Your Marketing Magnet

Hope you’re enjoying your summer and using this downtime to reflect on the marketing/PR advice I’ve shared with you to date with the intent of helping you expand your business.
 
In order to serve you better, along with fresh and exciting 1:1 and group coaching packages, I’m taking a brief hiatus to work on producing enhanced content for Vol. 3 of “The Magnetic Marketing Report” - Foolproof Ways to Effectively, Efficiently and Affordably Promote Your Business & Make More Money Today Series that will provide you with even more of my complimentary, easy-to-implement marketing hints every Friday.
 
Expect both of these exceptional gestures to arrive in your inbox in just a few short weeks!
 
To your success,

In last issue’s Produce a Newsletter – Part 1, I provided you with several good reasons why you should create a company newsletter, report or Blog in a style and format that works best for you and your schedule in order to nurture existing leads, strengthen relationships with current customers, increase your online presence and keep your company at the top of your prospects’ minds! I then discussed how long your newsletter should be, how often to publish it and what you should consider putting into it.

Now I’m going to reveal what you can do to expand your subscriber list and get your target audience to open and read what you write – because although it’s extremely important to stay in regular and consistent contact with your clients and let them know about your products and services – there’s also nothing worse in business than pouring your heart and soul into creating your newsletter, Blog, facebook, LinkedIn & Twitter posts, sales letters and other email campaigns and hitting the “send” button – only to be ignored.

I’ve been there and know how much it hurts – often triggering feelings of insecurity, doubt, fear, disappointment, embarrassment — and like all your marketing efforts are going to waste.

However dismal this may sound, I can assure you, all is not lost. You can easily reverse this situation…generate a better response, save your launch and get your targets to stop ignoring you just by implementing even a few of my top 10 suggestions:

1.    Don’t Go to the Dark Side – Do you hit the “send” button and then panic?  Or tend to get all negative about yourself and take it personally when you don’t see the results you we’re expecting?? If so, you must stop.  If someone on your list isn’t responding to you or opts to unsubscribe from your list, it doesn’t mean they don’t like you or your content; you’re not good enough or not going to be successful.  There could be a variety of reasons why they are not reacting including the very real possibility that your email campaigns aren’t making it past their spam filter into their inbox.  So rather than take it personally, treat their lack of interest for what it’s worth – feedback as to how clear your marketing message is, how well defined your niche is and how compelling you’re making your layout and copy.  All of which can be easily changed.

2.    Give Your Campaign a Quick “Mirror Test” – Does your marketing message mirror what your subscribers say they want, or what you think they need?  If in doubt, have a marketing expert review your website copy, newsletter, Blog, emails and other marketing materials and give you honest feedback. Or ask a choice client if your marketing materials motivate them to take action. If not, then find out what they must say in order for them to read.

3.   It’s not to late to save your campaign – Unlike printed brochures, the beauty of online marketing is that it allows you to switch your story line or call to action at any time with just a few key strokes.  So don’t be afraid what your audience will think of you if you decide to make some adjustments to your template. If they haven’t been paying attention anyway, chances are they won’t even notice!  Instead continue to communicate the benefits of working with you and don’t forget to call to action using Click Here.

4.    Frequency outweighs proficiency – Press “send” more often by producing informative newsletters, Blogs, sales letters and other emails that don’t sell your readers, but rather give them a reason to buy.  Let your guard down, show some emotion and start with why you’re offering this particular tip, strategy, product or program.

5.    Can’t resist subject line – Whatever your campaign, if it isn’t read, your email won’t sell. So get your subscribers excited about seeing and receiving your newsletter, Blog, special notices and other e-blasts by using catchy titles and headlines with a stated benefit.  To achieve this consider using their name or asking a question that captures their attention in your subject line – so they can’t resist opening it.

6.    Remember it’s about fostering relationships – If you want your audience to connect and resonate with you and your writings, include some personal details about you and what you’re doing.  You don’t give too many details, but share something of relevance about what you’ve been up to lately, such as some of your interests, a summer vacation that you recently took or plan to take and so forth. Your readers will appreciate this and if you can inject some of your personality or humour, may also find amusing.  This will also help them to gain insight into another dimension or side of you – beyond what you present in your business.

7.    Step up the pace for faster results – If you want to establish a following, you must be prepared to post pithy, useful information that your niche market enjoys and benefits from – and continue posting this information. Keeping yourself in action helps to improve your results and increase your website traffic stats. So go ahead and write more newsletters, Blog posts, emails, special notices, launches and offers and send them out every few weeks.

8.    Promote it! – “If you build it, they will come” doesn’t work on the web.  Once you get your Blog, newsletter, E-zine, sales letters, Tweets, etc. set –up, like any other offer you have, you must constantly promote it in order to drive traffic back to your website.  There are many ways to do this including the use of an email subscription form to track new subscribers as well as all your submissions; printing your Blog URL on your brochures, flyers and business cards and putting a link to your Blog on every page of your website, auto-responder sequences,  sales letters, reports, white papers, etc. as well as linking your Blog and newsletter (if they are two separate identities) and adding a link to both your Blog and newsletter with every other piece of business correspondence you send out.  In addition invite everyone in your network (including your family, friends, colleagues, clients, associates, affiliates, facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn & You Tube connections and even the Media) to subscribe.

And while you’re at it, set-up a feed on website, as well as on all your social media accounts and myyaho.com – so your site gets regularly spidered by Yahoo search engine. You can also use a Ping-O-Matic to submit and ping Blog directories every time you publish.

9.    Include an RSS Feed – Make sure you have an RRS – Rich Site Summary or Really Simple Syndication URL feed that your audience can subscribe to. Include your newsletter or Blog headlines, summaries and tags.

10.     Read and Comment – Read and comment on other newsletters and Blogs that are in your target niche. But don’t write things like “nice blog” or “great post.”  Write intelligent, useful comments with a link to your Blog. Also refer to other Blogs, as well as cross-reference and quote or post colleagues links in your own posts and quotes.

To your success,

Watch my video here:

Feel free to leave me a comment and let me how my advice is working for you!

Want to reprint this article in your e-Zine, newsletter or on your website? You can as long as you do not change it, acknowledge me as the author, include its copyright date, my head shot and this paragraph:

Founding Publicist, Prime Time PR and former editor PRtalk (Canada’s only online PR magazine), Janette Burke is a marketing/PR coach, consultant, columnist, trainer, speaker, TV Personality and creator of “The Magnetic Marketing/PR Process TM” (TMMPP) – her customized, cost-effective, step-by-step, guaranteed to get-results-now marketing/PR coaching, consulting and training program.  To discuss how she can help take your business to the next level, call: (905) 882-6893; E-mail: janette@yourmarketingmagnet.com or visit: www.yourmarketingmagnet.com.

