2009 July

Social media time-saver: Turn a LinkedIn Q&A into a video

7/31/2009 By Joan 12 Comments

Stop spending precious time creating original content for all your social media sites.

Here’s a valuable shortcut—a quick way to use expertise you’ve already shared with somebody, and turn it into a video.

Several months ago, on LinkedIn, I answered a question about all the ways an author could use Twitter to promote a book. I copied and pasted my bulleted list and turned it into a post for this blog: Social networking ROI: A testimonial more valuable than an ad.

Then I took that list, pared it down, and bought some stock photos. I combined the photos with text to create a video, using Animoto, a program I love that turns your still photos and text into slick videos. I’ve written about Animoto here.

Here’s my Animoto video on how to use Twitter to market your book:

Next, I’ll take the video and post it to my YouTube channel. Then I’ll share it with my Facebook Fans. Failing to create Fan Pages on Facebook, by the way, is a major missed opportunity, because Fan Pages are the only place Facebook allows you to promote. You can also have an unlimited number of Fans. Read about other missed opportunities on Facebook.

And then I’ll tweet about it, leading my Twitter followers to this blog.

There are countless other ways to recycle content, but you get the idea. If you’re writing a string of tweets about a particular topic, can they be turned into article for EzineArticles.com? Can that article then be turned into a video?

When you find yourself creating content for social media sites, stop and ask yourself: How many ways you can milk the cow that’s already in the barn?

Filed Under: Authors & Publishers, Blogs, LinkedIn, Social media marketing, Social networking Tagged With: author marketing, Bloggers, Blogging, Blogs, Book Promotion, Book Publicity, LinkedIn tips, Social networking, socila media, Twitter, Twitter promotion

Lemon-Ginger String Beans quick and healthy

7/30/2009 By Joan 1 Comment

greenbeans If you have a bonanza of beans this time of year, or you’re hankering for a fresh-tasting, healthy, lemony side dish, try these Lemon-Ginger String Beans.

It’s a Weight Watchers recipe from the Best Eats cookbook and has only 1 point per serving and only 55 calories. I just discovered it and have made it three days in a row.

Don’t even tell your family it’s from Weight Watchers. They’d never guess.

Lemon-Ginger String Beans

2 teaspoons olive oil

2 garlic cloves, minced

1 tablespoon grated peeled fresh ginger

3/4 pound fresh green or yellow beans, trimmed, or 3 cups thawed frozen green beans

2 teaspoons grated lemon zest (Or 1 medium lemon)

2 tablespoons lemon juice

1/8 teaspoon salt

1/8 teaspoon black pepper

Heat the oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add the garlic and ginger. Cook, stirring constantly, until fragrant, about 1 minute.

Add the beans. Cook, stirring constantly, until softened, about 2 minutes.

Add the lemon zest and juice. Cover and cook until the beans are crisp-tender, about 2 minutes. Stir in salt and pepper.

Per Serving (1/4 cup): 55 calories, 3 g Fat, 0 g Saturated Fat, 0 grams Trans Fat, 0 mg Cholestoerol, 76 mg Sodium, 8 grams carbs, 3 grams Fiber, 2 grams protein, 44 mg. Calc. Points: 1

Filed Under: Recipes (My favorites)

How to pitch small business tips, stories to BusinessWeek.com

7/30/2009 By Joan 2 Comments

If you have advice, opinions, story ideas or a question related to small business for BusinessWeek.com, a high-traffic destination for anyone looking for business tips, check out their frequently asked questions.

It includes tips on how to contact Karen Klein, who writes the Smart Answers column, and has a weekly podcast series. I suggest you contact Karen and offer yourself as a source. Let her know your area of expertise.

Karen, by the way, interviewed me yesterday to get my best tips on how a start-up small business can promote their new health product. The column should be posted today or tomorrow.

You can also check the FAQ page for tips on how to submit a Viewpoint column to Small Biz Channel editor Nick Leiber.

Here are some ideas you can pitch:

How small businesses can save money during this bad economy.
Opportunities to use Facebook and other social media sites to sell a product or service. How are you using your Fan Pages, for example, to promote and sell? Are you offering coupons or freebies?
Tips and tricks on how to save time and money managing any aspect of a small business.
How to find and keep great employees.

When pitching ideas and Viewpoint columns, remember that you should never overtly promote your pr0duct or service. If you can provide helpful tips and advice, BusinessWeek will be more open to your pitch.

Filed Under: Business Promotion, Media Leads, Pitching the Media

Which of these author TV-interviews-from-hell is the worst?

7/28/2009 By Joan 34 Comments

I love showing you clips of TV interviews that are perfect examples of how NOT to act on camera.

This week, you get not one, but two videos. Each can best be described as, uh, a “teaching moment.” Both authors start stumbling, right out of the gate.

In the first video, author Uri Man’s comments are so inappropriate that he rattles FOX host Ainsley Earhardt. At the end of the interview, she turns to her co-host and asks, “Did that just happen?”

In the second video, the anchors start taunting author Karrine Steffans and things turn really ugly. Karrine’s response infuriates the anchors so badly that at the end….well, I’m not going to spoil it for you. But promise me you’ll watch to the bitter end.

Here’s the first video, from a recent segment on “America’s News HQ” on FOX News:

Thanks to Publicity Hound Jamile White of Bowie, Md., aka @EcommerceDiva on Twitter, for flagging us to this segment from GoodDaySacramento, the CBS station in Sacramento, Calif.:

Now, it’s your turn.

Which of the two do you think is the worst example of an interview-gone-bad? Are the anchors at fault? If you had been either one of those authors, how would you have responded?

Media trainers and book publicists, what would you have told these authors after the fact if they had been your clients?

Ask your Twitter followers what they think by clicking on the green “tweet” button. Or share this with your Facebook friends.

Filed Under: Authors & Publishers, How to Interview, TV Publicity, YouTube Tagged With: Ainsley Earhardt, America's News HQ, author interview, book marketing, Book Publicity, Fox News, GoodDaySacramento, media interview

Meeting a journalist? 9 magic phrases the media love

7/27/2009 By Joan 2 Comments

One of the best ways to generate publicity from traditional media outlets is to form a relationship with reporters, editors, broadcasters and freelancers.

That’s a critical step that 99 percent of the people miss!

And what a shame. If you know what they’re looking for, how to talk to them, how to help them, and how to stay on their radar screens, you’ll have a huge advantage.

When I worked as a reporter and editor for 22 years, I was able to tell within about 15 seconds if somebody pitching a story idea was genuinely concerned about helping me, or if their Number One goal was to simply generate free publicity.

If you’re meeting reporters face to face, or pitching an idea by phone or email, nine magic phrases can help you build a relationship with them. This video, created with a cool program called Animoto, explains all about the phrases I loved to hear when I was speaking with somebody who was either pitching a story idea to me, or wanted to get to know me better and genuinely help. It also explains one opportunity to meet journalists face to face.

What other phrases do you use when talking to journalists to help build the relationship?