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Category: Press Releases

PR for Speakers-Legendary Lessons from Pam Lontos of PR/PR

Posted on March 14, 2008

pamlontos-prpr-barbararozgonyi-0308

If there’s one thing every speaker and author could use it’s more publicity.

“I See Your Name Everywhere,” the title of PR/PR founder Pam Lontos’ new book, was also the topic of her presentation to NSA-IL today. Pam covered what you need to know to get more publicity, media attention and bookings!

My top takeaways:

- start at the top and work you way down – it’s often easier to get into national publications

- keep at it: one author sent a new press release to Oprah every week – for four years! – before he got on the show

- write the book; you’ll get instant credibility

- contain media kit costs by limiting your information to one page

- produce an easy to reproduce and update speaker promotion book you can print-on-demand

- don’t be in a rush to get industry book reviews

- contact trade industry publications directly to place 800-1000 word articles

- author popular articles that can run over and over again – one of Pam’s clients’ articles ran over 120 times!

- grab attention with your headlines that list benefits or solve problems

- get in the habit of responding to news immediately with a press release

- tie your news into a special date on Chase’s Calendar of Events – today is Pi Day!

- accept every media interview – the smallest connections can pay off big time

- be patient, one story took almost two years to place in Fast Company

- visit Pam’s site to read her public relations articles

Your Turn

What’s your dream media opp – magazine, radio or TV?

 

0 Comments - Posted in Book Publicity, Press Releases, Publicity, Speaking Tagged with: ,

News Wires |PR Q+A| What is WebWire?

Posted on March 10, 2008

webwire

A reader wants to know more about a service called WebWire. Here’s Adan’s comment he wrote on a post that covered news about online news distribution services:

barbara, hi,

i’m very new to this, and this trying to choose which online pr to go with for our first (and hopefully continuing) campaign, and was wondering if you had any info/feedback on the service called webwire

thank you much,

adan

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Well, Adan, the short answer is “not much,” but since I’m a compulsive researcher, I had to change my answer to “Let me find out.” Thanks to Adan’s comment, I discovered two three new sites: WebWire, statsaholic [a new fave that lets you compare three sites at once] and quantcast, a super-rich site stats resource.

About WebWire

In operation since May 1995 at www.webwire.com, the site claims, “We are the original Internet Press Release Resource predating any of our competitors.” Yet, finding search results on experience or results turned up only a few sites. Is WebWire the best-kept secret in online news distribution? Let’s see. . .

Web Wire’s distribution operates on two levels: news release or press release.

News Releases: Direct to Searching Consumers

WebPost® – $19 per news release submission on WebWire site

WebRelease® – Starting at $49 per submission, “accommodates unlimited search result displays based one search phrase, within a four month campaign, or 150 “click-throughs” (users actually clicking to view the entire news release), whichever comes first.”

Press Releases: Targeted Media Distribution

Targeted Media Distribution – Starting at $95

WebWire service distribution prices via PR Newswire

15% discount if delivered in 3 business days. Stats? ReleaseWatch™ reports with links to your release on up to 20 Web sites, sent via email.

Recommendation

dailyuniquesWith low distribution fees, WebWire’s news release distribution service is worth testing out, but the site’s number of visitors is well below PRWeb and PR Newswire. Want targeted media distribution? The 15% PR Newswire discount is a deal.

Take a look at this video I found on how PR Web compares to Web Wire releases on Bill McRea’s Internet marketing blog. Web Wire is a low-cost, quick fix. I agree with Bill about PRWeb’s status as an authority site. When you use PRWeb, you not only get more reads [click on the graph to compare daily uniques], but you get more search engine power – in terms of page rank lift.

Tell Your Take [or ask your question!] in the Comment Box

What’s your experience with online news distribution services?

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Need headline news and top search engine rankings?

5 Comments - Posted in Blog Publicity, Online PR, Press Releases, SEO

Online PR | News on Social Media News Release Services

Posted on February 19, 2008

A reader writes . . .

“Love your blog, your approach and resources! Do you have a post that addresses a comparison of the PR services? We’re looking at PRWeb vs. PR Newswire and which might be the best for developing an ongoing relationship. We’re launching a new e-commerce site in a couple months.”

prnewswiresocialmedia

When I got this request, it was a stiff reminder to keep a more vigilant watch on the online PR front. Although my experience is fairly recent and relevant, it was not market-fresh.

