What is a press/news release? A press release is a written communication to the news media to announce something that is claimed to be news-worthy. The main idea is to attract favourable media reports that would bring positive publicity for products and services mentioned in the press release. News releases were originally designed as a communication tool between company PR staff or public relations firms and the media. Today, there are free and paid distribution services on the Internet that help disseminate your news release online. The bigger players can even get your release syndicated on...

Business owners and professionals can feel a stab of fear when the media comes calling. “Will they make me look like an idiot?” “Will they misquote me?” “What if I say something really stupid?” These are common thoughts before answering a media request. As a PR person who trains clients on how to gracefully and powerfully interact with the media, here are some tips on how to make the most of the opportunity media attention provides. 1. Take a deep breath. Recognize that fearful thoughts are completely normal when stepping into uncharted territory. The media...

Public relations, or getting publicity through mainstream media, has been around for hundreds of years and has been proven effective in bringing in consumer traffic to small businesses. But, is such an ancient marketing method still effective for today’s high-tech small businesses? While it’s true that typical public relations have existed long before the computer and the internet were invented, the fact is, it is still extremely effective for almost all online businesses. In fact, PR techniques have evolved along with the development of technology, and they now produce better returns...

Many people, in a rush to spike sales through the roof, think too big and end up completely missing out on one of the best free marketing opportunities on the net: discussion forums. Instead of focusing on individual sales, they go immediately for ads that promise thousands of visitors, pay-per-click search engines that could potentially expose them to thousands, and even sloppily-produced and sometimes fraudulent spam submission programs. Even though it is essential to increase your rating with search engines, to purchase pay-per-clicks, and to participate in link exchanges and banner exchanges,...