Customer Incentive Program Announcement

Customer Incentive Program Announcement

As a valued customer of Prudent International Inc , we couldn't wait to bring you the good news. This letter is to announce the incorporation of our new Customer Incentive Program (CIP). Well, maybe we haven't thought of a great logo for it yet, but if you read on I think you'll agree that no matter what we call it, it's super!

Starting on November 1st 2001, a record of your orders will be maintained on a cumulative basis for a period of one year. Once your purchases have reached US$500, you will be automatically entitled to a 15% discount on any order placed, including orders for any promotional Public Relations services and Newspaper Advertisements. When your orders have reached the US$1,000 mark, your discount will increase to 20%. A $1,500 accumulation of orders will entitle you to a 25% discount and once you have reached $2,000 you will receive 30% off all your orders. We think it's a great idea and hope that you agree.

Won't you send us a purchase order today to get you started on your way? If you think of a good name for us to tag onto this new discount program, please let us know!

To view our services go to either www.PrudentPressAgency.com/services/index.htm or www.SkyNewswire.com/services/index.htm

To view a fraction of our media list go to: http://www.prudentpressagency.com/medialist.htm or www.SkyNewswire.com/medialist.htm

Tune- Up: Letters for publication are one of the most overlooked areas of opportunity for those seeking to promote their products or services. Many editors are crying out for good, entertaining, controversial letters to print. Letters to the editor offer excellent opportunities to build name and brand familiarity Joseph Reriani. - PR Consultant

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This article is part of Joseph Reriani's "PR Tune-up Blog" newsletter posted to over 6,000 subscribers weekly. The newsletter was first published in 2002 at http://www.Reriani.com. For more articles and PR tune-up tips, please visit www.PrudentPressAgency.com and www.SkyNewswire.com. Joseph Reriani is a Media Consultant and Fellow with the Chartered Institute of Public Relations-  United Kingdom. He is the President/CEO of Prudent International Inc and Executive Editor of Prudent Press Agency. He is also an Assistant Editor of SkyNewswire.com directed by Jackie Mugambi . He is a trained journalist and specializes in helping businesses, organizations, and individuals improve their public image by effectively employing the power of public relations. Mr Reriani can be reached at admin @ Reriani.com. You may freely copy and re-publish this article without altering any part in the body.

Creating New Distribution Partnerships

Creating New Distribution Partnerships

We are continually working on improving our services while ensuring that we remain affordable and offer media packages beneficial to you. We craft all our services under our corporate identity of being “The Media Megaphone for the Little Guy”. One of the most important developments soon to be introduced  is the distribution of your press releases through the networks of other country wire organizations. You can view a list of these newswires per country at www.PrudentPressAgency.com/medialist\GlobalWires.htm or www.SkyNewswire.com/medialist\GlobalWires.htm. We will continue to maintaining our current media distribution channels to over 85,000 editors and journalists worldwide in over 70 categories.

To reach thousands of media decision makers with your Press release post your news article FREE on our website today. Simply open an account, verify your email and you are ready to go. Once it is approved by our team of editors, we will post it on our website index page. Thousands of newspaper, magazine, radio and television editors and journalists worldwide visit our websites and/or subscribe to receive our syndication feeds in search of fresh and new story angles for their respective markets.  What good is your PR message if it is not seen by the media or simply left in your computers hard disk?. For as little as US$149.95 we will help prepare your news release and distribute it to over 85,000 media contacts. Visit our website to order your PR package.

By working with multiple newswires targeting specialized industry sectors and specific geographic locations, we will be able to offer you a consistent level of news distribution and communications services that is unrivaled in its breadth, efficiency and accuracy.

Tune-Up: The importance of effective press releases can never be underestimated. Press releases are the primary method of informing the media about your company and products, crucial in alerting journalists that you have spokespeople with relevant views and opinions and something unique to say. They are also the backbone of any media campaign and a way to get your company name and brand across journalists desks on a regular basis. Joseph Reriani - PR Consultant

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This article is part of Joseph Reriani's "PR Tune-up Blog" newsletter posted to over 6,000 subscribers weekly. The newsletter was first published in 2002 at http://www.Reriani.com. For more articles and PR tune-up tips, please visit www.PrudentPressAgency.com and www.SkyNewswire.com. Joseph Reriani is a Media Consultant and Fellow with the Chartered Institute of Public Relations-  United Kingdom. He is the President/CEO of Prudent International Inc and Executive Editor of Prudent Press Agency. He is also an Assistant Editor of SkyNewswire.com directed by Jackie Mugambi . He is a trained journalist and specializes in helping businesses, organizations, and individuals improve their public image by effectively employing the power of public relations. Mr Reriani can be reached at admin @ Reriani.com. You may freely copy and re-publish this article without altering any part in the body.

Creating Buzz - Useful Tips

Creating Buzz - Useful Tips

This is the second and the final on my articles on "buzz". The key to any successful PR campaign revolves around creating interest in your company - both with your customers and with the media. In this article, I will reveal tips for putting your business in the spotlight.

There's a famous saying that goes like this, "If the circus is coming to town and you paint a sign saying 'Circus Coming to the Fairground Saturday,' that's advertising. If you put the sign on the back of an elephant and walk him into town, that's promotion. If the elephant walks through the mayor's flowerbed, that's publicity. If you can get the mayor to laugh about it, that's public relations. And if you planned the elephant's walk, that's marketing.". Try and decipher that...

While this may seem like just a cute anecdote, there is an important lesson to be learned from it: A well-timed public relations (PR) campaign can increase your businesses' chances of reaching your target market with exactly what they want to hear, when they are ready to hear it. Explaining good strategic PR is an art.

The art of building a successful PR campaign revolves around creating strong relationships with the media and your customers, planning special events and building an image - elements that when combined gain publicity, or "buzz," for your company. You need not spend thousands of dollars creating buzz about your company, however. innovative methods, such as identifying a media niche, creating a theme, and using trade shows and celebrity spokespersons are all publicity-generating vehicles for budget-minded businesses. We at Prudent International Inc have helped generate buzz for thousands of our customers with many finding their way to the print, internet and broadcast media.

