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May 22, 2013

We’re eating lunch at our desks…sometimes

A recent survey conducted by PR Daily shows that 69 percent of PR professioals eat lunch at their desks. That statistic holds true across experience level and salary.

The survey doesn’t ask respondents why they chose to eat at their desks, but if it did, the answers would include too much to do and deadlines as reasons. And that’s really a shame, given the fact that there is a plethora of data showing that a mid-day break makes employees healthier and happier.

We work hard at VOXUS, but team members also frequently take lunch breaks to enjoy a walk, go to the gym, watch a video or hang out with coworkers. It helps keep us balanced and more focused. And that’s a good thing.

May 20, 2013

Industry analysts key to converting prospects to customers

Think of the last time you made a decision to purchase a significant item such as a home, new car, furniture or appliance. It’s likely you spent a lot of time doing research to determine the best products and prices. Customer prospects often engage in the same process; they’ll talk with colleagues, read reviews on the web and even consult with an analyst firm that covers a particular market category.

Is it impossible to introduce analysts to your company without spending a significant amount of money? Not always. We introduce our clients to major analyst firms including Gartner, Forrester Research and IDC on a regular basis regardless of whether or not our client is a paying customer. The key is to understand the role of the analyst and to keep in mind how to help him or her be more informed of the latest business and product developments in his or her industry niche.

Not every company that wants to schedule an analyst meeting is successful. Understandably, the bulk of each analyst’s time is allocated to paying clients. Without the proper strategy it will be very difficult to gain their attention. So consider these tips the next time you plan to propose a product or service briefing:

1- No Advertising/Endorsement. Analysts are only interested in how your company is providing a new solution to a pressing business challenge or opportunity in the market. Remove any marketing hyperbole from your presentation and refrain from asking for an endorsement during the first briefing.

2- Earn Trust. This is an excellent opportunity to preview beta or prototypes to gain expert feedback and help position your company as an industry leader now and in the future. In these cases, the analysts are fine with non-disclosure agreements.

3- Trust Your Instincts. Don’t hesitate to engage in friendly debate regarding a particular topic or data point. The analysts will respect your opinion and be more amenable to follow up briefings.

Building a successful analyst relations program takes time and patience. The results can make a huge difference as to whether or not your company is perceived as a leader and the best choice for prospects seeking to make a purchase.

May 15, 2013

Analyst Relations 101: the basics of working with analysts

Image courtesy of The Lean Marketer

While PR professionals spend a great deal of time interacting with the media, fostering relationships with analysts is also an important aspect for helping our clients keep a leg up within any industry. Working with analysts can differ a great deal from working with reporters; for instance, while journalists need good ideas and concise commentary to write quickly and knowledgeably on any given topic, analysts want more in-depth information about your company. And if this is done correctly, analysts can become strong brand advocates and even impact buying decisions of potential customers.

What do analysts do?

Analysts seek to know all there is to know about a specific industry. With this knowledge, they engage with C-suite executives, industry experts and even the end-user community. Clients of analysts receive advice on strategy and trends, competitors’ moves and market threats and opportunities. Analysts also provide expert commentary to the media. As an example, VOXUS has worked with analyst Chetan Sharma and here he is providing commentary to NPR.

In short, analysts should be considered a vital part of any PR strategy. There is a high likelihood that analysts can influence key decision makers such as your clients, investors, potential customers. Below are some of the basics of building these relationships.

Basics of analyst relations

• Keep analysts briefed on all relevant news. This will include your latest corporate announcements and any new customers or partnerships.

• Be selective about the analysts firms you build relationships with. Select and focus on the analysts that are most influential in your industry.

• Check in with analysts regularly. It is recommended that you touch base with analysts every six months to stay on their radars.

While analyst relations by itself is a process, the rewards for your company include mentions in reports, recommendations to potential customers and gained insight into the broader industry ecosystem.

(This is the first installment in a three-part series on building positive relationships with analysts.)

Related posts:

Gartner: Get In Where you Fit In
Scoring with Gartner

May 13, 2013

When it comes to start-ups, there is no one size fits all answer about if or when to hire a PR agency

You can’t work in the PR business without developing a thick skin. Some folks in the media take an almost perverse pleasure in bashing the annoying habits or supposed incompetence of PR people and agencies. To be fair, as an industry, we suffer from more than our share of self-inflicted wounds. But that doesn’t mean every criticism is valid. Or even intelligent.

