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by Mark
Coker
Dovetail Public
Relations
(Publicity Checklist - Continued)
Letters to the Editor
Letters to the editor are an
excellent option to gain
additional publicity, because the
section is one of the best read in
every publication. These
letters give you an opportunity to
clarify errors and omissions of
past articles. They also
give you a chance to repeat and
reinforce key marketing messages
about your products or company.
You can even comment on articles
that omitted reference to your
company. A well-written
letter will reinforce the image of
your company and your executives
as leaders and experts in your
field.
Lists
Increase awareness by getting your
company included in the lists of
the top companies in your field. American
City Business Journals
publishes the Book of Lists for
dozens of categories in dozens of
cities around the United States.
If you're a software vendor, check
out Software
Magazine's annual Software 500
list of the top 500 largest
software publishers, or the SoftLetter
100 list. If your
company is fast growing and
privately held, try to get
considered for Inc
Magazine's Inc 500 list.
And once your company earns a
place on a list, consider issuing
a media release. The media
likely won't cover the release,
but your customers will be
impressed to see your
accomplishment when they view the
news on your web site.
Press Releases - 16 Ideas
There are many reasons to issue a
press release. Whether the
news is covered or not depends on
the strength of your story and
your PR team's ability to promote
it to the media.
Press releases have become more
than just a tool for communicating
with press and analysts.
They're also an important tool for
communicating with your customers
and prospective customers.
Before you issue a press release,
ask yourself who your intended
audience is and what desires,
perceptions or actions you want to
incite with that audience. Once
you've determined the audience and
your press release objectives, you
can determine how to promote the
release. For example, you'll
promote some press releases with
nationwide press tours or phone
pitches and some you'll just
promote on your web site.
Work closely with your PR team and
PR agency to decide which stories
will be promoted to the media and
which will be promoted only on
your web site.
Potential press release subjects
and perception-making benefits
include:
- Acquisitions:
Your company is a leader
because it's a consolidator in
your industry
- Alliances:
Your company is judged by the
company it keeps; can attract
additional partners
- Awards:
Your company's products stand
head and shoulders above the
rest
- Benchmark
performance results: Your
products perform
better/faster/cheaper than
competitors'
- Channel
programs: Your company
knows how to work with the
channel; you make a good
channel partner
- Customer
deployments/wins: By
promoting your customers, it
creates the perception for
potential customers that you
are a low-risk vendor
- Government
programs: Says you
understand the unique
requirements of the government
IT market, makes you appear to
be a better vendor partner for
government customers
- International
initiatives: Your company
is expanding internationally,
you're growing, you provide
worldwide support and
product/service availability
to your customers
- Earnings
releases: Important
financial disclosure medium
for public companies, though
private companies can issue
them too to communicate strong
performance, financial
strength and growing momentum
in market place
- Milestones:
Celebrate your company's
accomplishments, such as the
number of customer wins, the
1,000th customer, the number
of patents
- New
personnel: Demonstrates
your company is expanding the
depth and breadth of your
management team to better
serve your customers and
better address market
opportunities
- New
products: Tells the world
you have a solution to their
pain
- Patent
awards and filings:
Demonstrates that you have
unique, defensible technology
that sets you apart from
competitors
- Press
conferences: Just by
announcing a press conference,
you help establish the
perception that your news is
important. Make sure it is!
- Strategy/roadmap
unveiling: Demonstrates
vision, sets stage for
delivering on your promises
and demonstrating your ability
to execute
- Technology
licensing/OEM deals: Says
that your technology is so
good that others are licensing
it
Next page > Press
Tours and Trade Shows >
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