Stay Hungry, Stay Foolish
Last week, Steve Jobs and Apple launched the new and eagerly anticipated iPad. Over the years I have admired Apple for their branding, product launches and product innovation.
This post is a more personal glimpse at a much-respected and innovative thinker. I thought I’d share with you a speech by Steve Jobs where he shares three very powerful stories. It never fails to inspire me.
How to Use Photos to Get PR (and save time and money)
Sometimes a good photo can illustrate a story more than words. I guess that’s why they say “a photo is worth a thousand words.”
When we had our men’s socks company (which due to a ton of media coverage, attracted a buyer less than a year after we started it), one of the things we struggled with was, “how on earth do we show photos of boring men’s socks?”
How to Get Testimonials for Your Business
As I was going through some blogs and websites for entrepreneurs and small businesses, the ones that had the most impact used testimonials on their site. Why? It gives me, who may be a new reader on their site, proof of how good their service or product is. It shows readers how much other people have tried and tested their product/service and how satisfied they were. So, to get a testimonial that will boost your business, here are some quick tips.
- Make it easy for them to say YES by guiding them on what you want highlighted in the testimonial. Most people don’t like to write so ask just 3 – 5 questions on how did your product work for them? How were you to work with? What did they like? What could you do better (this is also great research for you in terms of product development) – ask whatever question will serve your needs best. From the answers, craft a testimonial and ask them to approve it. Read more
PR Case Study: Getting Over Stage Fright
October 28, 2009 by admin
Filed under PR Case Study
I was recently contacted by Janet Esposito, author of the new book Getting Over Stage Fright who said:
“I wanted to share with you the great news of my first article for my book. It is a full page spread with a huge image of my book and my photo, along with a long text. It appeared in the feature section of the Litchfield County Times. Thanks so much Elena, for helping to inspire me to go after local media as a first step. I will continue to contact other newspapers and will look forward to more exposure!”
I loved the title of her book as it is what many business owners go through in their own PR efforts – Stage Fright!
We’re often afraid to get started in doing our own PR because of fear of rejection, overwhelm with how to start in the first place and general apprehension of doing something new.
In the meantime, we keep looking over at the competition who IS getting media coverage and wondering when it will be our turn to shine in the spotlight. Read more
How To Get Over The Comparison Trap
“How Does She Do It?” is a common question we wonder when success appears so effortless for others and we’re not getting the results we want. But, it’s when we look externally for validation and confirmation that our ideas have value that self-doubt can be triggered and we fall into the trap.
So…I’d like to invite you to participate in the FREE How Does She Do It? Tele-series happening October 16th and 17th by registering here http://www.how09.com
The simplest way to describe this series is this:
It’s like Dove’s Campaign for Real Beauty but… for business.
Dove placed the spotlight on “the comparison trap” as it relates to body image and self-esteem issues that result from beauty stereotypes.
This thought-provoking interview series exposes the comparison trap as it relates to “success” stereotypes and draws attention to how our knee-jerk reaction to compare ourselves to others or to “model success” the wrong way sabotages authenticity and confidence.
The series also reveals the top five challenges that women in business online commonly face and directs the how does she do it question to these relevant topics with the intention of protecting your authenticity.
So, are you ready to join us in drawing a line in the sand?
Are you ready to break free from the cookie-cutter/copycat approach to modeling success so you can create success your way, authentically and with confidence?
I’m proud to be one of 16 successful women who are speaking up to reveal our own experiences with comparison. Our goal is to provide valuable insight, share lessons learned and inspire you to take YOUR next steps all from a caring and supportive approach that protects your authenticity.
The event is sponsored by IAWBO, the International Association of Women in Business Online and your free registration also includes a starter membership as well as contest prizes to be won!
Again, the tele-series starts October 16th at 9:00 am CST and you can listen to the interviews FREE when you register at http://www.how09.com
I’d love to get the conversation started – are you in a comparison trap? How do YOU handle it?
Interview with Marybeth Bond on Author PR and Oprah
September 10, 2009 by admin
Filed under What Is PR and How Do You Get It
It was so fun to chat with Marybeth Bond, the expert in women’s travel who has adventured her way through 70 
countries! She is an award-winning author who has written 11 books including 50 Best Girlfriend Getaways in North America, and Gutsy Women.
Marybeth is a nationally recognized travel expert and media personality, having been interviewed on over 150 TV stations, and 250 radio stations including CBS News, CNN, ABC, NBC, National Public Radio and National Geographic Weekend.
With her book Gutsy Women, Marybeth was a featured guest on the Oprah Winfrey Show and she 
shares with us her journey towards getting booked on the show, which took her several years of creative persistence!