In a recent VentureBeat post, former journalist*, PR rep and now founder of a somewhat creepy site that helps guys stalk single women (sorry, it doesn’t deserve a link), Kevin Leu questions whether start-ups should ever work with a PR firm. Spoiler: he says “no.” Leu’s “5 Reasons You’ll Regret Hiring a PR Agency for Your Start-up – and What You Should Do Instead,” starts with a questionable premise and backs it up with sweeping generalizations unsupported by facts. Good thing he’s no longer a “journalist.” Here are just a few of the things he got wrong.

First, the basic premise: should start-ups hire a PR agency? The real answer, as with most things, is: “it depends.” Some start-ups do just fine getting the word out about themselves without any outside help. Some are really savvy about story-telling, building relationships with media and influencers, leveraging social media and creating content that’s both interesting and marketable. And some start-ups have the internal resources (meaning, mostly time) to put into PR. But many don’t. And if you’re one of the latter, you might need a PR firm.

But is it worth it? According to Leu, the “average” cost of retaining a PR firm is $12,000 per month with a minimum 6-month commitment. That’s a lot of cash for a series A-type start-up. Of course, he has no data to back this number up. And, of course, it’s a completely absurd figure. Do some firms charge that much? Sure, but it’s not “average.” Here at VOXUS, we successfully work with a lot of start-ups whose budgets are far more modest than that. I suspect we’re not unique. Also, in nearly two decades doing PR in Silicon Valley and the Northwest, I’ve never heard of a minimum half-year commitment. Not once.

With his bogus starting number, Leu does some questionable math to arrive at the conclusion that hiring a junior or mid-level PR person internally at somewhere between $70- $90,000 per year is a better use of money than an agency at $144,000. Wrong again. Ask anybody who’s run a business and they’ll tell you that the true cost of an employee is about 2X salary. So that one junior PR person is actually costing you $140-$180,000 year. Even if you accept Leu’s $144,000/year agency number, that doesn’t pencil out. Also, his suggestion that it’s somehow a detriment that agencies have more than one client makes little sense. First, respectable agencies don’t represent multiple, competing clients, so they won’t be pitching another client instead of you. And if they represent complementary clients, it actually helps to make them more knowledgeable about the markets their clients are in.

In any event, Leu’s beef seems to be that you’re paying an agency for the part-time work of two junior people when you can hire one full-time, junior person for the same cost. Once again, his basic assumption is wrong. The VOXUS model ensures that every one of our clients gets consistent, in-depth senior-level attention. And by “senior,” we mean people with at least a decade or more of PR experience and know-how. That in-house junior account person Leu recommends may eventually understand your business, but won’t be providing much in the way of strategy. Nor will he or she have much bandwidth overhead for major launches or when crises erupt. That’s why agencies use teams.

As for Leu’s assertion that agencies don’t know how to tell stories, I’m not sure he’s qualified to say. (Reporting on traffic and writing about where to find girls are hardly complicated beats). But for the record, storytelling is at the center of all we do. That said, no agency (or any start-up working on their own) is going to be successful getting attention if the only thing they have to sell is an idea. Facts, data, compelling user stories, ROI numbers, etc., are all essential to getting quality coverage in top-tier media. Lots of tech start-ups are founded by people with fantastic technical skills and great vision, but lack the communications skills to make their ideas obvious to a wider audience. Again, that’s what we do at VOXUS.

Leu does make one decent point: ensure that any agency you’re considering working with has a track record of recent success representing companies that are like yours, whether it’s in the same market or a similar business challenge.

I guess one out of five isn’t bad…

*Leu’s “journalism” background consists of a few months as a traffic reporter, about a year writing puff pieces for a third-tier bi-monthly lad magazine in Florida and the last several years writing his own blog called “SiliconValleyBachelor.com.” Most recent post: a girl in a bikini holding a drink. The New York Times, it’s not…

May 10, 2013

Using an Intentional Choreography Framework to Develop Sticky, Lead-Generating Content

In the content-saturated, immediate gratification, online world we live in today, surfing the web has turned into a speed dating-like experience between the user and the sites they visit. Like any new relationship, the first meeting is a chance for the website to find common interest with the user, and prove they bring something fresh, valuable, and appealing to the table. In the content world, a “first date” plays out as a user taking the time to read your landing page, blog post, or resource page. But in the world of online marketing, what counts as a second date? And if content creators make it to a second date with a target user, how can they ensure they don’t totally bomb… or worse, push the user away to a sexier source of information?

