Your 2009 PR Strategy- Fill The GAP-(Get A Plan!)
“If I were down to my last dollar, I’d spend it on public relations.”-
Bill Gates
With the Holidays fast approaching and 2008 winding down, it’s time to take a serious look at how you will promote and publicize your organization in 2009. What direction are you heading in? Where do you want to go? How can you reach new prospects, generate an exciting “buzz” about your products and services and make more money? How can you become a respected expert in your field and a trusted news source for reporters?
Your answers lie in proactive public relations. It’s essential for you to have a plan in place in the next few weeks so when the calendar page turns to January 1st, you are set to go with a clear and compelling path to publicity. Despite the economic downturn that has our minds poisoned with negative news and pundits, you must invest some time and resources into building name recognition and position in the marketplace. People who are slashing PR budgets often find themselves with declines in sales and “can’t seem to identify why this is happening.” They fail to see the connection that PR planning and publicity directly impact your bottom line.
Make no mistake: companies do grow during financial downturns. That’s because they remain proactive in their marketing and PR.
You may have to fine-tune your plans, but the key is to have a plan!
Through my new “Recession-Proof PR” program, I can brainstorm with you as your Virtual PR Coach, strategize a path to “free press and publicity” and develop a plan so you can hit the ground running. If you’ve never had a PR plan, it’s more important than ever to develop a blueprint to guide you through the coming months. Chances are you are missing out on plenty of news and media opportunities (traditional and online) that your competitors are taking advantage of.
Don’t be the “best kept secret.” Learn more at http://www.getinfrontcommunications.com./RecessionProofPR/index.htm
In the Business of Knowledge
The Star Ledger newspaper in New Jersey recently reported that President-elect Obama’s transition team has selected Rutgers University history professor Clement Price to help choose the next director of the National Endowment for the Humanities.
This may not be the biggest news of the day, but Price, had an amazing quote.
When interviewed, he explained, “The National Endowment for the Humanities is designed to promote knowledge and I’m in the knowledge business.”
Are you in the knowledge business? Are you the COE- Chief of Everything, or the CEO- Chief Executive Officer of your life? Maybe you take too much responsibility for everyone and everything. Maybe you’re the self-imposed “Mayor of the Universe.” Is that too lofty of a position for you? Too much pressure? Maybe you need to resign; to simplify your life? Maybe you need to change gears and shift your attitude.
The way to get into the knowledge business is to become a lifelong student of learning. It’s time for us to turn off poisonous newscasts filled with doom and gloom, the shallow reality shows that attract millions of viewers each week and the other things we fill our heads with that don’t help us grow and learn. Too many people are complaining about their mediocre lives. These are NOT people in the knowledge business. They are in the business of having their own never –ending “Pity Party.”
This week, I will bring my “Attitude Adjustment 101” program to the National Council on Student Leadership Conference (NCSL) for college students in Orlando Florida. I will talk about the eight steps needed to improve your attitude. These are all tools and strategies that people in the knowledge business tap into. They include goal setting, visualization, discipline, surround yourself with successful people and more. There’s no talk of
”Pity Parties” and Paul Abdul. There is talk of empowerment, success and knowledge.
Commit yourself to learning one new thing a day and actually applying it to your life. Who knows, you may soon find yourself in the business of knowledge.
Why We Need More BS
If you’re like me, work, business and family may feel a bit overwhelming at times. We are constantly bombarded with irrelevant information, messages, electronic gadgets, and now, unsettling news about our collective economic future. We have so many choices and decisions to make; so much information to decipher, decode and decide on. Whether it’s a new search engine project, budget cuts, or creating a new marketing plan, I keep hearing myself saying “It’s BS-take it slow; We need to take Baby Steps.”
This BS approach is especially important to people like me who like instant results and gratification. The BS mentality reminds me of what I have taught business professionals and college students in my public relations and communication programs. That is we often have to set the table before we sit down to eat. Indeed our technology has drastically changed the pace and the world in which we live. But so much of what we do, especially in business and relationships, requires us to slow down and plant seeds that will eventually take root and produce fruit. Baby Steps.
