We all look to spell check to correct our mistakes, but there is only so much it can do. Proofreading goes beyond spelling mistakes and should be used to produce professional work.

Before publishing any written content- whether it’s in a publication or just on your company’s blog- it is important to hire an editor who will review your work and catch any last minute mistakes. By hiring an editor, you are setting a higher standard of quality for your work.

A client recently contacted our Lakeland and Tampa public relations firm to edit their proposal for a major statewide event. When you’re submitting a proposal to gain business, your first opportunity to make a lasting impression may be with your written proposal. This client realized that and turned to us to help them put their best foot forward.

The 4 major benefits an editor can offer a writer are:

1. Credibility- simple grammar, spelling and punctuation errors can seriously hurt a writer’s credibility and even leave readers with the feeling that you lack professionalism. That’s why another set of eyes should be used to catch more mistakes. While writing, it is often hard to see the obvious mistakes because as a writer, you understand the story. As time goes by, you become more invested in the writing process, which makes it even more difficult to catch these mistakes.
2. Consistency- it is easy to forget information when you are familiar with the story and understand the point you’re trying to get across. An editor will point out the areas that lack consistency and offer suggestions to keep the text flowing.
3. Review work to assure appropriateness for the audience- choosing the right word can make the difference between connecting with your audience and appearing condescending.  Editing the work reminds the writer to look out for jargon.
4. Feedback- An editor offers an objective opinion that can give you an understanding of how readers might react to the material. Editors will make suggestions on how to make the story clearer.

Seeing your name signed on a poorly written article or story is less than exciting. Hiring an editor will help guarantee the content you create is professional, relevant, and well-organized, which can help you establish a loyal audience of readers.

The Bartow native says she chose to attend Flagler College since it is at the center of active and historic St. Augustine.  She practices her PR skills by writing a blog about what’s happening in St. Augustine, called “The St. Augustine Clambake.”

The blog started out as a project in her magazine writing class, but found it was a new and fun way to keep her creativity flowing.  The original assignment was to write a blog with a specific purpose in mind and she chose a topic she thought would be the easiest to manage.   When her blog received hits and likes she was excited and encouraged to continue it. “It feels freer than journalism because writing the blog feels story like,” Laura said.

Laura has practiced her interviewing skills and her blog writing techniques as a result of writing the blog.  At the end of her project, she won a contest for “best blog” out of the two class sections that competed.

Majoring in public relations with a minor in graphic design gives Laura the ability to make brochures, promote events, choose themes, and organize PR campaigns, things she loves to do. She worked on a proposal to change the image of Mothers Against Drunk Driving for a class project.  During this project she remade the MADD logo into something more vibrant and youth-friendly.  Laura suggested MADD become more involved in social media and change their website from a “mother-oriented” website into one that a younger audience could relate to.

Another suggestion of Laura’s was to orchestrate a program that operated similarly to SunPass but would work when an individual is too intoxicated to drive home safely. It would be called “Ride to Save Lives.” The program would operate via a debit card-like device.  Money would be placed in an account linked to the card and would be available for use when an individual is too intoxicated to drive.  On the card would be the phone number of a local cab company.  Once the cab delivers the individual to their destination, the person would use the card as a means of paying the cab driver, just like using a debit card. She felt that MADD should be more against drinking and driving, not necessarily drinking.  “Drink responsibly and have a designated driver,” said Laura.

She would love to have the opportunity to work in a PR position in Italy or France. However, Laura said she feels she would be more suited in the PR department of Tiburon, an Electronic Arts games development studio located in Maitland, Florida.

“I started off wanting to do graphic design for video games, but then realized that I could use my public relations skills to promote video games.” Laura said.

Video games hold a special place in her heart because she plays them with her family, and watches her brother play games like Madden NFL.  What made her fall in love with EA, though, was the Sims.

She said, “The way you can build your own house or change the Sims personality is so customizable.  It’s kind of like acting, but you get to play God. The more expansion packs you add, the more options you get on things like additions to the house or job types.”

Laura has become a part of Flagler College’s acting department and has been active in performing The Yellow Dress, a play about a young woman’s journey through a relationship that started beautifully, and ended in tragic domestic violence.  Domestic violence was a topic that Laura didn’t know much about before performing in The Yellow Dress, but now that she is more informed, she wishes to integrate her PR skills into promoting awareness of domestic violence in public schools.

Modrall says that in five years, “I’d love to have my loans paid off” in addition to working with the school board system to promote awareness of domestic violence, or in Tiburon’s PR department.

She wants to learn how to write better press releases, and learn more about Web publishing and how to write an effective blog from this internship.

Laura will definitely get the writing practice and fine tuning that she desires from this internship, and we’re excited to watch as she grows as a writer and PR specialist.

For Laken, writing is the most fascinating aspect of her profession, and she said she has had plenty of experience with writing stories and poetry in her free time.

“I enjoy writing in PR, because I am able to take information and put it into a story format” said Laken.