You can garner attention for your company using a variety of creative techniques, from basic media relations to outrageous stunts. Creativity is very essential and it is important that it is done by someone who can totally divorce themselves from any marketing ambition because the public will feel it. This is one reason why PR is normally outsourced. 

Trade shows can provide an excellent, cost-effective arena for creating buzz about your company and introducing new products or services to a captive audience.

When it comes to approaching the media to attract buzz, customizing your message is the only way to get their attention. After all, you don't carry on the exact same conversation with everyone you know, so why would you send every newspaper the same press release? Each media outlet has different story needs and a different audience. Before attempting to pitch your story to an editor, ask yourself what would make a disinterested party want to read an article about your company. Once you hit on the hook you have a story. An explosion of both new companies and new media is generating stiff competition in the marketplace of public awareness. It's also creating a gold mine of opportunities to reach the audiences that matter to you. When you find a media niche for your business, also engage in your industry's dialogue, establish a company presence, create an awareness and build credibility.

The beautiful part for entrepreneurs is that almost everyone and every business has a story to tell, a distinctive voice than can make a space for itself amid the noise. Good entrepreneurial media relations is primarily about identifying your story and determining who cares about it. It can be time-consuming but this kind of work is inexpensive and can give the business owner a greater understanding of his industry.

When celebrities appear in a company's product advertisements, it can create a very loud buzz. Psychologists explain this is because we are unconsciously drawn to the familiar. So, right off the bat, the presence of a celebrity gives many customers an extra reason to stop and pay attention. Second is the widespread belief that a celebrity appearance represents a true endorsement - that the celebrity uses the product and believes it to be better than its competitors. Celebrity endorsements can carry the same weight for customers as a recommendation from a friend. While the illusion is that the celebrity is endorsing the vendor's product or service, the job of celebrity spokesperson is strictly business  If you can afford the celebrity's fee, you have as good an opportunity of attracting the celebrity's services as any other company. Many celebrities cost much less than one would expect.

Celebrity spokespersons are usually represented by agents who serve as brokers. If you're interesting in contracting the services of a celebrity spokesperson, contact several agents, describing your business goals, then asking for recommendations on available celebrities who best fit your product or promotion. We at Prudent International Inc are in touch with a good number of celebrity agents who we have honed over the years. The key to making celebrities work for a company is finding someone who will be credible for your product. That's more important than how famous they are. If you sell plant food, find a famous horticulturist, not just an actor. If you sell coffee, find a famous chef. And if you sell carpet cleaning, find someone who is recognized in decorating or living in a fine home. The closer the fit, the greater the perceived endorsement value.

In business or life you don't get anything without asking. You might be surprised to learn that the celebrity you are asking just might be flattered by the request and thrilled about the opportunity to endorse your business even for free if it results in free or helpful publicity for them.

Have you ever wondered why the same companies seem to attract all of the media coverage? No matter where you turn - newspapers, trade magazines, even lifestyle publications - it seems that some businesses are just natural media darlings. Do they know some secret that the rest of us don't? Companies that get all the buzz usually have a good marriage of solid or innovative product or service with good promotional ideas.The best way to get the industry's attention is with a 'first, biggest or best' of a new product or service. If you are the second company to offer something, you are already at a disadvantage, but if you can show why yours is different than the rest, you are on your way to getting buzz. Try and get consistent evaluation by independent organizations of your products or services.

It is a myth that companies have to spend a lot of money on marketing to become buzz magnets. Too many companies think they need to do ongoing promotions. They are wasting money. Promotions are important, but there needs to be something behind it.

Tune-Up It is important to know as much about your competition as your own products/services and company. Journalist will feel free to ask anything even vaguely connected with products, your market, its sector and your competition. They might also ask personal questions which, in another context, might seem rude. Joseph Reriani - PR Consultant

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This article is part of Joseph Reriani's "PR Tune-up Blog" newsletter posted to over 6,000 subscribers weekly. The newsletter was first published in 2002 at http://www.Reriani.com. For more articles and PR tune-up tips, please visit www.PrudentPressAgency.com and www.SkyNewswire.com. Joseph Reriani is a Media Consultant and Fellow with the Chartered Institute of Public Relations-  United Kingdom. He is the President/CEO of Prudent International Inc and Executive Editor of Prudent Press Agency. He is also an Assistant Editor of SkyNewswire.com directed by Jackie Mugambi . He is a trained journalist and specializes in helping businesses, organizations, and individuals improve their public image by effectively employing the power of public relations. Mr Reriani can be reached at admin @ Reriani.com. You may freely copy and re-publish this article without altering any part in the body.

Choosing the Right Picture for the Media

Choosing the Right Picture for the Media

If you are not sending pictures out with your press releases, you are missing a vital part of your PR campaign. As any editor will tell you, a release with a photo has a much higher chance of being used and could elevate your story from a few column centimeters on an inside page to a more prominent position and possibly the front page.

Here are a few tips that could help:

As an absolute minimum, ensure you have headshots of all people mentioned in your press releases and spokespeople representing your organization, before you are asked for them by a journalist. Avoid white background studio shots.

Your main spokespeople, CEO, directors, VPs, etc should have a small selection of images taken which picture them in a natural working setting representing your specific business, both with your company logo and without. Make sure you get landscape and portrait orientated shots.

If you are 'telling a story' in your press release, make sure the photo also tells the (same) story. Ensure it has enough impact to immediately grab the attention of firstly the editor and secondly the reader.

Supplying a feature picture instead of a simple headshot is the biggest single thing you can do to bring your story to the top of the pile. Sometimes the most mundane story can be published as the lead story on the page thanks to a superb photo. (This is known as a picture led story).

Have some generic shots taken that represent your business and industry sector. Both internal and exterior shots should be produced showing your business at work. Sometimes having these generic shots available when a picture editor is looking for a photo to go with an existing story can result in your organization being asked to comment. (Make sure you are told what the basis of the story is before making the pictures available).

Make sure all your photos meet the media photo specs so you they can easily be sent by email and will not overload the mailbox of the journalist you are sending them to. (This wouldn't help your cause!)

