Entries Tagged 'marketing' ↓

One of the best marketing tools any business can use is the press release.

But it is possibly one of the most under utilised forms of marketing.

The main reason for this, is that businesses often think they don’t have anything newsworthy to shout about. But there are a number of opportunities where you can issue a press release.

Sending out regular press releases is a great way to keep your business’s name ‘out there’ in the marketing place. No only that, but by publishing them online, you will be generating those all important one way back links to your website that are so important for search engine optimisation.

So when should you issue a press release? Well, whenever you do something new. To help you out, I have compiled this list of press release opportunities that shouldn’t be missed.

10 Reasons to send a press release

1. New product

This is probably the most obvious. When you launch a new product or service, make sure you send out a press release. It is the ideal opportunity to announce to the world what you are doing.

Always make sure you provide a link back to your website so your readers can easily get to your site for further information.

2. Case study/Survey

If you have recently carried out a survey or case study, make sure you issue a press release to announce the results.

This type of information will be very interesting to people in your industry or who have an interest in it.

3. Current events

If current news events are relevant to your business, press release about it. Topical issues are always of great interest so use what’s in the news to spread the word about your company.

4. Industry trends

You will be keeping an eye on what’s happening in your industry so make sure you use press releases to comment on the latest trends. Whether you want to highlight how trends are effecting business or how you have changed processes as a result of new trends, this type of industry comment will help bolster your position as an expert in your field.

5. Congratulations!

If your business has received an award or commendation, press release it. Blowing your own trumpet is an opportunity you can’t miss. It shows readers you are very good at what you do.

6. Growth

Have you taken on new staff? Moved to new premises? Bought a new fleet of vans? Any signs of growth are worth shouting about, especially in today’s climate.

7. Charity

Whether your company has donated to a charity, or if you are taking part in a charity event, this again is a prime opportunity for a press release. It will show your company as one that is involved with the community.

8. Freebies

Are you about to give away a free eBook, report or white paper? Don’t leave people to find out about it by chance, make sure you issue a press release about it.

9. The weird and wonderful

Press releases don’t just have to be about company milestones. If something bizarre has happened recently, write about it. Human interest stories are always popular. Share your experiences.

10. Employees

Have some of your employees done anything newsworthy? Whether it is being involved in a charity event or an inspirational tale of overcoming adversity, people love to read about other people.

At the end of the day, press releases will help you strengthen your place in the market and show your company as one that can be trusted. By issuing regular releases you will keep your company name in the forefront of your customer’s minds.

Don’t let the opportunity pass you by – press release it!

Sally Ormond – freelance copywriter

A strange thing for a freelance copywriter to write about? Well, yes and no.

One question I often get asked is why do I think I can write better copy than someone who’s involved in the business and knows it inside and out.

Well, there’s the answer. Yes, you know your business better than anyone else. But because you know it so well, you become totally absorbed by it. How often have you been asked what you do by someone? And by the time you’ve finished explaining they’ve dozed off, lost interest or are completely confused?

You see, there lies the problem. It is very difficult to take a step back from your business to see it from someone else’s point of view. If you are writing your own marketing materials, you have to write for your reader. You have to get into their shoes and explain exactly what benefits your product or service will bring to their lives – which isn’t easy.

But there’s more to it than that. Writing to attract and engage readers isn’t as easy as it sounds. Below are a few pointers to show how you can improve your writing, and turn it into great sales copy:

Think about your reader

Many businesses, when they write their own copy, don’t have their reader in mind. They tend to write content that they would want to read, which is usually very different from what their customers want.

Think about your readers – what type of people are they? What age are they? What are they interested in? Only when you have looked into this can you decide what tone to take. Should the voice you use be casual, formal, conversational?

If you are writing to a teenage audience, you’re likely to take a different approach to an audience who are 40+. They will have different priorities and interests so your copy must reflect that.

Grammar

We all hated it at school, but it’s a vital part of getting your message across. You will be judged on your use of the English language. Therefore you must ensure you follow the grammatical rules (although they can be bent at times to achieve certain effects).  Spelling is also key – make sure everything you publish has been proofread. There is nothing more off putting than reading something full of spelling and punctuation errors.

Your writing will say a lot about your company – sloppy use of grammar, spelling and punctuation will suggest your business is one that doesn’t care about attention to detail!

Headlines

The headlines you use in your communications will determine whether or not they get read. It sounds harsh, but most people judge content by the heading.

A weak and uninspiring heading won’t encourage your audience to continue reading. Therefore it really is worth spending a lot of time coming up with the perfect headline.

Make it simple

One trap that many business owners fall into when it comes to writing their own copy, is that they write it in jargon.

Your readers are only interested in one thing, and that’s what you are going to do for them. If you write copy that is centred on your business, how great it is, and full of jargon, your reader will be switched off in an instant.

Target your reader in everything you write. Make sure you show the benefits of your product and service to them.

