ShareThisDear Professor Bruce: I am trying to promote my products and services to newspaper, radio and TV folks in the hopes of getting mentioned and not paying expensive advertising costs. There are so many ways to communicate my message that I don't know which way to go. Any suggestions?Answer: I often hear debates at public relations and marketing meetings whether we should contact the editors by e-mail, snail mail, fax, telephone or in person."In person" is always my first choice. Press events like ShowStoppers give my clients the opportunity to demonstrate the attributes of their products to industry journalists. "There is no better way to build and cement relationships than a face to face discussion," says veteran high tech marketing consultant Jeff Hyman.However, making people aware that you will be at an event is an important step in getting "mind share." Should you do it by e-mail or snail mail? Do both. Sometimes e-mails get lost in cyberspace and sometimes snail mail gets tossed before it is opened. Doing both increases your chances of your company's press announcement being read.After the show, should you send a thank-you note (for visiting your booth) or a second copy of the product that you gave out at the show? The answer is "yes" to both. If both the thank-you letter and product are ready, send them together to save on mailing costs. However, if the product is going to take extra time to prepare, send the thank-you letter out first, indicating that the product will be arriving soon. And don't forget an e-mail to the same journalist list you are sending your product and snail mail to.The process is smoother when you call editors after a press event when they have already received correspondence and product from your company.Some of these suggestions may be repetitious, however, different folks like their information in different ways and if you don't tell someone about your product and company at least three times, they probably won't remember.For further information, please contact jeff(at)jeffhyman.com.Bruce Freeman is president of ProLine Communications, a marketing and public relations firm in Livingston, N.J. and co-author of Birthing the Elephant (Ten Speed Press). E-mail questions to Bruce(at)SmallBusinessProf.com.
Promote your goods, services by all possible methods
Submitted by SHNS on Wed, 07/23/2008 - 10:51
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