This will be my last blog here in 2008 as I’ll be taking a much-needed break for the holidays. But be sure to check back in the New Year to see my brand new blog look, newsletter, book, website, and more to help you boost sales, awareness and credibility…fast!

And at this time, I’d like to send out a special note of appreciation to all of you. Thanks so much for reading my blog and providing all of your wonderful comments, questions and insights this past year. I’m thrilled to be able to provide you with information you can actually use to help your business grow.

I hope that you and your families have a very happy and healthy holiday and a prosperous New Year!

Melanie

The last thing on your mind may be the thought of purchasing business holidays cards, writing messages and addresses, licking envelopes, and buying stamps. But you may be missing out on a great opportunity.

Not only are holiday cards a fantastic way to spread some cheer during tough times, but they offer a great way to get through to potential new clients, investors and sponsors, renew relationships with media members and thank valued customers.

After all, most people appreciate a personalized holiday card and will open this type mail.

Now, you may think it will take too much time and cost too much money to send out cards, but with today’s technology, it can be very easy and cost-effective.

Some services will even take care of printing and mailing for you! (Check out http://www.printingforless.com/holidaycards.html, www.kinkos.com  and your local print shop for help.)

And if you are really short on funds, you can always send electronic greetings through Hallmark, Yahoo! and others.

If possible, try to set aside a few hours to create an address list and send out holiday cards in the next few weeks. It may be a lot easier than you think and well worth the effort.

Not only will you help build business relationships, but you’ll spread some holiday cheer…and we could all use some of that right now!

If you need help with your copywriting and PR efforts, please let me know. Thanks!

Over the weekend, I was walking along the beach early in the morning and noticed several people standing around with brooms. They were all wearing bright orange vests and seemed like they were fulfilling a community-service obligation.

As I passed the group, I heard the leader say, “Now, take your time. If they see you’re not doing anything, they’ll give you more work to do.”

Sure enough, a few minutes later, I noticed all of the volunteers spread out across the sidewalk…standing there looking at the ocean with brooms in hand. There must have been 25-30 people in the group!

Now, in my opinion, about five people could have swept the entire sidewalk in a matter of hours while the others did something more beneficial elsewhere.

I like to avoid negativity, but I felt this was a total waste of people power and it really got me thinking. With everything going on in the world, isn’t there a way these workers could have completed their community-service hours by directly helping others in need, recycling or taking part in some other volunteer activity that provided value?

In addition, what kind of work ethic does this support?

If you were given this situation, would you just stand there and look at the ocean, or would you try to do a good job with the task you were given?

Obviously, many people would take the lazy route and enjoy the ocean view. But is this the mentality that got them to this point in the first place?

Having a strong work ethic is essential in today’s economic environment. Now is not the time to do “only what is expected.” Instead, it’s important to go above and beyond.

The hard-working people who put in the extra effort now will be the ones who will be able to compete, weather these tough times and experience great success in the future…so with this in mind, are you going to settle with the status quo or make your dreams a reality with hard work and perseverance?

If you have copywriting and PR questions, please let me know. I’m here to help!

Now that we’ve all had some time to get back into work mode after the Thanksgiving holiday, I thought I’d provide a simple reminder…

As an entrepreneur, it’s important to regularly develop relationships with the media (on top of everything else you have to do). But it doesn’t need to be difficult.

In fact, the next time you see a quote or article in the media that includes information about your business, send a quick thank you to the reporter who wrote the story.

Media members are inundated with negative news, bad press releases and quick deadlines on a daily basis so they tend to appreciate a note of thanks and a few, nice comments about their hard work.

With this in mind, it’s also a good idea to regularly thank customers, partners, employees, and other business associates.

It only takes a few minutes. And best of all, your quick “thank you” may result in better relationships with the people who can take your business to the next level…fast. 

Try it and let me know what happens…

And with that note, THANK YOU for reading, and I’ll be writing more soon!

With the last few months of election activities and the economic roller coaster, I think we all deserve a break. And even with all of this turmoil, we are still around and have a lot to be thankful for.

With this in mind, I’d like to thank all of you for reading my blog. I hope I’ve given you some help with your PR and copywriting activities and provided some inspiration at the same time.

In the month’s ahead, I hope to continue to offer you some valuable information to boost sales, awareness and credibility.

But for now, I wish you a happy and health Thanksgiving full of fun, friends, family, rest, and relaxation!