You may be thinking that newsletters are passé, a waste of your time to produce or that no-one reads them anymore. Nothing could be further from the truth – especially if you’re looking to nurture existing leads, strengthen relationships with current customers, increase your online presence, keep your company at the top of your prospects’ minds and don’t have a good reason to call!  Print is not dead yet! Just think of all the people you still see reading the major dailies or at Chapters and Indigo perusing magazine shelves on the weekends, as well as those that are now reading books on iReaders. Then there are the vast amount of posts, tweets and comments being published on Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn every day. Taking it one step further, newsletters, bulletins and reports including Blogs continue to prove to be yet another cost-effective marketing measure to assure regular, repeat and consistent exposure for your company’s name, brand, message and information.

We all get busy and have a lot on our minds and may not see, talk or think about certain people in our lives for a long time. Sending your newsletter or Blog is therefore doing something more to keep your name in front of your clients and remind them you’re still alive, while placing your name and current activities in front of their faces, along with what you have to offer – at the same time. And since you don’t need an excuse to send your newsletter out (because your opt-in readers expect to receive it), your newsletter also allows you to stay in touch with your clients and prospective clients without having any special reason to do so.

Newsletters come in different forms – ranging from simple 2-3 paragraph emails, fast facts, helpful hints and stats, to sheets published in-house and glossy five colour spreads featuring fancy images, ads and professional journalism.  You can even add an audio or video component to your blasts for those who are less likely to read them.

However before you start creating your newsletter, there are a few things you must consider. In addition to treating it as your own promotional tabloid, writing your content wisely and being creative with your copy, you need to build your list, deliver enticing offers and calls to action. You also need to determine if your newsletter should be in email vs. print format.

If you’re in doubt and fear that sending your newsletter to your customers and prospects will somehow make you seem too pushy or desperate for business… If you’re not sure how long your newsletter should be or how often to publish it…  If you don’t know what to put into your publication and how to get your audience to read it, here’s my expert opinion:

Email vs. Print – We’re living in the digital age, so email is the clear delivery method of choice for most newsletters.  Email newsletters are cheaper than print, arrive almost instantaneously, are easily tracked and can quickly drive website traffic.  Plus you can use them to:

√     Establish your image, build your credibility and deliver a quality message to your select audience – i.e. the people who wish to receive and hear it  
√     Persuade prospects to take immediate action
√     Announce special offers
√     Share ideas
√     Gain a wider audience and more links through syndication
√     Feed search engines with new material by publishing older issues on your website

But don’t count out traditional print newsletters; because they work too. Many buyers get electronic overload and a print newsletter can be refreshing. Print also gives you a greater opportunity to create a unique and lasting impression than email.

What to Put in Your Newsletter – As for what you should put in your newsletter, here are some ideas:

√     Helpful hints & tools for improvement – in the form of articles & ‘how to’ advice
√     Weekly specials – both online and in-store
√     A review of a new newly released book in your industry
√     Discounts or coupons for your services and products to keep your customers coming back
√     Your upcoming events, media appearances, awards, workshops or public speaking engagements
√     Contests
√     Reader write-ins
√     Guest author contributions
√     Client success stories
√     Motivational quotes

How often should you publish your newsletter & should it be sold or complimentary? Once you start publishing your newsletter or Blog, you must stick with your editorial programme. Some newsletters and Blogs are published daily, weekly, monthly and quarterly. You must decide what works best for you. Some newsletters are also sold by subscription. However most are sent to customers and prospects as complimentary information – either alone or in conjunction with another offering, such as an e-book.  In my professional opinion, if sent by email, via Constant Contact, I-Contact or similar email campaign vehicle, weekly is sufficient.  As for frequency in print, bi-monthly is acceptable whereas four times a year…once every three months – is ideal.  When you publish fewer issues, people aren’t aware you’re sending them a newsletter; they think they’re getting a piece of mail from time to time.

Four times a year is enough to establish credibility and awareness. It is not necessary to publish six or more issues a year, since you may also prefer to make contact with your prospects using other methods; media, direct mail, catalogs, e-mails, copies of published articles, announcements of upcoming events, seminars, radio and television appearances, etc.  You may even want to even pick up the phone every once and awhile!

The truth is most companies don’t have enough news to fill six or more issues a year. And like so many other things in life when it comes to your newsletter it is best to focus on quality over quantity. Make sure your newsletter is not just fluff, filler, or an excuse for you to have something to mail.  Poor content will only turn your readers off and ultimately hinder rather than help you.

How long should your newsletter be? A good newsletter (not a Blog post, which should be approximately 400-800 words) should be between 4-8 pages long. Why? Because as a promotional piece more is just too much reading and two pages or less, appears insubstantial…more like a flier (which is usually perceived as junk mail) rather than as a newsletter (which is perceived as a useful publication).

Who should I send my newsletter to – Whether by e-mail or regular mail, your newsletter should be sent to anyone you have an existing relationship with or people you want to establish an ongoing relationship with, including:

√     Current customers
√     Past customers
√     Current prospects
√     Past prospects
√     Expired accounts (past subscribers, “expires”, and so on)
√     Employees
√     Vendors
√     Colleagues
√     Consultants, gurus, and other prominent members of your industry
√     Referral sources (influential contacts who refer business to you)
√     Trade publication editors, business columnists, and other members of the media who might use the contents of your newsletter in their own writings
√     And don’t forget to use feeds to link it (especially if you’re doing blog posts) with all your social media accounts and website, if your blog and website are not the same

Bestowing high visibility and positioning you as a knowledgeable, competent expert, your newsletter or Blog does more than build your image it ensures current customers remain receptive and responsive to your recommendations. It also motivates marginal customers to increase their use of your product or service, instead of having them drift away from you.

Stay tuned, next issue we’ll talk about what you can do to expand your subscribers and get more people opening and reading your newsletters and Blog posts!

To your success,

Feel free to leave me a comment and let me how my advice is working for you!

Want to reprint this article in your e-Zine, newsletter or on your website? You can as long as you do not change it, acknowledge me as the author, include its copyright date, my head shot and this paragraph:

Founding Publicist, Prime Time PR and former editor PRtalk (Canada’s only online PR magazine), Janette Burke is a marketing/PR coach, consultant, columnist, trainer, speaker, TV Personality and creator of “The Magnetic Marketing/PR Process TM” (TMMPP) – her customized, cost-effective, step-by-step, guaranteed to get-results-now marketing/PR coaching, consulting and training program.  To discuss how she can help take your business to the next level, call: (905) 882-6893; E-mail: janette@yourmarketingmagnet.com or visit: www.yourmarketingmagnet.com.

Summer is finally here!  And with Canada Day and July 4th upon us, there’s no better way to showcase your business, strengthen and build lasting relationships with new customers, as well as reward and thank old ones for their loyalty and patronage than by entertaining them with special events.  Whether you host a BBQ, golf tournament, beach party, street festival, concert, sidewalk sale, poolside fashion show, picnic or moonlight cruise, when you invite preferred customers to sample and preview your products, you’re also creating a unique opportunity in which to generate awareness of what you have to offer – simply by employing this cost-effective, strategic marketing and public relations tool to market your business.

