Proven Tactics in PR and Social Media

CMA's PR Manager Kaitlin Friedmann was recently invited to contribute another guest blog for e-Xplorations, a blog that aims to help small to mid-sized businesses adapt to digital marketing strategies. Check out the excerpt below....

I grew up in the MTV generation so when I hear social media experts predict the death of the press release, it makes me think of the panic SEO Marketing that must have stricken radio stations across the country when “Video Killed the Radio Star” was popular.

Rather than making predictions for one thing eclipsing the other, PR pros should embrace the many tools available to them. A mix of classic media relations skills and web-savvy strategies are essential now more than ever to raising awareness and proving ROI.  

To maximize your social strategy, increase the reach of your content and stay as relevant as you can to your target audience, PR professionals should take the necessary steps to optimize their next press release distribution or overall social media strategy.

The Role of the Press Release

Past – The only eyes on a press release were that of a reporter, editor or other member of the media (setting aside investor relations). Its purpose was purely informational and was rarely taken verbatim.

Present – Press releases are seen by a larger audience—they are blasted out to far-reaching lists of media and the general public optimized press releasethrough PRNewswire, PRWeb and other distribution sites. In the age of Google Alerts and RSS feeds, mass distribution is as crucial as ever. Press releases are additionally posted on company websites, sent in customer e-newsletters and linked to social networks.

While I can’t speak about the pre-Internet days of PR, I can make an educated assumption that the most proven public relations tactic has always been flexibility. What this analysis says is that PR pros don’t rely on any one method of communication and the press release must simply be newsworthy for the media and, more broadly, for the end user. The above-mentioned wire services will take care of the release’s optimized delivery, but it’s up to the PR pro to use keywords, anchor text and key messages that resonate with the target audience. The press release in the “classic sense” must also still have a real-live voice behind it (the PR pro’s follow-up calls) to increase the chance of media placement. 

The Gatekeeper-Free World of Social Media

Social media content has the power to bypass the media as the “gatekeepers” of information and go straight to your target audience. This is not just an awareness-raising tactic—there are sales to be made directly from social media working in concert with SEO. According to a comScore study, buyers “who purchase or convert online are almost as likely to use a combination of search and social resources (48 percent) as they are to use just search (51 percent) along the path to purchase.”

It’s nearly impossible to not mention social media in the discussion of the “future” of public relations, so let’s examine the future of the press release in this context.

Future – As attention spans shrink, experts say the press release could be phased out and replaced by viral infographics (visual representations of announcements that particularly involve statistical data used most prominently by FourSquare) or social media posts (Tweets, Status Updates, Discussion Points, etc).

To these predictions, again, my answer is to diversify. Why does one have to replace the other? Some of CMA’s most successful PR campaigns have been those that utilize the full arsenal of PR, SEO and social media tactics.

We recently used a healthy mix of classic PR practices, SEO and social media to “scare” up awareness for an association of haunted attractions. The first foray into our Halloween PR campaign started earlier this month with the keyword-riddled press release describing haunted attractions’ ability to compete for young adults’ attention. Distributed via PRNewswire, the release was also posted on 10 free press release distribution websites.

We also recruited the social media savvy of the association member base to further widen thepress release distribution reach of the press release to industry insiders, while following up directly with phone calls to a variety of consumer media covering the Millennial generation’s behavior. The results—placement on over 200 news websites, a feature article secured in an industry magazine and an in-depth feature article in the works on 10 haunted attractions for a major consumer magazine with more than 10 million circulation.

The bottom line here—SEO gets you on the right pages, but it’s up to you to make the most of your opportunity once you’re there.

Using QR Codes to Promote Your Business

A Quick Response code or a QR code stores information in a seemingly random digital code. Scanned by a mobile phone, the code leads users to a website to find out more information on whatever a company is promoting.

Whether you are an avid user, or have been meaning to check it out at some point, the reality is this technology is growing in usage among businesses looking to further promote their products and services to their target audience. Check out the following ways you can market your business using QR codes.

1. Business Cards – Instead of bombarding your business card with all of your contact information, include only the essential information needed for prospects to contact you. Then use a QR code that will lead them to more information about your company and its products and services.

2. Invitations – To help drive current and prospective clients to a launch party for a new product or to celebrate a business milestone, create a QR code for your event marketing. The code will lead users to the event invite giving them the ability to easily RSVP for the event and help you track attendance. 

3. Press Releases – Use a QR code on your company press releases. This will help the media and interested readers learn more about your company and its products and services.