With the economy the way it is, there is a lot more competition for business. But before you jump at every new job opportunity that comes your way, take a moment to stop and think.

I don’t know about you, but every time I’ve gone into a new business relationship without paying attention to my inner voice, things usually don’t work out well.

There have been many instances where things just “don’t seem right,” and my instincts are giving me a funny feeling in the pit of my stomach. But I move on with a new client or business relationship because things are transpiring fast, and I need to make quick decisions.

When I do this, I always end up wasting time, money and effort. And even though it can be very difficult to take a moment before accepting a huge contract or working with a new client, I’ve found that it is essential.

Just by giving myself a few minutes of quiet time, or by sleeping on a decision, I know exactly what I need to do and things seem to move forward much better.

…So with this in mind, it can be well worth it to listen to your inner voice prior to making a decision. It has helped my business grow much faster, and it may help you too! 

If this little tip helps you, please let me know. And if you have questions about your small business public relations or copywriting, I’d love to hear from you!

Have you ever been listening to an online seminar, speaker at an event or tele-seminar, and someone asks a really lame question?

For example, I was recently watching a presentation related to online marketing tips from one of the top experts in the industry. The host opened the floor for questions, and someone got up and asked, “What is a landing page?”

Now, this is a perfectly good question, but it was just not the right time to ask it. After all, the expert only had a few minutes to share his thoughts and answer questions.

And instead of simply finding the answer on Google on his own time, the audience member could have used this opportunity to his advantage and ask for some inside information .

For example, he could have said something like, “What trends do you see happening in landing pages and SEO strategies that have produced the biggest boost in sales in the shortest amount of time for your clients?

Not only would the response have provided useful information to everyone listening, but the caller would have appeared to be more professional.

I don’t like to get on my soap box, but business is competitive. You need to do the work and present yourself in the best light possible in order to succeed….so here are three tips to keep in mind the next time to go to a seminar or listen to a presentation online:

- Research the subject matter and the speaker in advance.

- Figure out what information you hope to get out of the presentation.

- Write down pertinent questions specifically for the speaker so you can get the data you need.

After all, if you spend the time, money and effort to participate in an event, you want to get the most out of it as possible. Not only will you help your business grow faster, but you may just help other participants get the information they need to be successful too!

You sit down in your favorite chair ready to bite into your freshly prepared bagel and… Drat! There is a headline featuring your competition with a big photo of the CEO. The first thing you ask yourself is, “Why him and not me?”

Well, don’t get too upset. That CEO may be:

·       A good friend of the reporter;

·       Advertise in the publication;

·       Spend a fortune on a big PR firm; or

·       Know the one secret to publicity success.

And if it’s the last point above, you’re in luck. Here is the secret:

Create a unique story angle for a specific reporter and contact that media member directly.

I’m not kidding.

There is so much hype about building buzz that is really comes down to this.

You just need to be willing to conduct the appropriate research and develop a unique and newsworthy story angle that a reporter will really care about.

And even if the reporter doesn’t like your pitch, at least you will start to establish yourself as a reputable source and create a working relationship with this media member for future stories.

Sure. Many business owners are lucky enough to get big media stories right away. But don’t let this get to you.

For true publicity success, you need to work hard, be creative and have some patience. And if you keep going, eventually you’ll be the one with the front-page feature!

If you have questions, or need help with your PR and online copywriting, please let me know! I’m here to help. Thanks! 

With the stress of the economy, the election and an increase in the number of reporters losing their jobs, it has been an uphill battle to build buzz for my clients.

And just when frustration started to get the best of me, things turned around.

In the last few days, my hard work paid off. My clients were featured on Forbes, The Discovery Channel, Workwise, The Los Angeles Times, The Wall Street Journal, and others.

It just goes to show you that you need to keep pluggin’ away, and even give  extra effort, when things aren’t going the way you planned.

Sure. This can be easier said than done so here are a few sites to help you stay positive and get the inspiration you need to hang in there when times get tough…

Quotes from “Power of Positive Thinking’s” Norman Vincent Peale

Daily Motivational Quote Widget

Small Business Advice from the Experts at SCORE

Small Business Help from Experts and other Entrepreneurs

Funny YouTube Videos for a Quick Laugh

And if this doesn’t work, just think…the Thanksgiving holiday will be here soon. Then, you can take a few days to relax, rest and start fresh when you return to the office!

If you have questions, or need help with your PR and online copywriting, please let me know! I’m here to help. Thanks!