Archive for the ‘PR and publicity’ Category

Using images to drive word of mouth publicity

Monday, December 21st, 2009

Have seen a couple of really clever advertising images over the last couple of weeks that will undoubtably drive word of mouth publicity.

The first was in the toilets at Xscape in Milton Keynes (and yes I was the only person in there when I took this photo!). The poster is positioned just above the urinal.

Has he got you into trouble?

A pretty risque advert and not one that you’d expect from a firm of solicitors. And that’s why people would talk about it.

Meantime, in London, it looks like a new bank is launching.

Sign at a new bank

And with all the financial woes we have had over the last year, this is a good way to get people talking. We all want a good relationship with our bank, right?

This is a sign at what will presumably become a branch of the new bank. They’re setting expectations pretty high with this… will be interesting to see what actually happens.

Google Living Story could change online news

Wednesday, December 9th, 2009

Google has been making a series of changes recently to the way it presents news online.

Partly this is to try and keep the newspaper publishers happy. For example it has a new scheme that will allow papers such as The Times to let their content be indexed and appear in Google News, but require readers to pay for reading some of that content.

The latest experiment from Google is the Living Story idea.

It’s explained in full here.

The concept is brilliant. You will have a single page for each story that is constantly updating itself as a story changes and new content is added by publishers across the world.

A stunning idea. If it works and spreads to the UK it could make it easier for you to track what the media is saying about your business.

Journalist quote of the day

Friday, August 14th, 2009

I love this.

Found it on a media contacts database from the editor of a magazine:

“Chasing me about using press releases is the best way to ensure they go straight in the bin!”

You have been warned!

There are, of course, ways to make a follow-up phone call about a press release without the journalist feeling like they are being chased. The best way to go about it is revealed in the PR Success Programme.

That must be a pain to mow

Thursday, June 25th, 2009

If you want your business to be noticed you have to do something to stand out.

In London today I did a double take… when I thought I saw a Smart car covered in grass.

It was a bit too speedy past St Pancras for me to see the name of the business, but a quick Google search found this photo and the company behind it.

Here’s the YouTube video of the Grass Bugs:

Stunning! There are lots of business that would talk about doing something like this, but very few would have the balls to actually do it. Easigrass deserves to do well.

BBC curry broadcast proves it really is all about the story

Tuesday, June 2nd, 2009

Virtually every time I meet a business owner for the first time I have to dispel the myth that PR is all about contacts.

It’s almost always about the story.

Good contacts can open doors and set up opportunities. But a great story gives you the biggest shot you’ll get at major PR coverage.

I caught the end of our regional BBC TV news tonight, where they did a live outside broadcast from an Indian restaurant that had introduced a curry so hot, no-one could eat a whole plate of it. And they had to fill in a disclaimer form before they did.

A classic publicity stunt. Getting plenty of valuable air time on a BBC TV show.

Fantastic.

OK, so it must be a slow news day. But you don’t get coverage like that “because you know a journalist”. You get coverage like that because you had a great story at the right time (exactly the timem the BBC had a slot to fill).

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