4. Social Media – Have your QR code direct users to a website where they can follow your business on Twitter, like your Facebook page or even join your LinkedIn Group. This will help build your company’s social media following and foster engagement. Once they participate, say thank you by sending them an email with a special discount or freebie. 

Interested in using QR codes to promote your business? Email us today.

Erin Higgins

Director of Marketing Services

ehiggins@cmasolutions.com

Tricks of the Trade Show

While trade shows can be leveraged as important venues for lead generation, product launches and one-on-one interaction with customers, prospects and the media, trade show ROI is not always obvious.

With the winter/spring trade show season upon us, consider these tips on critical aspects of successful trade show planning and execution as you detail and implement your trade event strategy to maximize bottom line impact:

Choose the right trade show. Is your company attending certain trade shows because “we always have”? Do not always assume the biggest or best attended show is the one to participate in. Rather, choose the venue best aligned with your product or service and which will draw the greatest number of targeted prospects for you.

Why are you attending? Have clear show attendance goals and develop tactics supporting your trade show objectives. There are many possible reasons why a company may choose to participate in a trade show including:

·        Generating sales and leads from attendees in your target audience(s)

·        Launching a new product or announcing an industry innovation

·        Seeking strategic alliances with other vendors

·        Performing competitive intelligence

Trade show budget tips. Trade shows can require a significant investment, but savvy businesses leverage a number of strategies to minimize costs:

·        Take advantage of discounted dates for ordering booth materials. For some shows this is almost one-half the cost compared to ordering on the “regular” deadline.

·        Rent items for your booth, such as furniture, instead of purchasing them. Furniture can be heavy, increasing the overall cost of shipping.

·        Ship to the show warehouse instead of direct to the show site, which adds
special and absolutely unnecessary material and handling costs from the show services company.

Don’t forget the trade media. Major trade shows draw a large pool of media representatives from industry publications, providing the opportunity to build face-to-face media relationships that can result in editorial coverage. Obtain a list of media attending from the show organizer and contact them about scheduling appointments with editorial representatives at the show.

Make them an offer. Obtain a list of registered attendees and send a pre-show invitation to your booth. Offer a relevant giveaway premium at your booth, but predicate the receipt of it upon first viewing a demo or filling out a lead form.

Make an important announcement. If you have important news to release or a new product/service to launch, a tradeshow is a high-visibility venue to break the news, offering your company a stronger angle for attracting the attention of attendees and the media.

Train exhibit booth staff. To maximize your tradeshow presence, every employee working the booth should have a clear understanding of key sales and marketing messages, and the goals for event attendance.

Turn leads into sales. Offer to send marketing materials to an interested prospect’s office to lighten his/her load of materials carried around at the show or the airport. As a practical matter, confirming their receipt once the prospect is back in the office gives you a legitimate reason to follow up, and follow up and follow up. Otherwise, all the work at the show is a wash. One call doesn’t cut it. Be persistent!

Jeff Barnhart

President & CEO

jbarnhart@cmasolutions.com

SEO: A PR Change Agent

CMA's PR manager, Kaitlin Friedmann, recently became a guest blogger on e-Xplorations.com, a marketing blog designed to help business owners become more savvy to new trends. The excerpt below was posted this week...

You’ve seen the reports—2010 is shaping up to potentially be the year where all marketing and public relations departments truly step up their Web 2.0 budgets. This means increased time and energy devoted to blog development, social media marketing and other user-generated content overall, and all together, a new way of thinking about integrated marketing.

With all of these exciting interactive communication developments happening at once, perhaps the topic on most business owners’ and executives’ minds is search engine optimization (SEO). SEO is valuable to any promotional campaign because the very aim of this practice is to create awareness, raise interest and desire, and move a consumer to take action all in one place—the search engine.
In the public relations profession, SEO has been a major change agent. Gone are the PR strategies that ignore the power of online media and rely only on traditional print and broadcast outlets.

Most SEO seekers’ main objective is to drive traffic to a specific website—now also a common goal for the PR professional, whose usual directive “get ink,” has been fully transitioned to an equal or greater desire for website hits. While Business Wire, Marketwire, PrimeNewswire, PR Newswire and PRWeb have been valuable tools for press release distribution for decades, (to both media and directly to the consumer) PR professionals need to utilize these services to their fullest extent by providing more optimized and tailored content to make their announcement stand out.

To increase the chances of an announcement reaching the individual it was intended for, a few simple practices can be integrated during the writing of the press release:

1) Make headlines – Your headline is still your first opportunity to make a good impression on your target audience. Craft a headline chock full of keywords that speak to your audience’s main concerns and greatly increase your chances of them moving on to learn more.

