When one of my clients says to me, “Ford… I’m not sure what to write about.  Aren’t press releases just for big news?” I tell them that kind of assumption just isn’t true. You can create press releases for a wide variety of topics, as long as you keep a few key elements in mind.

One of the most important ones to always follow is to adapt your “story”(or theme) to a favorite media topic in the news. That will make it more interesting to your media contact, as well as to their readers. To help you get started, here are my TOP 5 topics that I use to increase the chances of getting publicity through traditional sources like newspapers, magazines, and newsletters. 

HEALTH is one of the most popular topics covered in the media. Can you find a way to tie your product, service, or media promotion to a current, health-related topic? One of my clients runs a successful pilates studio and even though it’s a local studio, her press releases and articles have been published in several national publications and on tons of sites.  

This blog is devoted to design elements you can use in your e-mail mailings to grow your list quickly. Here are the remaining five tips I promised you last time. Hope they get you thinking about growing your own e-mail list.

Secret #6: ADVERTISE your site and electronic newsletter in other publications or use web banners and traditional advertising mediums, such as print, TV and radio. Encourage e-mail subscriptions on all print ads. This secret may seem obvious, but you’d be surprised by how often it is overlooked. Depending on your type of business and industry, this can be an effective method to grow your list. 

Secret #7: Use PAY-PER-CLICK Advertising to send targeted traffic to your mini-site or main site through Pay-Per-Click search engines. Pay-Per-Click advertisements show up alongside the natural site listings on the search results pages (SRPs). You go to your favorite search engines and set up an account and bid on the keywords terms related to your target market. By using PPC advertising you get you in front of your target market almost instantly. More traffic means more subscribers. But before you rush off and open a PPC account, keep in mind that you need to know the “value” of each subscriber, as well as your break-even cost of acquiring a lead and customer. If you haphazardly set up PPC and start bidding on keywords without understanding what you’re doing, you could easily waste thousands of dollars. If you can’t devote the time and energy to do it right, or can’t hire an expert certified in Pay-Per-Click advertising (like me!), skip this secret for now! I guarantee you that if you implement the other secrets I’ve offered you, you’ll still have more than enough to keep you and your marketing team busy for quite a while.

In my last blog I told you about ways to increase your e-mail list by improving the content of your e-mail offers.

This time I thought I’d offer you a few “secrets” I’ve found that can help grow your list fast. These 10 list-building tips may sound obvious, but too often they are overlooked by novice Internet marketers. In part 1 of this blog, I’ll give you the first five, and then in my next blog, I’ll reveal the remaining five.

These days it is important to keep in mind that no one really wants another piece of e-mail. They want solutions to their problems, to be entertained and informed, to socialize, and build relationships.
 
If you want to grow your list, start by reviewing your list-building activities. How many people are on your list now? Gather up your other marketing materials and check out your website to see if you’re offering benefit messages that match your target prospect’s needs.

With many search engines, the information displayed on search results page comes from two places: the html “title tag” on the web page and its meta-description tag if you have one, or the search engines select text from the landing page for a site description. I don’t have to tell you that leaving it up to the search engines to find text that describes your site is a bad idea.

Is it the offer itself, the graphic design, or maybe the copy? Nope. The single most important element of every direct-mail campaign is the completeness, accuracy, and relevance of your mailing list.

Without a doubt, it’s the quality of your list that will make or break your direct-mail campaign. If you are going to be profitable with direct mail, you must make certain that the right audience gets your message.

Are you taking full advantage of the free publicity available to you? When was the last time YOU sent out a press release? What’s YOUR opinion of media releases? Do you have a media section (or page) on your website? 

I’ve harnessed the power of publicity to promote all kinds of products and services in more industries than I can count. I still use publicity efforts to promote my Direct and Internet Marketing services, along with campaigns to promote my clients’ products (and that has lead to millions in sales each year).

Putting free publicity to work as part of your marketing campaign is much easier than most people think. Why? Because there are thousands of print and online magazines out there starving for content. There are millions of Internet sites craving for new content too.

Always keep an eye on your Keyword Placement and Keyword Density on the body of your web pages. Try to think of specific “keyword phrases” and not just “keywords.” Why? Due to the extreme amount of competition for general terms in the search engines, if your keyword phrases are too general it’s very unlikely you (or your site) will rank high in the search engines.

You stand a far better chance to rank well with specific keyword phrases where there’s much less competition. The resulting traffic–because it is more highly targeted–should also be a much higher quality too.

Think about your last big purchase. Did you use the Internet, either for researching a product or to buy something? What was the last thing you purchased from a website?

What are your favorite websites—and why? Make a list of the top five that you visit and once you’re finished reading this blog, go visit them again and evaluate them through the mind of an “Internet Marketer.”

As a marketer, being able to get inside the mind of your prospects is critical. You need to understand the behaviors and habits of your prospects (what do they buy, how do they buy, what factors influence their buying decision, etc.).

In part one of this two-part blog I told you a little about the extensive (and affordable!) “music-on-hold” equipment options available to businesses of all sizes. In part two, let’s cover a few important basics about crafting your own custom “on-hold” message.

Technology options aside, here are a few thoughts on the most important part of your “on-hold” system—the message. I’m sure you already know this, but remember… content is king. It’s critical that you craft an informative, benefit-driven marketing message for your “on-hold” audio. Each one should be about 10 to 30 seconds long and mention the benefits/solutions your business provides.

Listen to a good example of a custom on-hold message.

 

 Message On-Hold Example Script from Prime Concepts Group Inc. [4:30m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download (67)