Tune-Up: Journalists go to company sites and visit the press area with different expectations for different reasons and wanting vastly different things. You have to aim to satisfy them all. Do not surrender control of the site to the IT department simply because you are in a rush to get media delivery online. Joseph Reriani - PR Consultant

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This article is part of Joseph Reriani's "PR Tune-up Blog" newsletter posted to over 6,000 subscribers weekly. The newsletter was first published in 2002 at http://www.Reriani.com. For more articles and PR tune-up tips, please visit www.PrudentPressAgency.com and www.SkyNewswire.com. Joseph Reriani is a Media Consultant and Fellow with the Chartered Institute of Public Relations-  United Kingdom. He is the President/CEO of Prudent International Inc and Executive Editor of Prudent Press Agency. He is also an Assistant Editor of SkyNewswire.com directed by Jackie Mugambi . He is a trained journalist and specializes in helping businesses, organizations, and individuals improve their public image by effectively employing the power of public relations. Mr Reriani can be reached at admin @ Reriani.com. You may freely copy and re-publish this article without altering any part in the body.

A look at Blogging as a PR Strategy

A look at Blogging as a PR Strategy

Search engine optimization (SEO) marketing is becoming increasingly sophisticated, but people are still making very basic mistakes. The fundamentals that were true 5 years ago are still true today. Create a well structured site that is easy for search engines to crawl, add fresh, themed content on an ongoing basis and never stop attracting incoming links from relevant resources. Think of search engine optimization as a long term commitment and don't get distracted by short term tricks.

Google will continue to dominate for some time. You will be foolish to ignore it irrespective of your line of business. Google's percentage of mind share is really unmatched in the search industry. Yahoo has a loyal following and many more registered users, Ask.com has made significant improvements, particularly with blog search. The effect of Google's dominance has been the creation of a wide variety of very useful tools and services for users. I do wonder if there may come a time where Google will become too big and pervasive. Hopefully the competition can avoid that happening as the more quality search options there are, the better it is for users and the marketplace.

Blog entries may be removed from main search engine listings and only listed in blog searches. Most consumers don't know the difference between a blog and a web site. Most of my customers refer to this blog as a website. In fact, an increasing number of companies are using blog software as their web site content management system (CMS). Therefore, I think removing blog entries entirely from search results will reduce the quality of user experience to some degree. At the same time, there is a big problem with blog spam. Particularly with blogs that are automatically created by the thousands for the purpose of generating AdSense revenue. Removing those types of blogs from regular search results and only listing them in a blog search engine may improve search results quality, but it does not solve the problem of blog spam.

I like what Ask.com is doing with their new blog and feed search service. Blog search is offered as an option right along with news, local and image search. That way the searcher can use the same interface for search. Rather than trying to spider all blogs on the web, the Ask.com blog and feed search engine only includes blogs that have been subscribed to within Bloglines. That will stem quite a bit of the blog spam.

There's a lot of useful information on blogs and hopefully the search engines can find a way to package that information in a way that maintains regular search results quality. SEO / blogging seems to be a close-knit community (despite being all over the world) - how do you make sure the ideas are communicated to a wider audience, especially to non-technical business people who need to benefit from these techniques? Syndication to online publications with more of a mass market audience is one way of reaching a wide audience about SEO.

Blogging has certainly caught the attention of the media and the growth in corporate blogging seems to prove that it is rapidly being accepted as hugely important to managing online reputation. Corporate blogging is on the rise, but most executives are far from accepting it . There's a long way to go in making blogging a standard part of a corporate communication and public relations strategy. Most businesses still treat blogging as an experiment.

Tune-Up Many publications run product reviews, tests, comparisons and recommendations. Aim to get your product/services included in as many as possible. One sure way is through creating about them in a blog. Joseph Reriani - PR Consultant

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This article is part of Joseph Reriani's "PR Tune-up Blog" newsletter posted to over 6,000 subscribers weekly. The newsletter was first published in 2002 at http://www.Reriani.com. For more articles and PR tune-up tips, please visit www.PrudentPressAgency.com and www.SkyNewswire.com. Joseph Reriani is a Media Consultant and Fellow with the Chartered Institute of Public Relations-  United Kingdom. He is the President/CEO of Prudent International Inc and Executive Editor of Prudent Press Agency. He is also an Assistant Editor of SkyNewswire.com directed by Jackie Mugambi . He is a trained journalist and specializes in helping businesses, organizations, and individuals improve their public image by effectively employing the power of public relations. Mr Reriani can be reached at admin @ Reriani.com. You may freely copy and re-publish this article without altering any part in the body.

About Prudent International Inc

About Prudent International Inc

Now in its 8th year, Prudent International Inc ( http://www.prudentpressagency.com  and http://www.SkyNewswire.com ) provides electronic press release distribution, targeting, measurement, translation and broadcast services on behalf of some 6,000 individuals, corporations, government agencies, associations, labor, non-profit, and other customers worldwide who seek to reach a variety of critical audiences including the news media, the investment community, government decision-makers, and the general public with their up-to-the-minute, full-text news developments. Established in 1999, Prudent International Inc is registered in the USA and The E.U in the Netherlands.

Utilizing the latest in communications technology, Prudent International Inc content is considered a mainstay among news reporters, investors and individuals who seek breaking news from the source.

Prudent International Inc also specializes in marketing the work of freelance journalists and reporters to the media and we are currently working with over 50 journalists in over 18 countries. We have over the years helped numerous first time journalists, photographers and writers get published. Contact either Joseph Reriani (PrudentPressAgency.com) at editorial@PrudentPressAgency.com or Jackie Mugambi (SkyNewswire.com) at editorial@SkyNewswire.com depending on the network you wish to work with.

NB: Please note that you cannot register on both websites as a freelancer.

Since its founding, Prudent International Inc has grown to become a market leader in commercial news preparation and distribution. Many companies and organizations depend on our services to transmit their news releases, regulatory filings, photos and other multimedia content to journalists, financial professionals, investor services, bloggers, regulatory authorities and the general public worldwide. We originate numerous news announcements each year, with a dramatic impact on perception, credibility, capital and commercial markets around the globe in virtually every industry sector. Our news has appeared in the past on such media outlets as MSNBC, CNN, PR Report, The New York Times, PR Week and many other newspapers, magazines and websites.

