by tradesmeninsights | Apr 17, 2014 | Marketing Tips, Public Relations
Today we have a blog post from Rosemarie Ascherl, PR Foreman at Sonnhalter, discussing tips for successful media interviews.
Do you ever pick up an industry trade journal and wonder why your company’s perspective hasn’t been included? Editors often rely on “round-up” articles, which entail interviewing several manufacturers’ spokespeople to develop an industry trend story. The trick to getting your company included in these stories is to portray your company as a thought leader.
Proactively developing and leveraging relationships with the media to make sure your company is included in round-up articles is fairly easy to do. Your marketing communications firm has these relationships and can facilitate the media interviews with your company spokesperson.
Once an interview is scheduled, what do you need to do?
- If you don’t know the editor, familiarize yourself with the editor by reviewing past issues of the publication and checking out the editor’s LinkedIn profile.
- Make sure your calendar is blocked for the interview and you are in a quiet office where you will not be interrupted. Most interviews are conducted in a simple 15- to 30-minute phone conversation. Editors are always working against deadlines, so cancelling or postponing an interview could mean you’re not included in the article – or worse, your competitor gets included instead!
- Request questions prior to the interview. Editors sometimes provide you with questions to guide the conversation. Make sure you review the questions before the interview and give them some thought. It doesn’t hurt to talk them through with a colleague that may have additional input.
- Sometimes the conversation will veer from the questions, but know what you want to tell the editor. The editor should be able to walk away with three to four main points regarding the subject.
- Follow up, or have your public relations representative follow up, with appropriate press materials or graphics that you reference in your conversation.
- Do not tell the media anything you don’t want to see in print. Be honest. If the editor asks you a question you aren’t prepared to answer, tell him or her you’ll get back to them with an answer [and then be sure to follow up].
- Do not expect to see the article before it is published. Some editors will provide you with a chance to review your comments; however, this is merely a courtesy and should not be presumed. If given the opportunity to review the article, stick to checking the facts you provided and don’t attempt to alter the editor’s writing style.
- Thank the editor for the coverage. And of course, offer your assistance and time for future articles that the editor might need help with.
Once the editor knows you’re a well-prepared, reliable source, they will be inclined to request your opinions for future articles—resulting in more valuable editorial content for your company!
by tradesmeninsights | Apr 16, 2014 | Marketing Tips, Social Marketing
I’m amazed by the stats that more than half of those on social media don’t have a plan to respond to negative social media posts. Social media isn’t new, isn’t going away, and if you’ve followed or read anything about this space, you know there have been numerous posts about the subject.
The February 2014 research from Social Media Marketing University substantiates the notion that people still aren’t taking this seriously.
Negative issues need to be addressed and what better way to hear about issues than on social platforms. Don’t you want to know what customers are saying about you? You’d better be monitoring them and jump in with a plan to respond. There are several monitoring options out there will help you. Here are some free ones – Social mention, Google alerts, Hootsuite and Tweetdeck.
I recently had an experience with a major faucet manufacturer about a replacement. We had to get a new tub at home and my wife wanted to update the faucets, which we did. The manufacturer sent the wrong spout and it took our plumber almost 2 months to get the replacement for it. They weren’t good at customer service, just making excuses. I made mention (by brand name) on a tweet what my frustration was, and true to form, heard nothing back.
In the short run, ignoring me may not be a big deal to them since I had already purchased the tub set, but in the long run, my wife is planning to replace all the faucets in our 3 bathrooms. Guess who isn’t going to be considered for that purchase?
In a world where we have alternative plans for everything, don’t overlook social responses to negative posts. It’s better to address them straight on or they will fester and come back to bite you when you least expect it. Have a plan in place.
by tradesmeninsights | Apr 15, 2014 | Marketing Tips, Public Relations, Social Marketing, Traditional Marketing
When you’re planning your next new product launch beyond your traditional media lists that you send to, are you utilizing the Influencers in the market you’re going after?
Most times you don’t think about those bloggers out there that have big followings in the markets that you’re trying to reach.
An Influencer is someone who is able to mobilize options and create reactions when talking about a specific market or topic. They are the kinds of folks you want talking about you and your products. For example, if your target is mechanical contractors, you should be talking with John Mesenbrink from mechanical-hub. His blog is known throughout the industry and he’s a respected source of information.
Beyond getting them samples to try, they are looking for material you can provide so they can produce their own content. If possible, some exclusive little tidbits are always helpful. They can spread the word to a large number of your target audience in a short period of time…that’s the good news. The potential bad news is you can’t send them a press release and expect them to run it as is. Influencers make and have opinions, and we always run the risk that they may not be as kind as you would in evaluating the product. They will always be fair, but to some marketers, that’s a relative term.
Long-term strategy would be to identify and start-up a conversation long before you launch that new product. Get to know them and they you. Again, it’s about relationships.
by tradesmeninsights | Apr 9, 2014 | Marketing Tips, Marketing Tools, Social Marketing, Traditional Marketing
No, I’m not trying to delegate the social media tactics and implementations to the sales force, they’re too busy selling. But if you aren’t getting them involved to a degree, you could be missing some opportunities for prospecting, research, networking and branding.