Enter to concept of “intentional choreography.” Intentional choreography is a content framework meant to move the user through the sales funnel by using strategic set-up, linking, and synchronization with the larger awareness-building and buying cycle. Intentional choreography moves the user from first date to steady relationship, progressing their knowledge and connection to the brand each step of the way. Simply, if you really want a reader to become a customer, you must use content as a way to court them, not just as a one shot opportunity to gain site traffic.

To get started with an intentional choreography content strategy, here are three thoughts to keep in mind when developing blog posts, landing pages, and other new pages on your business’ site:

Intentional choreography keeps your content a little more refined than this this kitty’s moves.

1) Create each piece of content like it’s a “make it or break it” first impression: When you’re in the weeds of your company’s website, you may have a webpage flow in mind: First, a potential customer visits your home page, then they see a link to an interesting product or study, they read about their topic of interest, then fill out a form for more information. Wouldn’t that be easy? Unfortunately, this is unrealistic, utopian marketing thinking. If a page is indexed in search engines, it’s open to be an initial point of entry, especially if it’s optimized for particularly juicy industry topics.

When developing any piece of content, think like a first time visitor to your site. Is there enough background and context? Does the content assume that the user has basic knowledge of the topic (otherwise, why would they be there?) but then provide a new, interesting perspective? Does the content get to the point and not bore them into clicking off the page? Don’t waste your first impression with a potential customer with filler content.

2) Thoughtful linking: “Put a link in it” has turned into the online marketer’s version of “put a bird on it” from Portlandia. Marketers will take a really great, thought out, meaningful piece of content and load it with hyperlinks to other resources, news stories, and pages on their site. This is often done as a misguided, and actually counter-productive link-building effort. Whenever putting in any link in a piece of on-site content, always ask yourself, “why do I want my reader to click on this link?” If you want them to stay on page, read your entire piece of content, and move through the funnel, why is there a link included to an off-site page?

Don’t get me wrong – I’m not a link hater. They have their place. Some links to other pages on your website is good for SEO, linking to your products moves readers in the right direction, and linking to on-site pages that define complex concepts mentioned in your content helps readers gain a deeper understanding of the topic. What I am saying is simple: If your link won’t move a potential customer further down the track to purchase, you’re wasting your precious content-courting time.

3) See how users interact with your content: Don’t guess what’s working, wondering if folks are reading your content, and what their page-to-page flow is – it’s worth it to examine the data. Google Analytics is good for much more than just site traffic. Use the tool to see what pages users visit on first entry to site, and make sure that page is optimized to move people through the awareness cycle with appropriate links, side bars, interesting images, and satisfying information.

Also look at how long readers stay on a page. Are you getting a lot of clicks but a majority of 15-second site visits? Look at the traffic sources and search terms to make sure your page’s keywords aren’t accidentally getting a lot of irrelevant, misplaced traffic, or worse, that the page is boring to your target audience. Last, be sure to look at what pages visitors look at after they visit their first page, and refine your content to make sure they’re moving in the right direction.

Through purposeful action, informative content, and a little strategy, an intentional choreography framework can elevate your content marketing efforts from ho-hum to salestastic.

May 8, 2013

Media pitching: fear not the phone!

A large part of a PR professional’s job is pitching news to the media and successfully getting coverage in targeted publications. However, editors and writers are very busy and receive a million calls a day, so it can sometimes be nerve-racking to pick up the phone to pitch a story verbally rather than by sending an email. Our best advice is to email the pitch and always follow up with a call. Yes, it takes time out of your day, but phone calls humanize and personalize your stories, so if you have a newsworthy story you believe in, get on the phone and tell the media about it.

Nevertheless, editors and writers are people. Some are fun and easy to get along with, others are grumpy and impatient. Many are overworked and have little time for calls and story ideas that don’t really apply to their readers So if the calling process intimidates you, here are a few must-know, must-follow tips to keep you on the right track.