Prudent International Inc offers free and paid for press release distribution, write-up and public relations consultation services among other PR services. Unlike other press release outsourcing services on the internet, we care about quality press releases and all articles on our website have to first get approval from our team of editors. A common problem in today’s online PR services is that they publish anything to make money and generate traffic to themselves. The result is that journalists and editors start ignoring and avoiding news releases from these sources and organizations associated with them. Please also view our FAQ's on our websites.

Our Mission
Our primary mission is to help anyone announce newsworthy events and create an affordable and appropriate network to achieve this goal. Public relations used to be a field exclusive to the big guys but we have made it our motto to make it accessible to everyone. We have teamed up with leading news sources that display our headlines on their web sites and search engines and are continually working to increase our outlets.

Tune- Up: The most important relationship to the professional PR agency is the one between them and the press. The would rather lose the client than risk the relationship. Joseph Reriani - PR Consultant

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This article is part of Joseph Reriani's "PR Tune-up Blog" newsletter posted to over 6,000 subscribers weekly. The newsletter was first published in 2002 at http://www.Reriani.com. For more articles and PR tune-up tips, please visit www.PrudentPressAgency.com and www.SkyNewswire.com. Joseph Reriani is a Media Consultant and Fellow with the Chartered Institute of Public Relations-  United Kingdom. He is the President/CEO of Prudent International Inc and Executive Editor of Prudent Press Agency. He is also an Assistant Editor of SkyNewswire.com directed by Jackie Mugambi . He is a trained journalist and specializes in helping businesses, organizations, and individuals improve their public image by effectively employing the power of public relations. Mr Reriani can be reached at admin @ Reriani.com. You may freely copy and re-publish this article without altering any part in the body.

About Prudent International Inc

About Prudent International Inc

Now in its 8th year, Prudent International Inc ( http://www.prudentpressagency.com  and http://www.SkyNewswire.com ) provides electronic press release distribution, targeting, measurement, translation and broadcast services on behalf of some 6,000 individuals, corporations, government agencies, associations, labor, non-profit, and other customers worldwide who seek to reach a variety of critical audiences including the news media, the investment community, government decision-makers, and the general public with their up-to-the-minute, full-text news developments. Established in 1999, Prudent International Inc is registered in the USA and The E.U in the Netherlands.

Utilizing the latest in communications technology, Prudent International Inc content is considered a mainstay among news reporters, investors and individuals who seek breaking news from the source.

Prudent International Inc also specializes in marketing the work of freelance journalists and reporters to the media and we are currently working with over 50 journalists in over 18 countries. We have over the years helped numerous first time journalists, photographers and writers get published. Contact either Joseph Reriani (PrudentPressAgency.com) at editorial@PrudentPressAgency.com or Jackie Mugambi (SkyNewswire.com) at editorial@SkyNewswire.com depending on the network you wish to work with.

NB: Please note that you cannot register on both websites as a freelancer.

Since its founding, Prudent International Inc has grown to become a market leader in commercial news preparation and distribution. Many companies and organizations depend on our services to transmit their news releases, regulatory filings, photos and other multimedia content to journalists, financial professionals, investor services, bloggers, regulatory authorities and the general public worldwide. We originate numerous news announcements each year, with a dramatic impact on perception, credibility, capital and commercial markets around the globe in virtually every industry sector. Our news has appeared in the past on such media outlets as MSNBC, CNN, PR Report, The New York Times, PR Week and many other newspapers, magazines and websites.

Prudent International Inc offers free and paid for press release distribution, write-up and public relations consultation services among other PR services. Unlike other press release outsourcing services on the internet, we care about quality press releases and all articles on our website have to first get approval from our team of editors. A common problem in today’s online PR services is that they publish anything to make money and generate traffic to themselves. The result is that journalists and editors start ignoring and avoiding news releases from these sources and organizations associated with them. Please also view our FAQ's on our websites.

Our Mission
Our primary mission is to help anyone announce newsworthy events and create an affordable and appropriate network to achieve this goal. Public relations used to be a field exclusive to the big guys but we have made it our motto to make it accessible to everyone. We have teamed up with leading news sources that display our headlines on their web sites and search engines and are continually working to increase our outlets.

Tune- Up: The most important relationship to the professional PR agency is the one between them and the press. The would rather lose the client than risk the relationship. Joseph Reriani - PR Consultant

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This article is part of Joseph Reriani's "PR Tune-up Blog" newsletter posted to over 6,000 subscribers weekly. The newsletter was first published in 2002 at http://www.Reriani.com. For more articles and PR tune-up tips, please visit www.PrudentPressAgency.com and www.SkyNewswire.com. Joseph Reriani is a Media Consultant and Fellow with the Chartered Institute of Public Relations-  United Kingdom. He is the President/CEO of Prudent International Inc and Executive Editor of Prudent Press Agency. He is also an Assistant Editor of SkyNewswire.com directed by Jackie Mugambi . He is a trained journalist and specializes in helping businesses, organizations, and individuals improve their public image by effectively employing the power of public relations. Mr Reriani can be reached at admin @ Reriani.com. You may freely copy and re-publish this article without altering any part in the body.

A Headhunter's View to Hiring a Pr Agency

A Headhunter's View to Hiring a Pr Agency

Since so much has been written about how to go about finding a PR agency, I thought it timely to examine the process from my perspective - a consultant who is also a PR headhunter. Every year Prudent International Inc outsources PR tasks to other agencies for tasks that we are unable to fulfill due to a variety of reasons including distance, specialty promotions, celebrity appearances, local interviews special events etc. Throughout the world there are thousands of PR firms of all sizes who claim to specialize in dozens of different specialty categories. Nailing the right agency requires you to have some minimum knowledge of what you are looking for.

Where do you start? What do you look for? How much should you pay? What characteristics of the PR firm differentiates it from others - and are those differences important to your company? What size firm should you hire? What about account conflicts? Is the firm's location important? Who's going to work on your business? What about performance and results? What should you reasonably expect and how do you measure success?

These are only some of the questions that will undoubtedly arise in your quest to hire a firm.

