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Posts Tagged ‘Public Relations’

Post-Recession: Effective PR Tools in a Recovering Economy

Thursday, December 17th, 2009

recovery1The great recession has come and gone, leaving unemployment, stock market crashes, mountainous losses, and inflation in its wake. Nevertheless, according to an article in Monsters&Critics.com published on 2 December 2009, the Federal Reserve has released a survey which claims that “most parts of the United States have witnessed some improvement in their economies over the last months”.

Although the rest of the economy is still in the process of picking itself up and dusting off the effects of the recession, the PR industry has proved to be pretty resilient throughout the whole ordeal. IsleNews.com carries an article to this effect. Some 2000 Chartered Institute of Public Relations members were surveyed, and the following results were found:

- Many areas of the PR industry have expanded in spite of the recession, with the digital PR sector seeing the greatest growth.

- Around 33% of the consultants have been successful in retaining more than 10 regular clients, and some 60% have added between two and five clients.

- The budgets for Communication in most PR firms have remained stable through the recession.

That the PR industry has emerged relatively unscathed is obvious from the survey. Now that growth is imminent in the global economy, there is more scope for innovation and value-adding techniques that could take your PR company to greater heights. When a PR company is seen as evolving, adapting and innovating in spite of an economy in rebound, the faith of the stakeholders and the public is strengthened.

To keep this confidence alive, a PR company should look for the best PR strategies on offer. Press releases and editorial opportunities take on monumental importance. At the same time, one cannot help but give prime importance to online PR solutions like media and editorial calendar databases, and the all-pervasive social media.

One such source of ideal PR campaign solutions is the MyMediaInfo Media Database. MyMediaInfo already has close to 300,000 editorial opportunities for the year 2010 alone. The database also has close to 200,000 editorial contacts. The resilience mymediainfo-official-logoof the PR industry has spurred us on to refine the media database further to include the Twitter handles and feeds of journalists, enhancements in the profiles and addition of images, and refinements in the Google-like search of the tool. Search suggestions are just one of the additions made to the search feature of the database. Customization options in saved lists and drafts of press releases that have been distributed are some of the new features added to the Autumn release of MyMediaInfo.

With the promise of the ideal PR solution for an exciting campaign, your booming PR practice will more than surpass the recovering economy in flying colors.

Top 10 Must-Reads for the PR Professional!

Monday, November 16th, 2009

Here is a list of must-read books for every PR professional. These best-sellers are top of the charts for a reason, which is that they are valuable insights into the PR industry from bloggers, PR pros, industry veterans, social media experts and marketing gurus. If you want to be inspired enough to take your PR practice to the next level, these books will do it for you.

The top 10 books you should read if you are a PR professional are:

1. The New Rules of Marketing & PR: how to use news releases, blogs, podcasting, viral marketing & online media to reach buyers directly by David Meerman Scott - This book could be just what you are looking for, if you want a fresh perspective on the PR industry, some new ideas on your marketing strategies, and if you have a few questions on internet marketing. This book is now among the top choices in Amazon.com.

2. PR 2.0: New Media, New Tools, New Audiences by Deirdre Breakenridge. This book tells you all you need to know about combining good old-fashioned PR with the speed and effectiveness of social media. Deirdre Breakenridge tells you why you should be on social media, and how to go about it.

3. Putting the Public Back in Public Relations: How Social Media is Reinventing the Aging Business of PR by Brian Solis and Deirdre Breakenridge. This book comes at a time when the PR industry has all but forgotten the very purpose for which it exists - the public. The authors remind us that good relations and sincerity never went out of fashion, after all.

4. Trust Agents: Using the Web to Build Influence, Improve Reputation, and Earn Trust by Chris Brogan and Julien Smith. Written by two of the most reputed experts in the social media and PR industry, this book tells you how you can build trust for your product and company using the social media. It contains real-life examples and input from hands-on experiences of the authors.

5. Groundswell: Winning in a World Transformed by Social Technologies by Charlene Li and Josh Bernoff. If you are still grappling with the nuances of social media and modern technologies, then it doesn’t hurt to read one more book on it. This book deals with the concept of ‘groundswell’ in particular, and why your business should take advantage of it.

6. Word of Mouth Marketing: How Smart Companies Get People Talking by Andy Sernovitz and Guy Kawasaki. Word-of-mouth is the best PR that money can’t buy, and this book talks about how you can make people sit up and take notice of your name, company, cause or product long enough to tell other people about it. A great guide to goodwill creation, this book is also one of the most popular on Amazon.com.

7. The Digital Handshake: Seven Proven Strategies to Grow Your Business Using Social Media by Paul Chaney. The title is self-explanatory, and so is the book. Though this book is also on internet marketing, it comes from the viewpoint of a leading expert on blogging who is also known as The Blog Coach.

8. Public Relations Writing Worktext: A Practical Guide for the Profession by Joseph Zappala and Ann R. Carden. This is a down-to-basics book, which stays true to its claim of being a ‘practical guide’ to public relations. The book gives special emphasis to coordinating public relations with HR, marketing, legal councel, finance, operations etc.

