The Publicity Hound’s Blog  

With all the focus on social media, you’re probably scampering to create new content for sites like EzineArticles.com, Facebook and Twitter. 

You may be writing articles, creating tips lists, and offering quizzes.

That’s great. But don’t make the mistake of abandoning online press releases, which is all too easy to do when you’re consumed with posting every day to Facebook and Twitter.

Here are eight reasons why you should continue posting them to your website:

1. Optimized press releases pull in traffic. 
   Make sure you use relevant keywords in the headline and throughout the body copy.  But don’t stuff the release with keywords, or that will be a red flag to the search engines. Take advantage of StomperNet’s excellent seven-day free email course on search engine optimization. Each lesson in “7 Deadly SEO Mistakes” takes just a few minutes to review. 
            
2. They save time for visitors.
   It’s a great way to show journalists, bloggers and others what’s new and important, without making them spend a lot of time investigating your site.  New product launch?  They’ll find it in a press release.  New CEO?  There should be a release at your site that announces that.  Special promotion under way at your company?  Write a release that explains it.  Put a link to all your releases in your online pressroom.
           
3. You can use them to reach consumers directly–and promote.
   Years ago, we had to write printed press releases and cleanse them of anything that sounded like hype or promotion before sending them to journalists.  Gone are the days, thankfully, when we had to genuflect at the altar of traditional media, say a prayer and hope they covered our story.  Online press releases let us reach consumers directly without relying on the media gatekeepers.
            
4. Video and audio links.
   Video and audio links  can lead visitors to content that goes into more depth on a particular topic.  It’s a convenient way to get that information in front of visitors instead of making them wade through page after page at your website.
           
5. They help bloggers.
   Online press releases make it easy for bloggers to provide more information for their readers.  All they have to do is link to the release from within their posts.
            
6. Links to landing pages.
   From an online release, you can link to specific landing pages at your website where readers can find more information.  Yes, you can even link to sales pages where you list all the benefits of the product you’re selling, and then ask readers to hit the “Buy Now” button.  How cool is that?
       
7. They keep your site looking fresh and updated.
   This is assuming that you post them regularly. It just dawned on me that it’s been several months since I’ve posted a new release, and I’ve just added that to my “to-do” list for today.  
            
8. They can help you build your tribe on social networking sites.
   From the releases, you can provide links so readers can connect with you at social networking sites. Why not include a link to your Facebook Fan Page, like I have here?
         

Two tips that will help anyone who wants to post online releases:

From the press room at my website, I link to my at ExpertClick.com: The Online Yearbook of Experts.  This subscription service lets me post up to 52 press releases a year with no additional per-release fee.  It also gives me a page in their online database of experts, which journalists search frequently when looking for sources for articles. If you subscribe, tell them I sent you and they’ll knock $100 off the subscription.

If you want to learn more about how to write and distribute online press releases, you can opt into the free 12-week tutorial I created on “89 Ways to Write Powerful Press Releases.”  More than 6,000 people have taken the course.

Posted In: Blogs, Business Promotion, Facebook, Press Releases/News Releases, Publicity on the Internet, Search engine optimization, Social media marketing, Twitter, Video
posted On: 6/26/2009: 9:44 am: By Joan
Comments: 1 Comment

If a journalist uses the search engines to search for a source with your expertise, Google may return to her a long list of possibilities on the left side of the screen.

There’s a clever trick you can use to prod that journalist into picking up the phone and calling you—even if she’s on deadline and she doesn’t have time to review each website one by one.

When I discovered this trick, it was one of those “duh” moments.  I slapped my forehead, and yelled “Of course!”  I was embarrassed that I hadn’t been doing this.

Here’s the best part.

This trick works just as well if you’re trying to encourage potential customers and clients, joint venture partners, book buyers, meeting planners looking for speakers, or anyone else to call YOU instead of your competitors.  Get a prospect on the phone and they’re as good as closed.

This is Mistake #3 in the complimentary email course “7 Deadly SEO Mistakes” from StomperNet.  Each email lesson, delivered over seven days, is a quick read.