From my experience, all of these questions should be asked and answered before signing on with a PR firm. However, the real issues that become important should be evaluated within the context of your company's needs and goals. Chances are the answers will fall somewhere in the proverbial gray area.

Should you decide to identify a PR firm on your own, there are many reference materials available which can help you quantify the players. However, without the tools and the inside knowledge of how PR firms work and which will work best for your company, the task can be very difficult and misleading.

Many solo searchers rely on references from colleagues, industry sources and the like to help them target a group of likely PR firms. The tough part however, is evaluating the relationship between members of your company and the PR firm. Additionally, not every PR agency is listed and quantified in every directory. New ones are popping up all the time and others are merging, being acquired or just fading away. When working with a limited knowledge-base, evaluation can become problematic.

The key to any successful PR agency search lies in the depth of the research expended. The greater amount of time spent researching the agency, its people, culture, working style, etc., the better chance you have of bringing home a winner. Also, it's easy to be distracted by fancy promotion and lose sight of the agency's key elements.

Sometimes the identification of a winning PR firm can be a slam-dunk. More often than not, it can be a very tricky process. If your company produces a highly specialized or technical product, chances are there will only be a few PR firms that will fill the bill. Whether it's engineering, biotechnology or baby toys, your choices will be limited. Add to that the numerous other specifications that you will invariably want to see in your new PR firm.

It's much easier if your product or service touches on issues such as abortion, guns or smoking. Options will be limited if your PR budget is unusually small or restricted, or if when your PR program is narrowly focused on, say, major mentions in key business publications, or, interviews for your CEO with major network media.

It's probably a good idea to go alone or with some minimum support from us when the budget is small, the PR program is limited and targeted to a highly technical audience or, when the agency's geographic location(s) is restricted. Of course, if management's view of PR is archaic or unrealistic, then the chance of a successful agency union is rather slim under any circumstances.

In my PR agency identification experience, the two most difficult parts of evaluating an agency are costs, (both actual and projected), and team identification and evaluation. Each tend to resemble a moving target that's hard to keep in your sights for too long.

As a general rule, PR agencies don't advertise their fees for services they perform. They tend to promote their expertise and experience in the business of PR and then charge you based on the size of your budget. By knowing that beforehand, they can tailor their services to your specific needs and stay within your budget.

As any other business, PR agencies must stay profitable. Just like management consultants or lawyers, PR people parcel out their expertise in the form of hourly charges. Whether you're paying a "flat monthly retainer" or hourly for services rendered, the agency will calculate the time spent working on your behalf in increments of hours to remain within profitable guidelines. Agency client management employees usually have an "hourly rate" that is levied against the time they spend on behalf of their client. That rate is usually a function of the employee's title. Obviously, the higher the title, the higher the rate.

Sounds pretty straightforward, right? Well, not so fast. There are many variables that impact this rather neat little picture. Variables such as employee promotions, employee title inflation, freelance consultants, the changing nature of your account, fee increases, out-of-pocket expenses, economic inflation or recession, conflicting accounts that pay higher fees, result measurement, client vs. agency expectations, irreconcilable differences and much more. We try to factor all these as best as we can. We charge a flat fee in head hunting expenses. We will interview you and a minimum of 5 other PR firms depending on where you are located. We have worked with tens of PR firms in the past and at times we are ready to recommend them. Please visit our services page at: http://prudentpressagency.com/modules/news/article.php?storyid=36 for more information.

Tune-Up: "Buying PR services is a commercial activity like any other and its up to the buyer to be aware. Be clear about your motives, agree on a time scale, fully brief the executives on your goals and most of all about yourself, listen to their advice, agree on measurable objectives, have regular reviews at least quarterly." Joseph Reriani - PR Consultant

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This article is part of Joseph Reriani's "PR Tune-up Blog" newsletter posted to over 6,000 subscribers weekly. The newsletter was first published in 2002 at http://www.Reriani.com. For more articles and PR tune-up tips, please visit www.PrudentPressAgency.com and www.SkyNewswire.com. Joseph Reriani is a Media Consultant and Fellow with the Chartered Institute of Public Relations-  United Kingdom. He is the President/CEO of Prudent International Inc and Executive Editor of Prudent Press Agency. He is also an Assistant Editor of SkyNewswire.com directed by Jackie Mugambi . He is a trained journalist and specializes in helping businesses, organizations, and individuals improve their public image by effectively employing the power of public relations. Mr Reriani can be reached at admin @ Reriani.com. You may freely copy and re-publish this article without altering any part in the body.

Advertising verses Public Relations

Advertising verses Public Relations

It's easy to become confused about these terms: Advertising, Marketing, Promotion, Public Relations and Publicity, and Sales. The terms have often mistakenly been used interchangeably. However, they are all very different -- but aim to achieve similar goals - or do they? Some basic text book definitions are provided below with a short example to help make the terms more clear.

Advertising
Advertising is bringing a product (or service) to the attention of potential and current customers. Advertising is typically done with signs, brochures, commercials, direct mailings or e-mail messages, personal contact, etc.

Promotion
Promotion keeps the product in the minds of the customer and helps stimulate demand for the product. Promotion involves ongoing advertising and publicity (mention in the press). The ongoing activities of advertising, sales and public relations are often considered aspects of promotions.

Marketing
Marketing is the wide range of activities involved in making sure that you're continuing to meet the needs of your customers and getting value in return. These activities include market research to find out, for example, what groups of potential customers exist, what their needs are, which of those needs you can meet, how you should meet them, etc. Marketing also includes analyzing the competition, positioning your new product or service (finding your market niche), pricing your products and services, and promoting them through continued advertising, promotions, public relations and sales.

Public relations
Public relations includes ongoing activities to ensure the company has a strong public image. Public relations activities include helping the public to understand the company and its products. Often, public relations are conducted through the media, that is, newspapers, television, magazines, etc. As noted above, public relations is often considered as one of the primary activities included in promotions.

Publicity
Publicity is mention in the media. Organizations usually have little control over the message in the media, at least, not as they do in advertising. Regarding publicity, reporters and writers decide what will be said.