But above all, make sure you use simple sentences and words. Many business people have a hang up about using an impressively large vocabulary when writing. That is one of the biggest turn offs ever. No matter how educated your audience, keep your words and sentence structure simple. People lead very busy lives these days so they want to be able to read quickly. Therefore the layout of your communication is also important – make sure the benefits stand out by placing them in bold type or in a bulleted list.

Why am I telling you this?

All your written communications (website copy, email marketing, newsletters, case studies, press releases etc.) reflect your business. Therefore it is vital you get them right.

Most people don’t consider hiring a copywriter because they think they can do it themselves. But let me ask you something, you can probably lay a few bricks if you tried hard enough, but would you consider building an entire house on your own? Probably not.

When your business relies so heavily on your written communications, it really is worth thinking about bringing in the professionals – after all you don’t want all your years of hard work to come tumbling down.

Everyone knows that the best way to market to your customers is by building an in-house email marketing list.

The fastest way to get your email marketing started is to use a bought-in list. But the problem with that is you are sending unsolicited emails to people who may not even be interested in what you have to say. Therefore the chances of your campaign being successful are slim.

By far the best way to market via email is to build your own list where people have opted in. That way you know that your email messages won’t be met with hostility.

That’s all well and good, but how to you build your list? What techniques can you use to get people to sign up?

Well, that’s where this little list comes into play.

12 Ways to Build Your Email List

Here are a few suggestions to get you started.

1. Trade shows and fairs

If there is a trade show, fair or exhibition you attend regularly, have a sign up list with you on your stand. Then, as you engage and interact with your customers, you can ask them to sign up so they are the first to hear about your news and offers.

2. Shop event

Whether you are a retail outlet or if you have offices, why not have an open evening. It could be to launch a new product, celebrate a business milestone or just a new season event. Again, make sure you have a list available where they can sign up for your newsletter and email offers.

3. Public speaking

It may not be your favourite activity, but we all tend to get roped into giving a talk at some point. Use this opportunity to promote your newsletter. Weave into your speech mention of your newsletter and how they can sign up to receive your latest hints, tips and offers.

4. Prize draw

No one likes to think they’re missing out on anything. Offer your newsletter subscribers a free monthly draw. If there is a chance of getting something for nothing, people will sign up.

5. Packaging

If yours is a business that ships products out to people, make sure you have something within the packaging that mentions your newsletter. Make signing up more tempting by telling them of your email only offers. If they think it is in their best interests to sign up, they will.

6. Twitter

OK, let’s just get one thing straight, Twitter is not to be used for spam. Twitter is about engaging with your followers but there is no harm in mentioning your newsletter occasionally. Just make sure you don’t over do it. Perhaps if you have an email offer coming up, you can mention that: “sign up for my newsletter and get the latest email offer”.

7. Business cards

Business cards are often under utilised. They are seen as only being useful for passing on your contact details. Use the back of your card to tell people what you can do for them and include a call to action to sign up for your newsletter.

8. Email signature

Another under utilised tool. By simply inserting a hyperlink in your signature with a CTA to sign up for your newsletter, you are increasing your list building opportunities.

9. Something for nothing

Don’t we all like that? Getting something for nothing is always a great motivator so give something away in return for their signup. It can be an eBook, white paper, industry report, even a discount off a first purchase. Whatever it is, make sure it adds value.

10. Make the most of your bounce backs

Email addresses change, and most of the time people can’t remember what newsletters they’ve sign up for. So the first you’ll know about it, is when you get your email message bounce back. But don’t just delete it from your list, send out a postcard asking for their new email address.

11. Make it easy to opt in

Don’t hide your sign up box. Make sure it stands out. And to maximise your chances, include it on every page of your website.

12. Pass it on

Your email recipients are a great marketing tool in their own right, so use them. They are bound to know someone else who would be interested in what you have to say, so make sure you include a ‘forward to a friend’ button. Also, make sure when it is forwarded there is an opt-in form included in your communication somewhere so they can sign up immediately.

There are a few suggestions to get you started. Do you use any other techniques that I’ve not touched on here? If so, why not share them with us? Email marketing is a powerful tool that all businesses should be utilising. Building your list is one of the most vital aspects and by following these simple techniques, you’ll build a quality list, fast.

Sally Ormond – freelance copywriter

Most smart marketers and business owners today know that the internet is the place to be. It offers a platform from which to market your business to the world – literally.

But mention internet marketing to many people and you’re met with blank stares. There seems to be so many different forms of marketing, most with baffling names and what’s more…you have to use a computer!

But if you are willing to spend a bit of time getting to know your way around the internet, it can be very rewarding. I began my freelance copywriting business 3 years ago and have done all my marketing online. Now, all my clients come to me through my website (or via referrals) – no costly adverts and no cold calling.

So how do you get started? What are the key aspects of internet marketing?

The how and why of internet marketing

1. Search Engine Optimisation

Search engine optimisation (or SEO for short) is something just about everyone has heard of, but very few understand.

