In order to market your goods or services, you have to
effectively communicate to the public (your target audience)
with compelling news about your organization. Bigger
companies have a better handle on this kind of public
relations than do the small business owners. It is not
uncommon for an entire department to be entirely devoted to
getting information out to the public. A small business
must find its own ways to accomplish this same task which
can become tedious after time.
Larger corporations are better suited for this task as some
of them have entire departments dedicated solely to the
production and release of news stories to help sell their
products. A small business owner must accomplish this same
task with significantly fewer resources or the
expertise to do so.
Wouldn't this be a great world if the media was hounding you
for information rather than the opposite? The recognition
you crave requires newsworthy stories that are more
compelling than that of the competition.
Creating a Story
One time-honored publicity technique is the 'Hall of Fame'.
Developing your own personal Public Relations Hall of Fame
is one of the first steps to creating great publicity
stories. Induct some of your industry's top luminaries and
send out a press release.
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One public relations trick is to resort to the 'Hall of
Fame'. You can create your own Hall of Fame by inducting
visionaries from your field and then sending out a press
release to the appropriate media outlets.
Initiate a Petition Drive
The Internet is a great venue for businesses to implement
their own petition. If there is some hot issue within your
field or even something people might like to see happen, a
petition is a great way to raise awareness for your
business.
It is even possible for you to initiate a petition for no
money and
www.petitiononline.com/petition.html is one such outlet
that can help you do just that. Just browse through the
website and see what kind of petitions others have started
on the site. Petitions abound in many industries.
This is a real PR coup because there are so few businesses
using petitions as a tool for getting information out about
their products or services. It really is a great tool for
this very reason.
Create a List
What is so impressive about a list? Honestly, it is a
wonder. The media just adore lists. They are the most
publicized year after year. So make yourself a list. The
Most Annoying People of the Year from AmIAnnoying.com is a
perfect example of a newsworthy list. Lists like these are
partially to blame for the growth of people columns in
newspapers today! |
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Hints to Keep In Mind
While you may loathe the expense, you may be best served by
hiring a professional to tackle your marketing issues.
Perhaps press releases are not your thing so letting an
outside source handle them may very well be the best idea
because they will be more likely to be able to get results
and increase business. Time constraints are another
possible motivator for letting others tackle tasks you are
not ideally suited for.
If, however, you have committed yourself to writing your own
press release, here are some ideas to keep in mind that may
be useful.
KISS (keep it simple and stupid). There has to be a "slant"
or "angle" to what you're asking journalists to print.
Journalists are very smart and know exactly where you're
going with your request. We all think highly of our ideas
and endeavors, but don't over inflate your ego and try to
impress a journalist with earthshaking news.
KIP (keep it positive) Never turn your news into a gossip
column. Saying positive remarks always brings back bigger
rewards. "What goes around comes around." Try to stay
positive and avoid criticizing, ridiculing or otherwise
embarrassing anyone. Staying positive will reflect well on
your business. |
Remain relevant. The story must be related to your business
or else you are wasting your time. When crafting your list,
try to think of things that will tie back into your
business. Your story must always be in line with your
marketing strategy.
This is only a small part of creating a storyline and
finding marketing material. There are several public
relation options available to small businesses through a
variety of web sites and business oriented e-books. Take
advantage of all of the information you can inquire and use
some of the suggestions listed. Tell a true story about
your business. |
About the author:
Ken Bidgood is the chief editor for
Advertising XP,
the web's premier location when you're after good
up to date advice and observations about Business.
For more articles on Business visit:
http://www.advertisingxp.com/articles .
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on how to get loads of free targeted traffic.
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