9. Press Releases are Not a PR Strategy: An Executive’s Guide to Public Relations by Linda B. Vandevrede. Vandevrede uses 25 years of experience in the marketing and PR field to break numerous Pr misconceptions and reveals that PR is something that something more than simply sending out tons of emails and waiting for responses.

10. Strategic Public Relations: 10 Principles to Harness the Power of PR by Jennifer Gehrt and Colleen Moffitt. In this book, the authors describe how to use PR to its fullest potential with 10 Tips that every PR professional needs to know. All the lessons have been derived from strategies that the authors themselves have successfully tried in their professions.

Since no post on PR and Social Media can go without a mention of Seth Godin, here is one of his books for good measure!:

11. Small is the New Big: and 183 other Riffs, Rants, and Remarkable Business Ideas by Seth Godin. This book combines all the words of wisdom that Godin has given readers through his blog. Written in his trademark style, the book will show you how to let a great idea take shape in a natural way. He says, “If your idea is great, people will find you”.

7 Tips to Pitch Mommy Bloggers

Thursday, October 29th, 2009

“They influence over 85% of all consumer purchases in the USA, and wield $5 trillion in purchasing power”. Of the 42 million women involved in social media weekly, they form a hefty 11.5 million who are very active in the blogosphere.* They have their very own ’sphere’ in the said blogosphere. They can build or break a product with one post. They are passionate yet kind, and are becoming a successful social media and PR phenomenon, all on their own right!

They are Mommy Bloggers - the women who say that their life is actually just a mixture of potty training, runny noses, PTA meetings, and week-old laundry, with the odd vacation. They have kids, and adorable rambunctious ones at that, and large families, stacks of bills, dentists appointments, and barbecue weekends in tees and shorts just like the rest of us.

But if you are in PR, you better sit up and take notice of them! Here’s why:

1. Mommy bloggers have emerged as a hugely trusted source of product reviews. They are known for their candid estimation of all issues, and this is evident in the product reviews they do. This is because they only review a product they need and have used. They almost never promote a product which they would not want to use. So, if your product has quality, they will definitely acknowledge it.

2. Mommy bloggers throng to the blogosphere to talk to someone who gets them. They are a strong network that is growing by the minute. Just look at BlogHer! And they are fiercely loyal and protective of their kind. Therefore, they are also loyal followers of other mommy bloggers, and will bookmark a mommy blog quicker than they would a techie blog, anyday. So, if you want to be seen, a mommy blog would be the place to be.

3. A Mommy blog talks about more things than any other kind of blog. They have got discussions on school, education, gardening, food, technology, baby products, kitchen gadgets, home-safety, automobiles, politics, environment, fashion…You name it, they got it! So, they are as relevant as a target audience can get!

4. Moms decide on all shopping, everything from the grocery list to Christmas shopping, and where the family goes for vacation! When they are looking to buy, are they looking at your product?

Who better to give you some PR love than a Mommy blogger?

However, these are mothers, so you better play by the rules!

1. Form a relationship first: Get to know the blogger’s interests, what they like to write about, and things that are important to them. Pitch them only if you think your product is something they would use.

2. Don’t assume they want your freebies: Blogging as a mother is not easy, and for some it is their job. Which means that, one, be ready to pay them for their efforts on your behalf. And, two, never assume that they need your products, and will blog about them regardless of quality.

3. Remember they are mothers, first: Never expect them to drop everything for a conference call with you, or take that vacation you are offering. Try to understand that blogging takes second place to family and hungry kids, but it does not mean that they will not take your product seriously.

4. Don’t tell them what to write: Not if you want them to be objective about your product. Try not to bog them down with your opinions on how a certain product should be promoted. Reserve that for your advertising company.

5. Tell them who else is involved: When you tell them about other mothers who are blogging on your behalf, it becomes easier to form a network that will loyally stand up for your product. Moms will also tell you of other mommy bloggers whom you could pitch.

6. Be respectful and friendly: Mothers will not take sassiness from their kids, or from any other human being, for that matter! Politeness and friendliness is as important as the quality of your product.

7. There are laws to follow now: The Federal Trade Commission has published Final Guides governing Endorsements and Testimonials, which apply to bloggers too. Mommy blogger will follow it to the ‘t’, so try to be aware of what that means to your campaign.

If both sides play by the rules, this could be a win-win situation for all members involved.

So, have you pitched to a Mommy Blogger yet?

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*Source: Pitching Mommy Bloggers: Top Women Online Influencers Reveal Best PR Pitches and Strategies. www.reuters.com.

PRSA 2009 Conference, San Diego

Monday, October 12th, 2009

It’s that time of yhmpr_banprsa2009185ear again! The PRSA 2009 International Conference is coming up in November this year. Keep the 7th till 10th free for attending the conference in the beautiful city of San Diego, CA! Right now, there are just 26 days, 4hrs, 52 minutes, and the seconds are ticking down, to the day of the conference.

This year’s theme? Delivering Value. Marisa Vallbona, APR, Fellow PRSA (@mvallbona) gives the reason behind the choice: “The news media is changing radically… PR professionals need to evolve with these changing times… We are offering programs that will provide solutions to today’s PR challenges… so that you can go back to your office and deliver that value to your employer or client.” Marisa and Denis M. Wolcott (@spinspun), spoke to John Elsasser (Publications Director of The Strategist) on a phone interview.