Maybe this BS approach comes with maturity. And then there’s that P word—patience. In leadership programs I teach, we talk about being decisive. Strong leaders don’t make hasty decisions. They are patient. They learn, read, analyze, understand, ask questions and study. They get clarity. They take Baby Steps. Then they make a decision.
BS —we often function more efficiently and with less pressure when we use the BS approach. You may want to try it.
Customer Service is Key to Growing Your Business in a Slow Economy
The key to keeping your current clients and attracting new ones in a down economy is to provide outstanding customer service. Customers who pay for your expertise, products and services have some level of trust and loyalty in what you do for them. Chances are they like you, or they wouldn’t give you money. I speak about the “Likeability Factor” in my programs, seminars and trainings for sales and business professionals.
Consumers these days are being much more selective as to where their precious dollars are going. They know they have choices. If you’re the front desk person at a hotel or retail store and someone complains, the cookie-cutter response is unacceptable. It’s the personal element, the human connection that customers look for. It’s what keeps them coming back, and bringing friends and referrals. In the end, people don’t like to be ignored. You and I know that because we are also consumers. We know how we like to be treated.
Consider the experiences you have had and what characterizes great service. Whether it’s a thorough follow-up from the person who sold you a new computer or the doctor who personally called you after minor surgery to see how you were feeling, it’s the fact that someone took the time out to nurture relationships, communicate that they cared and supported you. They went the Extra Mile.
This is your ideal time to show your clients, past and present, how much you value their business and genuinely care about them. This is the time to take your relationship to a new level that will build deeper trust and loyalty. It’s not about making a one-time sale, it’s about building relationships that will keep people coming back again and again.
The Power of Questions in A Changing World
If you are not getting the information you need, chances are you are not asking good questions. Asking quality questions that engage people and spark a dialogue is critical in communication. In our fast-changing world, it’s critical to be able to disseminate large amounts of information quickly and respond to it. Filing papers is not what leaders do. Successful communicators and leaders take the time to understand and process information. They think. They study. They ask questions.
In my book Communicating with Confidence: Tips & Techniques for Powerful Business Communication, I talk about the natural curiosity of children, who tend to ask lots of questions. All people, including kids, get their information by way of answers. It’s how we learn. As adults we often need to dig deeper. Consider becoming an “emotional archaeologist” and use your invisible shovel (your questions) to dig away at the issues and challenges that lie before you.
When I am preparing to deliver a workshop, keynote or seminar through my company Get in Front Communications, I e-mail an Event Questionnaire form to my contact person. In addition to the logistics of the presentation, I ask for specific details so I am well prepared. I must go beyond knowing that there are 50 people in the room for a 45- minute lunch presentation. In order to customize my remarks and truly impact my audience, I need good information so I can understand what they are up against when they go to work every day.
The questions on my Event Questionnaire may include:
“List 3 workplace challenges that the participants have faced in the past 3-6 months?
Please provide an example that may be used in the presentation.”
“Please name 2-3 specific areas that you would like addressed?”
“Please explain one or two things that are now happening in your industry that keep employees up at night.”
“What is the main goal of your group this year? What do you want to learn from me?”
“Listing something specific, how will you know this program has been a success?”
One reason people don’t like to ask questions is because they never learned how to ask questions. In school, we had to regurgitate information on tests and quizzes. The questions were asked of us. We provided the answers. We wrote down what we knew.
People who are great at asking questions include lawyers, sales professionals, reporters, teachers, and psychologists. Larry King and Barbara Walters can dive right into the meat of a story and get all sorts of revealing information by simply asking one outstanding question.
How about you? Are you asking the best questions of your colleagues, employees, clients…of yourself? How can you do better? What will your ability to ask quality questions do for your career and for your relationships?