Marybeth shares lots of golden nuggets in this interview, including how to take No as an answer (it just means not yet!), how to use your website as your business card, creating multiple streams of income, using soundbytes in interviews and how women can help each other to build business relationships.
Checkout her information-packed website at www.gutsytraveler.com and listen to our interview here
Interview with Pam Slim and Getting PR for Authors
August 31, 2009 by admin
Filed under What Is PR and How Do You Get It
I first met Pamela Slim online when she covered our “monthly socks by mail” company in her Top 10 Christmas gifts back in 2006. We’ve since sold the company and I’ve continued to follow her fantastic blog, Escape From Cubicle Nation, which helps people in corporate jobs trying to make the leap to becoming an entrepreneur.
Pam’s site is one of the top career and marketing blogs on the web, and she has now published a book of the same name. I also love that Pam is certified as a master coach with “the best-known life coach in America,” Oprah Magazine columnist Martha Beck!
Having been covered by the New York Times, CNN, Business Week and Wall Street Journal just to name a few big hitters, I asked Pam how she started out getting PR.
“I helped behind the scenes and provided sources for stories even where I wasn’t quoted,” says Pam. “Journalists need us as much as we need them, they’re constantly looking for good angles for stories and they need sources. I 
make it a priority when a journalist contacts me to get back to them because I know they are working on a short deadline.” The lesson here? Work in partnership and collaboration with a journalist way before you need them!
Pam has a great press page for you to look at. She makes it easy for reporters to contact her and write about her by offering clear and organized information, a compelling bio and a list of story angles and interview questions for a reporter to ask her.
Listen to my interview with Pam Slim and how getting PR has helped her as a blogger, author and coach:
Getting PR for Coaches
August 26, 2009 by admin
Filed under What Is PR and How Do You Get It
For my coaching community, listen to my interview with Emmy award winning TV reporter and news anchor Mark Joyella as he talks about his beat as the first Community Supported Journalist covering the field of professional coaching worldwide. At the Coaching Commons, Mark writes and reports on coaching, creates multimedia content and engages participants across various media platforms and social networking sites.
In our interview, Mark shares the types of articles he writes to address common concerns of coaches (such as how to build and grow your coaching business, debates on whether coaching should be regulated, top 10 coaching books) and we have a fun discussion about Twitter and whether it’s an appropriate coaching tool.
Mark suggests that coaches – or anyone trying to get PR – should first get a really good sense of how a reporter is already telling a story about your topic. Coming to the Coaching Commons website allows coaches to see what’s newsworthy around the world and tailor that story pitch to use in your own local or national PR efforts. It’s a great tip for coaches on how to do your own media pitches without re-inventing the wheel!
Mark can also be found on Twitter as @coachreporter and suggests PR newbies join the Monday evening live discussion between journalists and PR on Twitter by following the hashtag #journchat.
Entrepreneur.com's Lisa Druxman on Getting PR
August 14, 2009 by admin
Filed under What Is PR and How Do You Get It
Lisa Druxman is the Mompreneur columnist for Entrepreneur.com which covers any and all challenges relating to starting a business. She is also the founder of Stroller Strides, the largest fitness program for new moms in the US as well as being the author of LEAN Mommy.
Listen to Lisa as she discusses how her business has grown by “putting more effort into publicity than any other form of marketing” and how getting PR “has brought us to the tipping point.”
Lisa will also talk about the importance of getting PR in your local press and how to use that as a starting point towards getting publicity in national media outlets. Having been on NBC’s Today Show, CNN, The Montel Williams Show, Access Hollywood and profiled in magazines such as Entrepreneur, Woman’s Day, Good Housekeeping, Self and more – she knows what it takes to get the publicity that generates credibility and awareness!
Lisa Druxman on How to Get PR:
How to Get PR With InfoWorld
It was fun catching up with Sean McCown, contributing editor of InfoWorld Magazine, one of the most respected and oldest IT magazines around which focuses on enterprise technologies and large scale applications. Having worked in technology PR for many years, Sean is the type of editor that’s a pleasure to work with…if you know your stuff!
Even if your company isn’t in technology, you’ll benefit from listening to an experienced journalist like Sean tell it like it is: “If you can’t capture my interest in the subject of your email” then you don’t have much chance of getting good PR. Find out what makes Sean “throw away a press release almost instantly” and how he encourages entrepreneurs to be authentic and give a good passionate pitch themselves since “really good PR is expensive!”
Sean McCown’s blogs can be found at:
Hi, I'm Elena Verlee and I help entrepreneurs like you get the publicity that will skyrocket your business! I hope you enjoy my site, where you'll find easy, no- or low-cost ways to get buzz, as well as personal coaching tips to build both a business and a lifestyle you'll love.