The conference is an event that every PR professional looks forward to in the entire year, as it gives them an opportunity to network with other PR pros, listen to some of the most popular experts and media gurus, and to showcase their own PR innovations. If you haven’t registered already, go ahead and register now!

The highlight of the conference this year, is the addition of the new track called The Business Case for Public Relations. This is now included along with the other tracks on Innovative Strategies, Effective Tools and Techniques, and Specialization and Practice Areas. Attendees can choose from 80 different sessions within these tracks.

PRSA always ropes in the best of the best in the PR and Media industry to speak at the conference. This year is no different, with Arianna Huffington, Todd Buchholz, and Bob Garfield delivering the keynotes, and some of the brightest and most successful minds in the PR fraternity speaking at the individual sessions. You can view details about the rest of the speakers on the PRSA 2009 International Conference Brochure (pdf).

It is not all work at the PRSA conference, and how can it be when you are so close to museums, local art work, submarines and ships?! Casey DeLorme, APR (a blogger at ComPRehension - the PRSA blog) talks about the local attractions in a 1 mile radius from the San Diego Marriot Hotel & Marina where the conference is to be held. Make sure you take in some of the fun and frolic while you’re there!

The PRSA conference is a great opportunity for budding PR pros, too! The various chapters of PRSSA (Public Relations Students Society of America) will attend as usual. The conference is a great platform for students to make those important contacts; after all, good PR simply needs good contacts.

With all this happening, you do not want to lose sight of activities and updates at PRSA. So, lookout for #prsa09 on Twitter, or follow @PRSASanDiego09.

Check out more about the conference from the coordinators themselves, in this short video.

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MyMediaInfo is one of the sponsors at the PRSA Conference 2009. Come visit us at our booth. Also follow @ehill2 and @mymediainfo for Twitter updates from our team.

Can PR ride the Google Wave?

Tuesday, September 22nd, 2009

Google Wave, to be released to 100,000 members of the public on September 30 (if you want to be one of them, sign up here), promises to change the concept of online communication as we know it.  Ever since the Google Wave team introduced the product to the world at the Google I/O Developers Conference held in San Francisco in May of this year, Google Wave has been creating tidal waves all around. Online forums, blogs, and social networking sites have been full of speculations as to how the world would receive it, and whether people really want to let go of almost every online network, to work solely on Google Wave. So…

What is Google Wave?

Lars and Jens Rasmussen

The brain-child of the team that created Google Maps (i.e. brothers Lars and Jens Rasmussen), Google Wave emerged from the teams question, “Why do we have to live with divides between different types of communication… Could a single communication model span all or most of the systems in use on the web today, in one smooth continuum? How simple could we make it?” In Lars’ own words, “A ‘wave’ is equal parts conversation and document, where people can communicate and work together with richly formatted text, photos, videos, maps, and more”.

Google Wave combines aspects of email, instant messaging, wikis, web chat, social networking, and project management into one platform. To your wave, you can include any number of friends or business partners to hold discussions, share files, chat on real time (one of the most well-received features of Google Wave), or comment on any of your post on any forum. Take a look at any complete guide to Google Wave on the blogosphere (including Google’s write-up), to get a peek into the product’s amazing plugins, extensions, applications, and embeds; and learn the terminology (oh,yes!).

Now, Google Wave has been getting some great reviews, appreciation for its features, and some serious ’standing-up-for’ against negative reviews hinting at Google’s ‘evil-ness’. The question uppermost on everyone’s mind, though, is, “Is the world ready for Google Wave?”

Google Wave promises to change the very concept of email and web communication. Should the world get ready to relinquish its email inbox, forget about logging into its social networking sites, and abandon its blogging dashboard? Wave promises that you will never have to log in to any of these sites, because everything becomes accessible through your waves. It also guarantees that every aspect of the web, including forums, the commenting system, customer support and the education system, could get a new look.

Which brings us to the question…

What does Google Wave mean to PR?

Even as the PR world is trying to learn the ropes with social media, it is suddenly forced to come to terms with another phenomenon that looks to change the entire picture of online PR. Google Wave;, which integrates micro-blogging, blogging, Twittering, RSS, and any other conceivable social media tool; will definitely have an impact on the PR industry. The very method of passing on information becomes different where Google Wave is concerned. No more will PR be the sole right of PR pros. With real-time functionality, any and every Google Wave user or member of the public will become a true creator of PR! News will be reported by a by-stander as much as a licenced journalist! Google Wave will redefine the process of sending out thousands of PR emails each day! To quote Valeria Maltoni from Conversation Agent, “[Google Wave] treats media as a process, where the truth could emerge from many voices, and forms”.  Ms. Maltoni asks the daunting question, “Will Google Wave Eliminate the need for PR as Media Relations?”

The Google Wave is already taking the online world by storm, and it hasn’t even been released yet. What do you think this Wave will do for the PR industry? Should the PR industry revamp its methods, join the crowd, or stick to its tried and tested methods?

Tell us what you think.