Public relations includes ongoing activities to ensure the organization has a strong public image. Public relations activities include helping the public to understand the organization and its products. Similar to effective advertising and promotions, effective public relations often depends on designing and implementing a well-designed public relations plan. The plan often includes description of what you want to convey to whom, how you plan to convey it, who is responsible for various activities and by when, and how much money is budgeted to fund these activities. Similar to advertising and promotions, a media plan and calendar can be very useful, which specifies what media methods that are used and when.

Often, public relations are conducted through the media, that is, newspapers, television, magazines, etc. Publicity is mention in the media. Organizations usually have little control over the message in the media, at least, not as much as they do in advertising. Regarding publicity, reporters and writers decide what will be said.

Regarding public relations, consider: What groups of stakeholders do we want to appeal to and how? What impressions do you want each of your stakeholder to have? What communications media do they see or prefer the most? Consider advertising, collaborations, annual reports, networking, TV, radio, newsletters, classifieds, displays/signs, posters, word of mouth, direct mail, special events, brochures, neighborhood newsletters, etc. What media is most practical for you to use in terms of access and affordability? What messages are most appealing to each stakeholder group?

Paid Space or Free Coverage

Advertising:
The company pays for ad space. You know exactly when that ad will air or be published.

Public Relations:
Your job is to get free publicity for the company. From news conferences to press releases, you're focused on getting free media exposure for the company and its products/services.

Creative Control Vs. No Control

Advertising:
Since you're paying for the space, you have creative control on what goes into that ad.

Public Relations:
You have no control over how the media presents your information, if they decide to use your info at all. They're not obligated to cover your event or publish your press release just because you sent something to them. "Journalists like people who are prepared to be outrageous, bold and outspoken, provided they are not arrogant, obnoxious or irritating. This can give you a measure of creativity though small. PR is ultimately uncontrollable because the journalists are uncontrollable" reiterates Joseph Reriani Executive Editor of Prudent Press Agency

Shelf Life

Advertising:
Since you pay for the space, you can run your ads over and over for as long as your budget allows. An ad generally has a longer shelf life than one press release.

Public Relations:
You only submit a press release about a new product once. You only submit a press release about a news conference once. The PR exposure you receive is only circulated once. An editor won't publish your same press release three or four times in their magazine.

Wise Consumers

Advertising:
Consumers know when they're reading an advertisement they're trying to be sold a product or service.

Public Relations:
When someone reads a third-party article written about your product or views coverage of your event on TV, they're seeing something you didn't pay for with ad dollars and view it differently than they do paid advertising.

In-House or Out on the Town

Advertising:
If you're working at an ad agency, your main contacts are your co-workers and the agency's clients. If you buy and plan ad space on behalf of the client, then you'll also interact with media sales people.

Public Relations:
You interact with the media and develop a relationship with them. Your contact is not limited to in-house communications. You're in constant touch with your contacts at the print publications and broadcast media.

Target Audience or Hooked Editor

Advertising:
You're looking for your target audience and advertising accordingly. You would not advertise a women's TV network in a male-oriented sports magazine.

Public Relations:
You must have an angle and hook editors to get them to use info for an article, to run a press release or to cover your event. Our team of experienced editors ( www.PrudentPressAgency.com and www.SkyNewswire.com ) have idealized thousands of news angles and do it for a living.

Special Events

Advertising:
If your company sponsors an event, you wouldn't want to take out an ad giving yourself a pat on the back for being such a great company. This is where your PR department steps in.

Public Relations:
If you're sponsoring an event, you can send out a press release and the media might pick it up. They may publish the information or cover the event.

Writing Style

Advertising:
Buy this product! Act now! Call today! These are all things you can say in an advertisement. You want to use those buzz words to motivate people to buy your product.

Public Relations:
You're strictly writing in a no-nonsense news format. Any blatant commercial messages in your communications are disregarded by the media. "Journalists are looking for a fresh story of interest to their audience. You are looking to promote your product and company. The two are not necessarily incompatible" stresses Lilian Matana Executive Editor of SkyNewswire.com

Tune-Up: A PR Agency cannot help resorting to hype or soft-selling - they think it is their responsibility to enhance information to try to "sell" it to the press, without realizing that this alienates them from the journalists and inhibits the development of good, long-lasting, mutually satisfying relationship. Joseph Reriani - PR Consultant

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This article is part of Joseph Reriani's "PR Tune-up Blog" newsletter posted to over 6,000 subscribers weekly. The newsletter was first published in 2002 at http://www.Reriani.com. For more articles and PR tune-up tips, please visit www.PrudentPressAgency.com and www.SkyNewswire.com. Joseph Reriani is a Media Consultant and Fellow with the Chartered Institute of Public Relations-  United Kingdom. He is the President/CEO of Prudent International Inc and Executive Editor of Prudent Press Agency. He is also an Assistant Editor of SkyNewswire.com directed by Jackie Mugambi . He is a trained journalist and specializes in helping businesses, organizations, and individuals improve their public image by effectively employing the power of public relations. Mr Reriani can be reached at admin @ Reriani.com. You may freely copy and re-publish this article without altering any part in the body.

To Help Jog Your Mind

To Help Jog Your Mind

Did Ponce de Leon really discover a fountain of youth in Florida or did he merely have a great public relations man?

We will probably never know the true answer to this question just as so many questions still remain unanswered about many historic people and happenings because word of mouth has the tremendous power of creating legends of its own.

I have mounted campaigns for relatively obscure firms that have resulted in their becoming known and sought after as major entities in their respective fields of industry. Through the placement of articles in local, national and international publications, in conjunction with an advertising campaign, these firms have achieved the recognition and place within the industry that would have taken many years to achieve without a public relations campaign.

We’re frequently asked: “When should I issue a news release?” The time to do this is when you have something topical and newsworthy to say. All releases need a strong ‘hook’ – in other words, an angle that will appeal to editors and give your story a good chance of gaining coverage. So, what would be considered newsworthy?

For starters, perhaps your company is launching a new product or service? Or, you’re launching a new company from scratch? You should issue a release highlighting the benefits and applications of your particular product / service / market entrant.

If whatever you’re launching is technically innovative or it’s being marketed in an unusual or high profile way, you could have the basis of a release. In this case, make sure you don’t fill your release with unnecessary jargon or marketing-speak that could alienate editors and journalists.