When people attend your event (i.e. visit your booth or store for the free hot dogs and ice cream), they also browse your merchandise.  More importantly, many members of the media like and also tend to frequent local special events and even broadcast them on air or print notices of their occurrences in their newspapers.  So special events can also get you tons of free press coverage!  This is especially true if your event is linked to a charitable or noteworthy cause or features free food, entertainment, pony rides, amusements, gifts, draws and other giveaways.

Assuming your event is also based on a clever angle or gimmick, you may also have a shot at getting broader publicity – both as a preview and post-event story.  Thus you have two great potential pay offs – promoting yourself to your target markets (or those you want to attend your event) as well as the added publicity that helps you extend yourself to thousands of additional prospects who may not otherwise have been there.  Either way, you win!

But if entertaining your clients has become a chore and your events are a snore, here are some of my top event-planning tips on how ot draw big crowds, attract the media’s attention and make your event more exciting and profitable than you ever imagined:

√     Link your event to current events or topical news. For example, when SAARS affected Toronto, the Rolling Stone’s chipped in and put on a concert to increase Toronto’s tourism and boost the hotel and entertainment industries’ suffering economies as well as raise funds for health care and other workers.  You could link your special event into something similar.
√     Tie your event to a holiday, birthday, anniversary or other commemorative occasion.  Toronto industry legend and prime promoter, the late Ed Mirvish of Honest Ed’s held his annual birthday bash. On top of the food and entertainment, he provided his customers with special discounts and incentives on various items in his store, plus a ton of additional savings.  Such an event can be tailored to meet your own objectives.
√     Involve local celebrities. Invite your local MP, mayor, police, fire chief, newscaster or popular DJ from one of the local radio stations to serve as master of ceremonies and sign autographs.  Local rising sport stars, bands and singing sensations are another way to go. Celebrities do more than endorse your products and services – they attract people and the press.  
√     Make your own news.  For example, if your event has a specific message or purpose, put on a video or CD as an introduction or greeting card and send it to the appropriate contacts at all the local stations.
√     Make your event extraordinary, rather than ordinary.  You can achieve this by incorporating a unique theme, distinctive or captivating twist or aspect to it.  Or by highlighting an unusual component or event within the event.  For example, if you own a pizza parlour, you may consider trucking in your ingredients and attempting to get print by having everyone at your event build you the world’s largest pizza.  This idea could be carried out as a contest with prizes awarded for the most creative toppings or combinations.

Other important factors to consider…

1. Once you assume the host or hostess role, don’t forget to amuse your guests – Similar to the role of performers who entertain their audiences, you as host or hostess of the event are obliged to amuse your guests. Since you are directly responsible for their enjoyment, you must appear calm, cool and collected.  You should be well-rested and ready to project a fun, positive, upbeat image.  The ultimate toastmaster, it is up to you to create a warm and friendly environment.  You must also make yourself available to your guests, particularly for introductions and be extra courteous and highly attentive to their needs – ensuring that each is well fed, entertained, informed and involved in the conversation, rather than ignored.  The success of your special event greatly depends upon your ability to effectively network and mingle with your invitees.  You cannot risk loosing sight of your event objectives by preoccupying yourself with last minute preparations or slipping back into a chair with drink in hand and expect your guests to amuse themselves. Or your event is sure to fail.

2. Evaluate your event’s strengths & weaknesses – Evaluating the strengths and weaknesses of your event to determine where there is a need for improvement can also make it more exciting and prosperous.   Utilizing decor & props, trying different venues & locations (such as: hotels, tents, museums and historic houses instead of restaurants), diversifying menus & buffets, blending entertainers, musicians, interactive  games & amusements with D. J.’ s  and educational components are all effective methods of alluring attendees.

3. Pre-determine each expense – Before you send out your invitations and publicize your event via phone, email, Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, YouTube, text, flyer and so forth, you have to plan it.  This means figuring out the cost of all related expenses, setting a budget, shaping its theme or concept and administrating all logistics.

Demonstrating a key message should always be the purpose and main objective of any promotional activity.  Special events are no exception. So remember to look at your products and services and identify the most important message you want to communicate about them.  Now get creative and come up with a way to clearly convey those messages, as doing so will determine the scope, size, and creative approach to your event, as well as the best place to start with your budget.

To avoid wasting precious time and resources, you must frame your event around your budget.  Realize that events cost time, effort, energy and money.  So it is best to be realistic about your expectations and set specific goals about what your event can entail in relation to your budget.  If you have $30,000 plus to spend, you can afford to do a travel promotion featuring an appearance by a pitcher from a baseball team who just won the World Series. With a smaller budget, you may have to stick to hot air balloons, balloon draws, a clown, face painting and serving hot dogs in the parking lot.

Budgeting, exploring your available resources & options, conducting research and acquiring different quotes are all contributors in creating triumphant gatherings.

4. Hire a Pro – Often the task of planning an event can be overwhelming, time consuming and expensive. So hiring or working with an experienced marketing/PR/special event professional, coach or consultant can be of extreme benefit and is yet another means of bettering your functions. Knowledgeable and qualified in all areas of event-management, marketing/PR/special event professionals provide their expertise, industry contacts, on-hand resources, creative concepts, time-management, negotiation and organizational skills.  These skills dramatically reduce the time in organizing your event and also decreases your labour costs. Marketing/PR/special event professionals also reduce the margin for error that can otherwise be quite costly – since they spend less time administering events.

Other advantages to using a marketing/PR/special event professional include their professionalism, enthusiasm, attitude and reliability, as well as their adherence to safety codes & standards, licenses, environmental concerns and protocols.  These considerations are usually overlooked and while they may appear to be meaningless to the average person, they actually can make or break your event!  Furthermore, experienced marketing/PR/special event organizers maximize your budget dollars, ensure that your event reaches its objectives and produces the highest rate of Return on Your Investment.

Offering a one-stop event-planning service, marketing/PR/special event experts take care of all your event needs, arranging and overseeing it from start to finish.  They eliminate all of the stress, aggravation, fuss and mess that you would otherwise have to deal with and make it possible for you and your staff to be treated like guests at your own affair!  Throughout the planning process, they save you time (one of our most valuable and expensive assets you have) and money (up to 30% of your total event budget!).

If you are running out of new ideas, constantly repeating themes, re-using the same venues, noticing a decline in attendees, experiencing burn-out, feeling resentful about both having to plan and attend events after-hours, wanting less responsibility & more time for your personal life, implementing even a few of my event-planning suggestions will undoubtedly put you on the road to organizing amazing special events and obtaining your objectives.

To your success,

Feel free to leave me a comment and let me know how my advice is working for you!