Born in West Virginia, Laken and her family moved to Miami, Fla., when she was 10, where she lived until moving to Lakeland to attend college.  She now calls Lakeland home, and loves experiencing the city by spending time with friends and walking around at First Friday events.

She chose Florida Southern because it is a liberal arts college with a tight-knit campus and small classes.  Her first semester, she shared a room with three other girls.

“It was a good experience of close encounters,” joked Laken.

It was there at Florida Southern that she first discovered our Lakeland public relations firm.

While searching the Internet for local public relations internships, Laken came across an article about one of our former interns.  Intrigued by the success of a student in a similar situation to herself, Laken was motivated to apply in hope of securing an internship of her own.

Although new, Laken has already learned many valuable lessons in the public relations track, and when looking back on the things that she has written, she can’t help but to feel proud.

“Whoa, I actually wrote that? Cool,” she said of the experience.

Laken’s name is as unique and fun as she is, and she explained that it is Native American for “abundance of riches.”

“Seeing as I’m a broke college student, it doesn’t mean riches in money!” she said, although she went on to admit that she was wealthy in the support of friends and family.

In the future, Laken hopes to take the knowledge she has learned here and combine it with her passion for advertising.  She believes that this real-world experience will help her to become a well-rounded employee in the future.

I’ve read statistics published by the Small Business Administration that say seven of 10 new employer establishments make it to the two-year mark, while 51 percent survive at least five years. While it’s awesome that slightly more than half of businesses make it, it’s also sobering to realize that almost half do not.

When I think about being in business for five years, I’m reminded of that saying about the turtle on the fence post. If you see a turtle on a fence post, you can be sure he didn’t get their on his own. I certainly didn’t get here on my own.

I couldn’t have done it without my husband’s support. To be supportive of me quitting my “regular” job with a guaranteed income to do my own thing took an amazing amount of faith in me. I didn’t want to let him down.

Vonya Griffin, a brilliant writer and excellent researcher, helped me in the early days when I had too much on my plate and needed another writer to ensure everything got done.

Typically when you hire an employee, you’re taking a chance on that person. But when Lanette Strong came to work for me, she took a chance on me. She has been an invaluable resource in this office.

And then there are the clients. Without them, this business would fail to exist. Through the years, many of them have become more than clients; they’ve become friends. We represent them because we believe in their work, and we love spreading their good news.

Five years has seen a change in scenery in terms of office space. I started out in the spare bedroom of my home and held client meetings at local coffee shops. It worked then and I’m convinced it’s still a good business model today. But in 2011, I felt the urge to move out. I wanted this business to be a part of Downtown Lakeland. I jumped at the chance to have space at Tennessee Carriage Lofts. Moving out really took this business to the next level, and in five months it became apparent that more space was needed. Thankfully, a bigger space was available in the same building, so we moved next door in July 2011.

Operating your own business isn’t easy. It causes sleepless nights, seven-day work weeks and 16-hour days at times. It’s stressful and frustrating. It sometimes can make you want to throw in the towel.

But it’s also so very rewarding. Thank you to everyone who has helped us be successful.

• Why businesses should use it:

1. Network- connect with other professionals in the field, potential clients/customers, as well as journalists and others who are employed by media outlets.

2. Connect- send messages to people whom you can’t seem to find email addresses or phone numbers for.

3. Share- easily share blog posts, tweets and Facebook updates you’re producing.

4. Listen- see what your audiences are saying and how you need to improve upon your services.

Image Credit: "Linkedin Chocolates" by Nan Palmero

5. Identify- discover who’s deemed as influential in the field, and monitor what they’re doing and saying. They might take you under their wings and serve as your mentors.

6. Market- advertise your products and services through the company page feature.

7. Receive- ask for recommendations from colleagues, clients and customers.

8. Learn- gain a greater knowledge of the industry you’re in through the articles and blog posts your connections post.

9. Promote- gain publicity for your company’s events through LinkedIn Events.

10. Discuss- talk about industry trends and news with like-minded professionals through joining groups.

11. Gather- collect information by conducting polls and surveys.

• How businesses can make the most of it:

1. Completely fill out your profile, including every skill and experience you have underneath your belt, as well as how people can get in touch with you. If potential customers are impressed by your products and services, but can’t contact you, there’s no point in having a profile in the first place.

2. Engage in discussion and don’t be afraid to ask questions. This will help to establish yourself as an expert in the field. What you put into it is what you’ll get out.

3. Link your WordPress, Twitter and Facebook accounts to your LinkedIn profile.

4. Connect with colleagues and other industry professionals. This will build your credibility and more people will view your profile.