Write a script
Write down either a full script or bullet points of your pitch; do not jump on a call without planning what you’re going to say. No matter how familiar you are with the story, a script will help you stay on track and focused on the newsworthy elements.

Practice
Once you’ve created your script, read it out loud a few times to make sure it flows and feels comfortable. This will help you be more confident.

Call early in the day
Usually reporters are on a deadline in the afternoon or evening, so don’t procrastinate. Call first thing in the morning when writers have time to chat.

Keep it brief
Keep your pitch to 30 seconds or under. Writers have jobs to do, so if you can get the important points of your pitch out quickly it will be appreciated. If the writer is interested, he/she will ask additional questions. Your pitch should get to the heart of the story quickly.

Be prepared to answer questions
Have detailed examples, statistics and/or stories to back up your pitch, and be prepared to pass along the contact information of people who can be interviewed to tell these stories.

Smile
This is the oldest sales/customer service trick in the book. If you are smiling while you are talking on the phone you sound more pleasant to the person on the other line. If your voice sounds monotone and unenthusiastic, so does your pitch. If the writer can tell that you’re not excited, why should he or she be interested in anything you have to say?

Rejection happens
Writers are going to say the word ‘no’ to you. Get used to it and pick up the phone and dial the next number. Don’t get offended, don’t analyze the reasons why, just move on and try that writer again the next time you’re pitching.

May 6, 2013

Is your website issuing a strong call to action?

Generating leads or sales from your website? The first thing you need is an effective Call To Action (CTA).

Formulating a magic bullet CTA can be a challenge, especially when you have so many valuable features. The sales challenge, as always, is to turn features into benefits. Thanks to conversion expert Joanna Wiebe, here are some tricks to improve your success.

If you have a truly unique value proposition, say so. If the average viewer doesn’t know who you are, so say your name in the headline. If you can solve a problem, make the promise to solve it. And if there is a pain that you can eliminate or an objection that you can answer, be specific with proof. There’s nothing better than hearing your customers talk about pains, needs and expectations. They know why they buy, often better than you.

Be specific…aim your message at those most likely to buy now
Be succinct
Focus on the ONE thing prospects want
Confirm the expectation of your visitor

Joanna offers five cookbook formulas to cover almost all marketing situations.

1. All gain—When your prospects have a clear pain that you can relieve

Get The(fresh but relevant adjective) Power Of(what your product does) Without(pain)”

The Astonishing Power of Eye Tracking Technology…Without the High Costs

2. Promise-based SEO—A highly desirable outcome with an SEO boost

(Adjective) & (Adjective) (what you are/SEO keyword phrase) That Will (desirable promise of results)

Clean & Modern iPhone App Design Templates That Will Set You Apart In The App Store

3. Explicit promise— When you customers will believe a promise from you

We Promise: (highly desirable results)

We Promise Just One Thing: Get More Clients from Social Media

4. Comparison — When your customers are using or considering a competitor

(Known competitor) (does this undesirable thing), And (your brand name) (does this highly desirable or impressive thing)

Google Analytics Tells You What Happened, KISSMetrics Tells You Who Did It

5. The value prop — Something that’s both unique and highly desirable

The Only (SEO keyword phrase) Made Exclusively To (highly desirable outcome or benefit)

The Only Web Copywriting Guides Made Exclusively To Improve Your Sales

Incidentally, like most direct-marketing copywriters, she recommends bold centered headline, capitalizing each word, avoiding periods, and breaking up long headlines with ellipses or em-dashes.

Once you have written a test set of headlines, it’s time to test.

There are a variety of tools out there for conducting and monitoring A/B tests. One of the best tools is Google’s free Content Experiments, a part of Google Analytics in the Content section.

Test Early and Test Often. You should run tests as early as possible when considering a new promotional technique or when launching a new product. You want your site optimized as soon as possible, so you aren’t losing sales. And then keep testing.
Test Only A Few Elements. Limit the variables or you won’t know what worked. Start with headlines — they do the most work and create the strongest effects.
Run Tests on New Visitors Only. Don’t use your existing customers as guinea pigs for changes to your website. Their preconceptions can skew your results and cause inaccuracies.
Listen to the Results. Resist the temptation to listen to your instincts if the empirical data is telling you different. You’re running controlled tests for reason. If in doubt, re-test.
Allow the Test to Run for Sufficient Time. Stopping the test early just means there’s more room for error. The same can be said for letting it run too long. Try for a time period of a few days to a couple of weeks, depending on your site traffic (you want a minimum of a few hundred test results before drawing any conclusions, and preferably a few thousand).

