How to Figure out what Marketing Is Right For You

May 24, 2012 Leave a comment

Mashable’s definition of Marketing is a great place to start thinking about your own company’s marketing mix:

How do you decide what marketing direction is the best for you?  That’s not necessarily an easy question to answer.  You need to know your company, your product or service, your target market and the direction you want your company to go.  Begin by writing out a marketing plan.  Initially have fun with it play with it, then start to hone it down.  Start with a list of questions and then fill in the answers.  But do it a few times and set it up so your answers can’t always be the same as the previous responses.  Look at your company and your business from a number of angles.

Do you need to:

  • drive sales?
  • find new clients?
  • build your brand?
  • reach a new target market?

PR and media relations can achieve a number of goals, but before launching a campaign, you need to define exactly what your specific goals are.  Once you have your marketing objective list, your next step is to review your marketing budget.  How much can you realistically spend to achieve your marketing goals?  Your budget is going to help define your approach.  If you have thousands that you can dedicate to marketing each month you have different options than if you have a couple of hundred or less to put towards your marketing efforts.

If you have a finite marketing budget, your first focus should be on establishing an online presence, by building an easy to read, informational website that speaks to your clients’ needs.  The Internet offers you a way to position yourself and your company online without breaking the bank, but simply having a presence on the Internet does not mean anyone is going to see it.  You need to drive visitors to your site.  This is when a social media outreach program, article marketing program and a blog can help.

But back to the PR question, although your budget will dictate how you’re going to implement your marketing campaign, your budget, or lack of it, does not need to stop you from utilizing media relations.  Draw up a campaign blueprint.  Then move forward.  Don’t waste valuable marketing time trying to figure out if you should launch a PR campaign, focus on how.  It is the one form of marketing that reaches your target market, offers you validation, credibility and establishes you as an expert in your field.  Define your needs, your objectives, your budget, the most appropriate approach and move forward.  The worst decision you can make is to do no marketing.  That’s a sure way to go nowhere fast.

Copyright © Anthony Mora 2012

Marketing. Mashable. Retrieved May 24, 2012. http://mashable.com/follow/topics/marketing/page/2/

Filed under Marketing Tagged with , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

How PR Drove Facebook’s IPO

May 16, 2012 Leave a comment

Sometimes an amazingly effective PR campaign can be a dangerous thing.  Take Facebook for example.  The company raised the price range for its IPO to $34 to $38 a share, from $28 to $35 a share.  That illustrates how the media frenzy has hungry investors biting at the bit for this offering.  It also shows how perception can create what could be a false reality perhaps blinding investors to the reality of the situation.  Facebook’s initial price range put its valuation at $77 billion to $96 billion, but now that shifts to $93 billion to $104 billion under this revised price range.  That, my friend, is a lot of money.

Facebook has yet to prove that its $3.7 billion in revenue and $1 billion in profits last year can justify such astronomical evaluation. . Last month, Facebook disclosed that its first-quarter profit and revenue shrunk from the fourth quarter of 2011.  The company claimed that it was do to seasonal trends in advertising.

Facebook going public can be dangerous.  The pressure of being a public company can make companies lose sight of what made them so successful to start.   When it comes to Facebook, the pressure will be particularly great. Its earnings are quite a ways below its projections.  It’s hard to see how it will find a way to grow at the lightning speed investors will not only expect, but demand. 

Another red flag is that Facebook has real exposure to Europe. Apparently over twenty five percent of its users are fromEurope, giving Facebook definite financial exposure on that front. With the state of the European economy, and Facebook’s reliance on European advertising, that could be dangerous.

According to the media, most savvy investors seem to be shying away from Facebook’s IPO.  There are probably some credible reasons for that.  This is not to say that Facbook is not an amazing success story.  Its success and growth have been astronomical; still that doesn’t necessarily justify such aggressive valuations.  And that’s where the media and PR frenzy comes into play.  From newspaper and magazine articles to radio and TV segments Facebook’s IPO has been a front page story for weeks. And then of course, there is Facebook itself.  The social media outlet is its own non stop marketing machine.  The buzz creates more interest and investors start beating the investment drums.  It looks like a difficult road for Facbook to live up to those projections; time will tell whether the drum beating will lead to success or investor disappointment.


