Katrina Olson

Strategic Communications

Taking Risks and Creating Buzz

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By Katrina Olson

This article originally appeared 6/30/2015 as an Exclusive Feature on tedmag.com.

On Monday, June 22, Chevrolet posted a media alert on their social media platforms written entirely in emoji—you know, those emotionally expressive icons used in texting. It was designed to generate buzz for the launch of its compact 2016 Chevrolet Cruze.

The media alert was part of a larger digital/social media campaign featuring Saturday Night Live alum and The Middle star Norm Macdonald in a series of YouTube videos.

The media and Chevrolet’s social media followers are encouraged to decode the message along with Macdonald who has been hired to read the announcement—except he can’t, because it’s written in emoji.

Macdonald enrolls in Emoji Academy where he is trained to read emoji by famous millennials Zendaya (singer/dancer and former star of Disney Channel’s Shake It Up), Jamie Chung (actress and former star of MTV’s The Real World), and Ashley Benson (star of ABC Family’s Pretty Little Liars).

On Tuesday, June 23, Macdonald translates the emoji announcement in the fourth video—but not before the unique announcement received lots of play on social media with mentions on usatoday.com, brandchannel.com and finance.yahoo.com. Big news outlets like CNN also covered the campaign.

So, besides emoji language, what can we learn from Chevrolet’s campaign?

When To Take Risks

Chevrolet is a well-established brand with a long history of successful advertising including the “Heartbeat of America,” “Like a Rock,” “Genuine Chevrolet,” and “Chevy Runs Deep” campaigns. These taglines had broad appeal and played on the strength of Chevy as an American brand…rugged, adventurous and tough.

The all-emoji media alert was certainly a departure for the more-than-century-old automaker. It has received lots of play on digital media—and probably more earned media than a traditional news release would have garnered.

Now add Twitter exposure. More than 500 tweets featured the official hashtag, #ChevyGoesEmoji, which generated 9.2 million impressions as of June 30 at 9 a.m. according to keyhole.co.

Chevy also integrated Internet celebrities like YouTuber Tyler Oakley and his 4.3 million Twitter followers. His tweet garnered 1,800 retweets and 8,000 favorites. Macdonald’s Emoji Academy “trainers” Zendaya and Benson also tweeted about their involvement.

Spoiler alert: If you haven’t seen it yet, the new TV commercial for the Cruze features Oakley and fellow YouTuber, actor and director Julian Smith (“juliansmith87”). You can view it below.


Know Your Audience

You may not know any of these starlets or Internet “celebrities.” And you may not text, use emojis or watch YouTube videos. But those 20-something, compact-car driving, Tumblr-browsing, Buzzfeed-reading millennials certainly do. And they’re the target market for the Chevrolet Cruze emoji campaign.

The Cruze, a huge global seller for Chevy, was built for millennials, with integrated technology including 4G LTE WiFi, Apple Car Play and Android Auto—which makes this campaign so appropriate. It literally speaks to millennials in their own, universal language.

The Cruze has some tough competition like the Toyota Corolla, Honda Civic, Ford Focus and Volkswagon Jetta. And according to industry insiders, it’s tough to get media attention for new model launches within the auto industry, and especially in mass media. With the #ChevyGoesEmoji campaign, they’ve managed to do both.

Is your brand strong enough to take risks? You may not be able to get away with a news release written entirely in emoji; but what can you do to create buzz for your next product launch?

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Olson is a veteran marketing and public relations consultant. She has written for tED magazine’s print edition since 2005, judged tED magazine’s Best of the Best Competition since 2006, and emceed the Best of the Best Awards ceremony for a total of seven years. Reach her at katrina@katrinaolson.com.

How to Craft Compelling Marketing Messages

By

Slide1

By Katrina Olson

This article originally appeared May 5, 2016 as an Exclusive Feature on tedmag.com, the digital version of tED Magazine, the trade publication for the electrical distribution industry.

Last week, three other judges and I looked at roughly 300 entries for tED Magazine’s Best of the Best Marketing Competition. Many of them had several components including print ads, social media posts, logos, signs and branded trucks, and websites. We carefully reviewed the entries’ goals, strategies and outcomes to gauge success.

And once again, we were reminded of the expertise and energy marketers put into researching, planning and implementing these comprehensive efforts. But we also noticed that many efforts fell down when it came to the basics of creating and communicating a message.

In the busy-ness of our everyday jobs, it’s easy to just keep doing what we’ve always done. But Best of the Best is about recognizing those who went beyond what they’ve always done. It recognizes those who try a new approach, takes risks and ultimately, rise above the competition.

For example, one entry made us laugh out loud. Another gave us goose bumps. Did they win? Yes—because we assumed they had a similar effect on the intended audience. Of course, we considered their strategy and results. But all other things being equal or at least comparable, the execution elevated their entries to “winner.”

Yes, it’s too late to change last year’s marketing for this year’s competition. But as you’re working on your 2016 marketing efforts, pay special attention to the following.

Write compelling headlines.
A product name is not a headline—neither is a company name, market sector or product category. Headlines are statements that capture attention by communicating a benefit, intriguing the reader, or otherwise drawing them in with a promise of benefits in the copy.

The headline is the first thing your target audience will read—you know, the stuff about how long you’ve been in business, how rso make it count.

Write customer-focused copy.
The number of times “you” and “your” is used should greatly outnumber the times you use “we,” “us” and “our.” Ditch the “brag and boast”—you know, the stuff about how long you’ve been in business, how reliable and trusted you are, or how you really care about the customer. Very few people care. Customers want to know, “What’s in it for me?” Tell them.