Want to reprint this article in your e-Zine, newsletter or on your website? You can as long as you do not change it, acknowledge me as the author, include its copyright date, my head shot and this paragraph:

Founding Publicist, Prime Time PR and former editor PRtalk (Canada’s only online PR magazine), Janette Burke is a marketing/PR coach, consultant, columnist, trainer, speaker, TV Personality and creator of “The Magnetic Marketing/PR Process TM” (TMMPP) – her customized, cost-effective, step-by-step, guaranteed to get-results-now marketing/PR coaching, consulting and training program.  To discuss how she can help take your business to the next level, call: (905) 882-6893; E-mail: janette@yourmarketingmagnet.com or visit: www.yourmarketingmagnet.com.

How to Impress Your Audience While On Air

In part three of my four part series on radio promotion, I shared my top preparation secrets with you and promised your radio interview would run smoothly and be more successful than you ever imagined if you followed them.  Now we’re going to discuss how to impress your audience while you’re on air.

The most important thing to remember is that talking on radio is not the same as making a sales presentation to a prospect.  This is true for various reasons – the main ones being that your time on radio is limited by the segment length allotted by the producer, the fact that listeners prefer crisp, concise answers, and quickly lose interest if you are too windy.

With this in mind, if you want to impress hosts and listeners as well as ace your radio appearances, here are even more of my best-kept publicity tips and tricks for you to follow:

√   When asked a question, restate the question before giving your answer.
√   Be brief.  Your answers should be given in 20-30 seconds.  Any more than that, you’re over-answering and must summarize or risk being tuned out.
√   Use humour, but don’t tell jokes.  Short anecdotes are much more effective.
√   Demonstrate that you’re an authority by using facts, startling statistics and findings that support your points, as well as grab the audience’s attention.
√    Elaborate beyond yes or no responses.  Make specific claims and raise issues or concerns, using examples that stir up controversy, as well as bring home your key messages.
√    Don’t come of like a stiff. Be relaxed and let your personality shine through.
√   To seem more personable, use names – particularly those of the person interviewing you and calling in to the show.
√   Be positive and show enthusiasm and conviction.
√   Don’t repeat or paraphrase a caller’s damaging question. It’s alright to interrupt a question based on a premise or false information.
√   End each segment with an upbeat, summarizing benefit of following your advice or using the product you are promoting.
√   The host and listeners expect you to be an expert on your topic.  After all, that’s why you’re there!  Part of being an expert is to know how far your experience extends and where it ends.  Hosts and listeners are impressed with real people who are honest and sincere, and not afraid to acknowledge their limits and boundaries.  So if you’re asked a question that throws you off balance and which you don’t have a good answer (assuming you can’t come up with one on the spot), I suggest you employ either one of my two dodging strategies…

1. Decline to answer based on the limits of your knowledge or experience. For example, on a recent radio interview in which an expert spoke about how to be more effective as a salesperson, a caller asked about managing a sales force (specifically whether the expert knew of compensation schemes that rewarded salespeople for getting repeat business from existing accounts). He immediately answered, “Sam, I’m sorry, but my expertise is in selling techniques, not management of salespeople. I know nothing about management and have no idea how to compensate a sales force. You might try asking colleagues who are sales managers at other companies in your industry.”

2. Alternatively say “I don’t know the answer to the question, Sam, but if you call me at my office tomorrow, we can discuss it further. I will then research it and get the answer for you or put you in touch with someone who knows. Host, may I give Sam my office number?” This technique demonstrates that you’re a helpful source of information and gets you off the hook of having to know it all.

Being a guest on a radio talk show is not always a winning situation. Getting yourself on the show, preparing for it and doing the interview takes a lot of effort and time. And for small business people, time is money.   And let’s face it – you not doing publicity for the fun or glory of it. You’re doing it for the sole purpose of publicizing your product or service, generating quality leads, enhancing your visibility and reputation, and making more profit.

So when you go to all this trouble and your media appearance doesn’t work out, you tend to get frustrated.  I understand, but advise you to never let it show.  Rather, handle the situation gracefully. Don’t yell or complain, and always leave people thinking well of you.  This positive behaviour increases your chances of getting added and better exposure.  Negative behaviour on the other hand, will earn you a reputation of being difficult and make media people want to avoid you.

While most media appearances go well, horror stories do exist.  Here are two actual cases that happened to me and my colleagues…

A fellow publicist (back in the days when I was strictly a publicist myself) I know tells of a client he had who drove two hours in a torrential rain storm to keep a confirmed interview on a radio show.  When his client arrived, another guest was sitting in the interviewee’s chair.  “Whoops the assistant program manager said.  “I must have forgotten to book you after we talked.  Can you come back next week?”

I once accompanied a book author client of mine, who was scheduled to appear on a top rated talk show in the Toronto area.  When we arrived at the radio station, we discovered that my client was not the sole guest and that another author was set to be on the same show, at the same time.  Worse the other author wanted to discuss something totally unrelated to my client’s topic.  The show made no sense, but there was nothing either of us could do about it.  So my client went ahead and performed like a pro – meaning that neither of us whined about it and she did her best under the circumstances – discussing her topic to the best of her ability and as much as the host would permit.

In addition to handling surprises such as those described above, you should never make product pitches or plugs on the air.  Why?  Because producers, hosts and audiences don’t want to hear about your book; video, website or accounting firm; they want to get solutions to their pressing problems. So rather than talking about yourself, products or services, focus on the wants, needs, problems and concerns of the listeners.  This is true even if the host says “tell us about your book (product or service).”   Instead answer, “I’d be happy to talk about my book (product, process or service), Mr. Host.  But what I’d really like to do is help your listeners overcome the objections they’re getting from______, feel more confident about ________, and get better results.  So those of you listening out there, when you call, we’ll go through your particular situation and solve your problem right over the phone!”

This approach tends to delight hosts and listeners because it creates a much more interesting, useful show, working with the listeners as though they were clients.  What about promoting your book, product or service?  Well, when you’re enthusiastic about your subject and want to help listeners get more of it, the host will do it for you!  And this amounts to third-party endorsement (or the host saying to his or her audience that you or your book, product, service, company etc is great and should be ordered or used).  Plus you’ll come across far more credible as a respectful and generous expert, not as a self-interested one trying to hock whatever it is you’re selling.

Radio is warm and intimate.  In order to resonate with audiences, you must personalize what you know; reach out and talk directly to them as friends, entirely honest, as if you’re having a conversation over a cup of coffee.  The fact that you can’t see them is irrelevant.  Listeners must feel the force of your personality.  This is how you make a lasting impression and become a highly desirable guest.

To your success,

Feel free to leave me a comment and let me know how my advice is working for you!

Want to reprint this article in your e-Zine, newsletter or on your website? You can as long as you do not change it, acknowledge me as the author, include its copyright date, my head shot and this paragraph:

Founding Publicist, Prime Time PR and former editor PRtalk (Canada’s only online PR magazine), Janette Burke is a marketing/PR coach, consultant, columnist, trainer, speaker, TV Personality and creator of “The Magnetic Marketing/PR Process TM” (TMMPP) – her customized, cost-effective, step-by-step, guaranteed to get-results-now marketing/PR coaching, consulting and training program.  To discuss how she can help take your business to the next level, call: (905) 882-6893; E-mail: janette@yourmarketingmagnet.com or visit: www.yourmarketingmagnet.com.

