Twitter.  That little blue bird that everyone keeps talking about it.  I remember the first time someone mentioned twitter and how it works.  In my head, I thought why would I want to talk about what I ate for lunch?  What I have found over the past couple of years is a way to find out about what news others in my industry are reading, immediate updates on news and situations happening throughout the world, as well as develop relationships with people in my industry that can be followed up and further developed offline.

Everyone is wondering how to use this outlet to drive traffic to their website.  The following are some immediate actions to make your Twitter profile work for you:

1. Brand your Twitter landing page to match your website/branding.
2. Develop targeted networks of followers that fit within your specific product, service or industry.
3. Post effective ‘tweets’ daily related to your product, the service that you offer, or news specific to your industry.
4. Tweet links that direct people to your website, company press releases, updated blogs to increase traffic and awareness of your firm.
5. Retweet informative tweets to build relationships with relevant people and organizations in your industry and increase your follower base.

Bonus action item:

Participate in popular Twitter activities like Follow Fridays (#FF) and  #WineWednesday to continue to increase followers and build relationships.

So go out there and grab the bird by its feathers and share that article that inspired you with those around you.

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“The qualities that make Twitter seem inane and half-baked are what makes it so powerful.” – Jonathan Zittrain, Harvard law professor and Internet expert

How to develop a focused strategy that will win new customers

Making yourself, your services or your company relevant to your target market can certainly be challenging in today’s economy.   With all of the messages flying at people every day, it is important now more than ever for organizations to focus on offering something that meets someone’s specific needs or wants.  When something that you do equals something that someone wants, you have now become relevant.

“Relevance is used to describe how pertinent, connected or applicable something is to a given matter.  A thing is relevant if it serves as a means to a given purpose.”

The following are three tips to making your company relevant:

1.  Find out to whom your business is relevant. This can be achieved through online surveys, market research, focus groups, social media and internal meetings to determine if your audience has shifted over the past several years.

2. Tailor your message to your target audience, and make sure they understand what you do and what you are trying to get them to buy or use.

Many companies often tailor their messages to their competitors or use industry language that is hard to understand.  They are missing the mark on how to make their business relevant to those who are interested.  A public relations professional can help you tailor your message to make relevance a reality and to help you achieve your goals.

3.  Make sure your firm hones in on its core strengths, and uses them to their full advantage.  Don’t try to be all things to everyone.  Also realize some audiences are more relevant and useful to you than others.  Focus your efforts on the most beneficial audience and speak directly to them, finding out what they want and making yourself relevant to them.

And here’s one more tip, it’s one that I have written about before but believe is so crucial today – be visible so your audience can find you.  Have an effective website that displays your key messages and exactly what you do, have an up-to-date LinkedIn profile so people searching your firm can find you and make sure all your marketing materials and PR outreach speak to who you are trying to reach, not those that work within your company.

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“Existence is no more than the precarious attainment of relevance in an intensely mobile flux of past, present and future.” – Susan Sontag

I have received several questions recently on business relationships – building them, maintaining them and the best way to maximize them.

Take a moment to think of all the key business relationships in your life.    They might include your accountant, your lawyer, current clients, etc.  Do you have deep connections with these people?  Do they refer you business?  Do you take any time to nurture these relationships?

The one key to making business relationships worthwhile and fulfilling is to give, but don’t expect anything in return.  The more you give, the more you will get in the end.

When you meet someone for the first time, do you immediately try to sell him or her your services?  This is the wrong tactic.  Give them something useful and relevant.  This can be information, a key lead or something helpful.  Then you can build on that.

When you haven’t heard from a client or potential client in a while, figure out ways to bring yourself to the top of mind with that particular person.  You can also try to bring useful leave-behind materials when attending a networking event that might help that person in some way.  Months or years down the road, these small giving items have had much greater rewards then expected.

Next time you are thinking about that business relationship and wondering how you can nurture it, give them something useful.  The key is not to expect anything in return.  You will soon receive responses and returns that you never knew were possible.

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“Great opportunities to help others seldom come, but small ones surround us everyday.” – Sally Koch

Harnessing the power of LinkedIn is something many business professionals continue to try to undertake.  With social media platforms improving their services what seems like monthly, even the savviest can be stumped at times.  Sometimes all you need to know is where to donate your limited amount of time.

Here are five key tips to smarten up your LinkedIn:

Tip 1 – Improve your Google Search PageRank.

LinkedIn gives users the opportunity to make the information in your profile available for search engines to index.  Since LinkedIn profiles receive fairly high PageRank in Google, so you have the ability to influence what people see when they search for you.  To do this, create a public profile and select full view.  Also, make sure your URL is customized to be your actual name.

Tip 2 – Make new business meetings, interviews and introductions go smoother.

You can use LinkedIn to find the people you are meeting and review specialties, interests, past employment, accomplishments and credibility.

Tip 3 – Ask for Advice.