Also, carefully proofread your materials for typos, spelling and grammatical errors and punctuation.

Write about benefits, not features.
A feature is a characteristic or quality of the product; the benefit is what that feature does for the customer. Does it save them time or money? Does it make their job easier? Does it reduce labor or eliminate down time?

Many entries talked about features, not benefits. And it hurt their scores, often knocking them out of the running for an award.

Create truly “integrated” campaigns.
When you’re developing an integrated marketing campaign, think about more than the various media. Tie all of the elements together with a common look, feel, color scheme, imagery and wording.

Also, quantity does not make a campaign. In other words, submitting a year’s worth of ads or social media posts does not constitute a campaign.

Advice for those who supervise creative people.
Give the creative team the research and direction; then let the copywriters write and the graphic designers design. Trust them and don’t micromanage the creative process. Also, trying to write or design by committee almost always yields a mediocre result.

We’ve come a long way…but let’s keep moving.
I remember when strategy statements read like ad copy and simply explained the product. Now we’re seeing research, goals, objectives, target audiences and meaningful metrics. And this year, several companies stepped up their game with fully integrated executions with consistent themes and creative concepts. And categories like social/digital media, video and branding have grown significantly.

Let’s keep moving forward!

————————————————————————————————

Olson is a marketing and public relations consultant, and principal of Katrina Olson Strategic Communications. She has written for tED magazine’s print edition since 2005, judged tED magazine’s Best of the Best Competition since 2006, and emceed the Best of the Best Awards ceremony for a total of seven years. She can be reached at Katrina@katrinaolson.com or via her website at katrinaolson.com.

Proofreading Tips, Tricks and Lists

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By Katrina Olson

We’ve all had that sinking feeling. You’re looking at your printed brochure or poster, and there it is, staring at you—a big, ugly, glaring typo.

You can’t believe you didn’t see it earlier. You’ve looked at it probably 20 times. But somehow you missed it.

In this age of texting and Facebook messaging, typos don’t seem like that big of a deal. But good grammar, writing, spelling, punctuation and word choice still matter to a lot of people—like your bosses, your customers, and your prospects.

Mistakes make you look uneducated, unprofessional, careless, lazy—or all of the above. To avoid being embarrassed and losing credibility, you need to know the three types of proofreading.

There are three types of proofreading? What?!

Yes, there are at least three—and that’s after you’ve edited for content, clarity, flow, style and transitions.

Proofreading is about correctness and accuracy. To be thorough, you should make at least three passes—one for each type of proofreading listed below.

  1. Content Proofreading

Check for grammar, spelling, punctuation, style and capitalization—all those errors we typically look for when proofreading. If you’re at all unsure about a word or phrase, look it up. You may have been spelling a word wrong your entire life because you never bothered to check.

  1. Format Proofreading

Review the document to make sure that all headers, subheads and copy are in the proper style, point size, font, etc. Check for consistent indentation and line spacing. Also, make sure any bullets and numbers are consistently spaced and indented. Check the table of contents against the actual page numbers.

  1. Comparison Proofreading

Comparison proofreading may involve comparing the document with a marked-up version that someone previously edited or proofread—or comparing the document against another document to make sure they’re identical.

Following are a few tips and checklists to help keep your writing error-free!

Tips for Effective Proofreading

  • Find a nice, quiet, clutter-free place to proofread.
  • Keep your style guide and dictionary (or computer) handy.
  • Have someone else proofread your work, and proofread theirs in return.
  • Proofread a hard copy; it’s easier to spot errors.
  • Use standard proofreader’s marks so there’s no misunderstanding.
  • When proofreading for spelling, read the document backwards.
  • Read the document aloud, reading contractions as two words to catch potential errors.
  • Allow plenty of time; don’t wait until the last minute to write, edit or proofread.
  • Know what errors you commonly make and search for them specifically.
  • Don’t rely on spelling check and grammar check in Word. It won’t catch homophones and words that are used incorrectly, but spelled correctly. (Homophones are words that sound the same but are spelled differently.)

Proofreader’s Checklist

  • Check the headers and footers.
  • Check the bullets to make sure they align properly.
  • Check for boldface and italics.
  • Check the font style and sizes.
  • Check all headlines.
  • Check photo captions.
  • Check all attributions.
  • Check for proper indentation throughout.
  • Check for consistent line spacing.
  • Spell out numbers in heads and at the beginning of sentences.
  • Make sure teasers and page numbers are accurate.
  • Make sure numbering in lists is accurate.

Common Errors

  • it’s, its
  • your, you’re and you
  • there, they’re and their
  • to, too and two
  • on, or, of, off
  • in, is, if, it
  • lose and loose
  • then, than, that
  • and, an
  • along, alone

Recently I worked on a quick-turnaround brochure for a client. She and I had read, edited and proofread the copy more than a few times. Right before it was to go to the printer, I suggested we have someone else proofread it. Of course, our proofreader found a typo.

The moral of this story (and this article) is: “Proofread at least three times. Then have someone who has never seen the document proofread it once more.”

You may never produce a completely error-free document or marketing piece, but it’s a worthy goal.

———————————————————————————————–

Katrina Olson is an award-winning advertising copywriter and creative director, marketing and public relations consultant, freelance writer, content developer, trainer/coach, former college professor, and principal of Katrina Olson Strategic Communications. She can be reached at katrina@katrinaolson.com or via her website at katrinaolson.com.

Why are brochures (and websites) so hard to write?

By

Slide1

By Katrina Olson

This article originally appeared on tedmag.com on April 22, 2016.

At last year’s NAED AdVenture marketing conference, a whopping 60 percent of attendees were female, and approximately 43 percent were under age 36.