Because I like to be working with knowledge that has no expiration date, I delved into this request to find out what I would recommend right now.

The last sentence here – we’re launching a new e-commerce site in a couple of months - tells me that this company will want to develop a prominent online presence. Online PR is a great way to roll up SEO, messaging, public relations, social media and analytics all into one affordable initiative. So, dear reader you’re on the right track!

But, how different is online PR now than say – even six months ago?

The biggest change is the move to catch up to Shift Communication’s social media news release format first released in May 2006.

Much of what I do when I talk about online PR in speaking engagements is to highlight the dramatic changes from the typical and traditional double-spaced release most of my audience is familiar with.

If you’re thinking about getting into the online PR game, you’ll want to explore the new rules first. Want to know what makes a Social Media Release Social? Brian Solis will tell you. And, Shift Communications will show you how Social Media Services Wire Compare.

To catch up on the latest with wire services, I went back to my inbox and searched for updates. Not the most formal research method, but the one closest to each wire service’s customer community relations.

We have accounts with all services mentioned. [Note to readers: please feel free to correct, update and add on - I'm sure there's much more to this story.]

Communication with Agencies

In checking my email archives, it’s safe to say that PR Newswire and MarketWire have big plans for 2008. PRWeb? No emails in the last few months – other than to confirm receipt of payment or editorial approval. To be fair, PRWeb posts updates to my inbox on their site. The other services have sales reps that keep me posted both via email and occasional phone calls.

PR Newswire

Although I’ve wanted to test this service, our clients prefer more cost competitive distribution routes. Maybe 2008 will be the year that we launch this relationship.

One of PR Newswire’s email updates took me to a page with three videos. Michael Pranikoff, director of emerging media for PR Newswire, narrates tutorials on search engine optimization, social bookmarking and RSS. Worth watching, the videos explain each technique in plain English.

Although I watched all three of Michael’s videos, I’ll only share a few notes from his SEO video . . .

o In the old days, maybe 5 years ago, news came from journalists; today the mix is: 50% media-50% search – that’s why it’s important to optimize for both

o sync up with ad/marketing re: keywords

o think about both front-end and back-end optimization – html coding and metadata

o go to Google Trends to see what’s being searched for more often

o go to technorati.com and enter the press release URL to check out blog reactions

These tips work no matter what service you’re using.

ProfNet, a PR Newswire service that connects experts to journalists, is one plus no other service has, which is reason enough to go with PR Newswire for many of my PR peers.

Suggestion: Upload the videos to YouTube and Google Video – they’re really good and need to be found!

Marketwire

Disclosure: Marketwire is a client of one of our clients.

We have to agree that Marketwire is a good fit for them: long-lasting, high-ranking Google results vaulted our client from virtual obscurity to positions number 4, 5, and 6 on page one for their most valuable keyword search term. marketwiresocialmedia

Stats from Marketwire’s 02.07.08 email . . .

FACT: 77% of people consider blogs a good way to get information about a company.
FACT: 3 out of 4 journalists look to blogs for story ideas and insight.
FACT: 9 of the top 20 US sites are social media sites such as MySpace®, YouTube™, Digg™ and Blogger®.

Marketwire’s introducing a Social Media 2.0 release format that goes out to sites like iTunes, Second Life, Twitter, Pheedo and Photo Bucket, YouTube. Could be fun, but make sure your media matches your message.

2008 MarketWire Price Guide

Watch for monthly special offers like Marketwire’s February Make a Difference promotion. You get to expand your reach for free to ethnic markets in Canada AND Marketwire makes a donation on your behalf to a charity of your choice.

PRWebPRWebvideo

PRWeb’s video, posted on YouTube, is a quick and entertaining introduction to the online PR concept.

Prior to 2008, PRWeb was our first choice for most clients: low-cost distribution, rich stats, attractive, predictable A+ results in search rankings, but not with journalists.

Now, bloggers have some concerns about PRWeb’s editorial policy and link limitations. I agree with Naked PR’s take.

While we write lively releases, we stop short of writing ad copy. If it bounces out locally, why would a journalist be more likely to grab the story on the web? Telling customer stories is one way to add a more promotional/persuasional tone without going overboard into the ad zone.

