By inmedia
itWorldCanada has a useful piece today about sources of funding for technology research and development. I was hoping it would point to some novel sources but it focuses on the two usual suspects, the National Research Council’s Industrial Research Assistance Program and the Scientific Research and Experimental Development tax credit scheme administered by Canada Revenue Agency. Still, it’s a helpful review of what kind of company and project qualify, and it presents some strong testimonials to the merits of the programs.
By Linda Forrest
In a perfect world, clients would have unlimited resources, in terms of both time and manpower, to devote to their PR program. In such a utopia, our jobs would be a whole lot easier, never having to put the governor on and being able to run with the PR ball in all directions… but alas, we live in the real world where this is just not the case.
In the real world, resources are constrained and thus the PR effort must by definition be limited. The program must be oriented, not only to meet budget considerations, but also to have the best effect on the client’s bottom line. Determining what that program will be and where to focus the PR effort is a considered process, one that I’ll go into in some limited detail below.
The first question that must be asked is who are you trying to reach, who is your market? Hopefully, you’ve long ago answered this question yourself and thus tailored your marketing efforts as a whole to speak to a particular target group, a group that may consist of both purchasing decision makers and influencers. Once you have a clear view of who you’re trying to reach, it then becomes about how you will reach them. With the media marketplace growing daily, it’s important to have the correct mix of both media channels (print, online, radio, television) and types of outlets, depending on your business (consumer-focused, horizontal trade publications, industry vertical outlets, etc.)
Most of our clients have target markets in particular industry verticals, such as healthcare, legal, or financial services. It’s also often the case that our clients work across a number of verticals, not just one. Then, the decision has to be made as to when and how much effort is put against the trade publications in these verticals.
If you have an established presence in a particular vertical, garnering coverage in trade publications – by way of news items, bylined articles, and most importantly, customer case studies – will affirm your success in this market. If you are looking to build your presence in the market, by the same token, coverage in these publications will speak directly to the decision makers in your space and perhaps get your solution on the short list when prospects are considering their options.
The other side of this coin is knowing when to say when. In the case of a client releasing a particularly sought after product that is perhaps first to market, you may find yourself with the happy problem of a lot of in-bound requests for interviews and contributed pieces. This interest from your media and analyst marketplace likely coincides with interest from prospective customers, partners and other potential revenue generating parties. Therefore, careful consideration must be paid to where and when you expend your PR effort. If the company spokesperson only has time for a few interviews, which ones will derive the most benefit for the company, will reach the most high-value audience? Is it the size of the audience that will generate the most benefit? Or is it the focus of the audience, the niche publication, that will really move the yard sticks for your organization?
Because we consider ourselves a marketing PR agency, our efforts are meant to ultimately help you sell more of what you offer. Your agency should work with your company to really learn about your business objectives and structure the PR effort accordingly. Coordination of all elements of the marketing mix toward a common goal will ensure best results and create good relationships between clients and agencies.
By Leo Valiquette
I came across a couple of interesting blog posts today about the trials and tribulations of being a writer, not to mention the trials and tribulations of those who must deal with writers without a firm grasp of what constitutes good grammar.
The first is on the Strategic Public Relations blog. I thought it summed up quite well the never-ending evolution of a writer. If you’re a writer yourself, or intrigued by the process of writing, the author is looking for comments on how to deal with various challenges such as writer’s block.
The second post deals with more nitty-gritty issues of grammar and the poor impression that is made on journalists and editors when PR practitioners fail to adhere to the finer points of style such as proper apostrophe use. Check out the post titled Quality is Job #1 on PR Squared.
For those of us who craft words into coherent patterns of thought for a living, it’s often easy to take for granted what others sometimes see as a cryptic, even magical process.
Sometimes it’s easy. Sometimes it’s not. Is there some magic formula, or secret sauce that stirs the creative juices? Not that I’ve ever discovered. It’s hard work, plain and simple, and the only way I know to get in the groove is to clear my head and get the oxygen pumping with some kind of physical activity, then sit down and focus. There are plenty of little things that can help. When writing fiction, sometimes I favour peace and quiet and classical music, other times I go for the background noise of a cozy coffee bar. But in the end, there’s no substitute for sheer willpower and something that drives a sense of urgency. (On the job, it’s amazing how much inspiration can be drawn from being on the clock with a deadline to meet.)
What often makes all the difference with those of us who write for pay, pleasure, or both, is the enjoyment of the craft itself, rather than whatever monetary rewards we can garner from it. Most of us are unapologetically word geeks. We like to play with words as the building blocks of a good story. Maybe that story comes in the form of a news release launching one of our clients, or a case study in a white paper, but it’s a form of storytelling just the same. In the end, what we are trying to do is reach out, capture the attention of, and strike a chord with, our target audience. Is that so different from what a fiction writer is trying to do?
And much like the case with good fiction, what we do is a product of both a writer and an editor working together to create a final, polished piece. It’s all about making a good first impression so that people focus on what you have written, rather than on how you have written it. (Editor’s note: This piece now makes a much better impression!)
By Linda Forrest
Where the tire hits the tarmac in public relations is when it comes time to pitch a story. All of the materials have been written, the stage is set, spokespeople are available, and the news release has been sent. It’s our time to shine.