Contrast that with the demographics of electrical contractors.

The average age of the electrical contractor is 56.2, according to Electrical Contractor magazine’s 2014 Profile of the Electrical Contractor. And you probably won’t be surprised to learn that women hold only one percent of all electrician jobs, according to 2009 Census data.

“How do I market to people who are very different from me?”

A good marketer gets to know their customers, inside and out—who they are, what keeps them up at night, and how they make decisions. By understanding customers’ concerns, buying habits, attitudes, preferences and behaviors, you’ll get a feel for what kinds of media and messages they’ll respond to. Along the way, you’ll also learn about trends in their businesses and industry.

“How do I learn more about my customers?”

Following are seven ways you can find out what makes your customers tick. Some are pretty easy; others are more involved. But all should yield valuable insights..

1. Read your customers’ trade publications.

Most industries have trade association and publications. Health Facilities Management, Facilities Manger, Facility Management Decisions, Electrical Contractor, and Buildings and Electrical Contractor are just a few.

2. Join online groups.

Is there a LinkedIn group or social media platform where your customers and prospects hang out? Observe without participating or commenting to learn what’s important to them.

3. Ask your salespeople.

If you can’t talk directly to customers, talk to those who do. Counter staff, inside sales, outside sales, and customer service representatives can give you insight into what your customers care about.

4. Attend company events.

Get out from behind your desk or computer and attend counter days, workshops, training sessions, and other opportunities to get to know your customers. Try to uncover your customers’ hot buttons and pain points.

5. Contact customers directly.

Call or email some of your key customers and ask specific questions—like how they want to learn about new products and services. Or take them out to lunch. Explain that you want to better understand their business so you can better serve them.

6. Conduct a short survey.

Curious about what media your customers are consuming? Want to know what social media platforms they’re using? Wondering how much they use their smartphones? Ask them!

7. Host a focus group or customer advisory council.

To get honest feedback about what your customers think, conduct a focus group or establish a customer advisory council that meets every year. Rotate members out every few years to get fresh perspectives. (To make sure you get candid comments, hire an outside facilitator and leave the room.)

How can I apply this knowledge to be a better marketer?

Here’s an example. The electrical contractor’s role is evolving as they become more heavily involved in design and specification. Also, building systems are becoming more integrated and interdependent, using data hubs that communicate with each other. All systems are tied together; so all the products must be compatible with each other.

As a result, electrical contractors may look to you for comprehensive solutions, not just individual products. Electrical contractors will also rely more heavily on the electrical distributor’s expertise to help them choose the right products for both new and existing systems.

This knowledge should change the way you position and brand your company, and the way your salespeople are trained, too. Instead of just selling and marketing products, you’re marketing your staff’s expertise and product knowledge.

The trick is putting yourself in your customer’s and prospect’s shoes. That means not just understanding their wants and needs—but speaking their language. That takes a little more practice. But the more research you do, the easier it gets.

——————————

Olson is a marketing and public relations consultant, and principal of Katrina Olson Strategic Communications. She has written for tED magazine’s print edition since 2005, judged tED magazine’s Best of the Best Competition since 2006, and emceed the Best of the Best Awards ceremony for a total of seven years. She can be reached at Katrina@katrinaolson.com or via her website at katrinaolson.com

You’ve been asked to write a brochure—maybe it’s about your company or a specific product or service. Content from this piece will go on the website, on flyers, and in mailings, ads and other promotions.

Your company is going to print 10,0000 brochures. So it’s kind of a big deal.

You don’t have any previous promotional materials to work from, so you’re starting from scratch. But you have no idea where to start and there’s nothing to work from.

And therein lies the problem.

No one has given you any direction. Because no one has developed a strategy—thought through the goal, purpose, audience and key message for the piece. And because good copywriting is based on a strategy, you’ve been given a nearly impossible task.

It has nothing to do with your ability to write.

Where to start?

First, start with some background. I’ll use “it” to represent your company, product or service.

  • How is it positioned? What’s special or unique about it that the competition can’t claim?
  • Can you describe it in one or two sentences?
  • Who are its competitors?
  • What does it offer or promise that our competitors don’t?
  • How did the need for this marketing piece come about?
  • Who are we talking to with this copy?
  • Can you describe a few typical customers?

Second, start formulating a strategy for your piece.

  • What is our marketing goal or objective? How will this piece be used to achieve this goal?
  • What do we want to happen after people see/read this piece?
  • What should the reader think, feel or do after reading this piece?
  • What should be the tone of the piece? Professional, friendly, persuasive, instructional?

Third, get to the heart of the message.

  • What is the most important thing we want them to know?
  • What misperceptions or barriers must be overcome?
  • What claims can we make?
  • What research, evidence, proof (rational or emotional) support our claims?

Fourth, find answers to some of the practical questions.

  • What points or information must be included?
  • What specific mechanical requirements that must be met—number of pages, size restrictions, photos or images, logos?
  • How will this piece be used or distributed?

Where do you get answers?

If you can’t get answers from the person who assigned the project, you’ll have to find them on your own. Start with those closest to the product or service. For example, if it’s a software program, talk to the developer. This will help you understand why the product was developed, what problem it solves, and why it’s unique.

Next, talk to front-line people who deal with customers—customer service representatives, people who answer the phones. Find out what questions customers ask. Salespeople are especially adept and knowing what customers want and need to know. Now, incorporate that information into the content.

Other good sources of information are business plans, project proposals, presentations and any documents or memos written while the product was being developed or the business was being formed.