Copyright © Anthony Mora 2012

Flauraud, Valentin. “he loading screen of the Facebook application on a mobile phone is seen in this photo illustration taken in Lavigny.” Photo. Chicago Tribune. 16 May 2012. 16 May 2012. <http://www.chicagotribune.com/classified/automotive/sns-rt-us-facebook-retailbre84f0x2-20120516,0,4596444.story>

Filed under Marketing Tagged with , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Square Hits a PR Grand Slam

February 3, 2012 Leave a comment

What could be a better PR coup than having both the Republican and the Democrats using your device in the race for the White House?  Either way you win, even with the loser.  And that’s exactly what Square has accomplished.  One of the newest technologies to be adopted by the Obama and the Romney campaign is called Square, a mobile payment card reading device.  Members of both campaigns are being equipped with this device that enables the campaigns to accept donations on various devices including Androids, Iphone, Ipads, etc.

To quote a Square spokesperson: “Whether you’re a Republican or a Democrat, running for president or local assembly, Square makes it easier than ever for candidates, organizations and volunteers to fundraise for their cause.”

Square makes fundraising easy which makes candidates and their teams happier.  Generally a campaign needed to solicit checks or cash.  There were always credit cards but the paperwork and tracking could be a fundraiser nightmare.

Square makes donating and receiving easy.  Donations are immodestly processed and the company sends receipts via SMS or email.  Political fundraisers can’t escape the reporting requirements and processing fees, but overall Square offers them a fundraising dream.

The special app for accepting Square payments for the Obama campaign will soon be available to the public and then the game is on. The Obama campaign reportedly raised $42 million in the last quarter of 2011.  As the campaign goes into full gear, that number is sure to rise, add the Republican race to that and Square is going to be seeing quite a bit of money flow through its system.

The capital Square will take in by working with both parties is significant, since the company is basically a start up.  But even more significant in the long run are the PR and marketing opportunities that are now afforded them.  Their media relations and publicity efforts are in full swing (or at least they should be).

Companies pay celebrities big bucks to endorse their products or services.  In this case Square’s clients are being afforded the biggest spotlight there is and some of that spotlight falls directly on Square.  Public relations, particularly media relations can benefit quite a bit with the help of celebrity names.  Think of designers or make up companies that tie their brands to those of specific celebrities.  If a celebrity uses a product and word hits the media, sales of that product generally soar.  Seldom is a company afforded the type of media exposure that Square can now command.   It will be interesting to see how they utilize this opportunity.

Copyright © Anthony Mora 2012

Pinoytutorial. “Square app”. Photo. Techtorial. 25 May 2011. 03 Feb. 2012. <http://pinoytutorial.com/techtorial/square-pay-with-your-name-review-how-to-guide-and-tutorial/>

Flacy, Mike. “Obama Square App”. Photo. Digital Trends. 31 Jan 2012. 03 Feb. 2012. <http://www.digitaltrends.com/mobile/will-mobile-campaign-donations-be-a-game-changer-for-politicians/>

Filed under Marketing, Politics Tagged with , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Why Facebook Thinks You’re Worth $125.00

February 3, 2012 Leave a comment

Facebook filed Wednesday to raise $5 billion in an initial public offering.  Talk about a PR explosion!  Fun stuff, eh?  A $100 billion market cap would make the company worth just about as much as McDonald’s.  Not bad for a company still basically in its infancy.

In 2011, Facebook earned $1 billion on sales of $3.7 billion. As of December 31, Facebook had 845 million monthly active users.  The company estimates that each of its 800 million users is worth $125.00.  I actually think I’m worth quite a bit more and personally take umbrage at being valued at a mere $125.00, but there you have it.  If I decide to bail on Facebook, they’ll suddenly be worth $125.00 less than they are now, which I’m confident keeps them up at night.  .

Compared with other social media companies that have gone public, $125 is a rather high figure.  But when you consider the amount of personal information that Facebook users are willing to share for free, the market could be convinced the price is right, even though the stock performance of other social media sites has not been stellar. Without the true share price information, the company’s valuation is still up in the air.  Facebook itself conducted its own valuation and as of December 31, it figured that the price was worth $29.73 per share.  Who would know better?

Although I do belong to the cult of Facebook I can’t say that it’s actually by choice. It’s one of those “shoulds” we all deal with.  It makes me nervous if truth be told.  I did an unofficial survey of ten people today and although all were on Facebook, each one found the site rather creepy.  Creepy seemed to be the operative word.  Each person had his or her own reasons why it made them nervous, yet all were still on the site.  All but one, whose photos during a vacation liaison ended up posted on Facebook (without his knowledge).  He no longer “Friends” or “Likes” and now solos on Twitter.

