Produce a Powerful Press Release & Social Media News Release

One of the most effective methods for promotion is media exposure- exposure that starts from a simple press release. Newspapers, magazines and television news shows rely on press releases to locate news and human interest stories. Anyone can send a press release, but in order to get the attention of reporters, it must be professional, news worthy and appealing to a broad audience.

A press release should be brief- one or two pages- yet include enough details that a reporter could write a short article based solely on the information provided. The release should not be an announcement that a business or product simply exists, but should have an enticing “hook”. Good hooks include special events and sales, product announcements, contests, survey results or awards given or received. The trick is to make the hook interesting enough to capture the interest of the reader.

Be careful with your wording to avoid sounding like a sales brochure- this is sure to discourage the media from pursuing the story. Follow these rules to write a press release that gets the attention you want:

¨ Read several sample press releases before writing yours so you understand the proper format. www.BusinessWire.com and www.PRNewswire.com are good sources for locating professional releases.

¨ Start with a proper heading that includes your contact information. When listing phone numbers, indicate a day and evening number (reporters may call at odd hours) or simply list your cell phone number.

¨ Give the release an enticing title that captures the reader’s interest and print it in BOLD type.

¨ Double space the body of your release for easy reading.

¨ The first paragraph should include the basics of who, what, where, when and why. You want to lay the foundation and include your hook immediately. Remember that you want to engage your audience and prompt a response from the media.

¨ Determine the purpose of your press release. Is it to announce a grand opening, special event, introduce a new product or share valuable information with the public? Include the key points that make your story interesting.

¨ Use quotes from business partners, clients or other professionals to give the story more color and credibility. As awkward as it may be, you may want to quote yourself- especially if you are the subject of the release.

¨ Close with a brief summary of the business or the person you are promoting.

¨ Do not allow grammar or spelling mistakes to sneak into a press release. Make sure you edit your writing thoroughly and have a friend- or better yet two friends- review it for errors and content.

If you want to send your press release out locally, start compiling a list of media contacts. Check the websites of your local newspapers, news programs and magazines for contact names and address information. Media outlets accept press releases by mail, fax or email and typically indicate their preferences on the website or publication masthead. If you can’t locate press release instructions, it is best to mail it directly to the appropriate editor for your topic.

There are numerous services that you can pay to distribute your release to hundreds or thousands of markets. A few to investigate are www.ereleases.com, www.prweb.com, and www.xpresspress.com.

Before you send your release, be sure you are prepared to answer interview questions. You may receive calls from reporters immediately and will want to have thoughtful responses ready. Consider writing a list of points you want to make and keep it handy.

Most people find that a press release can be worth its weight in gold since a news story usually generates more buzz than any form of paid advertising. Don’t be discouraged if your first attempt doesn’t receive the attention you want, simply try again until you find the formula and pitch that works.

***

About the Author, my friend:

Stephanie Chandler is a small business expert and the author of FROM ENTREPRENEUR TO INFOPRENEUR: MAKE MONEY WITH BOOKS, E-BOOKS AND INFORMATION PRODUCTS. She is the founder of www.BusinessInfoGuide.com, a directory of resources for entrepreneurs and www.ProPublishingServices.com, a custom writing business specializing in electronic newsletters, information marketing, and sales copy for websites and brochures.





See http://www.PamPerryPRCoach.com too!

Unselfish Guide to Self Promotion - The most powerful Marketing Strategy in the World: Motivational Keynote Speaker Jorge Olson

You know my friend and author Hajj Flemings did a funny blog post today...basically it summed up that people will ignore you it's not about them. (see side bar for his post on this blog). Social Networking aint social?

So....then I found this:
Book Experiment (see video)

The Book Experiment is a story, a story of how a new writer fairs in the “Book World”. You will travel with me and hopefully be a willing participant in the experiment, providing your feedback, tips, opinions, and stories.

I will follow your advice without question and then report back on my blog with all the juicy details.Let’s embark on a case study, an experiment, an adventure. The adventure is the wonderful world of writing, and publishing and social networking and communication.

After all, this is as much a social experiment as it is a book experiment.

You see, by opening the destiny of the book to you and others you can control what the book does, making it a social experiment. The book talks about trust, teamwork, and social marketing.

