Top 10 B2 B PR Practices

How To Get Noticed In A Web 2.0 World The Top 10 B2B PR Practices of 2009 to Boost Your Business

Introduction The web 2.0 world has forever changed the nature of public relations & marketing. This raises a few questions: How do you take advantage of these changes to help grow your business? How do you maximize your impact without spending more? What are the secrets top PR pros use to gain free publicity and attention? This webinar will explore these questions in more detail

Meet Your Presenter Wendy Marx is President of Marx Communications , an award-winning B2B marketing and public relations firm she founded in 1993. Over her career, Wendy has helped launch numerous business-to-business startups that have become well-known industry brands, including marketing gurus Peppers & Rogers Group and TheStreet.com’s equity research shop. Wendy is also a founding member of PR Boutiques International , a global network of select boutique PR consultancies. Her technology and business articles have appeared in The New York Times, Information Week, and Computerworld and she has written advertorials for Fortune and Forbes on B2B topics. She currently writes a blog on personal public relations branding for Fast Company . Web: www.marxcommunications.com Tel: 203-445-2850 Email: [email_address] Twitter: http://twitter.com/wendymarx

Best Practice #1 – Have a Great Story to Tell That Really Matters to People Think “a-ha” instead of “ho-hum,” or don’t bother No one is going to care about your latest corporate hiring – unless it happens to be Steve Jobs! Identify and play up the new, the distinctive, the relevant, the offbeat or the truly game-changing in your business/organization Whenever possible, tie it to recent news or a business trend

What not to pitch: Mr. Science Publishes Paper in Elite Journal Pig’s Knuckle, Ark. - John Q. Science, associate professor in the Department of Really Boring and Trivial Molecular Knowledge at The Rheostat Institute of Technology, has recently lead-authored and published a paper in the Institute of Pseudo-Science’s journal entitled, “Measuring the Displacement of Milk in Cereal Bowls.” Note: the information has been changed to protect the guilty

Best Practice #2: Be the Expert To be an expert, you don’t have to know more than anyone else on your subject – just more than the average Joe or Jane Q. Public. The multiplicity of channels in the digital era make it easier than ever to establish someone as a noted expert in a field: blogs, podcasts, wikis, contributed articles, e-zines, newsletters, etc. Set down, prioritize and review the key message points your expert needs to convey

A role model for experts everywhere:

Best Practice #3: Become a Social Media Maven Learn what social media can and cannot do for your business They are powerful networking tools that help you connect with those who have complementary expertise, contacts, etc. – especially true of LinkedIn and Twitter Related to Best Practice #2: you can use these tools to help position yourself as an expert voice in your field, sector, industry Don’t look for business-building necessarily, but relationship-building through social media Keywords and postings are searchable in Google, AOL, etc., as well as within the particular network itself

Best Practice #4: Journalists Are Allies, Not Friends Members of the media have their own agenda, and want to advance their own cause – not yours State “off the record” if you don’t want them to use something, or “on background” if it’s for informational purposes only. Generally, don’t say anything you wouldn’t want to appear the next day in print or on the air! If possible, ask for a pre-pub copy to review; most journalists will not grant this, however Review quotes or anything else you want to be clarified Have a plan: review/rehearse your key message points; have a “cheat sheet” handy

Always keep on your toes with reporters:

Best Practice #5: Techniques for Raising Your Company Profile Start a blog or contribute to an existing one, writing about relevant topics and bringing a fresh perspective that sets your voice apart Get your company listed in as many business directories as possible, to raise your ranking in search results; many of them are free Create a company entry in Wikipedia – but research their criteria first, and make sure it’s as neutral as possible. Comment on relevant online articles that showcase your expertise and put your business in a positive light Submit the company and executives for relevant industry awards

Best Practice #6: Rumors of the press release’s demise have been greatly exaggerated While some prognosticators, naysayers and wags are throwing spadefuls of dirt on the stalwart release, it is alive and well A well-written, relevant and targeted release can still have an impact and open doors of media opportunity But know your audience: if it’s for bloggers, tight is right; if it’s for general consumption, keep it simple

Best Practice #7: Making That Press Release Pay Off Develop a targeted media list for each campaign Embed as many relevant keywords as possible to improve search engine results Post the release on social media sites like Digg, de.li.ci.ous, Sphinn and StumbledUpon Make it a “non-release” – give it a newsy feel Play up – and punch up – the key message points

Best Practice #8: Doing PR on the cheap Take advantage of as many free services as possible: Twitter, LinkedIn, free PR distribution services (they are legion), blogs Send your release personally to a few targeted reporters, and include a note that quickly hits the highlights Subscribe to free services like Peter Shankman’s “Help a Reporter Out” and PR Newsire’s “Expert Alerts” and “Profnet Alerts” that hook up your expert with journalists on the hunt Don’t forget the local angle: send your news to the daily or weekly paper, television and radio stations Write letters to the editor – an easy, effective way to get your voice out in the marketplace of ideas

You don’t have to break the bank to get your name out there

Best Practice #9: Treat the Media as Your Client Generally speaking, members of the media are overworked and underpaid (ok, right, who isn’t?) Make their life easier by ensuring that they have all the important information, photos, files, past stories, etc. Respect the deadline – deliver the goods on time and in complete fashion, especially if it’s a contributed article Respond to their requests in a timely fashion, especially those dealing with breaking stories

Best Practice #10 There’s No Substitute for Face Time Diversify your media outreach – mix it up with in-person meetings, briefings and interviews Get your experts out on the speaking circuit; line up the best known, highest profile events as possible Coordinate on-site briefings at media offices, linked to relevant, timely news that sets them apart Exposure at events has a multiplier effect, opening up opportunities at other events and raising the expert’s – and the company’s – visibility

Sometimes, just tweeting someone isn’t enough:

Questions and Answers Thank you for your time Marx Communications Wendy Marx, 203-445-2850 [email_address] Michael O’Brien, 203-377-4047 [email_address]

Top 10 B2 B PR Practices

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Top 10 B2 B PR Practices