I’m assuming that you followed the advice I gave you in parts 1 and 2 of my four part series on radio marketing and promotion, made a pitch and have now landed yourself a spot on a top radio talk show.  You’re going to be a guest.  And you’re more nervous than ever, right?  Well, don’t panic.  I’m now going to reveal what you must do to prepare for and ace all your radio interviews.

If you follow my preparation rules, I promise, your interview will go smoothly and be more successful than you ever imagined:

√  Familiarize yourself with the show on which you’re going to appear before you appear on it. Know the host’s name and interview style, as well as the show’s format and what is expected of you.  To avoid any possible surprises or embarrassment, also do some upfront homework on your host – in particular his or her idiosyncrasies (for example, if you’ve written a book about liberal policies and your host is ultra-conservative).

√  Know the audience – who listens or watches the show?  You should know the audience profile and demographic (age, income, family, and economic status) before you accept your appearance and make sure it matches your target markets. All shows have websites and media kits.  If you’re unsure, look them up or call the producer or advertising department and ask for this information.

√  Take advantage of every opportunity to promote your appearance.  You can do this several ways:  by posting your appearances on your website, sending out announcement e-mails to your clients, perspective clients, family and friends, and making phone calls.

√  Anticipate and rehearse all possible questions that you may be asked and not just the ones you listed on your tip or fact sheet. It is essential that you present a tip or fact sheet to radio program directors and show hosts, because often they have not had the time to review your press kit, book or interview questions prior to your interview.  They will therefore appreciate if you prepare the questions for them and submit them ahead of your interview. In fact it should be part of your press kit and submitted in advance. Your tip or fact sheet should tip the interviewer off about what he or she should discuss with you. The advantage to you is that it allows you to shape and maintain control of the interview and address the topics you want to cover.

√  Know in advance the major points you want to make and the key messages you want to get across. Practice saying them in short phrases that you can easily slip into the conversation in case the host doesn’t pose questions that allow you to bring this information up.  Remember a typical interview lasts between 7-12 minutes – so you don’t have any time to waste.

√  If you’re on a call-in show, arrange to have two or three friends call in with a prepared question.  These calls can get things going; save you from a quiet phone line (if people aren’t calling in), and ensure that you get to answer at least some questions you most want to talk about.

√  Have the following information on hand: your toll-free number, local telephone number, e-mail address, URL and mailing address.

√  Take with you any materials you may need to refer to.  If you’re a book author doing a call-in radio show, you should always have a copy of your book with you.  If you want to support your opinions with facts and statistics but your memory is not the greatest, jot down a few key facts on a piece of paper or index cards and keep them handy.

√  Offer a free tip sheet, special report, E-zine, copy of your book or E-book (if you have one), teleclass, workshops, booklet or reprint to callers and viewers as a giveaway. This bait piece should contain useful information that expands on at least one of the topics you discuss on the show and is what makes the difference between tremendous versus minimal lead generation from a radio or TV appearance.

√  Work on a definition of what you do and boil it down to a single brief sentence or tag line you and your audience can easily say and remember long after your interview has aired.  For example, “My company, Janette Burke, ‘Your Marketing Magnet’, helps book authors, professionals and businesses owners lead and succeed in their marketplace!

√  For in-studio radio shows, leave for the interview early.  This is one time you can’t be late.  Because an 11:00 am show will start at 11:00 am whether you’re there or not.  So if the show starts at 11:00am, be there by 10:00 am.  Trust me I know from experience, that nothing is as uncomfortable as being stuck in traffic at 10:45 for an 11:00 radio spot.

Lastly to build your confidence, bone up on your topic before you go on the show.  A radio show appearance is the ultimate think-on-your feet challenge. No matter how well you prepare, hosts and callers alike will ask questions on specific situations that require you to work out an answer instantly, on the spot, and present it in a clear manner, without hesitation, in 30 to 60 seconds.

And remember, you’re there because you’re perceived to be an expert. So if you choke, you risk losing all your credibility.  For this very reason, it is wise to spend the evening before your interview reviewing your press release, press kit, website, book, articles, brochures, annual report or whatever source materials make for the basis of your topic.  Jot down a few notes or interesting highlights, key facts and figures and take this information with you. You can study in the car or while you wait to go on air and refer to it during the interview without the audience knowing you’re using a crib sheet.

To your success,

Feel free to leave me a comment and let me know how my advice is working for you!

Want to reprint this article in your e-Zine, newsletter or on your website? You can as long as you do not change it, acknowledge me as the author, include its copyright date, my head shot and this paragraph:

Founding Publicist, Prime Time PR and former editor PRtalk (Canada’s only online PR magazine), Janette Burke is a marketing/PR coach, consultant, columnist, trainer, speaker, TV Personality and creator of “The Magnetic Marketing/PR Process TM” (TMMPP) – her customized, cost-effective, step-by-step, guaranteed to get-results-now marketing/PR coaching, consulting and training program.  To discuss how she can help take your business to the next level, call: (905) 882-6893; E-mail: janette@yourmarketingmagnet.com or visit: www.yourmarketingmagnet.com.

Last issue, in the first of my four part series on making PR waves, I highlighted eight very good reasons why radio exposure should be an inherent part of your marketing/publicity plans and promised that I’d next share my tips for how to land yourself a spot on a radio talk show.

But before I do, it is important to note that you don’t have to be a celebrity to be a guest on the radio.  Hundreds of radio shows are in need of interesting and informative guests.  That’s right – 30% of radio and TV producers surveyed say they’re looking to book guests who speak on topical issues.  And while it’s true that certain celebs and political figures know how to work the press and grab tons of airtime – just as much airtime is allotted to small business owners, entrepreneurs, professionals and book authors like you – that is as long as you have knowledge of a specialized subject and can find a way to make it of particular interest to a specific show’s audience.  All you really need to do is be able to communicate your knowledge in an enjoyable, clear and interesting way.  Radio provides you with the perfect opportunity to relay your message to the world.  And more precisely your target audience!

To get on a radio show, you must begin by contacting the producer.  He or she (or their assistant) usually decides who the show’s guests will be and when – especially at the larger stations.  At smaller stations, the hosts are often also their own producers and therefore, the ones you should be calling.

The trick is in pitching yourself as a potential guest.  And since I’m often asked how to go about that very task, here are some guidelines for you to follow:

√    Be brief and get to the point of your call quickly.  As in any sales call, immediately say who you are, why you’re calling and give the producer a few reasons why they should listen to you. Tell them why they should consider having you as a guest on their show and just what it is you have to offer.  The most effective means of getting airtime is to convince the producer that you would be a great fit for their program.  The best way to do this is to be familiar with his or her program.  Turn your radio on and listen to their show a few times before calling them to pitch your story idea.  A radio producer is more likely to book you if, in addition to having a good story idea and being a good guest, you’re a listener or even a fan. You might also mention that you have a press release and media kit to send them.  This will help impress a producer with whom you have no prior relationship.