Start with a Q&A Format

Brochures, websites, flyers and other marketing should ultimately answer customers’ questions. If you’re unfamiliar with the product, you have an advantage—because you’ll have your own questions that may parallel customers’ questions.

However, if you’re writing about your own company, it’s a little more difficult. You have to put yourself in the shoes of someone who knows nothing about the company, product or service.

Once you have all your questions and answers, group the content into categories and put the categories in a logical order. Next, work on the transitions to make the content flow from one category to the next.

Need help?

Over the years, I’ve developed a template to help me walk a client through these questions. Advertising agencies call them creative briefs. I call mine a communication brief because it can be used for news releases, websites, or any piece of communication…not just advertisements.

If you’d like to request a copy of my Communication Brief (as a Microsoft Word document), just email me at Katrina@KatrinaOlson.com with “Communication Brief” in the message line, and I’ll shoot it right back to you. Eventually it will be available as a download from my new and improved website.

———————————————————————————————–

Katrina Olson is an award-winning advertising copywriter and creative director, marketing and public relations consultant, freelance writer, content developer, trainer/coach, former college professor, and principal of Katrina Olson Strategic Communications. She can be reached at katrina@katrinaolson.com or via her website at katrinaolson.com.

How to Develop a Simple Content Marketing Strategy

By

Slide1

By Katrina Olson

This article originally appeared on tedmag.com on April 22, 2016.

At last year’s NAED AdVenture marketing conference, a whopping 60 percent of attendees were female, and approximately 43 percent were under age 36.

Contrast that with the demographics of electrical contractors.

The average age of the electrical contractor is 56.2, according to Electrical Contractor magazine’s 2014 Profile of the Electrical Contractor. And you probably won’t be surprised to learn that women hold only one percent of all electrician jobs, according to 2009 Census data.

“How do I market to people who are very different from me?”

A good marketer gets to know their customers, inside and out—who they are, what keeps them up at night, and how they make decisions. By understanding customers’ concerns, buying habits, attitudes, preferences and behaviors, you’ll get a feel for what kinds of media and messages they’ll respond to. Along the way, you’ll also learn about trends in their businesses and industry.

“How do I learn more about my customers?”

Following are seven ways you can find out what makes your customers tick. Some are pretty easy; others are more involved. But all should yield valuable insights..

1. Read your customers’ trade publications.

Most industries have trade association and publications. Health Facilities Management, Facilities Manger, Facility Management Decisions, Electrical Contractor, and Buildings and Electrical Contractor are just a few.

2. Join online groups.

Is there a LinkedIn group or social media platform where your customers and prospects hang out? Observe without participating or commenting to learn what’s important to them.

3. Ask your salespeople.

If you can’t talk directly to customers, talk to those who do. Counter staff, inside sales, outside sales, and customer service representatives can give you insight into what your customers care about.

4. Attend company events.

Get out from behind your desk or computer and attend counter days, workshops, training sessions, and other opportunities to get to know your customers. Try to uncover your customers’ hot buttons and pain points.

5. Contact customers directly.

Call or email some of your key customers and ask specific questions—like how they want to learn about new products and services. Or take them out to lunch. Explain that you want to better understand their business so you can better serve them.

6. Conduct a short survey.

Curious about what media your customers are consuming? Want to know what social media platforms they’re using? Wondering how much they use their smartphones? Ask them!

7. Host a focus group or customer advisory council.

To get honest feedback about what your customers think, conduct a focus group or establish a customer advisory council that meets every year. Rotate members out every few years to get fresh perspectives. (To make sure you get candid comments, hire an outside facilitator and leave the room.)

How can I apply this knowledge to be a better marketer?

Here’s an example. The electrical contractor’s role is evolving as they become more heavily involved in design and specification. Also, building systems are becoming more integrated and interdependent, using data hubs that communicate with each other. All systems are tied together; so all the products must be compatible with each other.

As a result, electrical contractors may look to you for comprehensive solutions, not just individual products. Electrical contractors will also rely more heavily on the electrical distributor’s expertise to help them choose the right products for both new and existing systems.

This knowledge should change the way you position and brand your company, and the way your salespeople are trained, too. Instead of just selling and marketing products, you’re marketing your staff’s expertise and product knowledge.

The trick is putting yourself in your customer’s and prospect’s shoes. That means not just understanding their wants and needs—but speaking their language. That takes a little more practice. But the more research you do, the easier it gets.

——————————

Olson is a marketing and public relations consultant, and principal of Katrina Olson Strategic Communications. She has written for tED magazine’s print edition since 2005, judged tED magazine’s Best of the Best Competition since 2006, and emceed the Best of the Best Awards ceremony for a total of seven years. She can be reached at Katrina@katrinaolson.com or via her website at katrinaolson.com

We’ve been hearing for years that “content is king.” But in case you still need persuading, following are some statistics from the Content Marketing Institute’s “2016 Benchmarks, Budgets and Trends—North American” annual content marketing survey released in September 2015:

  • 88% of business-to-business marketers use content marketing (but only 32% have a documented content marketing strategy).
  • 76% of B2B marketers say they will generate more content in 2016.
  • 94% of B2B marketers use LinkedIn as part of their content strategy. Other popular platforms include Twitter (87%), Facebook (84%), YouTube (74%) and Google+ (62%).
  • The top two most outsourced content marketing activities are writing (44%) and design (41%). (LinkedIn Technology Marketing Community)

“So what, exactly is content marketing?”

A content marketing is “a strategic marketing approach focused on creating and distributing valuable, relevant, and consistent content to attract and retain a clearly defined audience—and ultimately, do drive profitable customer action.”

