PR & Marketing Tips for Style and Fashion Lines

May 18, 2013 Leave a comment

photo-57When launching any type of line in the fashion, style or jewelry world, your first step is to identify your target market.

Who are your customers?

What else do they buy?

How do they perceive themselves?

How will your line complement and enhance who they are?

Remember you’re not selling a product; you’re selling a lifestyle, a feeling, an approach to life.  You’re offering your customers that magic that helps distinguish them from the rest of the crowd.

To begin:

Know your market.

Study it.

Where do they shop?

What do they read?

What do they watch?

What social media sites do they utilize?

Have a specific customer in mind and study how to best reach them and market to them.

Be realistic, if your line would sell well in Target, that’s great.  Understand that.  Know those customers.  Know what motivates them.  But don’t design for a target client base while thinking your customers shop at Tiffany’s.  Drill down and get rid of any disconnect between the reality of your brand and the fantasy of what you might feel it should be.

Defining Your Line:

Create a distinctive line that allows you to build a distinctive brand.

Don’t be different simply for the sake of being different.  That never works.

But do find a way to create a signature style.  Reflect who you are through your work so that you can separate yourself from the competition.

Be organic in your approach. Be authentic.  That will resonate.

Study other designs, other lines and collections.  This isn’t in order to copy but to get a sense of where the market is going and to get a feel of your competition.  Know what’s out there.

Contact boutiques.  Show your excitement about your line and let them know that you will help market not only your products but the boutique as well in your outreach.

Copyright © Anthony Mora 2013

Filed under Fashion PR Tagged with , , , , , , , , ,

PR TIPS: Working Your Media

May 14, 2013 Leave a comment

Screen shot 2013-05-13 at 5.42.20 PMOnce you’ve landed some media coverage, whether it be print, TV or radio, make sure that you work it.

For example, let’s say you were featured in a newspaper story and – nothing happened.  No one called.  No offers came in.  No interest was generated, at least as far as you could tell.  To start, you don’t know what will eventually come from that one placement.  I’ve seen cases where months down the line some amazing opportunity arose because of one story.  But, for argument’s sake, let’s say nothing happened.   It’s still remarkably valuable.  You just need to work it.

Become the story’s distributor – and I mean distributor in the most basic sense –

  • Circulate your story
  • Feature it in all of your social media platforms.
  • Spread the word.
  • Mention the story in your biography and fact sheet, use it when pitching other stories.
  • Let other media outlets know that you were featured in the article.
  • Duplicate it and use it as a press sample.
  • Use quotes from the story in your mailers, newsletters, ads, and marketing.

I understand being temporarily depressed if you don’t get a decent response to a story, which is why it is so important to understand exactly how media placement works.  One story does not make for a PR campaign.  By understanding the process, you turn what appears to be a lost opportunity into a tremendous advantage.

Make a list of the various ways you can utilize your media, on social media, in ads and newsletters, emails, etc.

Don’t let your failed expectations cloud your business sense.

Don’t waste opportunities due to short sightedness.

Be imaginative, inventive.

Think.

Be creative…

Copyright © Anthony Mora 2013

Filed under Lifestyle PR, Marketing Tagged with , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

The Successful Interview Formula For Maximizing Your PR Outreach

May 10, 2013 Leave a comment

Today2This is the last in a three part series on how to successfully handle a media interview.  If you’ve launched a public relations or media campaign, you want to take full advantage of it when an interview opportunity arises. which means, you want to be prepared.  If you study the tips and suggestions, you’ll find that most of them are useful in any type of conversation, speech or presentation.  They are basic communication skills, that most of us tend to forget.  Keep this media interview series somewhere you can refer to it.  I try to reread the points at least once a month.  Believe me they come in handy.

So, to continue…

13) If the interviewer takes the conversation into an area you’re not comfortable with, or tries to manipulate you into answering questions that you don’t want to answer, remember you have control over the situation.  Don’t be forced into saying something you don’t want to say.  Be polite, and stay on course.

14)  If a particular question throws you, or if you don’t want to answer a specific question, deflect it.  Acknowledge that it was asked, and then return to an area that you’re comfortable addressing.  You see and hear these types of responses every day around election time.  An example of an appropriate response would be: “I certainly understand why you’d ask that question, but what’s really important is…,” now return to your agenda.

15)  If you have three main points that you want to make and you are only able to mention one of them, don’t worry.  You’ll get ‘em next time.