Linkedin answers gives you the opportunity to ask business-related questions and receive input from other experts in your industry.  It also allows you to give guidance and answer questions asked by others in your industry or about your particular field.

Tip 4 – Bring yourself to top of mind.

Update your status with useful articles you have read or informative details about your industry.  If your company is doing something newsworthy, this gives you a great avenue to broadcast it to your network.  Updtae your profile at least once a month or participate in the Q&A section.  These all allow for you to be included in your network’s weekly LinkedIn update email, showing you are active in the community.

Tip 5 – Harness the power of recommendations.

Ask your current and recent clients to recommend you on LinkedIn.  Recommendations are viewed by professionals looking to work with your firm, offering an additional stamp of credibility from people who were happy with your products or services.  Many firms pay for ads with testimonials in trade publications, and LinkedIn offers this for free.

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“A networker likes to meet people. I don’t. I like accomplishing things in the world. You meet people when you want to accomplish something.” – Reid Hoffman

California has been experiencing a lot of shakes lately…of the seismic variety.  The second major earthquake hit near the border of San Diego this week, causing a ripple that was felt up as far as the Los Angeles area.  All of these sudden and quite unexpected tremors got me thinking about a lot of things near and dear to my heart:  Family…friends…my beloved pet Golden Retriever…marketing.

Marketing?  Yes, marketing.

I am often asked when is the right time to “shake up” your branding or put some spice into your PR campaign.  Or better yet, when do I take the social media leap?  Changing something that has been consistent and comfortable for your firm takes courage, as well as a great partner.

My advice on determining when the best time to shake up your marketing is if you are experiencing one or more of the following:

1)   You and your employees are bored with your branding, or you can’t even remember when your last brochure was designed.

2)   You have not updated anything or tried anything new for the past 10 years, and simply run the same marketing program year after year.

3)   Your brand no longer matches what your company’s strengths are currently.

You can also try this trick:  Take your company’s last two ads, your business card, a marketing brochure and the main page of your website.  If none of these materials match each other and you can’t tell each piece belongs to the same company, it is your year to embark on a re-branding adventure.  One of the major aspects of marketing I discussed previously is the importance of consistency.

Will 2010 be the year you stand out from the clutter and change your image?  Before the phone starts ringing off the hook, products start flying off the shelf, and work life gets too busy for you to even think about the basics, take time to develop a plan that creates a rumble in your industry both far and wide.  Your image is one seismic event that can be predicted

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“What great changes have not been ambitious?” – Melinda Gates

Jen Olewinski, President of Olewinski Group

When I read the news today I am probably not alone in sensing a pattern among top headlines:

“The Economy”

“Jobs”

“Healthcare”

There are a lot of uncertainties in society today, which in many ways causes individuals, and businesses, to be more cautious in their spending.  For individuals, it may mean passing on that new purse or a third night out to dinner this week.  For businesses, it can mean forgoing the extravagant sales incentive trip or “getting by” without hiring additional staff.  A lot of us feel this is probably a logical, prudent way of moving forward in today’s environment.  However, this causes a problem for many who also wish to thrive in this slowly rebounding economy.  So what are your goals?

“Grow”

“Win market share”

“Become more profitable”

I imagine most principals in business would agree with the above objectives.  But how do you achieve them while at the same time respecting the uncertainties discussed earlier?  Many organizations have ambitions to re-establish their brand, seek out new customers, and increase awareness of the value they bring to their industry, but cannot justify hiring a full-time marketing expert.  Some other companies may try to have existing staff handle these duties, but oftentimes these people struggle because they are being pulled from other roles in their job.

This is where hiring a consultant fits in.

Marketing and PR consultants can make the process of attacking your communications strategy seamless and pain-free.  It is, in every way, the best of both worlds.  Get the experience and know-how of an expert in the field without the expense of adding, or taking work away from, someone on the payroll.  Hiring a firm to do this work for you provides peace of mind in knowing that you can invest in a marketing plan only when you need it, which maximizes the value of the program.  Whether it is for three days, three months, or three years, your consultant is there to create a plan on any budget.

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“The successful person makes a habit of doing what the failing person doesn’t like to do.” - Thomas Edison

When communicating to your organization’s audience, whether it be customers, prospects, members or colleagues, you should always consider who they are and what language they speak.  No, I am not talking about learning French to talk to your customers from Quebec (although that probably wouldn’t hurt).

Remembering your target audience when developing a blog, press release, brochure, email blast or any other marketing materials may seem obvious but is often forgotten.  Keep the language consistent (like your marketing) and relevant to your targets to ensure the message is as effective as possible.

For example, if you are a commercial tenant rep broker and your target audience is small business owners looking for industrial space, you should not speak in real estate terms while trying to reach them.  You must remember these professionals are outside your industry and need to understand what you are trying to offer and what makes you different.  Otherwise, what you are saying is just noise.