If you don’t like getting your hands dirty with this technical stuff, forward the lessons to whoever manages your website.  Better yet, read these tips, and then see how many of the mistakes your webmaster is making.

Posted In: Authors & Publishers, Business Promotion, Search engine optimization
posted On: 5/19/2009: 7:50 am: By Joan
Comments: No Comments

Let’s see a show of hands.

How many of you like receiving cold calls from people selling ink cartridges, aluminum siding or ads in your local Yellow Pages?

That’s what I thought.

That’s why a speaker should think twice about hiring an assistant or virtual assistant to cold call meeting planners. It sends the message, “I’m too important or too busy to call you myself, so I’m sending my assistant to bother you with an annoying cold call.” 

Why are cold calls bad? 

Because way too many speakers—and their assistants—are making them. I made hundreds of cold calls myself when I was on the speaking circuit, before I knew any better.

The best speaking engagements I booked weren’t from cold calls. They were the result of meeting planners finding out about me from somebody else, or reading an article I wrote for their industry publication and calling me. When a meeting planner calls you to ask about your availability, you’re in a much better position to command the fee you want.

If a VA is making calls for you, she probably can’t answer all the questions meeting planners might ask about things like negotiating your fee, speaking about a topic that’s not part of your repertoire, altering the content of a particular keynote or workshop, doing a webinar instead of an in-person program, and many other unexpected subjects.

That’s why asking an assistant to cold-call meeting planners is a lousy idea for most speakers.  I said MOST speakers.  I’m sure some of friends in the National Speakers Association have assistants who make these calls for them—but only after they’ve done extensive training with an assistant who already knows their business intimately.  Expecting a $40- or $60-an-hour VA to present you to meeting planners puts you at a disadvantage.

             
6 ways to use publicity to book gigs

Here are six ways to use publicity to help you book speaking engagements—and ways to involve your virtual assistant in each:

—Write articles to attract the attention of meeting planners. If you’re trying to speak before a particular trade association, contact the editor of the group’s magazine or newsletter and ask if they accept articles from experts. If your article appears in that industry’s trade magazine, the meeting planner who hires speakers might see it. If you make a cold call after the article appears, you can mention the article. Your VA can research industry publications and order back issues.

—Create short videos that tie into your topics. Have your VA upload them to the video-sharing sites. Meeting planners who are using the search engines to find speakers will find the videos. If they like what they see, they might call you. Your VA can do keyword research for you and tag the videos.

—Answer questions on LinkedIn. Create a profile on LinkedIn and spend time each week answering questions that pertain to the topics on which you speak. This is a powerful way to promote your expertise. Each person who asks a question can flag one of the answers as a “best answer.” The number of “best answer” designations you’ve received shows up on your LinkedIn profile. Your VA can look for questions that pertain to your expertise and call them to your attention. See my article on other ways to use LinkedIn to promote.

—Actively seek recommendations on LinkedIn. If a meeting planner is considering you and another speaker for her group’s annual keynote, and the other speaker has more recommenations than you do at LinkedIn, guess who will probably get the job? Ask every meeting planner who has been thrilled with your work to recommend you there. Ditto for every editor who has published your articles and has a strong relationship with you. Ask your VA to remind you to ask for recommendaitons. 

—Tweet about your topic at Twitter. Link to helpful articles and blog posts you have written. Share other articles you’ve found online. Ask compelling questions that lead to lively conversations. And, of course, tweet about your speaking gigs. Your VA can peform a variety of searches on Twitter to find people who might be in a positin to hire you and who you would want to follow. (See “How to Use Twitter to Amass an Army of Followers, Customers & Valuable Contacts—and Promote.”)  

—Blog about your topic. Use keywords that meeting planners would use if they’re searching for someone with your expertise. Listen to the teleseminar I conducted with The Blog Squad on how to “Build Your Biz with a Blog: It’s Not an Option Anymore!–How to Build a Professional Blog that Turns Prospects into Clients.”

            
Leave your footprints

All those tasks will take  time. But the big advantage of all of them over cold calling is that you’re leaving your footprint at every step along the way, building a trail of expertise that will live online forever, and making it easy for meeting planners to find you.     