16) Don’t recite a laundry list of information and sacrifice a good interview.  We’ve all had teachers who knew their subjects well, but bored the hell out of us.  That may work in school, because there’s a captive audience, but you have no such luxury.  You are there to interest as well as inform the audience.

17) Don’t be vague or use trade jargon.  Speak in easy-to-understand language.

18) Show the audience what you’re talking about.  Use a story or an account that illustrates a point, as opposed to just giving them vague ideas or theories.

19) Keep your information short, concise, and to the point.  Keep it clear, short, and easy to understand.

20) When trying to make a particular point, be assertive but not pushy.

21)  If it’s pertinent to your business, mention your location.  Although interviewers will often give your exact address over the air, many won’t.  That’s why, if one of your objectives is to attract clients or patients, always mention where your practice or business is located.  You don’t need to give the exact address.  That will sound like a commercial.  But you can make sure that the audience knows the general area where you’re located.  This may not be a huge concern if you’re appearing on a local TV program in a small town, but it becomes very important if you are being interviewed on a national show, or if you live in a large metropolis like Los Angeles or New York.   The viewers may love you, but if they can’t find you, you’re in trouble.  For example, if you own a health spa in the Palm Springs area, you can explain that, because your spa is located in Palm Springs, you have developed special treatments and products to combat the effects that the dry, desert heat can have on skin.  Make your location a part of your story.  Don’t simply blurt out your address, but weave your location into the conversation.

22) Relax.  Have fun.  You’ve worked hard for this – enjoy it.

Copyright © Anthony Mora 2013

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What To Do Once You Land A Media Interview: Part 2

May 1, 2013 Leave a comment

KELLY RIPA, MICHAEL STRAHAN (FILE PHOTO)In my last article, I reviewed some of the points to focus on when doing a media interview.  You’d be surprised at how many people spend time, money and effort into landing an interview, and then put very little, if any, time into preparing for when that coveted interview finally materializes.   That’s a mistake you don’t want to make.  An interview can quite literally be the springboard that launches a company, film, practice, service or product.  But to do so it has to be strategically approached.  It needs to be prepared for.  You need to know your talking points and practice delivering them.

In part one of What To Do Once You Land A Media Interview, I reviewed six points to keep in mind.  Some are obvious, but I’ve found that the obvious points are the ones that most clients tend to forget.  Why?  Because they seem so obvious.  So, never neglect the obvious.

Below are six more tips to review before doing any interview.  Some of these points seem to apply specifically to TV, but that’s not always the case.  Even if you’re doing a phone interview, keeping all of these tips in mind will help you deliver a strong impactful interview

7)  Lead with your most important points.  Interviews can be very short.  If you don’t lead with what’s important, you may have missed your chance.

8)  Breathe.  People have a tendency to hold their breath when nervous, which only creates more anxiety.  Remember to breathe.

9)  Smile.  I’ve seen more media opportunities ruined by people who have refused to smile during their interviews.  Looking grave does not make you appear more profound, it makes you look dull and somber.  Even if you’re doing a phone interview in your pajamas – smile.

10)  Listen.  Don’t anticipate questions.  Don’t think that you know what the interviewer is asking.  Wait until the question is asked and then respond.

11)  If you get momentarily confused, or lose your train of thought, that’s okay.  It happens to everyone.  Take a deep breath and start again.

12)  It’s alright to ask the interviewer to repeat a question.  The last thing you want to do is give an answer to a question you don’t fully understand.

Copyright © Anthony Mora 2013

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What To Do Once You Land A Media Interview

April 29, 2013 Leave a comment

936313_10151357079912061_1679321435_nTo start, be happy.  You’ve achieved an important objective.  But you don’t want to simply show up for an interview without preparation.  This is an opportunity you want to fully maximize.  The following few days we’ll be outlining a media check list, reviewing all of the points that you need to consider before appearing in front of the camera.  The visual points are obviously geared towards a TV appearance, These points are essential to consider before doing any type of interview, whether print, radio, TV or online.    Some of these points are basic, but you’d be surprised how many people forget the basics when doing an interview.

1)  Review the two or three primary points that you want to get across during the interview.

2) Make sure you’ve checked yourself in a mirror before you go on camera.  Is your hair in place?  Is your tie crooked?  Is your lipstick smeared?  Give yourself the basic once-over.

3)  Relax.  You are there to have a conversation.  Well, at least you want it to look like a conversation.

4) No slouching.  Sit with good posture.

5) Focus on the interviewer.  The camera and crew is part of the furniture as far as you’re concerned.

