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Follow The Marketing Equation Writing a press release is basically like writing an ad – without worrying about ad layout, graphics, design, etc. Although it may not look like a normal ad, it MUST still follow the marketing equation if you want it to get read and used. Looking at the sample template I provided last week, you will notice the headline goes first. It doesn’t have to be just a headline; in fact, if it makes sense, you should have a headline and a sub-headline. The sub-headline is very important because it transitions the reader from the headline into the body of the “ad” by promising that if he continues to read, he will receive information to help facilitate his decision-making process. The information you provide in the article itself must be important and relevant and must educate the reader. If it’s neither important nor relevant or if the reader feels you are trying to sell him/her rather than educate him/her, you will lose him/her. Although a press release is an ad, its main purpose is to sell through education and public awareness. Does Size Really Matter?
In my last article, I mentioned that you should keep your press release to 1 page or 2 pages at the most; however, this is not the rule. Editors receive hundreds of press releases a week (perhaps more) and appreciate releases that are brief and to the point. But by following the Marketing Equation and including important and relevant educational material, you increase the odds of a longer piece being read. But let me say it again: once you have finished writing your release you’ll want to edit and then edit again. Then when you’ve finished editing, edit again. Be concise. Say it well, but don’t use more words than necessary. Don’t lose the decision maker because your press release is too long. The Importance Of Including The Right Kind Of Offer They appreciate you doing most of the research for them. Although many reporters/editors won’t admit it, they really don’t like doing research – it is time consuming. By doing the research for them, it allows you to include the most important information in your press release and still have additional information available for them in case they call – and obviously a good way to get them to call is to include an offer for more information. If you can get them to call, then you have a pretty good chance of having a story done. So an offer for a report or some other educational piece works well in a press release. |
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We’ve all heard of press releases, but how many of us actually know what they are or when and how to use them to our advantage? A press release is a newsworthy story about your business that you submit to various media – newspapers, radio, television, magazines, etc. If they are interested in your story, they may call to interview you or just run your press release in their particular medium. Since most people may be more receptive to a news story than an ad, a press release may be the key to getting people to read about your company or services. It’s like having the media endorse you, your website, and your products. Most importantly, sending out a press release is far cheaper than purchasing an ad. It is important to remember that a press release is not an advertisement about your business. It is a newsworthy story that the media might be interested in picking up. A formal press release needs to follow a specific format and is sent to solicit interest in your business.
“For Immediate Release” Use one of the last two if your press release is of a time sensitive nature. For example, if you are holding a public speaking event, you will want to use the “For Release Before [date]” and make sure you input the final date for registrations. If you are using the “For Release Before [date]” ensure you are aware of media deadlines. Send your release well in advance. 2. Headline Write an attention-grabbing headline. Make it benefits-oriented (why would it be of interest to people?) and descriptive. Avoid hype and promotional language – remember this is a news story. 3. Contact Information Include as much information as possible here. Make it easy for the media to contact you. Include your phone number, address, company name, fax number, e-mail, and URL. Include the hours you are available at the listed phone number and add an after-hours phone number if applicable. 4. Summary Before you get into the body of the release, write a sentence or two to summarize your press release. Make it interesting; you want the recipient to keep reading. Also, include the area to which this release is relevant. 5. Content This is the meat of your press release. Again, write a benefits-oriented story. Think of the target audience as you are writing. Your target audience is partly the editor or reporter who will be reading the release. Ultimately, however, your target audience is that editor or reporter’s readers or audience. You need to write a story that will be of interest to them. The first paragraph should answer all the important questions – who, what, where, when, why, and how. Make sure that you keep it succinct and to the point. Mark Twain said, “If I had more time I would have written less.” So edit and then edit again. Then when you’ve finished editing, edit again. The common optimum length for a press release is 400-800 words with 400-600 words being a good target length. In many cases a 500 word release is “just right” because it ensures you get to the point. Once you get a reporter interested they may ask you for more information. Then you can give him or her more information. Most people hate doing research and this holds true for reporters as well. 6. Signify the End of Your Press Release The end of your press release is shown by a few simple characters. Place ### at the end of your release. Other General Formatting Tips
