Entrepreneur's Guide to Building Better Media Relationships

When you embark on your entrepreneurial journey, your first goal probably involves spreading brand awareness and recruiting customers. Many business owners reach out to the media for publicity, eager to share their story and promote their business.

To achieve this, however, you must approach the situation properly. Building positive media relationships is possibly the most important task of entrepreneurship, and failing to do so can be detrimental to your company. Here’s how to do it – the right way.

1. Do your research.

Before you pitch a journalist, you'll want to understand who they are and what they cover. Going in blind will show that you're only in it for yourself, rather than searching for a mutually beneficial arrangement.

"To make a good impression, it's essential to research and understand a reporter's beat before sending them a pitch," said George Bradley, PR manager at Circa Interactive. "By taking an in-depth look at the stories they've covered and the articles they've written recently, you'll be able to get a thorough understanding of the stories they're most interested in and will therefore have a much better chance of pitching them something they'll be receptive to."

Also, keep in mind that every journalist is different. Some like to be pitched via email, while others favor phone calls. Rather than assuming, ask for their preferred method of communication off the bat and stick with it, said Vicki LaBrosse, director of global public relations at Edge Legal Marketing.

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2. Keep track of contacts.

Once you start communicating with contacts on a more regular basis, create a list or spreadsheet to keep track of each person. Include information like their email, beat, previous collaboration, the last time you pitched them and any other details you deem necessary.

"Keeping a list of media contacts that you have developed a professional rapport with can be a great way to maintain relationships and land easy PR wins in the future," said Bradley. "It's important to send these contacts personalized pitches and reference any previous work that you've done with them. This will help to show your appreciation for the media placements they have helped to facilitate and ensure that they remember who you are."

Also, he added, pitch these contacts often enough that they keep you in mind, but not so often that they roll their eyes every time they see an email from you. You can refer to your list to determine a schedule that works best for both sides.

3. Respect their time.

Journalists are busy people with perpetually full inboxes. Their time, just like yours, is valuable, and you should treat it as such.

"When working with the media, speed of response is critical to success," said Bradley. "You cannot sit on a journalist's response for a couple of days, or even a few hours in some cases, without potentially losing the opportunity completely ... Not responding quickly is a surefire way to damage a relationship with reporters and editors. You will only have one opportunity to get it right, so clear communication with everyone involved is vital."

If you can't form an elaborate response to their email or request right away, Bradley recommended letting them know that you're working on it so they don't seek out someone else instead.

On the flip side, make sure you're patient with them as well. LaBrosse advised giving your contacts space in between pitches and messages.

"Follow-up is fair, but too many reminders may be considered annoying or even spam," she said. "If you don't get a response, do not be afraid to rework the pitch – it is all part of the process. In the end, if the relationship is nurtured and respected, the reward will come."



Source: https://www.businessnewsdaily.com
Image Credit: Pressmaster | Shutterstock




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Top Business Trends That Will Keep Rising In 2019

Spotting the business trends can be difficult for leaders and unfortunately, not all predictions may come true. However, some of these trends are so obvious that ignoring them would be same as signing your death warrant as a company. Below you can find some of the most obvious trends of 2019.

    -  Personalization: In the past, mass production and mass marketing was popular. Companies were making mass production and with mass marketing, they were making the product popular so everybody was buying it. A few years ago, with the rise of social media and big data, this trend has started to change. People wanted to feel special and therefore, personalization concept has come into our lives. Companies which personalize marketing and produce products that can be personalized will continue to grow. Unfortunately, companies which cannot adapt to this trend will eventually die.

   -  Remote Employees: With the rise of millennials among the workforce, remote working became the new norm especially for tech companies. If you want to hire the best employees and retain them in your company, as an employer, you should let them work remotely at least two days a week. This will give them the flexibility they need and enable them to be more creative since they are getting out of their daily routines by working somewhere else than office.

    -  Crowdfunding: Crowdfunding will continue to rise not just as a tool to raise capital but also for validating new product ideas. Smart companies use crowdfunding platforms to engage with customers and learn from them early on. The best way to validate a new product is to ask your customers. Using these platforms, you can engage with your customers and as a result, you can reduce your risk, save money and accelerate new product’s time to market.