Let’s face it, your sales forces are in the trenches every day solving customer’s problems. Chances are other folks are having similar problems. Why shouldn’t you share those solutions with other customers and potential new ones?
Don’t Overlook One of Your Best Resources for Great Content – Your Sales Force
Here are four things salespeople can do that will help marketing by using social media:
- LinkedIn – Make sure all your folks are on LinkedIn and their profiles include a uniform and concise description of the company. The marketing department can help with the wordsmithing. Messaging should be on your business and the solutions your company offers. Don’t forget to include links to appropriate videos and websites. Have your salespeople join and be active in LinkedIn groups. Chances are that one of your trade associations or users have groups already set up. Have them monitor and participate when appropriate, but make sure they aren’t selling. Have them put on their problem-solving hat and offer solutions.
- Social media training – We’re not trying to make them experts, but to give them an overview of what social media is and how you are using it as another tool. Once they understand the why and how, they can be a great resource for you. The training could be a 30-45 minute “go-to meeting” with refreshers possibly at the annual sales meeting. This could pay off big time with the next two items.
- Company blog – If your company doesn’t have one, maybe you should consider doing one. The biggest challenge is writing good content, and if you train your sales force, they will give you plenty to write about. Make sure they know you have a blog. Make them read it and make suggestions on future topics. First ask them for ideas on articles that would benefit the users. Once you get a list, identify those within the sales force that has the most experience/expertise in that product or market. In some cases, they might want to take a stab at writing it, but I’d suggest someone in marketing interview them, write a draft and get it back to them for approval. It would be ideal, when possible, to get an actual customer involved and quoted in the post.
- Content Generation – Your sales force is or should be the experts in the field. Are you taking advantage of their problem-solving expertise? Why not have them write down the problem and solution. Then they could do several things with it.
- Get it to marketing to be put on a FAQ section of the web, and it also could be used for other social content down the road.
- Share it with the other salespeople who may have customers with similar problems.
- Share it with other clients/prospects of theirs via email that might benefit from the outcome.
by tradesmeninsights | Apr 1, 2014 | Marketing Tips, Traditional Marketing
Sometimes we’re so focused on the digital and social options out there that we forget about what we used to use before these new ones were available. Direct mail is and has been a tried and true method of generating leads and business from contractors.
Yes, I know direct mail is expensive compared to email and e-blast types of tactics. I’m not saying to do mass mailings, but rather targeted ones. Think about what I call the noise on the electronic side of things. How many emails do you get a day? The answer is plenty, and if you’re anything like me, you delete far more than you open.
Here’s something to try. On your next new product introduction, send out the same amount of direct mails as you would an e-blast to the same list criteria. Send them both to a landing page so you can track results. I think you may be surprised that the old fashioned direct mail campaign will outperform the electronic one.
Here are three tips on delivering a successful direct mail program:
- Target Audience – Quantity isn’t important; quality of a list is. Ideally you start with an internal list of prospects. If you’re going to purchase a list, make sure it’s from a reliable source. I usually prefer to get one from a trade publication that serves the industry I’m targeting. They usually have several select options that will help you define and refine who you are looking for.
- Targeted Message – Keep the mailer focused on one subject and don’t try to squeeze 10 pounds into a 5-pound bag. Mailers don’t always have to be about selling something, but they always have to achieve something. Put yourself in your potential customer’s shoe and come up with messaging that will help him, not you. Are you addressing a possible concern and giving them an alternative solution?
- Targeted Offer – Define your call-to-action based on the message. This could be a link to a technical piece on how to do something or an offer for a demo or sample of a product. The objective is to stop and engage the potential, and if the message is on target, get them to do something.
If your message is on target to the right audience, you will get measurable results.
by tradesmeninsights | Mar 25, 2014 | Marketing Tips, Social Marketing
If you’re active on Twitter, you probably have received a “thanks for the RT.” Saying “thank you” helps build brand loyalty and brings a conversational aspect to your tweets. We all struggle on what’s the correct etiquette for thanking someone on Twitter. Do you always have to say thanks? Are there other ways to show your gratitude?
Angie Schottmuller from Interactive Artisan did a guest post on Jay Baer’s Convince and Convert that was right on target with helpful do’s and don’ts regarding etiquette. Here are some highlights:
DO’s
- Follow the user – Review their profile and if they are a good fit, follow them.
- Reciprocate – Scan their tweets and see if one is applicable for you to RT.
- Retweet a Retweet – This is a good way to recognize the user and put quality content back into the stream.
- Conversational Mention – Reply with a conversational response about the post to get a discussion going.
DON’Ts
- Don’t put numerous RT’s back-to-back.
- Avoid peak content hours.
- Don’t put out a generic thanks. Always include a hashtag.
If you like this post, you might like:
7 Tips to Use Twitter to Generate Traffic and Leads.