As far as passing the news through goes, every time I needed editorial assistance and contacted PRWeb’s team, they were most helpful. We even tell our clients when our releases get a 5 – may be silly, but we want them to know they have a quality product checked by an editor.

What I do have a problem with is the change in PRWeb’s stats reporting. It may be me, but it looks like the counter now turns off at 30 days. Which is weird . . . because the clock is still running on older ones that date back to 2004.

RE: new news, the site’s latest updates leave off at August 2007. Vocus uploaded the YouTube video in September 2007.

Suggestion: Communicate with your account holders more frequently – come up with updates that go beyond service like number of releases, testimonials, case studies, etc. While it’s great to see Joe at conferences, it would be nice to hear from the company, or Joe, a bit more often.

Best for Search Engine Optimization Results in 2007: PRWeb

In a Google search for “PR Newswire PRWeb,” most of the results turned up articles from SEO blogs like Big Oak and Slicksurface that recommended choosing PRWeb for its favorable SEO results. In one comparison, PRWeb came up packed with Google Alerts.

Our Experience

Although PR Newswire’s reach and ProfNet capabilities sound attractive, most of our small business/entrepreneur clients want to minimize the distribution budget.

Because PRWeb offers an all-inclusive approach, this service was our first choice prior to 2008. Now that the stats seem to stop at 30 days out, I’m not as enamored with the service as I once was. I liked being able to continually track keyword searches and reads over time. Still, being able to send a client a .pdf of PRWeb’s Executive Summary with stats is impressive – and quick!

In comparing Marketwire to PRWeb, we found comparable Google News and Yahoo! News results, but Marketwire’s reporting stopped after one report. So, we went with PRWeb for longer-term tracking. Maybe we’ll have to revert to our secondary back up, in-house stats tracking, or become less fanatical about checking.

Where to Start, How to Keep Going

Successful web PR campaigns are often prolific. Beginning at $80 per release, PRWeb is a cost-effective option. Start here. When you need a more defined media list, work with an agency or call each service and ask for their pricing and distribution options.

You might also want to check with journalists you know who can tell you which wires they read. Whatever you do, keep the news flowing. Our clients’ best results come from making news – over and over and over again. That’s why I wish one of these services would offer a volume pricing distribution package.

Your Turn

What’s your experience with news release services?

Contact Barbara about a creative project or a speaking opportunity.

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20 Comments - Posted in PR, Press Releases

How to Accelerate PR Performance & Measure Results

Posted on January 17, 2008

accelerate If you read Joan Stewart, The Publicity Hound’s blog or e-zine [affiliate link], you might enjoy her “Help this Hound” feature. This post is in response to a question from one of Joan’s readers, a media relations professional, who put out a call for tips on how to deal with impatient clients.

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What to Ask Before You Dress to Run Your PR Race

It’s a challenge all media/public relations consultants often face: impatient clients who want major media results NOW. If you’re one of them – an impatient client or a pressured PR pro – try asking these questions I often ask prospects . . .

  1. Why do you think your story is worth telling?
  2. Who do you think should know about it?
  3. Who should tell it?
  4. Where do you expect your story to appear?
  5. What publications do your customers read?
  6. What radio and TV news shows do they rely on?
  7. What sites and blogs do they visit and read?
  8. What do you think you will get out of a major media exposure?
  9. How will you know when your PR efforts are successful?
  10. Are you willing to commit to a 3-5 year strategic marketing plan?

Set Reasonable Expectations

The key word in all of this is: expectations. Managing client expectations can be challenging, frustrating, motivating and rewarding.

We start off talking about small steps and building up. Let’s face it, sometimes your story isn’t worthy of a big hit right away. You have to achieve success on subsequent levels to attract major media attention. As Christian said when he won the avant-garde challenge on Project Runway last night, “I’m young so I don’t have much media coverage yet.” [May not be exact quote - can confirm the winning project used 45 yards of fabric and that Chris partnered on the challenge.]

It sounds like Joan’s reader is doing everything right. Sometimes shifting focus away from the glimmering limelight to substantial statistics is as, if not more, impressive and impact-full.