Forthcoming events can provide ideal material for announcements. Are you holding any open days, speakers’ panels, rallies or debates? Charity events or donations from your organization to good causes are worth highlighting, as are initiatives that benefit the wider community. If celebrities or public figures are involved, your newsworthiness will increase. The level of interest will relate to the stature of your company and the nature of your event. If a famous chocolate factory held an open day with lots of freebies, it would be of national press interest.

Have you appointed any new members of senior staff? Won a large contract or client? Become involved in a sponsorship deal? Are you expanding or opening a new outlet? Have you received an industry award? If so, the trade press might be interested.

When you’re seeking newsworthy stories, don’t forget one of your best assets – your personnel. Have any employees been recognized for outstanding achievements? Do they have unusual hobbies? Have they received any unusual requests or orders from customers that your company has fulfilled? The local press might opt for a quirky human-interest story.

Remember to monitor current affairs for events into which you can hook. Can you associate your company with upcoming holidays or public projects? Statements that could be perceived as controversial, such as stating your organization's stance on a public issue, might gain coverage. Have you conducted research that gives you statistics you could release?

Tune-Up: If you’re targeting different press sectors with the same story, write multiple releases rather than issuing one ‘catch all’ release. Joseph Reriani - PR Consultant

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This article is part of Joseph Reriani's "PR Tune-up Blog" newsletter posted to over 6,000 subscribers weekly. The newsletter was first published in 2002. For more articles and PR tune-up tips, please visit www.PrudentPressAgency.com and www.SkyNewswire.com. Joseph Reriani is a PR expert and Fellow with the Chartered Institute of Public Relations-  United Kingdom. He is the President/CEO of Prudent International Inc and Executive Editor of Prudent Press Agency. He is also an Assistant Editor of SkyNewswire.com directed by Jackie Mugambi . He is a trained journalist and specializes in helping businesses, organizations, and individuals improve their public image by effectively employing the power of public relations. Mr Reriani can be reached at jreriani @ PrudentPressAgency.com. You may freely copy and re-publish this article without altering any part in the body.

Write a World - Class Press Release

Write a World - Class Press Release

Why do most press releases seem to read like this: ‘XYZ Co. Inc., a leading supplier of the world’s 123, announced today the availability of its latest product, the XYZ 4.2, version 3, which will revolutionize the software-aided micro-technology chip industry. “This will revolutionize the software-aided micro-technology chip industry,” said Joe Blow, XYZ Co. Chief Executive Officer and Founder.’”

Why do PR professionals flock to the fill-in-the-blanks model of writing press releases? Certainly not because it stands out in the crowd of all the other releases a reporter is likely to get in a day. Unless "Joe Blow" is a famous CEO known to the media or XYZ Co Inc is a company household name, such a press release may more likely than not find itself either deleted or in the trash.

Instead of conforming to the conventional approach as above which is dated, formulaic and, let’s face it, dull — choose a better model to follow. Here are some approaches that I use to spice up the press releases.

Write a feature lead. Contrary to popular opinion, reporters don’t hate feature leads. They hate crappy feature leads.

Instead of the conventional “XYZ Drugs Introduces a new 123 drug to relieve pets pain...” of a first paragraph, why not make your release stand out from the crowd with a first paragraph  like, "Imagine the first few hours in the recovery room following a major surgery. Consider what post-surgical life has been like for some pets undergoing common surgical procedures; intense hours WITHOUT pain medication. …now all that may come to end with the release of 123 drug by XYZ Drugs...". With newspapers your readers or editors have to pick it up to throw it away or if you are lucky get it filed. Not so when you’re sending a release via e-mail. Online, you’re just one click of the delete key away button. Your only chance to get the message read: the subject line and first paragraph... get it right and juicy.

Lead with the benefits to your intended market or media outlet. Present the key element … that explains how your story can benefit the newspapers readers. "Employers now have a better way to measure, monitor and manage employee absences, thanks to XYZ expanded online Comparative Reporting & Analysis (CRA) information services.

Give a great biography. Do your executive or director bios read like a resume... very boring even if you are Bill Gates? Wake your biography up with human-interest details and storytelling. Here’s a great example I recently picked about Embassy Suites hotels: It all started when Carlton Calvin was reading a brief item in the Los Angeles Times about the growing popularity of push scooters in Japan. With a spark of creative thinking, Carlton, president of Razor USA LLC, spawned the “Razor scooter,” one of the hottest trends to hit the United States within the last two years. Hint: “It all started when …” leads draw the reader in. The moment of creative inspiration is a great place to start an executive or director bio — or any story, for that matter.

Use human interest. What’s more compelling: an announcement about custom-fitted breast prostheses? Or a “breast cancer survivor profile”? Let people tell your story with leads like this one: "In 1989, Elizabeth McCann of Spring, Texas, felt a knot in her left breast. Her physician told her that she needed a biopsy, but was 99 percent sure it would be benign. McCann kept putting it off — until the pain in her breast woke her up at night. …" Go ahead and introduce your product.

Instead of just filling in the blanks, use any or all of these approaches when you write your next press release or pitch. Make your copy creative and compelling, not just one more cliché. 

Tune-Up: Use customer and reference sites to reinforce your messages. Ask satisfied customers to give a few sentences on the benefits they have derived from your product or service, and their return on investment. A list of testimonials, with the company they come from and ideally a contact name should be available to all journalists. Joseph Reriani - PR Consultant

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This article is part of Joseph Reriani's "PR Tune-up Blog" newsletter posted to over 6,000 subscribers weekly. The newsletter was first published in 2002. For more articles and PR tune-up tips, please visit www.PrudentPressAgency.com and www.SkyNewswire.com. Joseph Reriani is a PR expert and Fellow with the Chartered Institute of Public Relations-  United Kingdom. He is the President/CEO of Prudent International Inc and Executive Editor of Prudent Press Agency. He is also an Assistant Editor of SkyNewswire.com directed by Jackie Mugambi . He is a trained journalist and specializes in helping businesses, organizations, and individuals improve their public image by effectively employing the power of public relations. Mr Reriani can be reached at jreriani @ PrudentPressAgency.com. You may freely copy and re-publish this article without altering any part in the body.

