Q & A
Answers to your PR-related questions


Q. I’m a self-employed graphic artist & networking is key but, whenever people ask me questions, I never seem to be able to think of anything witty to say until after they’re gone. For instance, I was at a networking gathering in the city and someone asked what I had been doing for the past two years. I said, “Nothing really.” But the truth is that I’ve been busy with my upstart.
 
A. Rule #1 - Don’t sell yourself short. The first person you have to sell yourself to is YOU!

Rule #2- Modesty will get you places, but shameless self-promotion will get you there faster!

Rule #3- Always ask yourself, “What can I learn from this?”

Rule #1 - Don’t sell yourself short. The first person you have to sell yourself to is YOU! Most people don’t realize how often they talk themselves down instead up. But the best way to avoid doing that is to have ready-made answers ahead of time. So I’ve taken the liberty of getting the ball rolling… For example:

Negative spin

Q. So, what have you been doing for the past two years?
A: Nothing really.

Positive spin
 
Q. So, what have you been doing for the past two years?
A. Working on my upstart in the Personal Services/ Skin Care Industry and traveling with my wife.

The positive spin is better because it’s a great conversation starter, which gets others interested in YOU. You have to be memorable because you’re competing in a sea with other talented people. Also, it more accurately depicts your work. You HAVE been doing more than nothing!

1. You have generated a business plan for your company.

2. You’ve designed logos, mottos and art for print work other PR for this upstart.

3. You’ve developed the formula for your product and designed the booth (and sure, you had help from a lab and contractors but you gave them input, your blueprint, so to speak, they didn’t work from nothing)
 
4. And you’ve helped developed the packaging, marketing plan. Upstarts take time, energy and money, and you’ve devoted all three to it for the past couple years! You’re fortunate in that you could afford to do that, but now you can joke about how you can only afford to devote time and energy for a while and then, you seek out alternative sources of income. There’s nothing wrong with reaching your goal in stages!

Rule #2- Modesty will get you places, but shameless self-promotion will get you there faster!

There’s a time and a place for modesty but when you’re promoting a new business, this isn’t one of them. I recently wrote a press release for a relatively new organization but, when the president wanted to downplay the fact that he started the organization, I suggested otherwise. The story was actually more intriguing the way it really happened. And yes, many people have helped him along the way, but don’t make the mistake of thinking that by pointing out your contributions; you’re patting yourself on the back. The nugget truth you think of as "bragging" is often what the media picks up on as interesting. 

Rule #3- Always ask yourself, “What can I learn from this?”

Ok. So what. So you’re in a different place in your career than you’d like to be. But it’s only wasted time if you do nothing with it. Always ask yourself what you can learn from every situation you find yourself. You can always learn from it. Stuck in the Express line behind two other people with more than ten items each? What can you learn from it while you’re there? Wish you were an author instead of a lawyer? What can you take away from where you are right now that would help you somewhere else? Life lessons can be learned anywhere. Just because you’ve been out of marketplace for a couple years is no excuse to devalue the time you’ve spent in pursuit of your dream.






Q.How do I write a press release? I've seen so many different types that I'm starting to wonder if I should shell out big bucks and get it done right.

A. Hold your wallet. Depending on your need, most companies and organizations can get away with doing their own. Unless you need to do a national media blitz, you don't need to hire a writer or a distributor.

You don't even need to be a good writer! What you do need to do is keep it simple.

1. Headline: Make it catchy, but don't spend hours. I don't even write the headlines for the articles I file!

2. Who, what, where, when and why: This is the main body of text. It literally can be as simple as an invite.  Or if it's unique, a one-in-a-lifetime event or something that might be unfamiliar to the reporter, jot down a few sentences.

3. Contact information: Choose a contact person that a reporter is actually able to get a hold of, and who already knows that they have been chosen as the designated contact person.

I once received a press release about several young musicians that received awards. I called the contact person listed to do a small story about them.

I was rudely told that someone may or may not get back to me. In fact, she didn't think she could help at all. But she'd try. Click.

Two minutes later, the phone rang. She changed her mind. She decided she couldn't help me. click.

I was bewildered but thought it was hysterical. I thought, lady, you guys faxed me! 

I ended up calling the event founder who was shocked at the less-than-helpful response from their "PR contact" and was able to facilitate what I needed from there. Whew!

Don't forget- phone number, email address, and fax, if necessary.

And that's all folks. Really.

-LN