Anyone can do content marketing! In fact, 51% of the Content Marketing Institute’s study respondents had fewer than 100 employees. Content marketing includes:

  • social media content
  • case studies
  • blogs
  • eNewsletters
  • in-person events
  • articles on your website
  • videos
  • illustrations/photos
  • white papers
  • infographics
  • webinars/webcasts
  • online presentations
  • research reports
  • microsites/separate websites or hubs
  • branded content tools
  • ebooks
  • print magazines
  • books
  • digital magazines
  • mobile apps
  • virtual conferences
  • podcasts
  • print newsletters

“What platforms should I use?”

In answer to the question, “How effective are the social media platforms your organization uses?” the study revealed the following:

  1. LinkedIn was most effective at 66% (up 2% from the previous year)
  2. Twitter came it second at 55% (same as previous year)
  3. YouTube was rated third at 51% in terms of effectiveness
  4. SlideShare (41%)
  5. Facebook (30%; down slightly from the previous year)
  6. Instagram (22%)
  7. Pinterest (20%)
  8. Google+ (13%)

When asked, “Which content offers does your organization ask its audience to subscribe to?” respondents reported primarily eNewsletters (72%) and blogs (56%). So don’t rule out the power of permission-based or opt-in content.

“How much should I spend on content marketing?”

The average proportion of the total marketing budget spent on content marketing was 28%. There was a positive correlation between budget allocated and effectiveness with the most effective marketers allocating 42% on content marketing, up from 37% the previous year. Just over half of B2B marketers surveyed planned to increase their content marketing spending over the next year.

“Why should I bother? It sounds like a lot of work.”

When you deliver high quality, relevant and engaging content to the right audience, you’ll increase leads generated, sales, brand awareness, engagement and customer retention and loyalty. In turn, those loyal customers will also advocate for you and refer you business. The key is a documented strategy that you consistently execute and measure to make sure you’re achieving your content strategy goals.

“How do I get started with content marketing?”

The easiest way is to start simply.Step 1: Choose a platform where you know your audience is actively participating. I chose LinkedIn, Twitter and Facebook—the three places you can find these articles every week.

Step 2: Set a calendar but be flexible. I publish weekly because I enjoy writing them and I have (or make) the time.

Step 3: Search for topic ideas. Attend webinars. Read publications, blogs, white papers, and trade magazines to see what’s trending in your industry. Ask vendors, suppliers, distributors, customers, salespeople, and counter people what questions they frequently get asked or what people are talking about. If that’s not convenient, join LinkedIn groups or survey other social media platforms to see what people in your audience are talking about.

Step 4: Commit. Just do it! Set aside time in your schedule to get it done. You’ll be energized and excited to keep it up when that first lead or project comes in because of your efforts.

“I don’t have time and writing is not really my thing.”

No problem. Fortunately for you, content strategy and writing is my thing. I love learning about new industries and coming up with new content ideas. Just a couple of weeks ago I was writing about legislation affecting the transportation and logistics industry. I’d love to work with you.

————————————————————————————————————

Katrina Olson is a marketing and public relations consultant, freelance writer, training/coach, former college professor, and principal of Katrina Olson Strategic Communications. She can be reached at 217-721-1679,  katrina@katrinaolson.com or via her website at katrinaolson.com.

Your News Release Checklist

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By Katrina Olson

This article originally appeared 11/9/2015 as an Exclusive Feature on tedmag.com.

If you’ve been following along the past several weeks, you know there’s a lot to remember when planning, writing and distributing news releases. That’s why we’ve developed this handy checklist. Whether you need inspiration to begin, something to jog your memory, or a nudge to tie it all together, use the extensive list below to help you get started on, round out, or finish up your news release.

PLANNING
☐  Is the content important to your geographic area?
☐  Are you targeting a specific industry?
☐  Do you know whom you want to reach with this release?
☐  Have you researched the target audience?
☐  Have you properly packaged the news release as an announcement, feature, hybrid, launch or other type?
☐  Is your story newsworthy?
☐  Is the content interesting, relevant, timely or unique?
☐  Will it make an impact on your intended audience?
☐  Is there a good reason why your target public(s) should care about this information or will benefit from reading it?
☐  Does the news release help achieve a specific public relations goal or objective?
☐  Do you know what you want to happen as a result of the news release?

CONTENT
☐  Do you have a strong lead or hook?
☐  Have you covered the basics?

  • contact information for media (including phones, emails)
  • “News Release” and “For Immediate Release” at the top
  • headline and subhead if needed for clarification
  • release date
  • dateline
  • answers to the who, what, when, where, and why questions
  • quotes from key players in the story
  • contact/follow-up information for reader (including addresses, phones, emails)
  • boilerplate: brief bio about your company
  • note to the editor (if necessary)

☐  Have you double-checked your facts, statistics and claims?
☐  Are claims and statistics factual, unbiased and accurate?
☐  Have you used reputable sources and attributed them?
☐  Does the news release contain specifics and avoid generalities?
☐  Does it contain pertinent, insightful or attention-getting quotes and are they attributed?
☐  Is it concise, not wordy, and to the point without unnecessary or off-topic information?
☐  Is it too salesy or promotional?
☐  Do you need to provide any “Notes to the Editor”? If so, put them after the “###” or “30.”
☐  Have you told them what they need to know to achieve your PR goal?

STYLE
☐  Did you write the news release in third person?
☐  Did you use the inverted pyramid, putting the most important information first with the remaining info in descending order of importance?
☐  Is there a human-interest angle?
☐  Have you eliminated the fluff?
☐  Does the content flow logically?
☐  Is it “on message”?
☐  Did you edit and proofread for clarity, word choice, grammar, usage, spelling and punctuation using Associated Press (AP) Style?
☐  Did you double check dates, days of the week, capitalization, facts, name spellings and company names?