There’s a reason that news releases clock in at about 750 words – there is a lot to say about the news item that we’re putting out. We’re adamant that hyperbole doesn’t make it into our clients’ releases, but even when we trim away the fat, there is a lot of ground to cover.
Regardless, we have but a few words to grab our target audience’s attention, whether in an email or in a follow-up phone call. Hence, my reference to Shakespeare in the title of this post. We make it or break it in just a few seconds – can we distill the key message of the story in under 10 seconds on the phone? What few words can we lead with in an email to increase our chances of a positive reply? Has the headline included enough detail to communicate the crux of the story? We work hard to ensure that this is the case because in today’s news dense world, our release is just one of hundreds likely to cross that reporter or editor’s desk on any given day; our phone call is just one of the dozens that they’ll field amid pressing deadlines and breaking news. While we are strong believers that every story has an inherent news value, the fact of the matter is that unless we can quickly and effectively communicate the story, regardless of the channel, we are not doing the best by our clients.
Is brevity similarly appreciated when it comes to blog posts? Today, I’ll have to hope so as I’ve got to get back to pitching.
By Leo Valiquette
Anyone savvy with the local tech scene and the areas of focus by yours truly during my time at the OBJ will know all about that made-in-Ottawa problem with developing a sales culture among our companies. Well, somebody’s finally doing something about it.
Eliot Burdett and the team at Peak Sales Recruiting have teamed up with a number of other like-minded individuals to create a not-for-profit organization called the Sales Leadership Initiative (SLI).
SLI’s mission is simple: ferret out from among the estimated 6,000 sales people who live and work in Ottawa the shining stars, the high achievers, the trailblazers who continually set and raise the bar. But this isn’t about showering praise and recognition, it’s about picking the brains of these people for the wise insights that can help others up their own game.
“We are interested in learning from the best practices in technology sales, whether close to home or further afield,” is SLI’s official line. “Our goals are (1) to increase and develop the pool of sales talent, and (2) raise the profile of Ottawa as a center of sale excellence.”
SLI is kicking things off with a launch event on June 13 featuring best-selling author and award-winning motivational speaker Jeffrey Gitomer (pictured) to help sales professionals “turbo charge their sales engines.” It’s a morning event at Ben Franklin Place. Click here to learn more.
In a town dominated by a bureaucractic mindset and a horde of engineers turned C-level executives, we definitely need an initiative like this to push the sales side of a business. Now let’s just hope those most in need can acknowledge their shortcomings and take advantage of what SLI has to offer.
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When no pitch is better than a bad pitch
June 04, 2008 by Leo Valiquette
By Leo Valiquette Among the various blogs I follow, one that stands out for a daily chuckle is the Bad Pitch Blog, which outs and critiques bad pitches by those who attempt to pass themselves off as PR practitioners. The individual reporter or editor is often swamped by pitches of one sort or another, whether it […]
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The PR industry under fire… again
June 03, 2008 by inmedia
By inmedia Our profession is under fire again this week with the lambasting the industry received from a CBS legal analyst, deriding PR as a wholly untruthful industry built on the premise that PR consultants are nothing better than paid liars on our clients’ behalf. He tried to dig himself out of the hole somewhat […]
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May Roundup: Ottawa innovation, biz building, media relations
June 02, 2008 by inmedia
By inmedia In you missed any of these posts the first time around, here’s a roundup of everything we published in May. Francis: Propagating the Ottawa startup community Ottawa DemoCamp9 showcases novel applications How may my technology help you? Take 2 Tech community disagrees that BDC should ‘abandon its dogs’ Linda: It’s about more than […]
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An extraordinary week for Ottawa start-ups
June 02, 2008 by Francis Moran
By Francis Moran Last week was quite an extraordinary one for Ottawa’s start-up community. Wow. When was the last time over the past six or eight or 10 years that I could make a bold statement like that and not have the guys in the white coats start measuring me for a jacket that buckles […]
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Buddy, how the heck do I build a business?
May 30, 2008 by Leo Valiquette
By Leo Valiquette What does it take to build a successful business from scratch without selling your soul to the venture capitalists? Pretty much what it takes to turn any vision into reality – persistence, optimism and thinking first about qualifying the market demand for what you want to offer. Last night at the Marshes […]
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What bloggers want
May 30, 2008 by Danny Sullivan
By Danny Sullivan A lot of PR people seem to be a little nervous when it comes to dealing with the blogosphere. There exists a sentiment that there is some kind of black magic at play – and if you don’t know the magic words you might end up spending the rest of your days as a toad […]
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Propagating the Ottawa startup community
May 30, 2008 by Francis Moran
By Francis Moran The official theme was “Ottawa’s digital media industry,” and the gamers, social networkers and content developers were there in spades. But what I heard at Wednesday night’s regular Start-up Drop-in put on by The Ottawa Network at LaBarge Weinstein had as much or more to do with propagating and supporting the entire […]
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It’s about more than the written word
May 29, 2008 by Linda Forrest
By Linda Forrest It’s true, a lot of a PR consultant’s time is spent writing; writing news releases, backgrounders, bylined articles, biographies, blog posts (ahem)… all in the hope that interested journalists or editors will take what we’ve written and repurpose it or use it as source material to develop their own coverage of our […]
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