Public Relations Simplified

Public Relations Simplified

Public Relations can be defines as the art of creating interest in you, your company, and your product/service by convincing others (namely media outlets such as print, TV, and radio) to report about who you are, what you do, and why it's important to the world at large.

Sounds pretty simple, doesn't it? PR is perhaps a little deceiving in definition. PR involves a lot of hard work and dedication. There are several things you must do (and do well) in order for the media outlets to recognize your expertise and your business.

First and foremost: You must be an expert at something. No one will want to book you for their show or write an article about you unless you've done your work and are an expert in your field. So, before you go any further, be aware that if you are not already an expert (usually, if you own a small business, you are an expert) you need to take some time and learn about everything related to your product or service. The worst publicity is the kind that says you don't know what you're talking about.

The next thing to do is to zero in on your buying audience. Take your buying audience and identify various segments - different segments of your audience will require different promotional efforts. Figure out what magazines and newspapers they read, the news and television programming they watch, and the radio stations and programming to which your audience listens.

Now you can zero in on the media audience that will be the most effective in your PR Campaign. If you're selling high-end computer servers, for example, sending a press release to Parenting magazine is not your best bet. I would suggest gathering an extensive list of all media outlets that might be interested. If you are sending your materials to several hundred media outlets, you will have a greater chance of publication (or booking) than if you send it to only 20.

The next logical step is to create a press release. Generally, TV and radio producers do not have the time to read press releases. Send it to them anyway. It may just fall through the cracks and find its way into an interested producer's hand. Newspapers and other print publications will usually pay more attention to your press releases than their radio and TV counterparts.

Press releases sent to print publications should differ than those you send to radio and TV outlets. Print outlets can publish a press release at little or no charge; so make sure that your press release is newsworthy and includes all the information (the who, what, where, when, why, and how) as concisely as possible. You should limit all your press releases to a single page. The first paragraph of your press release is vital. Many editors won't get past this first paragraph if they do not like it. Use this paragraph to inform them of what you are promoting. It should be no more than four sentences and should include all the points you are making throughout the rest of the press release. Do not go into great detail here. Most of the people to whom you are sending your press release will not care about the details unless they read the rest of the press release. If you insist on going into greater detail about you or your product or service, include the details on another page in your media kit. Make sure to include your contact information at the top and bottom of every page you send to the media.

Press releases sent to radio and TV producers should be much shorter. Generally, they don't have the time to read the press releases. When they do, they just read the headlines and sub-headlines. These headlines should only be one line. They should only take a couple seconds to read; and they should immediately show the value/benefits of what you are promoting. The media is obsessed with certain topics - sex, money, and health - so try to incorporate these ideas in your headlines. Make sure to bullet your main points. Keep the bullets in order of importance; readers probably won't get past the first three. And keep the list short, five bullets is probably best.

Make sure you record who you send your press releases to. Keep track of their names, addresses, phone number, employer, specialty area, source information, and any other information you have on this particular person. Make sure your list is always up-to-date, there is a huge turnover rate in the media. You don't want to waste your time sending your media kit/press release to people who no longer work for those outlets.

Follow up with the editors/producers to whom you send your press release/media kit. Telephone them within 3 days of receiving your press release/media kit (Note: FedEx packages are opened more frequently than any other delivered package - so if you're sending your press release/media kit out and you have the resources, send them via overnight FedEx delivery). When you get these people on the phone, ask them if they got the press release, if they have any questions about it, or if there's anything further you can do to help them. Building relationships with media outlets is essential; but it's a one-way information street. To have a successful relationship, you must be willing to give them information, to do some extra research for whatever project they're working on - YOU must help THEM in some way. Offer your expertise for whatever project on which they are currently working. Or, if you have no expertise in that area, offer to make contact with some of your associates on their behalf for their piece. These people are addicted to information. The more information you give them, the more apt they are to help you promote yourself! So don't be shy! Ask if and how you can help them!

Your media kit should highlight your press release. Without a great press release, sending a media kit is an act of futility. Media kits are no longer necessary for initial mailings; they do better as a follow up tactic. Your media kit should be presented in a nice two-pocket folder with your business card included. Keep your media kits short, no more than a few pages; and you can include any of the following in addition to your press release:

• Company history • Personal history • Suggested questions • Brochure • Articles • Your photograph • Testimonials • Quizzes, trivia, or giveaways

Visit other parts of our website at www.PrudentPressAgency.com and www.SkyNewswire.com for more detailed articles on Media Kits.

Make sure to print your logo and contact information on the cover of your folder. If you are in a money crunch, print out some labels and stick them on there - but make sure that information is there. You will also want the entirety of your contact information on every page of your media kit. If any of these elements get separated from the rest, you want them to be able to reach you!

As you can tell, this information is really only the tip of the iceberg. While PR is time consuming, it is an integral part of your marketing efforts. Take the time, plan what you need to do, and get a PR strategy working for you.

Tune-Up You must fully believe in what you're publicizing - the media has a way of sifting through the hype and seeing the product/service for what it's worth. Enthusiasm is contagious. When you promote your product, be enthusiastic and sincere. Impassioned people always find their way to the top! Believe from the heart that what you're promoting will change the world, that you promoting it makes a difference, and that YOU know more about it than anyone else. You can't fake it! Joseph Reriani - PR Consultant

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This article is part of Joseph Reriani's "PR Tune-up Blog" newsletter posted to over 6,000 subscribers weekly. The newsletter was first published in 2002. For more articles and PR tune-up tips, please visit www.PrudentPressAgency.com and www.SkyNewswire.com. Joseph Reriani is a PR expert and Fellow with the Chartered Institute of Public Relations-  United Kingdom. He is the President/CEO of Prudent International Inc and Executive Editor of Prudent Press Agency. He is also an Assistant Editor of SkyNewswire.com directed by Jackie Mugambi . He is a trained journalist and specializes in helping businesses, organizations, and individuals improve their public image by effectively employing the power of public relations. Mr Reriani can be reached at jreriani @ PrudentPressAgency.com. You may freely copy and re-publish this article without altering any part in the body.