Participate in the experiment; tell me what you think I should do next by posting your comments on this blog. The book website is at www.UnselfishPromotion.com



About the Book
The book has a lot to do with the experiment. After all, it is about “Unselfish Self Promotion”. It is 1/3 self promotion, 1/3 motivational, and 1/3 how to save the world book!

The book itself asks you to open your life, your mind, and your experiences to others, to collaborate and communicate and work as a big, social team.

The book explains that we’re all in the same team in the same boat, in the same frequency.

This is why the book experiment goes hand in hand with this particular book. You are my team and I am yours.

Be inspired by the new generation of self realization. Learn to be Happy, Healthy and Wealthy using Self-Promotion in a new way, a way that will catapult your confidence, sharpen your senses and make you view life with eyes of a child.

Find the book, videos and more information at www.UnselfishPromotion.com


I love it! www.PamPerryPRCoach.com
"Team work makes the DREAM work."

It takes a village to survive and thrive!

Get Self Publishing Help To Stop Wasting Money on Expensive Training and Programs

Get Self Publishing Help To Stop Wasting Money on Expensive Training and Programs
by Judy Cullins



Your personal belief system may have coaxed you to sign up for a big expensive training from a big guru on how to be a best selling fiction author, or best selling nonfiction author. Maybe you dreamed of being a #1 Amazon author, or maybe you dreamed of making it big on radio interviews. These trainings have super convincing sales letters that make big promises and claims.

These plans usually make only the presenters rich and most of you won't get near the success a few participants had.


The sad reality is that authors are reluctant marketers, are introverts or feel incapable. Hope springs eternal and convinces them to follow the best ad copy and sign up. What's a few thousand dollars, when they "might" make it big.


Think about using a mentor like a bookcoach or book shepherd.*

Without a mentor, who has no expensive program, but will guide you over time to manifest your book dream, you may make expensive mistakes in buying what you don't need to get your book out to your audience.


Remember most books do not make the Amazon best seller list. Many of you won't even sell large numbers of book, even if you are a guest on Oprah. You have to be a famous guest and be the only featured author on to make big sales like Echhart Tolle. One client who was one of many on the show called me to lament he needed to put up a sales page and it would stand only a week to gain sales. He didn't think it was worth it to change his pitfall copy, so he got almost no sales. In fact, less than 2% of published authors win at these games.


You already know that New York publishers don't promote you much. It's all up to you, and it's scary. Maybe you don't know that most Print on Demand (POD) authors do not make money on their books, being one of thousands on their Web site with only a 100 word write up..


Stop Throwing Away Your Book Promotion Money!

1. When you print books, unless you will speak to big audiences 6-8 times a month, print only a few hundred, an amount you can sell in a few months. Those bargain prices for 1500 to 2500 books will cost you thousands of dollars, not allowing you cash flow to spend on the promotional messages you need to get out, or your books will languish and sit in storage, losing value each month.


2. When you budget for book promotion, keep in mind there is no magic bullet in book promotion. It takes author commitment and a little learning curve that is doable when you get small business article marketing coaching. Don't go for hugely priced publicists who can get you noticed somewhat, but not enough for small businesss big profits.


Be cautious how you spend your money for your book project. Maybe like me, you can do it all for little time and money, and make a fabulous life time income too.

*Visit book coach Judy at www.BookCoaching.com
and visit PR Coach Pam at www.PamPerryPRCoach.com

Internet Ministry - Videos to Inspire!

Are you Marketing the Message? So get online and twitter souls to Christ! Blog, text or facebook them to know Jesus! Step it up. The message has not changed...just the method. Over 1 billion use the internet today - so the question is how do you reach them? Give them the best message that will change their life!
www.PamPerryPRCoach.com

Book Marketing Budgeting

"Book Publicity is like baking a cake. You need to know how to mix all the right ingredients." Pam Perry, www.PamPerryPRCoach.com




Budgeting for Your Book Marketing

How Much to Invest in Your Book and What It Means to Your Workload




When you think of your budget for your book, start to think in terms of both time and money. You will be spending both on your book. There is no right or wrong budget as long as it works with your pocketbook, your daily calendar and your expectations.



The Blunt Bottom Line:

How much money you are ABLE to invest will tell youhow much time you will HAVE to invest. How much of each you DO invest will control how many books you sell.
We will assume that you want to effectively market your book over the course of ONE YEAR.

In that time you will accomplish all of the marketing for the initial launch of your book.