PR Is Critical in Tough Economic Times
Vote to be Proactive in PR
Listen closely and you’ll hear the terrifying sounds of budgets being slashed, panicky heads rolling and frightened people running scared. No it’s not the Haunted House at Halloween. It’s educated people like us-entrepreneurs, business professionals and nonprofit leaders. People like you and me, who are watching a new era in America unfold. Maybe you’ve noticed this past year that there seems to be a general malaise; too many of us walking around aimlessly with empty eyes, confused about where we’re headed.
We may feel a little less unnerved now that the presidential election is over, but the sad truth remains that businesses and people are scared and hurting. For many, uncertainty is not comforting.
If you’ve used marketing, advertising and public relations campaigns in the past to build your organization, chances are the budget knife is swinging or has already swung on that line-item in the budget. Many mistakenly think that PR is not essential to running a successful organization. That’s a huge mistake. This is the time when public awareness is key.
Many of your competitors have cut their PR budgets. They are the ones that will likely NOT survive this economic downturn.
Public relations and marketing are critical in these tough fiscal times.
When you are consistently proactive and visible to mass numbers of people who have buying power, you will not only withstand this difficult cycle but you will thrive.
Even though Election Day has passed, it’s time for you to vote to be proactive in your own business and organization. Sitting back, nervous and intimidated…waiting…will get you to last place.
My new “Recession-Proof PR” program is helping business professionals, entrepreneurs, speakers and nonprofit leaders across the country to save money on PR and still get their message out to the public.
Imagine you had your own PR coach, working on the phone and with e-mail, to:
• Develop and create new stories and press releases
• Improve your pitches and hooks to get “the right spin” that reporters look for
• Jump-Start your press releases so they get covered (“Free Press”)
• Plan press conferences and public events
• Provide Talking Points for interviews that offer clear and compelling messages
• Provide interview/media coaching tips and strategies
• Offer creative and proven marketing concepts to leverage your interviews online
• Educate you on Internet news opportunities that tie-in to your PR plan
• Develop a proactive and affordable PR strategy for 2009.
• Provide crisis communications plans BEFORE the crisis hits
• Mentor your newer and less experienced staff on PR successes and pitfalls
Yes, you CAN be proactive. That’s what “Recession-Proof PR” is all about. There are three easy plans to choose from that start as low as $99!
There are no steep monthly consultant retainers, long commitments and confusing contracts. I’ll work with your organization to build your visibility, credibility, buzz and revenues. Use my 25 years of news and PR experience to beat your competition! The services are available whenever you need them; just arrange a convenient time and pick my brain.
Give me 30 minutes on the phone and we’ll have a plan! For details and registration (and access to my free PR e-zine Life’s A Pitch), visit www.getinfrontcommunications.com.
Sitting back and doing nothing will get you exactly that…nothing. You must decide to be proactive and use PR to increase your name recognition and revenues. Vote for survival and success.
Public relations and marketing are critical in these tough fiscal times.
Face Time is a Rare Commodity
In 2006, 60 billion e-mails were sent worldwide every single day. That’s according to the School of Information Management and Systems at the University of California at Berkeley.
In our busy worlds, face time seems to be a rare commodity. Regardless of your industry, you probably find yourself using more gadgets and technology that saves precious time and helps you to operate more efficiently. That may be true, but nothing a can replace a handshake, smile or the human communication.
As the fourth quarter unfolds and the Holidays loom you may have some down time. Try this exercise.
Look through your database or Rolodex and call several former clients, colleagues, networking acquaintances and others that you have not heard from in at least six months. Spend a few days meeting with each one for an early cup of coffee or breakfast at 7:30 or 8 a.m. This helps you to make sure your face time doesn’t interfere with normal business hours and it allows you to catch up. Go to the meeting with the sole intention of reconnecting and nurturing relationships. Use your good listening skills to truly hear what the other person has been doing. Fill them in on your latest projects and accomplishments as they may be able to connect you with new opportunities. Together you can help one another to cultivate new business and enrich each other’s lives. Take the time to invest in human communication.
Repeat this exercise once or twice a quarter.
The bottom line: An e-mail may be efficient but nothing can replace face time.