So, best everyone watch themselves.  I read that private eyes gather most of their information from Facbook now a days.  I have no idea if that’s true or not, but when it comes to taking care of your own PR or media relations campaign, one apparently can’t be too careful in the Facebook world.  That said, we Facebook members know how much we’re worth.  The real question is – is Facebook worth 5 Billion?

Copyright © Anthony Mora 2012

Vinod. “fa$ebook.” Photo. TECH4GLOBE. 08, Mar. 2011. 02. Feb. 2012. <http://tech4globe.com/facebook-worth-50-billion.html>fa

 

Filed under social media Tagged with , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

The Oscar Race is On & Hollywood’s Media Machines Rev Up

January 28, 2012 Leave a comment

Martin Scorsese’s “Hugo,” came away with eleven Academy Award nominations, and “The Artist,” which won the Golden Globes received ten.  The two films, which are both about the bygone days of film making, head the list of best picture Oscar contenders announced Tuesday.  Ironically there is a belief in Hollywood that films about films, particularly films about film making are doomed to die at the box-office.  If true, at least this year they’d do so in style.

It’s interesting to sense the difference between the Golden Globes and the Oscars.  As one well known film critic recently put it, the Golden Globes are so much fun, because they really don’t matter.  The sense is that people go to the Globes to see and be seen, party, have fun, say things you’d never say at the Academy Awards and possibly help create a bit of a media buzz for your film.   The Golden Globes is a PR vehicle.  A feel good party where the winners hope to influence the Oscar voters.

The Academy Awards remain the main event.  This will always remain the award the public views as the golden ring in the film business and it’s hard to tell the influence that the other awards have on the Oscars.

The best picture category is an interesting one with heavy hitter Steven Spielberg’s “War Horse,” going against, among others, Woody Allen’s “Midnight in Paris.”  Allen’s film hit a chord this year, and could result in an (all is truly forgiven) embrace from the Academy.  Perhaps the most interesting inclusion is Terrence Malick’s (either love it or hate it) “The Tree of Life;” but it’s good to know mystics can climb the Hollywood heights.

Superstars Brad Pitt and George Clooney go head to head in the best actor category with Pitts’s “Moneyball” and Clooney’s “The Descendants” garnering a number of awards.  Those two are where the glitz and glamour is, but that’s not always where the awards go.

The best actress category includes Meryl Streep’s performance as former British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher in “The Iron Lady” and Michelle Williams’ role as movie legend Marilyn Monroe in “My Week With Marilyn.”  It’s always a gamble bringing an icon to the screen, but in both cases the gamble paid off.

Now that the nominees have been named, the Hollywood movie machine media relations blitz goes into high gear.  From here to the awards date the publicity and media campaigns run 24/7.  Public relations, and some subtle and often not so subtle arm twisting are the staples of race to the Oscar.  As long as Harvey Weinstein is involved in the race, it will be interesting.

Copyright © Anthony Mora 2012

Seib, Al. “Plaster Oscar statuettes used for rehearsals.” Photo. The Envelope. Jan. 2012. 27, Jan. 2012.                                                  <http://theenvelope.latimes.com/news/la-env-oscars-winners-nominees-scorecard-2012,0,2535525.htmlstory>

Filed under Entertainment, Public Relations Tagged with , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Starbucks’ Spirited PR Gamble

January 25, 2012 Leave a comment

A Big Mac along with a glass of chardonnay?  Who knows?  That could be on the way.  Starbucks is heading in that direction.  The chain will soon be selling beer and wine in select locations.  Four to six stores in the Southern California area will offer alcoholic beverages by the end of this year, as will some stores in Atlanta and Chicago

The chain began testing its new spirited approach in Seattle in 2010. Starbucks now offers beers for $5 and wines by the glass for $7 to $9 in five locations in that city and one in Portland, Oregon.

The questions are: what will this move do to the Starbucks brand? And how will customers have to change their habits in order for it to pay off?  Currently the chain makes most of its daily sales by 2 p.m., which explains the foray into the spirit business.  On the other hand around 75% of Starbucks customers are there for take out.  That won’t work in the beer and wine business.  These customers will have to say and enjoy their beverages in-house.  And what about the kids and teens that have made Starbucks one of their staples.  Will mom and dad be happy sending their kids to a beer and wine establishment?