After the first year you can then decide whether to continue marketing this book or to move on to your next one. In the scenarios listed below you can adjust the time spent per week IF you also adjust how long it will take to finish your marketing.

If you have less than $1,000 to invest in marketing, you will be using only the low or no-cost marketing tools. Your time is your greatest asset, plan on investing it liberally. All aspects of strategy and implementation will fall into your hands. You should allocate at least 40 hours per week to handle all of the strategy and implementation.

If 40 hours per week is not possible to do, then adjust the length of time you will take to market your book. If you can put in 20 hours per week, then plan on taking TWO YEARS to finish your marketing.

If you have between $1,000 and $5,000 to invest in marketing, you will need to plan to do most of the marketing yourself. You’re going to be able to use some of the low-cost tools we’ve shown you but will not be able to hire on professionals to implement your campaign. Again, plan to allocate a significant portion of time towards strategizing and implementing your marketing.
In this case, allocate at least 30 hours per week.

If you have between $5,000 and $10,000 to invest in marketing, you can probably hire out one key component of your marketing implementation and reduce the amount of time you are required to put into the marketing efforts. You will still need to invest plenty of time strategizing and implementing your marketing. At this level of monetary investment you can expect to spend at least 20 hours per week with strategy and implementation.

If you have between $10,000 and $20,000 to invest in marketing, you can hire out a few more aspects of your marketing implementation. On the higher end of that budget you can get most implementation covered. You will still be investing time in the strategic coordination of your campaign. With this budget you can allocate 10 hours per week for strategic coordination of your marketing efforts.

If you have between $20,000 and $50,000 to invest in marketing, you can hire out almost all aspects of your marketing implementation. You should still plan on handling the strategic coordination of your campaign. Allocate at least 5 hours per week for strategy.

If you have more than $50,000 to invest in marketing, you can hire out everything, including the strategic coordination. Any amount less than $50,000 will not afford you to hire out the strategy as well as the implementation. With this investment you can hire professionals to do their job and go back to writing knowing you have everything covered.

Since the strategic coordination is obviously the last thing you can hire out, then it stands to reason it is the first thing you should learn, regardless of your budget. Whether or not you plan on handling the implementation of your book marketing you need to know what needs to be done and who can help you do it.

Ways to Fund Your Book Marketing
Ideally, you have money already set aside to fund your book marketing. It is allocated specifically for this function, sitting in an account ready to be put into action. However, if that is not the case you may be wondering how to fund your marketing. Here are some of the common ways that other authors and publishers do it.

Credit Card / Line of Credit The most common way we see authors funding their campaigns is with a credit card. It is probably the simplest way to do it. As always with credit cards, be aware of the interest rate you are being charged.
Home Equity LoanWhile it may be more paperwork upfront, it will certainly save on the interest rate. It is also likely to be a tax deduction personally. (But of course check with your accountant on that.)

Investors Finding someone else to fund the marketing is also something we see quite often. These investors can be family, friends or actual venture capitalists. Be aware that these folks will want to see a business plan including a full marketing plan and financial estimates. See our Book Marketing Profit System for a template book marketing plan. (WWW.MARKETABILILTY.COM)

Tapping into 401K / IRA / College FundFrankly, this source of funding is the one that makes us cringe. Not only are you betting your retirement or your kid’s college funding on the success of your book, you are also paying taxes on the money you take out, thereby substantially increasing the amount of money you are actually investing. Please consider very carefully before utilizing this option.

Using Book Sales to Pay for Marketing Sounds good in theory, but it simply will not work. You must invest something to get started. You can then re-invest your book sales revenue into more marketing, but the first sale will not happen without marketing. This is a classic which-came-first-the-chicken-or-the-egg scenario.

A Word of Caution (or When NOT to Fund Your Marketing)
Over the years we have seen many books fail due to lack of funding. That is quite sad. We have also seen many books fail DESPITE having adequate funding. That is just plain horrible. We have met authors who are $20,000, $30,000, even $50,000 or more in debt from producing and trying to sell their book.

If you are in a situation where recouping an investment is critical to your financial security or not selling books will place you in serious financial hardship PLEASE do not invest more than you can afford to spend in your book.

We strongly suggest that you set a limit on your budget that is something you can live with, even if you do not sell a single book. If that amount is low or very low, don’t despair. As you’ve seen, there are plenty of low cost ways you can market your book.