√    Don’t pretend to be a publicist.  If you’re calling for yourself, say so.  There’s absolutely no harm in it.  And it is always better to be sincere that to try to over-impress or exaggerate, or even lie.  Never lie. Because producers can instantly spot a phony.

√    If the producer isn’t interested, thank them for their time, get off the phone and call the producer of the next show you want to be on.  Don’t bother forcing or arguing with a producer who turns you down, and don’t attempt to prove that you’re good guest potential; producers know what they want in a guest.  You either meet their criteria or you don’t.  And never ask a producer who turns you down for a referral or recommendation to another show because they’re not in business to hock your product or service, or be your publicist.

√    You’re unlikely to get booked for a show over the phone.  Producers who are interested will ask you to send them a package about yourself and your topic (or area of expertise). This package or media kit, should include a copy of your press release, a tip sheet, your personal bio, case studies & testimonials, reprints of any articles written about you or previous media coverage (list all your previous appearances with publication/program names, stations, dates, and topics and if it is impressive, an audiotape, videotape, CD or DVD or video link of a recent media appearance – as long as it does you justice), a list of your speaking topics (if you give presentations of any kind), a sample of your product (for example if you’re a book author, don’t forget to include a copy of your book), a questionnaire of 10-15 suggested questions you’d like the host to ask you about your topic as well as other relevant information, such as a copy of your E-zine or a list of your Tele-class series (assuming you have them).

√    Persistent follow-up will help to increase your success rate.  Remember that media people are exceptionally busy.  If you really want to be on the show, you must be persistent.  Follow up your initial contact with a phone call, second phone call, and a note or e-mail.  If this still doesn’t land you a spot, send another e-mail or letter saying that you’re going to stay in touch because your topic is important.  Then stay in touch.  Send copies of your E-zine, clippings of print media featuring you, media releases and articles you’ve written.  It only takes one show to get you the attention of millions of people who want to buy what you’re selling. What you’re seeking is extremely valuable.  And you have to work to get it.

Another key ingredient to getting publicity in any medium, but especially radio, is to be accessible, flexible and accommodating. When the producer calls to say “We got your materials and want to book you on The Morning Show; how does 8:00am, Sunday sound?” say great. Give the media first priority and accept the first suggested date or time unless you absolutely can’t do so.  If you’re difficult, hard to schedule, and have a conflict with every date the producer proposes, he or show will grow impatient and say “Thanks anyway”, then call then next candidate from the pile of hundreds of media kits they receive.   The bottom line: you must treat the media as one of your best clients.  You exist to serve their needs, not the other way around.  This attitude along with some gratitude is what generates top results.

So have a wonderful and prosperous business week.  And please take a few minutes to think about your publicity plan. I’ll next reveal what to do to get ready for your radio interview and how to impress your audience while on air.

To your success,

Feel free to leave me a comment and let me how my advice is working for you!

Want to reprint this article in your e-Zine, newsletter or on your website? You can as long as you do not change it, acknowledge me as the author, include its copyright date, my head shot and this paragraph:

Founding Publicist, Prime Time PR and former editor PRtalk (Canada’s only online PR magazine), Janette Burke is a marketing/PR coach, consultant, columnist, trainer, speaker, TV Personality and creator of “The Magnetic Marketing/PR Process ^TM” (TMMPP) – her customized, cost-effective, step-by-step, guaranteed to get-results-now marketing/PR coaching, consulting and training program.  To discuss how she can help take your business to the next level, call: (905) 882-6893; E-mail: janette@yourmarketingmagnet.com or visit: www.yourmarketingmagnet.com.

Welcome to the third and final instalment of my Three C’s to E-business Success. In the previous two issues we looked at what draws potential buyers (as well as the media) to your site and also focused on what it takes to successfully market your company online.  In addition, we reviewed some of the ways you can create a more user and media friendly site.  This issue explores even more ways to profit online and drive traffic to your site.

Did you know that successful website owners spend 70% of their marketing budget on media outside of the Web in order to direct prospective customers to their sites?

If you want to put your website to work promoting your business and profit online too, you must adhere to the following…

Have a website. In today’s world there is no escaping this truth.  Your website does more than make your life easier, enhance customer service and sales, it adds to your credibility –    providing anytime access to you and the information you want prospective and established clients to know about your services.

Give people a reason to visit your website. Given that you’re competing with over 1.5 million websites (as reported by Internic, the governing body that controls Internet domain names) you must go the extra mile to ensure those you want to visit your site do.  And not just to see a cute picture of yourself, your brochure or some saying they really don’t care about!  Fact is people care only about themselves and what’s in it for them. So you better make sure you give them sufficient reason to log onto your site or stop complaining when they don’t visit it!

Give people options to buy. A sure way to lose sales is if you don’t list your products/services with different options of how to purchase them.  Seeing as many people are still reluctant to buy online, it is best to offer them both online and offline purchase choices, including a toll-free number, street address, and fax number.

Constantly change your site. You may get people to visit your site once, but if you want to keep them coming back, make sure to continually add new content to it.  Present special offers, contest, draws, news, and additional items of interest or products/services available.

Get yourself listed with search engines. Only 6-12 search engines really count and virtually all of them use spiders or robots that get out and find your site.  Manually register with Yahoo, Alta Vista, MSN, Excite, AOL Search, Google, Snap, Hotbot, and Infoseek.  You might also consider paying your webmaster to select the best candidates and make these submissions on your behalf.  However you might want to stay clear of internet services that offer the same for a nominal fee as they tend to generate a flood of poor-quality inquires and spam.  Provide search engines with 10-12 key words that you wish to be listed under (ideally those which best describe your business or company), and rank them in importance.  But remember that Web pages are proliferating faster than the search engines can keep up.  So in addition use PR to promote your URL to your offline customers, and forge alliances with reciprocal links to Web sites of companies whose products and services compliment your own.

Use your signature file to promote your website. Your “sig file” is that four to eight-line paragraph at the end of every one of your e-mail messages.  The Internet allows you to promote yourself in your sig.  And because your e-mail messages travel the Internet and get seen by potentially thousands of people, it’s your opportunity to list your Web address and give people a reason to visit it.    So remember to use your sig file to promote your website.

Print your website address on everything. Use the offline world to promote your online presence. Make sure that every ad you run, commercial you air, print, radio & TV appearance you make, business card you pass out and invoice, catalogue, press release, media kit and brochure your distribute contains your web address.

Participate in online discussion groups. Do you know where your target prospects gather on line?   If not you may want to do an online search at www.liszt.com and get in on some online chat.  Check-out the site and get a feel for the group, then post relevant responses to the list.  And don’t forget to use your sig file with your website address every time you post a message! Think about it, you’ll be promoting you website in accordance with Internet etiquette, not to mention the amount of journalist you may reach who maybe sitting in on or monitoring a discussion group relevant to their area of coverage!!