6)  Remember, you don’t have to force the information; weave your points into the interview.  If you spend your time forcing an issue, it will come out sounding strained and stilted.

Nope, you’re not done yet.  We’ve just started.  To be continued…

Copyright © Anthony Mora2013

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Banish 4 Thoughts That Keep You Struggling – from guest blogger Ann Convery of Revenue Reflex

April 26, 2013 Leave a comment

Hi,

Are you sick of “struggle mode”?

Do you know who’s keeping it in place?

Last night I was on a gorgeous horse farm in Ojai,
eating a piece of vegan chocolate cake.

OK, I ate two pieces.

And thinking about letting go of struggle.

I watched the sun disappear over the mountains and thought about why life and my business have changed so much in the last 12 months.

They changed because I changed.

My thoughts changed.

Here are some of the sabotaging thoughts my clients and I
demolished.

Because they hold you back.

And we got tired of waiting.

How about you?

4 Thoughts That Keep You in Struggle 

1. “The problem is..”  

This means you aren’t looking at possible solutions.
You’re focusing on the problem.

You may think:  “Of course I’m focusing on the problem!
How can I solve it?!”

By focusing on solutions.
The problem seems impossible. So side-step it.

What you focus on expands.
Think about it.
Successful people focus on solutions.
Start saying, “The best possible solution is…” instead.

(Full confession: This used to be one of my top phrases.
I got rid of it.

The opportunities that have appeared in my life in the last 12 months
are absolutely unbelievable. Now I look only for SOLUTIONS.

2. “The reason why…”

Everyone has their own pet set of excuses.
What are yours?

Do you know your “reasons” define your life?

If Laura Hillenbrand could write “Seabiscuit” while
she was so ill with chronic fatigue she could barely crawl to her desk…

If Steve Jobs could start a computer company out of his garage…

If Nelson Mandela could – you get the picture.

Find out what your pet reasons are for not having more of
what you want.

Then watch how you stop yourself
by believing in them.

positive3. “I know that.”

These are three of the most dangerous words in the English language.

Maggie was a highly gifted speaker and coach.

But she was miserable grinding out speech after speech with
nothing to show for it- no clients, no fees.

She whined for years about how she “hated” speeches.

Not only did Maggie know exactly how to speak and sell from
the stage, she actually taught it to others. Successfully.

But in her mind, she “knew that” already, and it wouldn’t work.
Besides, her meeting planners “didn’t allow her to sell.”

One day Maggie was hit upside the head by a tough-talking coach
who dared her to follow her own formula at her next speech.

(Guess who that was?)

Just to prove the coach wrong, Maggie threw out her old speech,
and followed every single speak to sell technique she knew.

She closed 40% of the room.

Whaddya know, it worked.

Maggie realized that she’d been spending years with her head up
her butt, so invested in knowing that it wouldn’t work
that she never gave it a try.

What do you positively absolutely KNOW won’t work?

Bet you’re wrong.

4. “Impossible.”

Ellen wanted a business, but she had no idea how to start.

She was highly talented in a number of fields, but Ellen wanted
the freedom of her own business.

“It’s impossible!  I don’t know how to sell,” she said.
“I don’t know the first thing about how to begin.”

Ellen stewed in this bewildering swamp for a year.
The she bought a $29 program about how to sell.

She wrote an ad.

She was so swamped with calls – about 30 a week – that
she hid from the phone.

So she took a course on selling, and found out how
to sign up clients. She had a full client load in a month.

But she still wanted the dream of free time.

So she invested in a coach.

Together they outlined a dream cash-flow business
which would bring her $60K a year to start, while
she worked for less than 15 hours a month.

When she wanted to double that income, she
could hire another part-timer.

Today she is writing 3 hours a day and
building a business that gives her the freedom she craves.

Nothing is impossible but the limits you set.

Do you have to see before you believe?

Or can you believe until you see it come true?

Copyright © Ann Convery 2013

Filed under entrepreneur, Entrepreneur PR, Marketing Tagged with , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

The Film Festival Marketing Approach

April 19, 2013 Leave a comment

sundance_film_festival_egyptian_theater_03Film festivals are definitely one approach to market and showcase your film and one I would encourage any filmmaker to consider.  But using that as your sole approach can backfire.  Let’s say one of your primary goals is to show your film at film festivals, particularly at the top festivals.  Fine, the film festival route is certainly a viable one when it comes to promoting and marketing your film, but keep in mind that’s not the only route.  Plenty of independent films land a distributor or self distribute and find an audience going different routes altogether.  Regardless of whether you go the film festival route or have another strategy, you should start thinking about your film’s marketing and release strategy as soon as possible.  If you’re smart, you’ll start before the screenplay is finished, certainly before the first frame has been shot.