Now, don’t think we are trying to talk you out of marketing your book ­ nothing could be further from the truth ­ we just want to make sure you are proceeding carefully. We do believe you can sell your book and we’ll do whatever we can to help you!

Allocation of Funds ­ How to Prioritize Your Investment
With any investment you want to invest wisely. (Especially for your book.) The last thing you would want to do is waste all the time you spent writing it. So how do you know what is the best use of your valuable time and your hard-earned money?

First of all prioritize your actions based on YOUR goals. You know what is most important to you about your book. Find the tools we’ve suggested that help you reach that goal and do those action items first.

If selling books is your primary goal then be sure to allocate equally in the areas of Awareness and Availability.

Awareness is anything that helps your customers find out your book is out there, such as:publicity, pay per click advertising, search engine, E-zines, reviews, testimonials, etc.

Availability is anything that makes your book available to purchase, such as:bookstores, your website, Amazon, libraries, book clubs, etc.

Don’t expect to pull demand with awareness only. You cannot simply tell people your book exists and expect sales to fall out of the sky. The book has got to be available to purchase - in a store, on a website, at AmazonŠ

Nor can you expect the product to sell itself with availability only. A book sitting on the bookstore shelf when no one knows it is there IS A BOOK ABOUT TO BE RETURNED. A website with no traffic is a site that is not selling any books.

Choose your actions based on creating awareness and facilitating availability. Do both.

FROM: WWW.MARKETABILITY.COM

Monday Marketing Tip | Publicity 101: How to Work with Print Media

Publicity 101: How to Work with Print Media
By Pam Perry, author of Quick & Easy Ministry Marketing Solutions: 115 PR Tips to Brand Your Ministry



1. Get newsworthy info into the hands of the media. Make a habit of sending out releases on a regular basis about your events, special speakers, or anything impacting the community at large. Use a media directory or "Google" on the web to find names and contact information.

2. Get to know the religion reporters of the daily and weekly newspapers. Position yourself with them as an accessible and reliable source and a key authority to be featured in future stories.

3. Read the dailies. Respond to articles where you can take a stand on an issue while branding your ministry by writing a "Letter to Editor" or an "Op Ed" - Opinion Editorial.


4. Send out media releases for really intriguing or fascinating human interest stories by using news wire services. Wire services get wider distribution and can be picked up by national media via the web.

5. Place ads in local newspapers and monthly magazines. Have the ads consistent with your other ministry marketing materials.


6. Become a regular advertiser in at least one publication. You build brand equity with that audience by advertising in one publication. They learn to trust you. Purchase ads in souvenir program books like the NAACP or SCLC to show your commitment to the community.

7. Feature bold graphics and a lot of white space in your newspaper and magazine ads. Keep copy to a minimum. Steer people to your web site. Color commands attention and adds impact. It also gets better ad placement in newspapers.

8. Supply media with well-written and professionally developed press kits. Include press releases (the who, what, when, where, how and why), fact sheets, bios, photo, brochure, annual reports and news clips. Suggest a story idea in the cover letter (A QUERY LETTER). Use the industry format for releases to improve your chances of gaining publicity.

9. Expect very little communication back from editors. They are very busy every day with tons of lead for stories. Assign an intern or team member to follow up by phone, email, or both.

10. Read any and all publications you can. Note stories that deal with issues important to your ministry. Add that reporter to your media contact list to send them future releases. The best media lists are the ones you personally create and are familiar with the reporter’s work and style.

11. Send out thank you notes to reporters who feature you in stories. They will remember your personal touch and will keep you in mind as a good source in the future.

12. Assign a photographer to take photos at ALL events where you are participating. Releasing the photos to the media after an event is called Post-Publicity. Send the photo with a brief description of the event. Identify the people in the photo with a label on the back. This is called a “cutline.”

13. Realize that newspapers always need good photos. Most black newspapers love to chronicle events in the community.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Pam Perry is a ministry marketing pioneer and expert in the African American Christian market. Her public relations and advertising career spans over two decades.


She spent the first ten years working in ad agencies and secular media. She has dedicated the past ten to ministry marketing. Her company has a roster of some of the most well known Christian publishers and African American Christian authors in the industry.
Visit her at www.PamPerryPRCoach.com for PR coaching