Archive for April, 2007
eriksr on April 30th, 2007
So you’ve developed a nice podcast for your client. It uses a talk show 
format, it has attracted some attention, and you are pleased with your results. But, you wonder, could you be doing more with the medium? Yep!
How you use podcasts is only limited by your imagination. So here, to tweak your imagination, is 10 new ways you can podcast.
Podcasting: Stand up and be heard
- Messages from the client CEO and other key company executives
- Interviews with product designers, key research & development staff, and other experts
- Audio press releases
- Keynote speeches
- Seminar recordings
- New product announcements
- Product and service seminars
- Recruitment information, such as FAQ with new hires designed to entice new recruits
- Tutorials
- Personalized welcome messages to new users
eriksr on April 25th, 2007
To those who haven’t heard of Digg: It’s a social news site. This means that
users post the news and other site visitors, if they find something to be of merit, vote for the news. The more votes, the more prominent the story becomes. With enough votes, the story makes it to the front page. It’ll stay there for a few hours earning more and more diggs until it plateaus and disappears forever. Yes, a few hours.
My Gripes
I LOVE Digg because I’m a major geek, and Digg is full of major geeks reporting news that is of interest to me. But if the news you intend to share doesn’t fall into one of a certain set of categories (Linux, Apple, anti-Bush/Cheney/Gonzales, anti-Microsoft, Web 2.0 technology), think twice about spending more than five minutes of your client’s budget because your chances of getting the front page are poor. And never mind that a lot of the stories aren’t even newsworthy — I read one link this morning that was from 2004.
Why so bad? And what can you do to make the top page?
It’s all about the audience, folks. You don’t go pitching about your new Oscar-Meyer wieners to InformationWeek (though I’m sure this hasn’t stopped some people), so if your client isn’t even remotely tech related there’s just no sense targeting Digg.
But what if your client is tech related? How do you get them on the front page? Hard work! Check out this excellent entry from 10e20. Essentially, you can create your own account and start building up a reputation and following as a professional digger. What you post can regularly make it to the front page, and being able to offer that to your clients is solid gold.
Your other alternative, of course, is to hire an influential digger to post your story. Ethical stuff aside — I don’t even want to think about it — it’s probably not worth your time and dollars to do.
But I want to take advantage of social news sites!
Good news, they exist. First off, Redditt is a far better alternative for stories of all kinds and has a good, large base of users. Netscape runs a similar service with a smaller user base, but has an even greater range of topics hitting page one.
There are all sorts of social news sites popping up everywhere. MySpace just announced that they are starting one (check out seomoz.org’s great, quick review) and there’s even one for the PR industry which I’ve written about before called New PR.
eriksr on April 23rd, 2007
So you or your client have a blog. Congratulations! And you’ve got a look 
and a theme and even content. Great, great, great. Now all you need are visitors.
While some will find you with a Google search, and others will hear about you through colleagues, and still others will even hear about you from your Aunt Mabel, the fastest, easiest way to get a lot of visitors is via in-coming links. Lots of them. On as many sites as possible.
But how do you get those links? These ten tips will help.
1. Be helpful
Provide handy tips. Offer great tools. Write a how-to resource just like the “Social Media Basics” section I have under my header.
2. Be different
Create an amazing and unique blog design. Play devil’s advocate in posts. Examine hypothetical scenarios.
3. Be a people person
Link to other blogs. Link to your commenters. Link to your industry experts. Mention people who link out.
4. Be fun
Come up with a great contest. Even better, a great contest with amazing prizes. Be an amusing read. Create your own podcasts and videos.
5. Be an expert
Write an in-depth article. Interview industry experts. Review a product or service. Break news.
6. Be visible
Post your link in forums and in your blog comments. Sign site guestbooks. Leave testimonials.
7. Be rich
Trade something for a link. Buy a link. Buy a directory listing at related sites, such as Business.com.
8. Be visible
Join your local Chamber of Commerce and Better Business Bureau. Join PRSA. Network.
9. Be bold
Ask for a link. Write an Op-ed. Offer to guest blog.
10. Be a PR person
Write press releases about your blog. And pitches. And offer to write byline articles for related-sites.
eriksr on April 19th, 2007
Following up my fairly recent posts on the topic of podcasting (podcasting 101: part 1, part 2), today’s quicky is all about a few things to keep in mind while you’re managing or planning your podcast.