If this were Europe, there would be no issue.  There families are used to going to pubs or cafes where coffee, food and spirits are sold.  But, the U.S. isn’t France or England and we generally have a different take on where liquor should and shouldn’t be served.  And what happens when a Starbucks barista has to 86 someone?  What will be the protocol for that?

Starbucks has built an amazing worldwide brand.  It has regularly changed its menu offering different types of drinks and food items, but a jump into the world of beer and wine is a big one.  Adding a new pastry, sandwich or fruit drink does not risk compromising the chain’s brand, but offering a happy hour where sprits flow freely will challenge the way many of its customers view the company.

Only time will tell if this gamble will pay off.  Because it directly impacts their brand recognition, it could either turn out to be a PR miscue or a public relations homerun.  Chances are it will land somewhere in the middle.  Since they are only experimenting with a handful of stores, if the publicity effect is extremely negative, they can quickly shut the program down.  But if the reaction is simply lukewarm, or only somewhat negative, they will most likely give the news stores a fair shot and launch a media relations campaign extolling the virtues of this new approach.  If it works, it could become a one stop shop for buying one’s stimulants in the morning and depressants in the evening.  The next big question could be, how are they going to get people to leave?

Copyright © Anthony Mora 2012

Sato, Kiichiro. “Starbucks’ alcohol menu being tested in a handful of shops in Seattle and one in Portland, Ore., includes Rogue Dead Guy Ale, a Pinot Noir from Oregon, a Prosecco from Italy and a Malbec from Argentina. Above, a Starbucks in Chicago. ” Photo. Los Angeles Times. 24, Jan. 2012. 25, Jan. 2012. <http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-starbucks-beer-20120124,0,5910879.story>

Filed under Marketing, Top Stories Tagged with , , , , , , , , , ,

Daily Tips On Using PR To Establish Yourself As An Expert In Your Field- Strategies D & E

January 23, 2012 Leave a comment

Strategy D:  You want to present yourself as an expert in a particular field.  You can address a number of topics in your field, but you want to remain specific.  If you try to present yourself as an expert on everything, chances are you’ll be perceived as an expert on nothing.   The trick is to keep your focus, but broaden your scope.  Can you present new ways of looking at or approaching your field?  For example, if you run a company that produces skin care products, your main pitch is obviously going to be on how effective your product is, but can you develop a pitch about how your company is going green, or how the industry has changed in the past decade?

Strategy E :  Work on presenting yourself as someone who not only understands your product or service, but as a resource who can explain your field to others.  Are there new trends or new approaches that you can discuss and explain to the media and the general public?  For example if you’re a musician or are launching a new record label, can you address how the music industry is shifting and explain how the various new trends in music are impacting the culture at large?  Every industry has trends and shifts, position yourself as the expert who can explain them and discuss how they impact the public at large.

Filed under Entrepreneur PR Tagged with , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Daily Tips On Using PR To Establish Yourself As An Expert In Your Field- Strategy C

January 20, 2012 Leave a comment

One of the main values of a public relations campaign is that it helps establish you as an expert in your field.  But you need to help the media help you.  Your job is to let them know why you’re an expert and make it as easy as possible for them to use you as a resource.  With that in mind, this week, I’m going to focus on daily tips you can use to use PR and media relations to establish you as an expert in your field.

Strategy C:  Breakdown the various ways you can present a topic.   Review how the topic you’re discussing impacts women, men, children, seniors, etc.  You can pitch the same basic story to a large number of media outlets, but you can’t use the same pitch or angle.  For example, there’s a chance that you can pitch yourself to Redbook, CNN and the Wall Street Journal, but you’re not going to do so successfully unless you modify the pitch to meet each media outlet’s specific needs.   If you can present yourself and the topic in different ways and to different audiences, you’ll have a much greater opportunity to garner media coverage as an expert in your field.

Copyright © Anthony Mora 2012

Filed under Entrepreneur PR Tagged with , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Crafting A Successful PR Pitch

January 7, 2012 Leave a comment

The primary focus of a public relations campaign needs to be meeting the media’s needs.  If you don’t accomplish that, you’re missing the mark.  Meet the media’s needs and you’ll meet yours.  As I’ve stated in other articles, leading with statistics can be an effective approach.  Let’s say you’re a health care worker that deals with chronic pain.  Or you produce a supplement that helps relieve pain; you can lead with the fact that chronic pain affects approximately 25 percent of the U.S. population and three-fifths of adults 65 or older.  Find some studies and statistics that you can quote that illustrate that the story you’re pitching does indeed affect a large number of people.