Remember, the PR & marketing can be the engine that drives the project.  It can open doors to distribution, financing and build your audience base.  Keep your options open every step of the way.  As I mentioned earlier festivals are one approach, but not the only one.  Let’s say  you’re working on a documentary; you have a number of distribution and showing possibilities from the festivals, to theatrical to outside the box screenings at schools, museums, organizations and churches.  Often these types of screenings can run even during a festival showing.

One way festivals can help, is they are great places for forming relationships with others involved in various aspects of the film process.  This can be particularly helpful for producers and filmmakers who are going to self distribute their film.  Filmmakers now need to take a more active role in the marketing, public relations, and distribution of their films and festivals can definitely help forge important relationships.

But there can also be a downside to festivals.  It’s possible to get locked in the film festival loop and not look at alternative, creative ways to market, show and showcase your film.  Even if your film is accepted to one or more, that in itself does not guarantee your film will succeed. Too many film producers base their entire marketing strategy on being accepted by a festival.  If it turns out no festival bites, which happens a fair amount of time, these filmmakers are left with no alternate strategy.  They are more or less stranded and left with no alternate approach.  You don’t want to find yourself in that position.

My advice is to begin on day one with a PR and marketing strategy that goes forward whether or not your film finds its way to a festival.  Regardless of the direction you choose to take, get your PR and marketing gameplan in place, start your PR outreach and launch your filmmaking journey.

Copyright © Anthony Mora 2013

Cresswell, Jackson. “Sundance London Film Festival is Launching in April 2012.” Collider. 15, Mar 2011. 19 Apr 2013. <http://collider.com/sundance-london-film-festival-2012/>

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Marketing and Branding Tips for Style and Fashion

April 15, 2013 Leave a comment

katie-holmes-topless-allure-cover-april-2013When launching any type of line in the fashion, style or jewelry world, your first step is to identify your target market.  Who are your customers?  What else do they buy?  How do they perceive themselves?  How will your line complement and enhance who they are.  Remember you’re not selling a product; you’re selling a lifestyle, a feeling, an approach to life.  You’re selling that magic that helps distinguish your customers form everyone else.  Know your market.  Study it.  Where do they shop?  What do they read?  What do they watch?  What social media sites do they utilize?  Have a specific customer in mind and study how to best reach them and market to them.

Be realistic, if your line would sell well in Target, that’s great.  Understand that.  Know those customers.  Know what motivates them.  But don’t design for Target while thinking your customers shop at Tiffany’s.  Drill down and get rid of any disconnect between the reality of your brand and the fantasy of what you might feel it should be.

Create a distinctive line that allows you to build a distinctive brand.  Don’t be different simply for the sake of being different.  That never works.  But do find a way to create a signature style.  Reflect who you are through your work so that you can separate yourself from the competition.  Be organic in your approach. Be authentic.  That will resonate.

Study other designs, other lines and collections.  This isn’t in order to copy but to get a sense of where the market is going and to get a feel of your competition.  Know what’s out there.

Contact some boutiques.  Show your excitement about your line and let them know that you will help market not only your products but the boutique as well in your outreach.

Market, Market Market!

Develop a quality, attractive website and keep it updated.

Create a blog.

Approach other blogs that are in your field.

Use the various social media platforms.  Engage with your audience.

When possible offer giveaways, hold contests.

Keep the word out there about your designs and your brand and encourage others to spread the word.

Launch a public relations campaign.  Articles about you, your line, your designs and your brand can do wonders.  Once you’re featured in the media, use your blog and social media platforms to magnify and amplify your press coverage.  By appearing in the media you and your brand become the news.  That type of ongoing PR buzz will help interest customers, buyers, investors, and boutiques.  It will separate you from the competition, grow your business and build your brand.

Copyright © Anthony Mora 2013

“Katie Holmes: Topless ‘Allure’ Cover April 2013.” Photo.  Just Jared. 19 Mar 2013. 15 Apr 2013. <http://www.justjared.com/2013/03/19/katie-holmes-topless-allure-cover-april-2013/&gt;

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Film, Publishing, Music, Art & Marketing’s Brave New World

April 9, 2013 Leave a comment

Jonny-Greenwood-Bow-196x300From music to film, to publishing, to the world of fine art, the internet has forever changed the creative industry. This shift has been seismic and has turned what were thought of as set-in-stone business models on their collective heads.   Because the music world was the first to be rocked by the changing communication landscape, musicians were the first to learn how to take matters into their own hands and create successful careers utilizing PR, social media and various forms of guerilla marketing

The publishing world has also been turned upside down.  No longer do traditional publishing houses hold the keys to success.  Self-published authors are taking matters and marketing into their own hands.  Increasingly self-published authors are landing on the best sellers list and on Amazon’s top 20 list.  Amanda Hocking initially became a millionaire by self-publishing her work.  It was after she was established that she signed with St. Martin’s Press.