2) Drop your anchor – Using targeted words for anchor text that links back to specific pages of the company’s website, or to other useful pages such as a company blog, can determine the ranking that the page will receive by search engines. Make sure your linked text is relevant to the landing page and include your actual URL in as many appropriate areas as possible—not just the boilerplate.

3) Use words from your customers’ mouths – In order to increase word of mouth among your target customers, wouldn’t it make sense to ask them what their needs are first? Compile a list of top search terms and key issues by putting in some extra time to survey your market or compile market research ahead of time. This will ensure you aren’t using misunderstood jargon or buzzwords they consider overused.

4) Do it yourself – Many online news outlets have areas where you can post press releases yourself. These areas offer an opportunity for you increase your SEO ranking by having your company or client’s name mentioned on websites other than your own.

A lot has changed about PR in the last five years, but one thing that will remain timeless is the value of good copywriting. A press release that is vague, too opinionated or just poorly written will get you nowhere—with or without SEO. By relying on your instincts and approaching SEO in an organized way, you can upgrade your PR approach and adapt appropriately without seeming like you’re rushing to jump on an SEO band wagon.

Kaitlin Friedmann
PR Manager
kfriedmann@cmasolutions.com

Doing good is good for business

The non-profit sector is arguably the single most important force for bettering the regional community many of our businesses serve as well as the social and cultural fabric we, as a society, all share.

Many companies, including CMA, make corporate responsibility a focus year round. If your business is contributing a good deed in the spirit of the upcoming season of giving, even if it’s as simple as a food drive, why not leverage print and electronic public relations to let the community know?

Your press release and an accompanying photo won’t likely end up on the front page or the top of the landing page, but most media provide recognition for high-profile corporate citizenship or high-impact charitable donations. Corporate commitment to making a difference helps differentiate your business from competitors and casts your company in a favorable light in the minds of consumers and employees.

In fact, a recent report from the Council on Foundations noted that 83% of Americans have a more positive image of companies who support causes they care about or perceive to be beneficial to the common good. The report also states that 87% of employees at companies with corporate giving programs feel a stronger sense of loyalty to their employers.

No wonder that, even in a time of economic turbulence, an IBM study released this year found over 1, 000 CEOs plan to increase their corporate giving by 25% or more.

A regular and organized corporate social responsibility program not only burnishes your brand, but builds a reservoir of public good will that can prove resilient in times of crisis.

Ultimately it pays to embrace the spirit of giving, not just at this altruistic time of year, but on a planned and budgeted basis annually. Corporate philanthropy is good—both for business and the nonprofits whose missions are advanced. Doing well by doing good should be business as usual.

Jeff Barnhart
President & CEO
jbarnhart@cmasolutions.com

Social Networking: Becoming one of “them”

Like many PR professionals, I have made a conscious effort in recent years to get on board with social networking. How else can I effectively manage a client’s social media campaign without being one of “them,” the increasing community that communicates largely via 140-character sentences?

I started out on MySpace a couple years ago, but gravitated more toward Facebook and LinkedIn after realizing their more professional, grown-up format. Twitter has the potential to reach a wide audience, as we saw with recent news events as the Presidential Inauguration and the struggle of young Iranian protestors, but requires a lot of up-keep and the right message to gain followers.

Along with these core sites, I participate in other social media by blogging and frequenting several news and political blogs, PR professional blogs and message boards, along with the all-important entertainment scoop sites, providing an occasional comment when I feel I just can’t keep my opinion to myself.

What I have found is that, for the most part, regarding Facebook and Twitter, I pay real attention to a core 20% of my “friends.” For example, a few of my friends are in event planning and public relations. They have, by far, the most interesting “status updates” and “Tweets” because they constantly recommend and mention the best restaurants, hotels and other useful services they come in contact with. I have learned about great New York hot spots, which resorts have the most comfortable beds and websites where I can check out videos of tourist attractions before I visit.

Our clients, current and potential, can gain from this perspective. Many companies want to jump on the social media marketing bandwagon, and I don’t blame them. It’s all anyone is talking about if they are not talking about the downturned economy. But so far, there are specific niches that can use social media as an effective way to raise awareness and drive sales.

It seems obvious, but most of the time, market research may be in order before social media marketing is implemented—the question “is your audience online?” must have a definite answer.

A well-known social media expert said at a seminar I attended recently that the press release will be dead within three years. While that remains to be seen, it’s certainly clear that one-way marketing needs to make room for emerging two-way, user-generated content that has a strong voice and purpose.

Kaitlin Friedmann
Public Relations Manager
kfriedmann@cmasolutions.com