    -  Green Products: Consumers started to become more aware of the planet and the damage they cause. For this reason, they tend to use green and eco-friendly products. They also care about being socially responsible and prefer to purchase from companies which not only want to earn revenues but also have a social mission and help the planet. If companies cannot go greener, then, they may face losing some of their customers.

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Source: https://www.business2community.com

Image Credit: Getty Images

ABOUT WNFP
Westchester Networking for Professionals (WNFP) is a business organization focused on providing our members and guests with an extraordinary networking experience, bringing business professionals together for the sole purpose of generating new relationships and developing new business opportunities. Not a member, learn how you can become a member and join this awesome group of professionals to connect and grow your business.

Stay Connected with WNFP!

4 Tips to Building Meaningful Personal and Professional Relationships

In a world full of people pushing their own agendas and their programs and focused on self-promotion, it is refreshing to meet someone who is giving, selfless and authentic. Have you ever met someone like this? More importantly, have you ever learned a lesson from that person that stuck with you?

As a busy 30 year old woman, making new friends outside of my niche doesn't occur all that often. If anything, I connect with like minded women who are paving the way for others in their respective fields, we bond over that aspect. I recently became friends with a neighbor of mine, and we're totally different from one another.

She's a Nurse from Uganda, she's bubbly, loud, and her laugh is contagious. We've become "Farmers Market" friends, and every weekend we explore new parts of town with each other, eating our way through the weekend with reckless abandon.

We have similar interests in food and conversation, and most importantly she doesn't want help with her own business, or to "pick my brain" or even talk about E-commerce. Did you hear that? It was just my gigantic sigh of relief.

She never picks up the phone while we're together, instead focusing on enjoying the time spent. She never complains, even when we get stuck walking in the rain, drive in circles for 30 minutes, or when the two Farmers Markets I took us too both are mysteriously nowhere to be found. She speaks her mind, there's no beating around the bush with her.

What i've learned, is that a worthwhile friendship requires work. Not the drama laden, foot dragging kind of work that may come to mind, but the kind where you actually better yourself. She's taught me valuable lessons that I can parlay into both my personal and professional life.

Here are four tips to start exploring your authentic self.

1. Recognize that being authentic is difficult but there are rewards

Authenticity is about being genuine and real. However, our society isn't used to authenticity and often questions its motives. Sounds like a pain, you might think. So why should you be yourself? Because, as the saying goes, everyone else is already taken.

Authenticity requires self-knowledge and self-awareness. Authentic people accept their strengths and weaknesses. They are accountable. They are connected to their values and desires and act deliberately in ways that are consistent with those qualities. At the end of the day, you'll be happier and more fulfilled pursuing these things than someone else's idea of success.

2. Know who you are

The first step to authenticity is to know who you are. Take as much time as you need to think about what you want to accomplish in your life and what would make you truly happy. What are your values? Brush aside any thoughts of other people's ideas of what matters.

You have one life, and you don't want to have any regrets at the end. Once you know what your values are, decisions that you have to make become easier because you are free to choose things that move you closer to your values. Your decisions should almost make themselves once you know who you really are.

3. Have an open mind

Success isn't just about money, contacts, a huge loft in the city or a house on the beach and glittery parties to attend every weekend. Of course, success could look like that for you, and if it does, by all means, go for it. But most of us want something else from life. Think about how you are able to reach your goals and help others at the same time.

4. Once you reach your goal, share your success with others
You've probably heard the expression that success is twice as sweet when shared. Once you've figured out the secret to your own happiness, don't be afraid to spread the world so that others may be able to share in your success. Don't be afraid to give away your idea -- it will be credited back to you and often bring rewards and recognition your way.

When you assert yourself as someone who is not solely out for their own benefit, you'd be amazed at how many more people actually want to work with you. You'd be a unicorn in the business world, people gravitate towards those who are enjoyable to be around.

These are my favorite kinds of people, and the ones that I want to help achieve their own goals. Take a look at your own behaviors, and make sure you're not being a parasitic friend or business contact.

Source: https://www.inc.com/
Image Credit: Getty Images




ABOUT WNFP
Westchester Networking for Professionals (WNFP) is a business organization focused on providing our members and guests with an extraordinary networking experience, bringing business professionals together for the sole purpose of generating new relationships and developing new business opportunities. Not a member, learn how you can become a member and join this awesome group of professionals to connect and grow your business.

Stay Connected with WNFP!