FORMAT
☐  Is it single-spaced (digital) or double-spaced (hard copies)?
☐  If it’s more than one page, have you typed, “—more—” at the bottom of the page and subsequent pages except the last page?
☐  Have you included a slug (a condensed version of the headline and page number) at the top of the second page and subsequent pages except the last page?
☐  Did you signal the end of the release with the triple hashtags (###) or —30— at the bottom of the last page?

DISTRIBUTION
☐  Have you considered where to send your news release to be seen by those you want to reach?
☐  Have you considered the best timing for this news release?
☐  Have you used SEO optimization if distributing your news release online?
☐  Have you considered whether the recipients prefer emails or hard copies?
☐  Have you considered using a free or fee-based distribution service?
☐  Do you have s measurement or tracking tool in place to monitor coverage and/or placements?

Print this checklist, copy and paste it into a Word document or take a screen shot and keep it on your desktop. Keep it handy when you’re writing press releases and you’ll never forget something important.

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Olson is a marketing and public relations consultant, and principal of Katrina Olson Strategic Communications. She has written for tED magazine’s print edition since 2005, judged tED magazine’s Best of the Best Competition since 2006, and emceed the Best of the Best Awards ceremony for a total of seven years. She can be reached at katrina@katrinaolson.com or via her website at katrinaolson.com.

Tools and Tips for Distributing News Releases

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By Katrina Olson

This article originally appeared 11/2/2015 as an Exclusive Feature on tedmag.com.

Founder of modern public relations Ivy Lee reportedly sent the first news release to the New York Times in response to the 1906 Pennsylvania Railroad train wreck that claimed 50 lives. Although originally intended just for the media, today’s PR practitioners send them to whomever they want in a variety of formats including:

  • E-mail as a message or an attachment
  • Hard copy/mail
  • Website (especially for multimedia news releases)
  • CDs, DVDs or flash drives (especially for multimedia news releases)
  • Satellite
  • 3-D boxes, tubes, packages, Champagne bottles

Of course, how you distribute your news release may be dictated by your budget. But most importantly, you should send it to those who most need the information. Possible recipients include:

  • Local/regional media
  • National media
  • Specialized media (electrical, automotive, industrial, healthcare, agricultural)
  • Internal audiences like customers, vendors, members or shareholders

Not every news release should (necessarily) go to the same list. For example, if you’re announcing something specific to the industrial market, include industrial media and trade publications. However, if you’re releasing information relevant to the retail market, like a lighting showroom grand opening, consider more consumer-focused media.

Paid Distribution Services

Fee-based news release services including BusinessWire.com, PRNewswire.com, Marketwire.com and Cision.com. They will send your news release to major U.S. dailies plus AP, Dow-Jones, Bloomberg, Reuters and others—or to markets you specify.

These services maintain exhaustive and current databases of news media and key influencers. You can distribute your news release by geographic area, area of interest or industry. Of course, they can’t guarantee your news release will be published or even reviewed by a journalist; that’s on you to write a quality news release with a relevant and compelling headline.

Paid services also provide for automatic placement of stories in online blogs, newsletters and special interest outlets depending on the industry, topic and location. Some even offer metadata editing, social media posting, grammar checking and analytics. Fee-based services also offer greater credibility than a free service or an individual company.

Using a paid service to distribute your news release with all the bells and whistles can cost up to $1,000—or as little as $129 with options like PRNewswire’s iReach. PRWeb also offers a robust service option for around $200. Both offer activity and SEO reporting.

Free Distribution Services

You might consider using a free news release service instead of, or in addition to, a fee-based service. While they don’t have the cache of a fee-based service, free services can build on keywords, links, tags and metatags, which all help build traffic to your website and enhance your website’s rank.

Using a free service can also enhance your company’s reputation by moving up the news release’s positive information in search results for your company while pushing down any negative comments and posts. Some free distribution services you may want to consider are:

Note: These services are listed in alphabetical order. I am not endorsing or recommending any of them, but simply providing a starting point for you to research your options and make your own decision.

DIY News Releases

When distributing a news release yourself, follow these guidelines to increase your chance of garnering coverage.

  • Always send the news release to a specific person, by name.
  • Send only one copy to each media outlet (e.g. TV station, newspaper, magazine).
  • Find out whether your contact prefers email or hard copy news releases.
  • Send the news release 10 days before an event for print and broadcast media, and three to six months prior to an event for magazines, depending on their publication deadlines and editorial schedules.
  • Call to follow up only if you know the media contact, otherwise it might be seen as badgering.
  • Release the news on your website immediately before or at the same time it’s released in the media.
  • Archive old news releases on your website.

If you’re casting a broader, national net with your news release, consider using a fee-based or free news release distribution service.

Measuring Effectiveness

No matter how you distribute your news release, you’ll want to track placements, reach and effectiveness. Most paid services and some free ones offer tracking of news releases published by media outlets, monitor conversations about the subject matter or company, and/or measure reach and reader sentiment. This feedback can help you determine which media are most likely to run your stories in the future and direct your media planning.

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Olson is a marketing and public relations consultant, and principal of Katrina Olson Strategic Communications. She has written for tED magazine’s print edition since 2005, judged tED magazine’s Best of the Best Competition since 2006, and emceed the Best of the Best Awards ceremony for a total of seven years. She can be reached at katrina@katrinaolson.com or via her website at katrinaolson.com.

