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	<title>Scott Lorenz is President of Westwind Communications, a public relations and marketing firm that specializes in book marketing and author publicity. His clients have been featured by Good Morning America, FOX &amp; Friends, CNN, ABC Nightly News, The New York Times, Nightline, TIME, PBS, Los Angeles Times, USA Today, Washington Post, Family Circle, Woman's World, &amp; Howard Stern to name a few. Visit his website below.</title>
	<link>http://www.buildyourownbusiness.biz/author/index/767/Scott-Lorenz.php</link>
	<description>Scott Lorenz is President of Westwind Communications, a public relations and marketing firm that specializes in book marketing and author publicity. His clients have been featured by Good Morning America, FOX &amp; Friends, CNN, ABC Nightly News, The New York Times, Nightline, TIME, PBS, Los Angeles Times, USA Today, Washington Post, Family Circle, Woman's World, &amp; Howard Stern to name a few. Visit his website below. - Latest business
news &amp; management advice on how best to build your own business -
Free, independent business articles on Strategy, eBusiness, Change
Management &amp; much, much more.</description>
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	<pubDate>Tue, 07 Sep 2010 12:32:58 +0000</pubDate>
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	<item>
      <title><strong>55 Reasons To Send Out a Press Release</strong></title>
      <description><![CDATA[When should you send out a press release? You want to know my acid test? If it's newsworthy and if it's useful to the reader. It's that simple.

There are many factors to weigh when considering the need to send out a press release. As a publicist I have sent thousands of releases over the years and while there are no hard and fast rules, the most important factor is that you've got to make sure it's newsworthy and useful to the reader. Any thing else and it's just a waste of time for the members of the media.

A good press release can accomplish a lot of things too. It can be used to announce information to the public, your investors, the media, your customers and even your competitors about you and your activities. To help my clients determine whether something is newsworthy I compiled a list of fifty-five press release ideas I give to them to get their ideas flowing about their own businesses. Some are for general consumer media and some may not apply to all business types.

1. Announce a new service.

2. Announce a new product.

3. Tie in with a national holiday, a birthday or anniversary. 

4. Report a new study of your own and your analysis or forecast.

5. Tie in with a controversy by commenting on it.

6. Co-op an event with the media.

7. Utilize a national survey or study to your benefit.

8. Announce your exhibit at a trade show or convention.

9. Commission a survey and report the results.

10. Write a white paper and announce its availability at your web site.

11. Create and promote a special event.

12. Use a current news event to frame your release.

13. Host a seminar and announce the information discussed.

14. Announce an upcoming speaking engagement.

15. Schedule a speaking engagement at the local library... for free.

16. Make reprints of speeches available at your website.

17. Create a contest and offer a prize that's newsworthy.

18. Pricing and policy changes.

19. Patents and trademarks.

20. Liti ..]]></description>
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      <title><strong>Hire a PR Firm... Before You Need One</strong></title>
      <description><![CDATA[How can a company or individual know if it needs to hire a public relations/marketing firm?

There are many factors to weigh when considering if you need to hire outside help to obtain the public relations, media relations, marketing boost, promotional or advertising assistance needed to take your company to the next level.

If you aren't completely certain after debating the pros and cons ask these questions:

Are we getting all the PR we deserve?

Is our competition getting more than their fair share of media coverage?

Would media coverage bring more business to the firm?

Do we have a PR strategy for continuous year round media coverage?

Is our in-house &amp;quot;PR person or department&amp;quot; overburdened with &amp;quot;in-house&amp;quot; work like the company newsletter?

First of all, let's define a PR firm, some people interchange a PR firm with a marketing firm, or marketing agency, or even an ad agency. Basically a public relations firm handles media relations and is the interface between a company and the news media.

A public relations firm or publicist will &amp;quot;pitch&amp;quot; the media on a story idea involving a company, invention or author. A good pitch about a story that would interest the people who read, watch or listen to a particular media outlet gets coverage.

Many larger companies rely on in-house staff trained in public relations or marketing while others hire PR consultants or publicists to handle their PR campaigns.

Joe Nicassio, author of Guerrilla PR Brand Manager, says whether a company should conduct its public relations, marketing or advertising campaigns internally or externally should be determined by these factors&amp;quot;

Do you NEED solid, consistent media exposure week after week, or are you satisfied with &amp;quot;occasional&amp;quot; exposure?

Do you have the internal staff and expertise to commit the internal resources to your public relations, marketing, advertising efforts?

If you have the internal staff, and they u ..]]></description>
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      <title><strong>Here's Six Way to Get Your Mojo Back</strong></title>
      <description><![CDATA[Think you're in the doldrums? If you are pondering that question, then there's good chance you are! You must recognize the signs such as stress, boredom, lack of get-up-and-go etc. The main reason people get in the doldrums in the first place is they do the same things all the time. In order to break free of the things that bind you and your thought process you've got to do something different. It's been said you can't expect a different result if you do the same thing all the time. Here are a few suggestions from my perspective as a publicist and marketer about getting out of a rut.

1. Find your weaknesses and make them your strengths. My weakness 16 years ago was a complete lack of computer skills. Now, it's one of my strengths. How'd I do it? Took the time to go to classes on Microsoft products and became proficient in MS Outlook. Why does it matter? My entire day revolves around that program and I am far more efficient than ever. Furthermore, I could not do what I do without those computer skills which in themselves opened up other opportunities. Not sure what your weakness is? Ask your spouse, children, boss, coworkers etc. Believe me they'll tell you.