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Attention-Grabbing Headline Goes Here Contact: name City, State – quick summary First Paragraph – Grab the reader’s attention here. Answer the important questions like who, what, where, when, why, and how. More information and facts. Add a quotation to break up the release and make for easy reading. Quotations can be from you or a testimonial from a customer. Direct the reader to the page on your website where he/she can find more information on your announcement. # # #
Once you’ve written your press release, who should you send it to? Well, you can either contact local media outlets yourself to find out who to send your release to or you can use an online company that specializes in sending out press releases. Setting achievable goals and realistic expectations First of all, it’s best to establish what your goals and expectations are of your marketing campaign. It’s very important to set realistic goals. Surveying to find out what your customers want While large companies spend thousands of dollars each year trying to determine what their customers want from their business, small businesses should be able to take advantage of their size and easier access to customers. Direct mail and email questionnaires, telemarketing surveys, focus groups, and other techniques are effective methods of understanding your customers and prospects, but they can be costly and time-consuming. You can save money while getting the information you need by running informal versions of these methods. For example, instead of hiring a firm to run a focus group, invite a few of your best customers out to a nice dinner and ask them for an informal appraisal of your product or service. This will allow you to get important, customer-driven input and ideas for a fraction of the cost. And it allows you to ask many more questions than you could over the phone or through man-on-the-street interviews. Depending on the industry, another way to quickly gather survey information is to have someone survey customers as they enter your business. Offer a discount or free gift for taking 5 minutes to answer a few questions. After a couple of hours you should be able to efficiently survey enough clients or prospects to detect a trend on one or more surveys. Hold on to existing customers Marketers estimate that acquiring a new customer costs five to eight times more than keeping an existing one, so in industries with heavy customer turn-over, limited marketing dollars should be focused on retaining existing business. Any combination of the following programs can help you retain customers not only by providing a useful service, but also by making customers feel appreciated and more likely to come again.
Give new customers a taste of what you have to offer With the increase in advertisements that a consumer comes in touch with on a daily basis, it has become more difficult to cut through the clutter to attract new customers. Aside from referral programs and advertisements, sometimes all it takes to get a new customer is to offer them a taste of your product or service. Here's an example: Let's say you are a massage therapist who only had enough business to fill up 2 to 3 days of the week, but wanted to double your business over the next couple of months. You could visit businesses and make a deal with the office manager to allow you to give each of his staff members a free 10 minute chair massage. This allows you to get in front of prospects and give out your card after they get a taste of the service and the business manager gets a perk out of it to - happy employees. It's a win-win situation. This can be used in any industry. Car dealerships offer prospective customers a test drive of the vehicle they want to buy. Some now allow you to keep the car overnight. With a little creativity and imagination, you may be able to provide similar "trials" of your product or service to win over new customers. Leverage your own expertise If you are a Professional, you can market the business by raising your profile as an industry expert. That way, when your future customers have a need for someone in your area of expertise, they will naturally turn to you. Volunteer your time and expertise to community and industry events, workshops or associations. You also can check into becoming an adjunct professor at the local community college or university and teach a course for continuing education or graduate students. However, don't do this just to push your business or services at these events - it could damage your credibility and make people feel they were cheated. With creative thinking, you can enjoy the benefits of well-planned marketing efforts without a huge price tag. Take the time to know what your customers want, and make sure to provide it to the customers you already have. With that goal accomplished, you can focus on winning new customers via focused research efforts, or establishing yourself as the local source of expert advice. |