How to Write a News Release

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By Katrina Olson

This article originally appeared 10/19/2015 as an Exclusive Feature on tedmag.com.

Last week we talked about different types of news releases and (generally) how they’re written. For those of you who’ve never written one or may need a refresher, this week’s Marketing Momentum is for you.

Answer Journalists’ Questions

Although the news release has taken many different forms, sometimes including digital bells and whistles, its primary function remains the same: to answer journalists’ (and ultimately readers’) questions.  That’s why, in its simplest form, a news release looks like this:

News releases are written using the inverted pyramid. The most important information is first and the rest presented in declining order of importance. What’s important? The facts—everything the reader needs for them to know what you want them to know, or take the action you want them to take.

Follow The Outline

More specifically, the copy in a standard news release follows this outline:

  • Headline
    The headline should read like a news story headline and indicate what is new, relevant or interesting about the story to follow.
  • The Lead
    The lead (or lede) is the first paragraph that includes the “who,” “what,” “when,” “where,” and “why”—the essential information.
  • The Second Paragraph
    The second paragraph provides the rest of the necessary information. Explain the “how” or provide context or history readers need to fully understanding the story.
  • The Remaining Paragraphs
    Use these paragraphs to accomplish your goals. Include quotes from key people inside and outside of the organization. Supply background on a person, product or service, or explain complicated concepts or technology. Offer a final word or drive home a point.
  • The Boilerplate
    This final paragraph is a sort of corporate biography that offers basic company information, such as the year and city in which the company was founded, its mission, annual sales, key product lines and notable achievements.

Tips for Writing News Release
You can increase your likelihood of getting coverage by writing your release like a news story—as objectively as possible with no errors or inaccuracies, and in the proper style and format. If it’s well written, editors or journalists may even run your story with no changes. To increase your chance of success, follow these guidelines.

  • Use plain language and straightforward, declarative sentences.
  • Write in a simple and direct style.
  • Keep your release to no more than two pages.
  • Use tight, pertinent, insightful and attention-getting quotes to illustrate or elaborate on facts.
  • Have those people who are quoted approve their statements.
  • Avoid using superlatives (e.g. best, extremely, leading, top-of-the-line, etc.).
  • NEVER say, “We’re proud/excited/thrilled to announce” something.
  • If you must use superlatives, use them only inside quotes from people.
  • Do not overstate your product’s, company’s or staff’s abilities.
  • Double check your facts, statistics and claims and attribute them to reputable sources.
  • Use specifics; avoid generalities.
  • Be concise and to the point. Don’t include unnecessary or off-topic information.
  • Do not write in a salesy or promotional tone.
  • Provide “Notes to the Editor” to clarify or provide necessary information that doesn’t belong in the news release.
  • Be sure to tell the reader what they need to know to help you achieve your PR goal.
  • Write in third person.
  • Include a human-interest angle, if possible.
  • Eliminate fluff and filler.
  • Make sure content flows logically.
  • Make sure content is “on message.”
  • Edit and proofread for clarity, word choice, grammar, usage, spelling and punctuation.
  • Double check dates, days of the week, capitalization, and personal and company name spellings.
  • Use AP style.
  • Make sure you fully understand what you’re writing about so it makes sense to the reader.
  • Believe in what you’re writing because if you don’t, it will show.
  • Only write about what’s truly newsworthy; if it’s not, don’t write a news release.
  • Don’t try to disguise an ad as a news release; journalists will know and you’ll lose credibility.

News releases also follow a specific (standard) visual format. Next week, we’ll look at proper formatting of a news release.

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Olson is a marketing and public relations consultant, and principal of Katrina Olson Strategic Communications. She has written for tED magazine’s print edition since 2005, judged tED magazine’s Best of the Best Competition since 2006, and emceed the Best of the Best Awards ceremony for a total of seven years. She can be reached at katrina@katrinaolson.com or via her website at katrinaolson.com.

All News Releases Are Not Created Equal

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By Katrina Olson

This article originally appeared 10/12/2015 as an Exclusive Feature on tedmag.com.

You’ve probably written, or at least seen, a traditional news release. It starts with “who,” “what,” “when,” “where,” “why” and sometimes “how” (the five Ws and the H), includes a few quotes and some background information, then wraps up with a call to action. Done.

Not so fast. Depending on the purpose, you may want to consider writing a particular type or style of news release.

Public relations resources such as PR Newswire, PRWeb and Cision commonly recognize seven types of news releases (announcement, launch, product, human resources, expert positioning, event, company report), while the remaining types (feature, hybrid and social media) are more about a style of writing.

Announcement
Answering the five Ws and the H and supplying only the most necessary information, the announcement news release is written to recognize an occurrence within a company or organization that may be of interest to the media. The goal is to pique the media’s interest in hopes of getting more coverage. Topics may include a contest, a company’s investment in the community or an attempt to create awareness about an issue.

 

Feature
A feature is often longer than a general news release and features “soft news”—that which is less important, less immediate and often has a human-interest angle. After opening with an intriguing lead to draw in the reader, it tells a story in an objective and unbiased manner. This type of release often ends dramatically, providing closure to the story. A few examples are how-to stories, personal profiles or seasonally themed stories.

 

Hybrid
Starting with a short attention-grabbing lead, the hybrid starts like a feature by telling a story. It then becomes more like an announcement, continuing with the five Ws and the H. As the name indicates, it’s a hybrid of the announcement and the feature. The hybrid is good for hard news with a human-interest angle.

 

Human Resources
Companies send a human resources release to publicize staff changes, especially in upper management. The primary difference between a human resources (HR) and announcement news release is that the HR release contains more biographical information to support or justify the staff change and introduce the new staff member.