Cross-promote yourself in partnership with related websites. Offline you’re probably networking and co-op marketing.  Why not do the same online?  Find web sites that serve the same market as you do and join forces with them.  Advertise on their site or exchange links, for example.  Creating online allies can help you to make more money.

Always get your website mentioned in media interviews. While some media have policies limiting “plugs” and the mention of toll-free numbers, most for now, will let you mention your website address.  That’s because the Web is perceived to be an information source as opposed to just a marketing device.  But as more journalists realize that the Web is rapidly becoming more of a marketing tool, this policy may be changing.  I advise my clients to get the press’s permission and whenever possible, especially in broadcast media, tell listeners they can get more info on their topic by visiting their website (and giving out their URL address).

Experiment. As a vehicle for commerce, the Internet is relatively new.  And most of us tend to apply everything we’ve ever heard about marketing to this medium without always thinking out of the box, stretching our minds, and coming-up with new ways to do business online.  Like any form of publicity and promotion, we must be willing to take risks and try new ideas – some of which may cost us money or time.  But as Flip Wilson once said, “You can’t expect to hit the jackpot if you don’t put a few nickels into the machine.”

Send out press releases announcing the launch of your new website and the information it contains. These press releases can focus on content (free information visitors can get on the site), community (online forums and discussion groups), or commerce (span of product line or special offers).

Make it “sticky”. Offer your prospects a reason to keep coming back to your site. Good content, free resources, contests and draws all work well.  If people aren’t flocking to your site try a little offline (paper) promotion, such as postcards introducing your site to everyone on your mailing list Internet direct mail is a powerful tool for driving people to your site.  You can also use free demos, samples, e-books, e-Zines, and e-newsletters – a weekly update of sorts that keeps people coming back. Build your e-mail data base by encouraging prospects to register with you.

To your success,

Feel free to leave me a comment and let me know how my advice is working for you!

Want to reprint this article in your e-Zine, newsletter or on your website? You can as long as you do not change it, acknowledge me as the author and include its copyright date, my head shot and this paragraph:

Founding Publicist, Prime Time PR and former editor PRtalk (Canada’s only online PR magazine), Janette Burke is a marketing/PR coach, consultant, columnist, trainer, speaker, TV Personality and creator of “The Magnetic Marketing/PR Process ^TM” (TMMPP) – her customized, cost-effective, step-by-step, guaranteed to get-results-now marketing/PR coaching, consulting and training program.  To discuss how she can help take your business to the next level, call: (905) 882-6893; E-mail: janette@yourmarketingmagnet.com or visit: www.yourmarketingmagnet.com.

Last week I began to reveal the three C’s of E-Business Success with you and share some of my secrets (both in my article and video) on what you can do to draw potential buyers (as well as the media) to your website.  Whether you already have a site (and are looking to improve it), or are in the midst of designing one from scratch, this issue, I’m disclosing even more on what it takes to successfully market your company online and establish a user and media friendly website.

First and foremost, your website should be designed with both your customers and the media’s needs in mind.  It should be rich in content and contain options, tools, and databases that are readily available. A key feature is its “virtual press or newsroom” – or section developed exclusively for the media’s use.  If for example you’re a manufacturer or a service provider, you may opt to plan a site extensive in informational options and databases – options that make it easier for your company and your products to get mentioned in the media as well as quoted as thoroughly and accurately as possible.  If you happen to be a chemical manufacturer, consider allowing editors and journalists to access chemical formulas, research studies, application briefs, and material safety data sheets for each of your products.

Here are some other informational options and heading tips…

Your company background/history – often lumped under a section entitled “All About XYZ Company”, this information sometimes includes so many different pieces of information that it is worth dividing it into separate sections.   Examples of information you should consider including under this heading are:

What your company does
√    Your mission statement
√    Industries/applications
√    Your philosophy
√    Biographical info on founders & an explanation of how the company got started
√    Historical markers & milestones
√    Philanthropic events & charity sponsorships
√    Customer list
√    Case studies or customer success stories

Obviously if part of what you offer new clients is confidentiality, it is advisable for you not to post a client/project listing, unless you note on your site that you first obtained their permission to do so.

Key management – if you read business articles regularly, you’ll notice that journalists like to give descriptions of key players of the company they are writing about.  That’s why you should post your bio along with the bio of all your top executives.  Be sure to provide:

√     Where you and your mangers hail from
√    Individual biographies/backgrounds
√    Responsibilities
√    Contact information
√    Hot links to their e-mail addresses

While a high percentage of sites do make their addresses and phone numbers visible, just as many make their contact information impossible to find. Most journalists need this type of basic information.  You should also post the e-mail and phone number of your marketing/PR director or whoever is your company’s main press contact – even if that happens to be you.

Press release archive - posting or archiving all of your company’s press releases for online retrieval is common practice.  If you decide to add a press release archive to your website, I suggest you reflect on these components:

√    A chronological listing of  your press release announcements (most recent first), including the date of the press release followed by its title
√    Downloadable photos of your products
√    The e-mail link and phone number of your PR manger or main media liaison
√    E-mail hot links to your press contacts, resources, or quoted sources, when applicable, within the body copy

Financial Information - more and more, publicly traded companies are also making their financial data available online.  If you choose to offer your financial information on your website, you should:

√    Show key current financial data for the year as well as for the quarter (taken from annual and quarterly reports)
√    Show historic financial information

As an added bonus for financial reports and stock analysts, you may wish to include charts backed up with Excel spreadsheets showing the financial history of your company.

Product/service catalogue – customers and prospects visit your website for product information, so there should also be plenty of it for journalists to reference. The product information on your site available to the media should include:

√    Product or service descriptions and specifications
√    Up- to-date pricing and availability
√    Mini product photos you can click on for larger views and more information

Article/white paper library – as I’ve mentioned before the credibility you receive from other media helps establish your credibility with more media and makes them feel more comfortable with running your stories.  Therefore your website should give journalists access to press clippings and other evidence of media coverage you have already received.  So include such items as:

√    Html or PDF color images of the media placements your company has been featured in, especially if it is a cover story
√    Hot links to these articles, if they are posted online or are part of the publication’s website
√    Back issues of your newsletter
√    A hot link to the author’s e-mail

Trade show list – journalists also want to know which industry events you’ll be speaking or exhibiting at.  So your website is an ideal place to post:

√    Shows that your company attends, promotes, or sponsors
√    Hot links to releases associated with the shows
√    Hot links to trade show sites or sponsor sites
√    An option to schedule a booth visit

Locations/facility information – in cyberspace it is easy to forget that people expect to see you have a physical presence, not just megabytes of text and images on a server. Therefore, if you’re working away from home and it’s safe to do so, be sure to include:

√    Maps to your headquarters and major regional facilities and sales offices
√    Hot links to mapquest.com for more detailed directions
√    Site capabilities (what is manufactured there or major activities/services)
√    The number of employees at each facility
√    Hot links to the e-mail addresses of facility manager or key authority for each site

Avoiding “Speed Traps” on your site – nothing annoys Web browsers faster than s-l-o-w sites.  Here are two recommendations to make your site quick and easy:

√    Don’t use snazzy graphics that take a long time to download.  Bear in mind that not every user has the latest program or is on high speed and information should be more than one or two clicks away.
√    Don’t emphasize entertainment such as animation, special effects, downloads, and even graphics over content

When it comes to the media visiting your site, be aware that most editors to not have the time to navigate their way through poorly designed sites. Come deadline time, an easily navigated website may mean the difference between being included or excluded in an article.