The film industry is seeing this same change.  For example as with self-published books, CreateSpace (http://www.createspace.com) serves entrepreneurs in the music, publishing, and film worlds. As an independent producer you can upload your film as part of a digital DVD along with cover art and information on the film.  Your film is then posted for sale.  The company which is owned by Amazon.com, takes and fulfills the orders and splits the profits with the filmmaker.  That is just one option.  There are several outlets online that help producers sell their films.  There are also new channels of distribution.  Films are now reaching the public by being shown at churches, organizations, schools, museums, etc.  Theatrical distribution is no longer the only name of the game.

film_countdownThe same inevitable change is happening in the art world where the hold art galleries once had on the sale and distribution of art is loosening.  The business of art is now transforming, just as the business of music, publishing and film worlds have.  Utilizing social media as well as traditional media and public relations, artists are now able to bypass the galleries and take their work straight to the public and collectors.

These avenues are not easy.  They involve a commitment of time and (at least some) money.  They can also be daunting because for years musicians, filmmakers, authors and fine artists were reluctant to rock the boat and alienate the powers that be by charting a path of their own.  But they can pay off in a big way.  More and more artists are realizing that the old models have shifted bringing different challenges as well as opportunities.  The upside?  With tenacity and creativity, artists can now carve out successful careers on their own terms.

Copyright © Anthony Mora 2013

 

 

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Film Makers: Making Marketing Your Top Priority

April 2, 2013 Leave a comment

film articleThe film festival route is certainly a viable one when it comes to promoting and marketing your film, but keep in mind that’s not the only route.  Plenty of independent films land a distributor and find an audience going different routes altogether.  Regardless of whether you go the film festival route or have another strategy, you should start thinking about your film’s marketing, publicity and release strategy as soon as possible.  If you’re smart, you’ll start before the screenplay is finished, certainly before the first frame has been shot.

Remember, the PR and marketing can be the engine that drives the project.  It can open doors to distribution, financing and build your audience base.  Keep your options open every step of the way.  For example, if you’re working on a documentary, you have a number of distribution and showing possibilities from the festivals, to theatrical to outside the box screenings at schools, museums, organizations and churches.  Often these types of screenings can run even during a festival showing.

Festivals can be a great place for meeting distributors and forming relationships with strategic partners.  This can be particularly helpful for producers and filmmakers who are going to self distribute their film.  Filmmakers now need to take a more active role in the marketing, public relations, and distribution of their films.

But there can also be a downside to festivals.  It’s possible to get locked in the film festival loop and not look at alternative, creative ways to market, show and showcase your film.  Regardless of the direction you chose to take, get your PR and marketing gameplan in place at the start of your filmmaking journey.

Copyright © Anthony Mora 2013

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The Secret to Marketing Benefits and Solutions

March 29, 2013 Leave a comment

illuminativeWhen it comes to PR and marketing, the focus should not be on selling but on effectively communicating your solutions.  But even before that, before you get to your benefits and solutions, your prospects have to realize that they indeed have a problem that you can solve.

True, you want to focus on the benefits, not the features of your business.   But that’s not enough you can read a laundry list of benefits and leave a prospect bored and ready to walk.  Your prospects need to understand why they need the benefits your touting.  You have to speak in their language.  You need to explain why those benefits can be the solution to some of their biggest problems.

When we pitch the media, we have to look at our pitch from the editor’s or producer’s perspective.  If we don’t pitch towards their needs, the conversation is going to fall on deaf ears.  It’s the same with pitching a potential client.  Look at the situation from their perspective.  .

Your benefits and your features are important, but only if the person you’re talking to perceives that they are important to him or her.  If your prospects don’t perceive that you can solve their problems, you can give the most compelling pitch, but it will fall on deaf ears.

Keep in mind what they’re thinking and what their problems are.  Then illustrate how your service or product helps solve those problems.  Do that and, believe me, they’ll not only listen, they’ll take action.

Copyright © Anthony Mora 2013

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