 

Launch
A launch press release often reads like an announcement but with a greater sense of urgency or timeliness. They’re written to provide information and generate buzz among corporate buyers and consumers about the launch of a product, company, website, organization or initiative.

 

Product
This type of release introduces a new product highlighting its merits and advantages over the competition in an objective and unbiased tone. It may include photos, specifications and even a sample. Product releases can overlap with launch releases when a new product is launched; but they’re also used when a product wins an award, reaches a sales milestone, or is recalled or upgraded.

 

Company Report
The company report may be short and simple or long and detailed, depending on the goals of the company and the subject matter. This type of release is usually focused on building the corporate image to attract investors or those wishing to acquire the company. It’s often focused on the company’s current status or future plans and may correspond with their annual report, highlighting financial success or sales growth.

 

Expert Positioning
The expert positioning news release is less urgent and may focus on a research study or report issued by the company or by a third-party organization, offering statistics and results with supporting quotes or information from the company or individuals. Not surprisingly, this type of release demonstrates the company’s or individual’s expertise in a specific subject and positions the company as a future resource for the media.

 

Event
An event news release announces the five Ws and the H, sometimes as a list or in outline form. They’re issued in hopes of convincing the media to announce event details to the public. This release may also include quotes, photos and background information on the organization.

Social Media
In 2006, Shift Communications released the first social media news release template that incorporated multimedia features and links to related information. The format has evolved but the goal is the same—to make information easy to scan, provide elements (text, multimedia, etc.) that are easy to share, and offer links to related and relevant information. Today, most news release distribution services provide templates or formats designed specifically for online media as well as offering tracking systems and other enhancements.

Some argue that the social media release (also called a digital or interactive news release) is unnecessary because the information can simply be shared via social media. Others claim the format provides a wealth of information and access to more in a format that corresponds with the needs of today’s web savvy audience.

If you’d like to learn more about any of these news release formats, conduct a quick Internet search for tons of examples, templates, guidelines and tips.

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Olson is a marketing and public relations consultant, and principal of Katrina Olson Strategic Communications. She has written for tED magazine’s print edition since 2005, judged tED magazine’s Best of the Best Competition since 2006, and emceed the Best of the Best Awards ceremony for a total of seven years. She can be reached at katrina@katrinaolson.com or via her website at katrinaolson.com.

6 Questions You Should Ask Before Writing A News Release

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By Katrina Olson

This article originally appeared 10/5/2015 as an Exclusive Feature on tedmag.com.

As a marketer or public relations practitioner, you have more tools than ever to communicate with your target audiences including snail mail, email, newsletters, blogs, websites, Facebook, Twitter and Instagram, to name a few.

News releases give readers useful and relevant information while helping you achieve your PR and marketing goals. But before you fire up that template and start typing, you should answer these six questions.

1. Why am I doing this?

Every news release should have a strategic purpose or goal. (Getting exposure is not a strategic goal—it’s merely the function of a news release.) How will it help you achieve your PR, marketing or communication goals? Why do you want that exposure? Will it reinforce your company’s position in the marketplace? Does it communicate or reinforce one of your key messages? What do you want to happen as a result?

2. Whom do I need to reach?

Determine your most important audiences. Who, strategically, is important to your company? Is it the financial community, the local community, your shareholders or your customers? For example, if you’ve hired a new salesperson or you’re offering a revolutionary new product, your audience is probably your customers—in which case, an email or newsletter article may be more appropriate. If you’re releasing sales or profit figures, your target audience is shareholders, or possibly the financial community.

3. What do they need to know?

News releases should answer questions and supply only the necessary information. What can you tell existing and potential customers to motivate them to help you achieve your sales goal? Can you provide proof, research or testimonials that show how the product will save them time, money or effort? What would you like them to do—visit your website, come to your location, or request a sample?

4. Where do I post my message to be noticed by those I want to reach?

Consider what media your audience is consuming. Most of the time, your subject matter is not so unique or universally appealing that it warrants mass media attention. Would your message be more effective if it were published in a trade publication or targeted regional medium? If the subject does warrant mass media coverage, will you release it to major metropolitan newspapers, women’s magazines, talk shows or national news programs?

 

5. When do I make my move?

Proper timing is essential. If you’re responding to an accusation, you may want to downplay your response by releasing it in time for the noon news when viewership is lower; or quietly and immediately post a response on your website. If you know a story will be published in a magazine, you may want to time your news release to coincide with the publication date.

 

6. How do I package the story?

There are several different types of releases (which we’ll cover next week). Is there a human-interest angle that would lend itself to a feature news release? Or is the subject matter more appropriate for a straightforward, just-the-facts, traditional news release?

Maybe a news release isn’t the best way to share the information. Could it be written as a feature story? Is the subject so controversial or forward thinking that it would make a good op-ed piece? Is the product so technologically advanced that it requires a video news release or another medium to illustrate how it works?

After working through these questions, you may decide not to issue a news release at all. And that’s fine; because when you submit sales pitches, fluff and non-newsworthy stories, it could damage your credibility with journalists and editors.

You may want to release the information in a different format, like a feature story in your newsletter or a Facebook post. In the end, the goal is to use the tool that will best reach your intended audience.

Next week: All news releases are not created equal.

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Olson is a marketing and public relations consultant, and principal of Katrina Olson Strategic Communications. She has written for tED magazine’s print edition since 2005, judged tED magazine’s Best of the Best Competition since 2006, and emceed the Best of the Best Awards ceremony for a total of seven years. She can be reached at katrina@katrinaolson.com or via her website at katrinaolson.com.