Stay tuned…next issue I’ll complete my E-Business Success trilogy by divluging additional ways you can profit online and drive even more traffic to your site!

To your success,

Feel free to leave me a comment.

Want to reprint this article in your e-Zine, newsletter or on your website? You can as long as you do not change it, acknowledge me as the author and include its copyright date, my head shot and this paragraph:

Founding Publicist, Prime Time PR and former editor PRtalk (Canada’s only online PR magazine), Janette Burke is a marketing/PR coach, consultant, columnist, trainer, speaker, TV Personality and creator of “The Magnetic Marketing/PR Process ^TM” (TMMPP) – her customized, cost-effective, step-by-step, guaranteed to get-results-now marketing/PR coaching, consulting and training program.  To discuss how she can help take your business to the next level, call: (905) 882-6893; E-mail: janette@yourmarketingmagnet.com or visit: www.yourmarketingmagnet.com.

The internet has done more than change the way we do business, it has changed the face of marketing and PR. In fact, surveys indicate that one-third of the public logs onto the Internet to get news at least once a week.  In the era of the digital economy, if you’re not online, you have no way of knowing what’s being said about you on the World Wide Web or how your brand name and image is fairing against your competitors.

So having recently gone through the process of creating my second website, I thought I would share the three C’s (commerce, content and community) of E-Business Success with you and look at what you can do to draw potential buyers (and the media) to your site:

The first C – commerce refers to your Web site’s ability to permit your consumers to buy your products or services online.  Without it, you cannot have true one-step mail order on the Internet, but rather, only an e-mail address that generates online leads or offline purchases.

The second C – content, refers to the information and services you make available on your Website. Web sites that only display product information are not as interesting to Internet users as those that offer useful information and tools.  An example of such a tool can be found on health websites that ask you to enter your height and then show your ideal weight.  The better your content, the more likely users are to favour your site.

On the surface, the interactivity and the graphic nature of your site may make it alluring as a marketing tool.  But the truth is web surfers are drawn to content, not graphics.  And while animation and Day-Glo colours may make your website inviting and lively, rich content is what actually attracts browsers to your site and keeps them there long enough to become buyers.

According to Hotline, the monthly newsletter produced by The Newsletter Publishers Association in Washington D.C., what people once called editorial is now content.  Hotline observes that on the Web, much of a company’s or person’s website content is not created by professional publishers or writers, but by users, buyers and consumers – the same people who are sharing and talking with each other.  The article concludes that “The power of content comes from someone with interests or experiences similar to yours who are writing you about it.”

The third C – community — refers to the relationship that users have with the Web and each other.   The equivalent of your neighbourhood bookstore, cafe, or coffee shop, when web surfers go online and log on to your site, they feel it is a good place for them to spend their time, especially with other visitors.  Those who study the Web world say there are three communities out there:

√    Internet communities that serve as a marketing and advertising tool
√    Extranet communities designed to strengthen relationships with trade partners or customers
√    Intranet communities that facilitate knowledge sharing with an organization

What can you do to help build this sense of community and draw more traffic to your site?

One sure way is by offering free information for registered or signed-in visitors to access such as an E-book or article series. Chat rooms, forums, links to Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, YouTube and other sites as well as useful information such as resources, blogs and newsletters also work while helping you build your contact list! So does joining and participating in online groups. And posting comments and messages.  Why? Because when you see potential clients in postings talking to the person who originally posted the message as well as by name to each other – as they argue a point or share their opinions – you know you’re on a site with a strong sense of community.

Take iVillage.com for example.  The use of the word “village” in the name instantly creates an image of an Internet community.    In addition to catering to a variety of interests, including news, health, parenting, pets, relationships, travel, personal investing and even a book club geared primarily towards women, this site also allows you to send Instant Messages to other members, participate in chats, post notices on boards, and even have your own member’s page.  The same applies for all other Social Media sites.

Community may be the most important C in assuring your websites’ success.  In fact, the greater the sense of community, the stronger the relationship between your site and its users!  Therefore, you must do all you can to opt users in and add them to your e-list or direct them to your site. This measure not only allows visitors to develop a great relationship with your site, it also maximizes their receptiveness to it and willingness to receive e-marketing messages you wish to send them.

Too often we fail to realize that our business and website is much more interesting to us than it is to the masses it is meant to attract.  However the more content and utility you offer, the more visitors will grow to like your site, and the greater awareness you’ll gain from it.

It is important to measure your web surfer activity as well. Remember those who visit and buy know you better than those who visit it sporadically or never buy.  Factors you can examine and measure include hits (or the number of times people visit your site on a daily, weekly, monthly and yearly basis), page views (the specific pages visitors automatically click to), duration (the amount of time visitors spend on your site), and conversations (the number of click-through visitors who make a purchase).

You can track traffic to your site and use this data in network planning to ensure sufficient bandwidth to handle peak periods. Just think about what happened to Internet toy retailers when they got more Christmas orders in a year than they could handle!  Customers were very upset and the share prices of those dot-com companies plummeted.

The bottom line is, don’t assume a close relationship between your site and the visitors who log onto it exists.  Your customers dictate the depth of the relationship, based on what they need.  So don’t try to bond with every visitor who makes their way to your site.  Instead, focus on getting to know your customer and listening and responding to their needs, and having them get to know you.  Over time, if you nurture these connections, real relationships will inevitably result.

Stay tuned. Next edition we’ll take look a deeper look into how to design your website so that those you want to visit it do and we’ll also explore the different ways on how you can profit online and make your website rock!

You can also view my video on “What Constitutes a Great Website” by clicking HERE.

To your success,

Feel free to leave me a comment.

Want to reprint this article in your e-Zine, newsletter or on your website? You can as long as you do not change it, acknowledge me as the author and include its copyright date, my head shot and this paragraph:

Founding Publicist, Prime Time PR and former editor PRtalk (Canada’s only online PR magazine), Janette Burke is a marketing/PR coach, consultant, columnist, trainer, speaker, TV Personality and creator of “The Magnetic Marketing/PR Process TM” (TMMPP) – her customized, cost-effective, step-by-step, guaranteed to get-results-now marketing/PR coaching and training program.  To discuss how she can help take your business to the next level, call:  (905)882-6893; E-mail: janette@yourmarketingmagnet.com or visit: www.yourmarketingmagnet.com.