The voice of your blog should be consistent with those you hope to reach, and keep the language understandable, but not too elementary.  Explore many outlets to reach people, always keeping in the back of your mind who you are talking to.  Do not write for yourself or your company, but remember to always write for your clients.  They are the ones reading the information with the hopes of gaining something useful and innovative.  Provide this information and they will begin to seek you out as a trusted advisor or a preferred brand in your industry.

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“You don’t need to buy Rosetta Stone to speak your customers’ language.” – Jen Olewinski

If your company is like many these days, it has spent some considerable time developing its brand.  Whether it is conveyed through logos, philosophies, or the values of your organization, the brand is the cornerstone of differentiation between you and your competitors.  While most would consider “consistency of message” obvious when developing marketing materials and websites, often times when companies delve into advertising or public relations campaigns the overall branding message can be lost.  This is tragic because a major goal of branding is to keep it consistent, no matter where your target audience sees you.

Think of Apple for example.  This brand has been innovative and creative since its launch nearly 30 years ago.  While ad campaigns have changed over the years (with the exception of recent efforts), Apple has always based its products and the message stemming from them, around life-changing innovation, ease of use, and logical application, all with a flair of style.  To top off this consistency is a line of products, and messages, that each syncs with each other in ways many companies would envy.

Think of this example when you begin developing your own campaigns.  The look and branding of each social media page, website, and advertisement must be consistent.  A customer or member of your targeted audience (link) should know they are on your company or product’s page no matter what site they are on.  If a customer lands on your facebook page, does the look and feel of the brand, message, and content mesh with what you have on your corporate website?  , If it doesn’t, you are not leveraging the power of your brand to its full potential.

Make sure the style of each component including the messages, language, background and photos are telling the same story and speaking the same message.  This makes all the difference when adding social media sites into your marketing plan.  Branding is key.

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“Consistency is one of the most powerful usability principles: when things always behave the same, users don’t have to worry about what will happen.  Instead, they know what will happen based on earlier experience.” -Jakob Nielson

Social Media…talk about one of the most popular buzz words in the world right now!  Between the news, water cooler conversation at work, and celebrity gossip, everyone seems to be discussing social media these days.  And with this onslaught of attention, businesses are increasingly being pressured to join social networks to stay on the cutting edge.  Is social media right for you?  And if so, where do you start?

Start first by taking stepping away from the computer.   Before you jump into social media, understand what it is first and how it works.  When used, it can be a very powerful tool.

Social media includes the various online technology tools that enable people to communicate easily via the internet to share information and resources. Social media can include text, audio, video, images, podcasts, and other multimedia communications.

Today, the most popular social media sites are Facebook, Twitter, Ning, LinkedIn, Flickr, Foursquare and the new Google Buzz.  Each medium has advantages and disadvantages, but one constant remains throughout:  the ability to engage with people (friends, colleagues, customers) in a highly personal manner that never before has existed.

These tools of the public relations trade provide yet another avenue to reach your audience and get the word out about your company.  If you want to discuss how to make social media work for you, give us a call and see how we can help.

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“Social Media puts the “public” into PR and the “market” into marketing.” – Chris Brogan

So now that you know from the first post that public relations is simply managing the communication between an organization and its targeted audience, where do you go from here?  I will explain more in-depth several options for reaching those audiences through public relations outreach.

The following are some of the avenues Olewinski Group employs to get your story out:

Press release – a press release is an integral part of PR and the primary, most widely-used vehicle to get your message to the media.  After being sent to the editorial staff, the release is then reviewed for newsworthiness and, if chosen for publication, is converted to a news story for publication.

A press release is “a public relations announcement issued to the news media and other targeted publications for the purpose of letting the public know of company developments.”

The beauty of press releases now-a-days is the wider reach they have due to the extensive use of the internet.  You can directly speak to your customers or target audience via the internet, email blasts or brochure inserts.  I always suggest clients put each release on their website in a newsroom so both the media and customers have access to the updates on your company.

Feature Story – feature stories are articles pitched and secured for your company on what makes you different, a recent business success, or how you are making your way despite challenges.  These features are written by the media, with consultation by your PR consultant, and often result in more in-depth coverage than a press release would provide.

Expert Source Opportunity – Have you ever read an article on the real estate market, restaurant trends, or the local economy and wondered how certain “experts” were chosen to be quoted?  These opportunities are most often handled by public relations professionals, who set up the interviews with the reporters handling the story.

Bylined Article – These article opportunities are pitched, secured and written by PR professionals to position their clients as an expert in a particular field/topic.   Bylines are focused on a specific topic and feature a headshot with the executive’s name in the “by” section of the article.  These are excellent for trend features, case studies or to discuss a particular topic more in-depth.

Once you investigate, it quickly becomes clear that there are many ways for a public relations partner to provide value-added service to your company.  The good news is what is featured in this post is just the beginning, and can be part of a fully-integrated plan to give your organization a competitive edge, no matter what field you compete in.

“The tools are all out there.  It is up to you to put them to use for your company and make them work for you.” – Jen Olewinski