandt’s Blog

“I just paid a small fortune to a big, PR agency and have nothing to show for it!”

“We hired a freelance copywriter, and he took our money and ran.”

“I paid a lot of money for media placements. Isn’t that how it works?”

Yes, folks. These are just some of the unhappy questions I hear from entrepreneurs on a regular basis. And I can understand why.

There is a lot of information out there so it’s easy to rely on an outside consultant to help you get through the maze of PR, social media and search-engine-optimization activities available.

But before you hire that expert, here are a few things to keep in mind:

PR Does Not Equal Press Release.

When someone mentions that you need public relations, do you think of a press release?

While press releases (especially SEO press releases) are an important part of public relations, that’s not what “PR” is all about.

Many of you are already aware of this. But in a nutshell, public relations is basically sending out a specific message to a targeted audience for a desired result.

And the main point of creating this “buzz” is to get your target market, and media members who cover this market, to talk about your products and services. This creates third-party credibility that you simply can’t buy.

And this brings me to my next point…

PR Does Not Equal Paid Media Placement.

Yes, these days many publications are only writing about people who advertise in their publications (I understand money is tight right now, but in my opinion, this is an unethical, journalistic practice), but with public relations, you do not need to pay for media placements.

That’s advertising.

The whole point of public relations is to share an interesting story that people will want to talk about. This means that you can develop the story yourself, or pay someone to do it for you.

But note that when you hire a publicist, you are not paying for the actual media-placement. You are paying for that skilled expert to develop and pitch stories to the media for you. And when media members report these pitched stories, these are the media placements that offer the valuable, third party credibility mentioned above.

With advertising, the credibility of the media venue talking about your business disappears.

Why?

People know it’s a paid placement and that you are trying to sell them something. The same goes with a press release that your company issues. People know you created and posted it so there is no third-party credibility… the news is coming from you.

And as a side note, be weary of the publicist who can guarantee a media placement. This is impossible unless the publicist personally writes and publishes the story.

After all, the final decision on publishing a story depends on the publisher, producer or editor… not the publicist.

PR Does Not Need to Be Expensive.

Now, as I mentioned above, you can do your own public relations and not spend anything to get some great media coverage.

(Insert shameless plug here – 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 at http://amzn.to/simplepublicity)

However, this does take time and effort for the research, media contact and follow up so you may want to look for an outside expert for help. Just be sure to check references, know who will be working on your account and how much time will be spent on your account, and ask about all fees in advance so there aren’t any surprises.

A good publicist (or any outsourced consultant for that matter) will communicate with you frequently, learn as much as possible about your industry and provide regular reports so you know what is going on and where your money is going.

Well, these are just a few, quick tips about public relations to help you understand what it is and how to avoid spending too much money to build buzz.

After all, I hate to see fellow, small business owners get ripped off!

I’ll provide more tips soon. In the meantime, if you need help or have questions about your SEO copywriting and publicity efforts, please let me know here or at www.rembrandtwrites.com.

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!