Numbers and statistics help give a PR pitch gravitas.  Also never forget that the media is interested in their own type of statistics; they’re interested in the number of viewers, readers or listeners that will be interested in this story.  So the more you can assure them that this is a story that not only affects, but will also interest a large target market, the better your chances of landing a story.  Once you’ve used your statistics to narrow down your specific pitch, you can then take a reverse course and broaden your pitch.  For example if you use statistics to show how pain affects older Americans, after making that point, you can then add a sentence stating that this type of pain does not only strike seniors, but a wide range of people, from professional athletes and weekend jocks to those who suffer with fibromyalgia and arthritis, who deal with bouts of acute and chronic pain.

Use statistics to give your pitches credibility.  For example, if you’re pitching a story about complementary medicine, look online for stats regarding how popular alternative and complementary medicine has become.  Then, depending on the specific angle of the story you’re pitching, you can use those statistics to illustrate why your story idea is both important and timely.  Now use those statistics in your press releases and pitches.

After making a specific pitch, close with other topics and angles that you can address.  Include a short (very short) bio listing your expertise and qualifications and that you can also address such topics as (fill in the blank).  That way if your particular pitch doesn’t work for an editor or producer, they can see that there are other topics that you can address.

Using statistics, numbers and figures can help anchor a pitch and a story, but don’t rely on stats alone; the main part of your pitch needs to be compelling and newsworthy.  So, when launching a media relations campaign, keep the media’s needs in mind; first develop your pitch and then look for stats that help give your story idea credence.

Copyright © Anthony Mora 2011

Filed under Marketing Tagged with , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Learning the PR Mindset

December 20, 2011 Leave a comment

Launching and sustaining a public relations campaign is an ongoing process.  In the PR world, you are continually refining and modifying your approach, pitches, story ideas, and media lists.  If a basic pitch is working, you want to stay with it for a bit.  One mistake I’ve seen companies make is that they try to continually send out new pitches and releases simply for the sake of getting new information out to the media. This mindset of continually writing press releases that aren’t newsworthy in order to keep new information flowing, is a dangerous one.   Yes you want to offer the media new angles, pitches and media hooks, but you don’t want to send out new information unless it’s truly warranted.

Monitor how your media pitches and press releases are being received.  If a pitch you sent out six weeks ago is gaining traction and garnering media coverage, stay with that story.  Work it; develop it; use the media coverage you’re now landing to garner more media coverage.  Don’t shift your focus simply because your calendar says it’s time for a new media release.  Truth is that media relations is more of an art than a science (which drives most left brainers crazy).  If you try to simply set up a mechanical or statistical PR gameplan and allow that to dictate the campaign, you’re in trouble

As with the media itself an effective public relations campaign is fluid.  It is both proactive and reactive. If a national story breaks and you can tie your story to it, you need to be able to react, move quickly and change your approach.  If, on the other hand, a pitch is working and gaining traction, you want to stay with it, work it and keep it moving.  Media relations can be difficult for those who need to follow a specific course set-in-stone approach.  It is an ever changing, continually evolving practice.

Begin by creating a list of objectives that you want to achieve before launching a media relations campaign.  Now come up with a list of story angles and media pitches that you can use.   When it comes to PR brainstorming, your goal is to create a list of the most important story ideas including: new business concepts, the unique value you offer, important information you can give, and anecdotal stories.  Part of that process is to give some thought to how and why you can be presented as an expert in your overall field.

Initially you want to come up with your story ideas and media pitches, followed by your target media lists.  Create specific objectives, but allow the campaign the ability to shift and change course.  Developing an effective PR strategy is not unlike creating an effective sports gameplan.  You develop a strategy and draw up specific plays, but you also allow yourself the ability to act and react depending on what comes at you. There is an intuitive aspect to the PR process that has to allow for action and reaction.  You want to set up a specific target and gameplan, but you need to be able to shift and alter your plan as needed.

Copyright © Anthony Mora 2011

Filed under Entrepreneur PR Tagged with , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

← Older posts

Follow

Get every new post delivered to your Inbox.

Join 65 other followers