Listen to your customers, formulate a short, sweet and resonant set of calls to action and test, test, test.

May 3, 2013

Contributed articles can turn CEOs into thought leaders

As PR and marketing professionals, we hear the term constantly during planning meetings with a client’s executive management. The CEO wants to be positioned as a thought leader, or someone who is considered to be on the cutting edge of innovation and is helping to guide his or her industry into the future. A thought leader’s opinion is usually important, sought after and commented on by media, analysts and other industry influencers.

How can you turn a CEO into a thought leader? For those of us in marketing and public relations, it can be a daunting task. One way to achieve this goal is to utilize contributed article opportunities.

Contributed articles are great ways to share trends, best practices and a vision for the future within any industry. Many publications consider these articles to play a vital role in their success. Most of the time you can work with the CEO to determine the topic and key points, then draft an article for his or her approval. Once published, the piece can be posted on a website, used for social media posts and integrated into sales and marketing collateral.

Before you go down this road, consider these tips for success:

No selling. Many will be disappointed to learn that the best articles contain no company or product information. They are specifically designed to help colleagues and other observers stay on top of the latest trends. Credibility comes from addressing challenges and opportunities facing the industry, not just a particular company or set of customers. The article will contain a byline for the author, and that’s enough.

Be specific. Before writing the article, you will be required to submit a well thought-out topic, headline and at least one paragraph to explain the focus of the piece and what readers can expect to learn. Take the time to create a quality pitch to the magazine’s editors. It’s the most important part of the process and not to be taken lightly.

Be patient. If submitted for a print publication, articles could be held for up to three months. Conversely, web articles are typically posted within a week or two.

Contributed articles can often open doors to build or develop relationships with key media, analysts and industry influencers. Other benefits can include speaking opportunities at major trade shows and events.

May 1, 2013

The Online Troll: To Engage or Not to Engage

It’s a scenario that I’d bet virtually EVERY SINGLE company has endured: an unwarranted online attack against its reputation. Much of the time, at the heart of these attacks is what people refer to as an online troll.

Wikipedia defines a troll as “Someone who posts inflammatory, extraneous, or off-topic messages in an online community, such as a forum, chat room, or blog, with the primary intent of provoking readers into an emotional response or of otherwise disrupting normal on-topic discussion.”

To paint a clearer picture, most trolls hide behind a fake name, a pseudonym or post anonymously. Trolls often act alone, but they may occasionally band together.

The troll can’t just be labeled by one generalization. He or she comes in all shapes and sizes. Andrea Weckerle, author of Civility in the Digital Age outlined five types of trolls in her book:

Spamming trolls: These people make the same post to many platforms.

Kook: These regular members of platforms consistently post irrelevant comments.

Flamer: These users make inflammatory comments.

Hit-and-runner: These trolls stop on a platform, make one or two comments and then disappear.

Psycho: These people have the psychological need to hurt others in order to feel good.

Now that we’ve got the types of trolls clarified, let’s get back to the heart of this post: What to do when (notice I didn’t say if) your company comes under attack from an online troll. My answer isn’t a blanket statement. You’ve got to take the type of troll into account, what his or her accusations are, etc.

As a general practice, my stance is, don’t give the trolls the satisfaction of a response. No matter how articulate your response is, nothing is going to be enough for them. In the end, your comments could get manipulated and used as more ammunition against you. Plus, a response generally (not all of the time) makes a company appear weak or desperate. If a troll’s comment is unfounded, why stoop down to that level?

Another way to combat trolls without a public response is to reach out to a website’s moderator to report unfounded or just plain malicious posts. More often than not, those moderators will recognize the issue and strike out the troll’s posts that cross the line with slander.

The Internet is a powerful tool, and unfortunately, some people have decided to use that power to smudge businesses, either out of maliciousness or for fun. To come out smelling like roses when you combat these cyber trolls, think before you click.

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