Go Online to Boost Rank and Visibility Simultaneously

Distributing an online news release can effortlessly boost your page rank and visibility. And, major media outlets start to take notice when you show up in their searches.

Since we transitioned away from counting clips to more of an SEO/virtual PR visibility approach, we find that our clients appreciate their different, but more immediate and measurable results.

Within 24-48 hours after their release, many of our clients land on page one of Google news for the desired search terms.

After a few web releases, many of them vault way ahead of their competition, both in terms of number of Google results and page rank. One client showed up at 4, 5 and 6 on page one for their keyword term for the first month or so after their release. Three months later, their news release shows up at 35/232,000 results – while their own site is buried many, many pages back.

Interpret Stats in New Ways Using Traditional Measures

We’ve come up with a measurement tools like this one to gauge effectiveness: reads/impressions = response rate. Using a comparison to other direct marketing methods, where anything above 1-2% is considered a success, we interpret the results for them.

When you distribute your news via PRWeb at the $360 level, you’ll see stats along with search engine terms and geographic readership. So, in addition to releasing news, you’re also testing search terms and mining readership data.

Be Courageous When Contacting the Media

As far as major media goes, it helps to know where your clients want to appear. In one case, our client’s target was the leading industry risk management monthly. I mustered all the courage I could, held my breath and called the editor to tell her what my client wanted. At the end of the call, she assigned me the story and even edited the four-page final version more in our direction. The client happily paid for the ghostwriting and their board was ecstatic. You can try this, too.

Search for Field Scouts

It’s not always [almost never?] this easy to break into bigger publications. PR agencies can make the calls and tell your clients what it takes to get in the publication so that you both know how to get in. For example, home publications often employ field scouts to preview projects. So, you need to find out who that is and contact them.

After a few phone calls and an hour meeting with a scout, one of our clients got booked for an eight page spread in a Better Homes and Gardens specialty magazine. While my client is located in Chicago, one of their newest projects is in Bermuda. The homeowner read the Better Homes and Gardens feature, saved it and called my client when they were ready to renovate their home. I don’t have to tell you – do I? – that I can’t wait to write that release!

Meredith publications’ garden scout editor is a friend who joined a writing group I started a few years ago. Every now and then we touch base and I tell her about a new garden I like. How hard is it to get in? It depends on what the editor is looking for – sometimes you get lucky.

Learn How to Get Lucky

Out of over 80 press releases I sent to the Chicago Tribune about retailers, only one made it as a major feature. When I call the editor to ask why – they said “Sometimes you get lucky.” I found the more I embroidered the release with intriguing details, the better the pick up. Some PR firms focus on the nugget of the pitch and let the reporters discover the story on their own. I’m more of a storytelling type who enjoys rubbing out the vibrancy so my client can see themselves shining and be proud of a release that portrays who they are.

Knowing the editors personally also helps. When a new client told us they hadn’t had any luck with a regional living magazine, I called the editor and said something like: I can’t believe you’d do a feature without them. Did you know – I listed all the awards and credentials. Even though the story was almost finished, the editor shuffled the article around to include our client, giving them three photos and the beginning and closing quote. Why did he do this? He trusted my opinion, not just as a PR rep, but also as a reader and marketing strategist who knew how to make this issue standout.

Take Action and Test it Out

Now that you’ve read this post, take a minute to see what stands out for you, make some notes and try at least one approach. You can also contact Barbara about speaking, writing and creative projects.

What’s your take on accelerating PR performance?

1 Comment - Posted in Online PR, PR, Press Releases, Publicity, SEO Tagged with: , , ,

On-Pitch PR | Attracting and Romancing the Media

Posted on December 23, 2007

The pitch Except for the player who wants to take a swing at the bat, nobody wants to be pitched; not bloggers, not media, not you, not me.

That is, if pitching means pushing an unwanted interaction with irrelevant information. Who reads every unsolicited email, opens all their junk mail and listens to every robo-call that comes in?

But, what if pitching means sending out a story idea that turns into a feature cover story that’s so good it lands in the reporter’s portfolio?

You know you’re news-worthy so why do your competitors get all the media’s attention?

It’s the same answer as the question “Why didn’t the neighbors invite us to their party last night – everybody else was there?” – either they don’t know about you or they don’t know you well enough to be interested.