Miller Brewing Company found itself looking for a better way to advertise its product recently. “It’s a tough admission…but the company [Miller] has realized that the humor-and-babes model has failed to differentiate it from Anheuser-Busch.” “We had forgotten why people drink our beer. We need to remind ourselves that consumers need a compelling reason to try and use your product…it sounds very basic, but we had forgotten that.” “Being grounded with the consumer is maybe one of the biggest clichés in the world, but it’s one of the toughest things to make happen.” I have in the past fielded the following question from clients, “If this is so easy, why don’t other ad agencies do it?” Or “What happens if our client’s competitors get and read the advertising? Won’t they go and copy it?” The answer is, “They won’t – or don’t – understand it.” How does that jibe with you? Most ad execs cling to a perception they were raised with and added to at famous universities. The research and information currently surrounding them about market awareness, branding, and focus group research is centered on a fundamentally different way of seeing things. Even though they say things like, “We need to remind ourselves that consumers need a compelling reason to try and use your product…it sounds very basic, but we had forgotten that.” The ad execs cannot see past what they hold as a truth: Creativity to gather interest and repetition to keep it. For them there is no other way. They are blind; they are trying to break out of the mold of their own creation, but they cannot see. The advertising world is waking up and it appears that most ad execs are feeling something. From the quotes I gave you – and these are not unique to Miller Brewing – there is a lot of worrying and hand wringing going on, especially in these tough economic times. But they will not see it. Again, remember their focus, they see the process as one of creativity. They will always focus on the spurts of genius even with all the research; there is still the fact they will be faced with creating the ad out of the research. They will inevitably fall back onto the creative shops to churn out a 30 second TV commercial from all the research. There will be concept drawings, storyboards, and artistic renderings. After all, the research has to go somewhere. Here is another reason why they will not see it. Here is a basic review of how these large firms thinks your mind works:
They believe that memory space translates into dollars. They literally start too far into the process; they would be better served by taking into account the beginning of the buying process. This is what we do. Here is the basic review of how we think the mind works:
The process is simple and easy to follow. The system results in marketing and advertising that hits the right Hot Buttons, speaks to the consumer in a compelling fashion, and gets the job done. But looking at the end product is no way to understand the system, your competitors might see it, they might mimic it, but they will not understand the principles so the result will be less than perfect. There is a sweet simplicity in targeting your market. By tightening the “Who” your message becomes infinitely more customized and powerful. In the movie Minority Report, advertising worked by instant, personal recognition. The technology in the movie was able to pinpoint each viewer and speak to them directly. By targeting your audience you can take advantage of all the things your group has in common, and you are better able to understand what is going on in the prospect’s brain. All of this will result in better results for your marketing. Your job as a marketer is to create a powerful strategic message that you can then integrate into everything you do. To be able to do your job well, you must be able to see through John Smith’s eyes. Have you ever thought what that entails? What exactly would you see if you did that? This is not just about ‘seeing’ through another set of eyeballs, but we all know that. This is about understanding and feeling as John Smith. Knowing what he knows, taking in what he takes in, and making decisions like he does. This is about hurting, and loving, and wanting, and needing, and all that makes us who we are. You will get a partial sense of this from several sources, here are a few:
Here is one that everyone forgets, and to me this is the most important, and at times the most interesting:
Imagine that, I am asking you to trust your own thoughts and feelings on this. What you feel, think, sense, and distrust John Smith will probably also feel, think, sense, and distrust. But rather than think yourself jaded, or “not really your own target market”, give yourself some credit. You see I can see and feel like John Smith. It just takes devotion and time. You too can get into your customers’ minds and see as John Smith. All it requires is a little thought, spend some time thinking. Too many times we take a very general view of the world. We think with tunnel vision. We forget that we need to know and feel for ourselves. That being said, here is a great place to start. Begin by recording your own personal thoughts. Keep that recorder or a pad of paper in your car and office. When shopping, do your usual thing, but as soon as you can, sit back, reflect and ponder what went on. Ask yourself the following questions:
And then quantify your answers. Do this for every shopping experience you can, try as Jim Rohn says, “To get the stuff!” I promise you will benefit from this exercise. Plus, it will get you into the habit of reflecting about buying, and that is a GOOD thing. |