Rembrandt’s Blog

As a new business owner, it’s easy to rush through publicity efforts in order to concentrate or core business activities and priorities. But before you contact the media or post a press release, ask yourself if the information you’re about to send is really newsworthy.

Will a reporter really care about what you have to say?

If you can’t answer this question accordingly, you need to conduct additional research, rework your story angle or rewrite your announcement. Focus on a specific benefit, current industry trend or unique idea.

Once you rewrite your announcement, have a regular customer, or someone in your target market, read it. At the very least, have co-workers, friends or family members review the information. Do they think it’s boring?

This work takes extra time and effort, but it can mean the difference between front-page news and the trash bin.

And if you are having trouble finding newsworthy items to share with the press, here are some tips to help.

Five Ideas for Creating Your Own News:

1. Take part in a community event, or create your own.

Give something back and encourage others to do the same. You’ll help others in need while creating a newsworthy event.

2. Create a brief report or “Top 10 List.”

Relate this document to a big trend in your industry that will help others solve a problem. Provide your expertise without asking for anything in return.

 3. Submit an opinion piece.

Write to your local newspaper, and provide your opinion about a published story or current news item. This can help build credibility and awareness for your business when written in a postive manner.

4. Give a presentation.

Speak at a local community college, business group or other organization where your target audience attends.

Provide valuable information without giving a sales pitch, and invite pertinent reporters. You’ll establish yourself as an expert and meet potential new customers while increasing your chances of obtaining media coverage.

5. Find success stories and promote them.

Talk to your customers, and ask them how your products and services have helped them save time and money, increase productivity, meet deadlines, etc.

Media members like unique, “before-and-after” stories, and you can always use these case studies to build credibility and market new customers.

Got News?

Now, please note that some announcements are just that – announcements about winning awards, events, fresh partnerships, new hires, etc. These may not be the most exciting news-items, but they are still important to share with the press. These announcements will help project a fresh, current and credible image for your business.

But before you share this information, be sure to create a list of appropriate press members, event-listing media venues and customers. Not everyone will be interested in this kind of news. And you want to send it to the right people so you don’t waste your time.

These are just a few, key ideas to consider when announcing your news. Hopefully these tips will help you provide valuable information to the press and build positive, company awareness.

And if you need help increasing sales, awareness and credibility with SEO copywriting and PR, please let me know here or at www.rembrandtwrites.com.

As a small business owner, getting the media attention you deserve is not as difficult as it may seem. In fact, it’s just a matter of picking up the phone and being a good sales person!

Here are five tips to help you get started.

1.      Research.Before you contact reporters, be sure you know what they write about and their particular styles.

Read their articles, watch their television programs or listen to them on the radio. And you should be able to find their direct contact information with a simple online search via Google or Yahoo! If not, check the media venue’s website for additional information.

2.      Prepare Your Pitch.

Do you know what you are going to say when you get in touch with the news media?

Prepare your talking points in advance. Create a unique and interesting story angle and be sure you can mention the important facts in one sentence.

You can always elaborate if the reporter seems interested. And if you’re new at this, practice pitching your story with a friend or co-worker before moving forward.

3.      Pick Up the Phone.

When you have your story-pitch ready to go, contact the appropriate beat reporter directly. Introduce yourself and give the name of your organization. Tell the reporter you have an interesting news story if he or she has a couple of minutes.

At this point, the reporter will give you a few minutes of time or tell you to call back, e-mail the information, or send a fax.

If requested, give your pitch as succinctly as possible, and try to sell the story to the reporter. Why will he or she care what you have to say?

If the reporter shows an interest, be sure to provide the appropriate information and set an interview time as soon as possible.

It’s also wise to have a “back-up” story angle to pitch if the reporter is not interested in your first news item.

4.      Diary the Information

Once you are finished with your call, be sure to make a note of your conversation in your own media database. Keep track of the media venue, reporter, date, and any other key notes.

If the reporter was not interested in your story, write down why and when you should follow-up.

By keeping notes of your media discussions, you’ll be able to give better pitches in the future and create great press relationships.

5.      Follow Up!Many times, the reporters you contact will not have time to hear your story because they are on deadline. Do not get discouraged or take this as a permanent rejection.

Listen carefully to any directions the reporters give you and follow up accordingly. If you keep in contact with media members on a regular basis, eventually your patience will be rewarded.

As you pitch, know that you are giving reporters news about your business, experience and expertise. They may be interested in this information at the moment you call or remember you for a future assignment. It’s up to you to make a good impression.

These are just a few quick tips to help you move forward with your publicity efforts. For more information on how to boost sales, awareness and credibility with SEO copywriting and PR, check out www.rembrandtwrites.com. Also, look for my new book, “Simple Publicity,” coming soon!

You have your business up and running and are ready to announce it to the world. Hold on! Before you send out that press release letting everyone know about your services, there are three things to keep in mind:

1.      Is your site ready?

If people see your press release and visit your site, what will they see? Does your content focus on customer-oriented benefits, or are you just saying, “We are the best, We offer…, We’ve been around since…”? Boring!

Your site needs to let potential customers know that you can solve their problem, and you only have a few seconds to impress them! If your site does not focus on the benefits you offer and provide valuable information to your target market, update your copy before sending out that press release.

2. What do you expect from the press release?

After your press release goes out, do you expect to be inundated with media requests and new-customer orders? Think again. Very few press releases create these kinds of results. Instead, a press release should help to boost online awareness via search engine optimization and build relationships with media members and new customers. Plus, it can help your business appear current, credible and newsworthy.

With this in mind, please have realistic expectations about your press release. It’s important to have regular, monthly news announcements, but press-release-distribution should be part of an overall, marketing strategy and plan involving other activities like e-mail auto-responders, newsletters, free reports, and more.

3.      Are you ready for orders?

Ok. Let’s say you’ve updated your site with the appropriate content and have started your well-thought-out marketing plan. What if your site is bombarded with orders after your release goes out? Are you ready? Can you system handle the orders? Are you customer-service-representatives trained on what to say and what to do?

Your press release can give you a lot of attention. But if potential, new customers show up at your door or Web site to make a purchase, and you’re not prepared, you could miss out on valuable sales and make a bad first-impression.

Press releases are an important tool for growing your business. Just be sure you have an action plan in place, have realistic expectations and think about what you need to do if your phone starts ringing with lots of media calls and online orders. This way, your press-release distribution will be as successful as possible, and you’ll save time, money and stress.

Do you need help boosting sales, awareness and credibility for your business? SEO copywriting and publicity can do wonders! For more information, please write to me here or at www.rembrandtwrites.com.

(Copyright© 2010, Rembrandt Communications^™, LLC – Not to be reprinted without permission)