Basically, when you make a search in Google, SEO will determine what results are returned and the order in which they appear. But SEO is changing (and that’s not including Google’s constantly changing algorithm that determine where your website appears in the search results). You may have noticed in searches that now Google also lists videos, images and even Tweets. This opens up new possibilities for internet marketing with more businesses setting up YouTube channels.

SEO is really the way to go for most businesses but it isn’t fast. You have to identify your keywords, produce excellent content that utilises these keywords, work on your site structure and infrastructure to make it SEO friendly. And then you have to build high quality one way links into your site.

It’s not a quick fix and it is a constantly ongoing job but it is ideal for businesses with a limited budget. Plus, the potential ROI is staggering.

2. Pay Per Click

Pay per click (PPC) is basically paid advertising on Google (and the other search engines). When you look at a page of search engine results, the PPC adverts are the top highlighted results and the list that appears down the right hand side.

The main advantage of PPC is that it’s fast. Once you’ve set your advert up it will begin to appear in the results. But, it can be very money hungry. PPC basically works on a bidding system whereby you compete with a number of other businesses all bidding for keywords. The higher the price you pay, the more prominent your advert. That is quite a simplistic way of looking at it as the actual price you pay is also determined by the number of click-throughs you get.

But, at the end of the day, if you don’t have deep pockets PPC probably isn’t for you – certainly not in the long term.

3. Email marketing

Email marketing is one of the best ways to market online. Sending out information and offers to your own in-house list is the perfect way to market to your customers.

So long as you give information as well as just sell, your recipients will be happy.

It is one of the cheapest forms of marketing and it’s so fast. But just be careful you don’t send out unsolicited emails – they are probably not going to be welcomed. The last thing you want is for your business to be labelled as a spammer.

4. Social media

Love it or hate it, social media is here to stay (for the foreseeable future anyway). It can be done cheaply and easily and, if you have a strategy in place, it won’t eat into your time.

But, social media calls for a completely different way of selling. Basically you sell without selling – let me explain. Social media is about building relationships. You have to chat and engage with people; give them information that is useful. Then, occasionally you can add in a sales message.

The main thing to remember is to start a conversation, listen to your followers/readers, answer their questions and give advice and, maybe, in the long run they will turn into clients.

Twitter, Facebook, Digg, StumbleUpon…there are many different forms of social media you can use. But remember, they are called ‘social’ for a reason.

5. Banner ads

Love them or loath them, they exist and are used by many businesses. They may not always give the best ROI and not easily measurable, but they might work for you so don’t immediately discount them.

6. Your website

Whichever route you decide to go down for your internet marketing plan, one thing you can’t overlook is your website.

What’s the point of driving traffic to your site if it isn’t going to convert into sales when it gets there?

The copy on your website has to be conversational, customer orientated and benefits driven. If you manage that, it will engage with your reader and help convert them into a buying customer.

Why am I telling you this?

Internet marketing is a term that is thrown around without many people really understanding what it involves.

If your campaign is going to be successful it will need a combination of the above – which ones you use depends on your business and what you are looking to achieve.

Do you …

You’re in business and therefore everything you do revolves around your customers – right?

Do you know who your customers are and what makes them tick?

Do you know how to solve all their business needs?

Do you constantly think about how you can solve their problems in the fastest most efficient way?

Do you constantly try to think of how you can add extra value to your relationship with them?

Do you think about them all the time?

Successful business are customer centric – urgh! Sorry, I hate that term. It’s just another fancy way of saying your customers are the key to your business. If you don’t put their needs first, they won’t stay customers for long.

But are they your only focus or do you get caught out sometimes when your competitors launch a new product or service? What do you do then?

Follow my leader marketing

Every business keeps one eye focused on what their marketplace is doing. You want to know every move your competitors make. But should you mirror their every move?

I am a freelance copywriter and there are a lot of us out there. Do we all offer the same service?

No.

Yes, we all write, but not necessarily the same type of copy. Some may specialise in web copy, some in reports, some in specific industries, and some (like me) provide copywriting services across the board (any industry any format, and very well even though I do say so myself).

You see we have tailored our services to the needs of our clients – we are giving them what they want.

The danger of follow my leader marketing (i.e. doing whatever your competitors do) is that it may not be what your clients need.

Your competitors are tailoring their services for their clients. But their customers are different to yours.

Be an individual

Of course that doesn’t mean to say you should ignore everything your competitors do.

If they come up with a service you haven’t thought of and you think it may be of interest to your customers, ask them. That is the best way of finding out whether it will work. If you send out a regular newsletter, use that to survey them.

They will be happy to help. Wouldn’t you rather deal with a business that asks your opinion on things rather than imposing things on you? Wouldn’t you be happy to help tailor a service so that it matches your needs precisely?

Exactly, and so will they.

Why do you need to know this?

The only thing that is keeping your business going is your customers. They must always been in the forefront of your mind. You should think about them constantly.

By keeping them at the heart of everything you do will lead to improved service and very happy customers.