Let’s go inside the office of a busy journalist – 400 email pitches per day, at least two phones that ring continually, places to go, people to call, and always, always, always pressing deadlines to meet.

So why would they open a blast email from a strange address and write a glowing cover story about it?

Here’s How to Get the Media to Work for You* . . .

1. Start local

Begin saving copies of every local publication, then visit their site. Be conversant in who covers what and note stories that you like. Reporters appreciate feedback. Call or email them about a story the day it comes out. Is it yours? Tell them how they helped readers, not you. Repeat for local radio and television. You still get online PR coverage when your story is featured on their site.

2. Develop a contact list

Fill in name, publication, address, fax, email, web site and editor or reporter for each beat, including the calendar editor. One story may interest business, calendar, community, lifestyle, news and religion editors. Know how your story appeals to each audience.

3. Find a connection

Are you a blogger? Then you have many things in common with reporters already: you both write, cover a ‘beat” and have readers who respond. While the reporter may have an editor and you don’t, as a blogger you understand the need for relevancy, timeliness, honesty and what makes a great story.

3. Introduce yourself

When a new editor comes into town, call and introduce yourself and your area of expertise. They’ll feel welcomed and know that they have a connector to news. Contacting a new publication? Make sure you have the right connection, tell them how your story will benefit their readers and ask if it’s okay to send them a link to your site’s media center. Bloggers, be sure to tell them how to get your latest posts via an RSS feed or email.

4. Send a media kit

Even in this electronic, paperless world, reporters on the run appreciate a media kit. A simple folder holding a brochure, copy of the press release, contact information and a fact sheet gives them a ready resource. More elaborate media kits might include a book, DVD, CD, photos and a product sample. Keep in mind that more is less and start out with the basics. As you build to bigger media outlets with larger audiences, your media kit can evolve. A one-page guide with links and key facts is an all-purpose solution. Bloggers, put together a page that lists posts they may want to refer to or read.

5. Contribute ideas

Now that they know you, stay in touch. Email comments on stories, make suggestions, point out how you relate to trends and comment on their blog. Sending a letter to the editor is one way to make it in without going through an interview. Or, write a post about their story and ask them to comment.

6. Stay in touch

Connect with your core group every few months or so. You never know when they’ll want to write about you – or if you’re a blogger, when you’ll want to write about them. Update them on your most popular posts and the ones that generated the most controversy.

7. Expand your scope

Once you’ve saturated your local media, it’s time to move on to larger outlets. Now you know what stories stick and how to talk to reporters. Put together a dream list of publications you’d like to be featured in. Then, go back and follow these steps. Start at the top.

When a client once asked me to call the leading publication in their industry, we got lucky. A new editor wanted something different. She welcomed reader contributions and guided me on how to write for their publication. Surprisingly, she suggested that we pitch the story more in my client’s direction. A reporter’s job is to write stories that people want to read. What’s special about your story?

8. Read PR blogs

Bad Pitch PR covers the worst of the worst, but also offers ways to create recipes for “everlasting gobstopper” news releases.

9. Study Google News and Yahoo! News

Search for what’s making news in your corner and then let reporters know about your take on the trends.

10. Post your releases in your online newsroom

Whether you set up one blog post to capture all of your links, add a page to your blog or dedicate a page on your site, make your news easy to find and simple to read. When reporters visit, they’ll know that you’re a serious source with a steady stream of information. And, readers and prospects will be impressed by a collection of captivating releases. For a how-to and an online newsroom guide download, read Shel Holtz’s post about what’s in most online newsrooms. It’s more for corporations, but you will find some good takeaways for any blogger or business.

11. Celebrate and spread good news

Announce achievements that benefit you, your readers or your clients – make sure your news is relevant, not promotional. Read Wired PR Work’s 300th post press release.

12. Study with someone who can help you get where you want to go fast.

Need a steady stream of PR insights? Subscribe to Wired PR Works’ RSS feed. Rather get new marketing and PR email updates?

If you need a speaker, check into *”How to Get the Media to Work for You,”  my public relations workshop speech for bloggers and business owners

Ask questions – thanks to a reader for suggesting I write about how to pitch the media, a topic I’d like to explore more in-depth.

What works for you when you pitch the media? Never reached out the media? What can I tell you more about?

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