Finally, spend some time in the Compilations category at the SpeakerNetNews website to learn about some of the more innovative ways that speakers book gigs. 

Here’s an article that will help you find a virtual assistant to help with publicity. When you’ve found an assistant, it’s time for training. Here are tips on how to train your VA to help with publicity.

Posted In: Authors & Publishers, Blogs, Business Promotion, LinkedIn, Magazine Publicity, Publicity on the Internet, Search engine optimization, Social media marketing, Twitter, Video, Writing Articles
posted On: 3/1/2009: 9:40 am: By Joan
Comments: 1 Comment

If you want to promote anything online, be sure to check out the January/February issue of SUCCESS magazine, on newsstands now.

I’m featured along with Internet marketers Joel Comm and Scott Fox in the Ask the Experts column. Here are the topics we discussed and a few snippets of advice from the article.

—Blogs: If you aren’t blogging, start now.

—Websites:  Update content regularly.

—Video: It’s the best free way to pull traffic.

—Generating more traffic: Produce interesting, targeted and timely information for your customers.

—Search engine optimization: Use keywords and phrases that emphasize your product offerings.

The online version of the article, by the way, is slightly different than the printed version, so buy the magazine and get even more tips. In fact, why not subscribe and get 65 percent off the news stand price.

Little time to read? Every issue includes a Dual Disc (CD AND DVD) inserted into the magazine. The March issue, for example, includes audio and video tracks from Seth Godin, Napoleon Hill, Harvey McKay and SUCCESS publisher Darren Hardy.

Tomorrow, I’ll be including in my ezine, “The Publicity Hound’s Tips of the Weeks,” ways to recycle this kind of publicity. Whenever you’re mentioned in a newspaper or magazine, NEVER be content with just one media hit. Already, I’ve recycled this publicity into four other ways to promote my business. I’ll explain them all tomorrow, add them here after I email tomorrow’s newsletter, and then ask my readers to list their favorite ways of recycling in the comments section.  See “Special Report #13: How to Recycle Your Publicity (for Serious Publicity Hounds Only).

Posted In: Blogs, Business Promotion, Magazine Publicity, Newspaper Publicity, Publicity on the Internet, Search engine optimization
posted On: 2/17/2009: 3:02 am: By Joan
Comments: 3 Comments

If you have valuable advice to share on any aspect of  PR, marking and communications, submit your articles to the The Navigator, the email newsletter that Cision will relaunch in a few weeks.

Cision makes media relations software and other tools, so any tips you can offer for the company’s target audience could bring you some decent online exposure. I’ve been submitting articles to Cision for the past few years and have always gotten great feedback from its readers. The ezine includes the latest media news, new placement opportunities, profiles of top media contacts, and in-depth articles from industry experts.

It wants bylined articles about media relations, the intersection of public relations and Web 2.0, press release writing, public relations technology, consumer marketing, branding, event planning, product marketing, search engine optimization, writing and speaking skills, best practices, strategy and trend stories.  The Navigator will also consider articles on any topic that will benefit its audience.

Once Cision launches its redesigned website, you’ll be able to submit articles via a form on the website.  Before the launch, send articles directly to Editorial Director Kim Roberts. She hasn’t even completed the launch issue, so don’t hesitate to send her articles immediately.

Can’t think of an idea? Read my long list of suggested headlines for how-to articles. When you see a headline that leads to an idea, just fill in the blank, and then start writing.

Newsletters like The Navigator usually don’t pay for these kinds of articles, so be sure they let you maintain the copyright. That was one of the piece of advice from Patricia Eyres, an intellectual property attorney who was my guest expert during a teleseminar I hosted on Legal Issues You Must Know When Writing Articles for Fee or for Free.

Posted In: PR Consultants/Publicists, Press Releases/News Releases, Publicity on the Internet, Search engine optimization, Social media marketing, Social networking, Special Events, Writing Articles
posted On: 1/30/2009: 1:01 pm: By Joan
Comments: 1 Comment