1. Stick to your messaging
A podcast that veers off course is a podcast that is a waste of resources. Say what you mean to say. And say it in an engaging manner so your listener wants to hear it.
2. Deliver long-term value
Sure, content developed to address a current issue can be of great value. But that value plummets as the issue is resolved. Ultimately, content that is of greater long-term value, typically helpful content such as a”how-to” tutorial, is of greater use. Why? Because this type of content will continue to attract your target market long after the podcast that dealt with a timely issue has ceased to be of interest. And, of course, this means you should archive your old podcasts so new listeners can hear old shows.
3. Watch out for the little things
Unless there is a good reason to sound rough (and, if you are appealing to a younger audience, there might be), it is a good idea to create a polished and professional podcast. A clear speaker, a good sound track, etc. all bespeak to your credibility which adds value to your message.
4. Podcast SEO
Just as your Website and blog should have an SEO (search engine optimization) plan, so, too, should your podcast. Want to know more about SEO? Click here.
5. Listen up
Monitor your Weblogs so you can see what topics are popular. And encourage your listeners to tell you what they want. Certainly topics always have greater draw? Focus more on those topics. Listeners want a corresponding transcript of your podcasts? Then provide it.
eriksr on April 16th, 2007
Note: Today’s entry comes from Cece Salomon-Lee of On24.com. For Cece’s entry on other things she learned going to work in-house, click here
While working at Blanc & Otus, I was proud of how my team responded to clients and the quality of our communications. My team may have hated me for it, but I was very nitpicky about grammar, spelling and formatting for any client facing documentation, such as weekly reports, emails, briefing sheets, etc. [You better believe it -Ed]
Since moving in-house, I’ve reviewed the work of two agencies and one PR contractor. This has opened my eyes to the vast number of PR agencies - large, boutique and everything in-between - and the level of service available within the industry.
I recognize that PR agencies desire to work with the CMO to ensure that PR is integrated within the marketing strategy. I agree. PR undertaken as an island from marketing doesn’t help a company provide a consistent face to the public. However, it’s more than a company or vendor not wanting to give PR agencies access to marketing related information per Mike Driehorst’s comment.
Rather, as a person who may be involved in selecting a PR agency or contractor, my trust is earned by the attention to detail and how results truly map back to my company’s goals. It’s not that I’m unwilling to give PR agencies access to information as Mike Driehorst commented. With all the priorities on my plate, I have to confirm that providing this information will truly benefit my company’s marketing goals and not waste time.
Here are my recommendations – based on a start-up company with less than $15,000 a month retainer:
1) Use spell check/grammar check – First impressions are key. Paying attention to spelling and basic grammar indicates that you can write well.
2) Correct names – This goes to attention to detail. Spelling my name and my company’s name correctly tells me that you care about me as a potential client.
3) Deliver what you promise - I have a tight budget and demanding deliverables. Be truthful about what you can or cannot do with the budget I have. If you promise me the moon or my budget, I’ll hold you to that. My expectations have been set.
4) Staff appropriately – I think the biggest concern I have about PR agencies is the number of accounts an account person manages/staffs. This goes back to being realistic. Smaller accounts require less people who can devote more hours on the account. If you can’t support this, don’t pitch the business.
5) Simple measurements – It’s key to provide recommendations on how to consistently and simply measure PR. This will provide a foundation on how to track this back to my organization’s marketing programs.
With these tips in mind, earn my trust!
eriksr on April 13th, 2007
Hey everyone! I’ve created a new page on Tech for PR called “Social Media Basics” — look for the link just under the blog’s logo, next to “About me”. Or click here.
A lot of people over the past few weeks have had questions for me about social media relations. They’ve all asked the same questions, in fact, and I’ve come to realize that folks don’t quite know the fundamentals yet. The new page I’ve created has links to all the entries I’ve written that can be considered fundamentals, so if you read nothing else on this blog, read those.
Of course, dear reader, remember that this new medium goes beyond the fundamentals very quickly. That’s why you should read this blog regularly 
format, it has attracted some attention, and you are pleased with your results. But, you wonder, could you be doing more with the medium? Yep!