2. Consider establishing a consulting practice. The first step, read Million Dollar Consulting by Alan Weiss This is my bible for consulting and should be the bible for anyone else considering this field. As a marketer, this has been the single most important book that has helped me establish my firm and charge the fees needed to succeed. One key point Alan makes is &amp;quot;don't sell your time, sell value.&amp;quot; Not comprehending this fact dooms many people who try consulting and fail; they don't charge enough for their services. My copy is so beaten up, the cover is about to come off. Why? Because I read it all the time! Furthermore, I have given this book as a gift to budding consultants so many times I've lost count. If you are a consultant now or want to be a consultant then read this book.

3. Travel. ..]]></description>
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      <title><strong>How to Market Your Business During Your Lunch Hour</strong></title>
      <description><![CDATA[As a publicist and marketing expert I've worked with a number of doctors, lawyers, entrepreneurs and authors in their marketing efforts. I've used practically every form of marketing method from public relations and advertising to internet marketing and direct mail. You name the medium; I've done it... that includes banner towing planes, hot air balloons and highway billboards. But when you're the owner of a small business and captain of your own ship, money is tight and every minute counts so you need to maximize both time and money to the fullest. So, looking at an area that most people just slough off, I am here to tell you how to Market Your Business During Your Lunch Hour.

I've come up with a few things you can do over the lunch hour to promote your business. Here we go:

1. Never have lunch alone. Network with top execs, current clients, people who can influence others, everyone from the pastor at the church to the head of the Chamber of Commerce. Make a list and keep your lunch calendar full. Let's face it, everyone has to eat lunch and if you're buying most people would eat with anyone!

2. Write one article a week. Everyone has expertise on certain subjects related to their field. Write a 600-1000 word article about a focused topic. First come up with a list of topics you want to write about. Then set a goal to have them completed by a certain date; one a week works for me. If you don't have time, hire a ghost writer (you still get to put your name on it). Where do you find a ghost writer? Check your local newspaper; chances are there's a writer who'd like to pick up some extra cash. Can't work with someone so close to home, go two towns away to that community's newspaper. Or, check out this online resource at: www.writeittight.com. Then publish the articles on the internet using sites like www.arrivenet.com. Why should you go through all this trouble? It's simple. People search online for the solution to their problem or for someone or something tha ..]]></description>
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      <title><strong>Seven Tips to Get on a Panel at a Conference</strong></title>
      <description><![CDATA[Admit it. You've been to an industry conference and you look at the people on the panel and you wonder, &amp;quot;How in the heck did 'that' guy get on the panel? I could do that.&amp;quot;

Well, you're not alone. Like getting asked to the Junior High Dance you can wait to get an invitation or get aggressive and make it happen. As a publicist I am often asked to get a client on the convention dais and as a result I've got couple of tried and true tactics that really work.

Here are seven tips to help you land that panel gig...

1. Bring a big name to the party. If you have little name recognition organize a panel around a topic and call in a favor from Bill Gates or other notable friend, client, customer or vendor by creating your own panel. Pitch the &amp;quot;ready made&amp;quot; panel, which includes yourself of course, to the conference organization. They have less work, and you get more editorial control over the discussion. Big names draw big crowds. All conferences like big names.

2. Create a catchy title: Even if you have a big name on your panel, an unexciting panel title and no mention of the big name will not be as interesting to the conference planner. Take a page out of the entertainment industry. Would people rather watch &amp;quot;Desperate Housewives&amp;quot; or the same program titled &amp;quot;Five Bored Housewives on Wisteria Lane?&amp;quot;

3. Make a promise. Tell conference planners what prospective audience members will learn and what they will take away from the presentation in the copy describing the program. For example: Tell them they will learn to do X, Y &amp;amp; Z and will be able to implement something tangible in their own business or practice.

4. Offer to promote the conference. Tell conference planners you'll promote the convention to the prospective conference goers. This helps drive more people to the conference and they will surely like that. You can offer to promote the event using: * A PR campaign to industry and consumer media. * A direct mail p ..]]></description>
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      <title><strong>My Favorite Books on Book Marketing and Promotion Every Author Must Read</strong></title>
      <description><![CDATA[As a book marketing guy and book publicist it's imperative for me to keep up with all of the great books and magazine articles being published on the topic of book marketing.

I've read dozens and dozens of books on book marketing and usually have found a morsel or two of useful information in each one. Here's a list of my favorites. By the way, I've personally met or have spoken to each author and can attest to the veracity of the material they present and their credentials to discuss these topics.

PyroMarketing. Book marketing professionals know the secrets of success that drove the sales of Rick Warren's The Purpose Driven Life to a chart-busting best-seller and Mel Gibson's &amp;quot;The Passion of the Christ&amp;quot; into a huge cinema phenom. Those of us in the business understand that sales of both blockbusters were driven by techniques outlined in a book called PyroMarketing by Greg Stielstra who gained fame in book publishing circles when he served as the marketing director for The Purpose Driven Life, the best-selling hardcover book in history.

PyroMarketing embraces an idea that really has been in use for some time - niche marketing. That tool is well-known and used every day by book promoters but Stielstra lays out the niche marketing principles with a new, crystal clear message that is so compelling that it is a must-read for anyone who wants to promote an idea, service or product. Buy it at: www.pyromarketing.com

The Web-Savvy Writer: Book Promotion with a High-Tech Twist This is an excellent &amp;quot;how to&amp;quot; book on the ins and outs of online book promotion and publicity focusing on the latest technology. Author Patrice-Anne Rutledge is a bestselling author, successful technology journalist, and online book promotion expert who has utilized online marketing techniques extensively to promote her books and writing career. Patricia plows new ground filling the gap in the book promotion marketplace with her highly focused book on bringing technology ..]]></description>
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