5. Make sure that portions of your profile aren’t blocked or invisible to people besides yourself.

6. Download the app for your smart phone or iPhone so you can access LinkedIn on the go.

If that wasn’t enough to convince you, here’s a list of just a few of the many benefits your company will receive as a result of using Storify:

• Your company can better target content that pertains to its products, services and audience.
• Storify stories are more attractive to readers because they feature content from real people and include multimedia elements instead of large blocks of text.
• Your company can advertise its brand, products and services in a new way, creating a mixture of traditional and new technology advertising techniques.
• Your audience will be able to weed through the masses of information they’re viewing on a daily basis and find their ways to what they want to see: your company.
• If the information your company shares is something your audience is looking for, you may be credited as an important, reliable source.
• Your company will be able to support your articles with real time social media dialogue to reinforce your topics’ importance and relevance.
• Your business can share industry-related developments and happenings that might be of interest to consumers and/or employees in an engaging manner.
• Your company can make connections through notifying those whose content you use to create your Storify stories.

Here’s a local example of a Storify story we created for last year’s annual Hair for Hope event that one of our clients, Michael Rose Hair Designs, hosts:

[View the story "Michael Rose Hair Designs' Hair for Hope 2011" on Storify]
 

Not sure how to get started? Visit Storify’s website to sign up for an account. If you need assistance, this tutorial can walk you through how to begin creating stories using Storify.

• To show what consumers are saying about your company and prove to customers that you really do listen to their feedback

Say you own a car manufacturing company that produced a batch of cars with faulty headlights. You can search for the complaints consumers are posting to social media sites and pull them into a Storify story. Next, you can pull the press release your communications department crafted as a result of the crisis and enter any news stories that cover what your company is doing to fix the problem. Since Storify allows users to enter their own text, you can show customers that their complaints are being heard and your company is working hard toward achieving a solution.

Image Credit: Burt Herman and Xavier Damman (founders of Storify) by The Next Web

On the other hand, you could also gather rave reviews of a new product that your company just launched or positive comments about the services your business offers.

Either way, it’s likely that customers will no longer feel like their complaints are floating around in the blogosphere, waiting to be read. They’ll feel important and see that their voices matter.

By doing this, you could be a step ahead of your competitors, and other businesses may watch what you do next because they know your audience engagement skills are top-notch.

• Cover an event

The same goes for businesses as well as public relations professionals—sometimes live blogging or tweeting isn’t an option, but that doesn’t mean that you can’t report what took place. Also, if your consumers missed an event your company hosted, creating a Storify story about it will make them feel like they’re in the loop again and maybe even provide motivation for them to attend your next gathering.

• Launch a product

Storify can be used as a marketing tool. You can gather product photos, customer reviews and news of product developments into one place. This Storify story can be used to train sales representatives and provide consumers with another outlet through which they can leave comments and receive customer support.

• Share information quickly and easily

Sure, websites like WordPress and Blogger have made it easy for their users to post material and interact with other bloggers. But with Storify, there’s no need to copy/paste, download/upload material. Since Storify is Internet-based, everything you need is readily accessible. You can embed your Storify creations into WordPress, Posterous and Tumblr posts, as well as share them through Twitter, Facebook and Google+.

• Curate content from people and companies that your business doesn’t interact with on social media sites

Social media content that you utilize to create a Storify story doesn’t have to be written by who your company follows on Twitter or is friends with on Facebook. Storify is connected with several social media outlets and users have the capability to embed links to other sites, so the possibilities are endless. This means that you can see posts from any number of people, all of which can be sorted through by means of a hashtag or search term.

• Show that your business isn’t alone

Storify’s powerful search tool connects your business with companies that have similar missions, policies and products. If you’re looking for support to back up a recent idea or development your company has produced, create a Storify story featuring comparable opinions. Other businesses might see that your company is smarter than they thought.

Has your company used Storify? What results did you receive?

Since this tool has become a point of discussion among social media gurus and businesses alike, over the next few weeks we’ll discuss what Storify means for public relations professionals as well as why businesses should use it and the benefits they will receive if it’s a part of their regular social media use.

Here are a few implications for the world of public relations:

• It helps create buzz

Storify is another means of gaining publicity for your clients’ ideas and events. Storify stories are more likely to catch your audience’s eyes because of the many elements that go into creating them, not to mention that you can share them with ease.

• It’s easier than live blogging or tweeting about an event

You can capture the details of an event after the fact. This means you can enjoy what’s going on around you instead of focusing on capturing your surroundings in 140 characters. If you do still choose to live blog or tweet, you can later create a Storify featuring what you posted as well as pull in what others published about the same event or topic in case you missed anything.

• Storytelling is a must

Public relations professionals and journalists are in the storytelling business. According to “10 ways journalists can use Storify” by Zombie Journalism, journalists have already begun looking at the ways they can use Storify in their industry, so why shouldn’t public relations professionals or business owners handling their own PR efforts do the same? “Number 10’s social media story” by Katie Moffat explains that “you can carefully craft exactly the story you want your audience to see, with no messy bits that haven’t been approved.” Tracking a trending topic or reporting a story using Storify is more attractive to most audiences than long bodies of text. You control what your readers see and using Storify helps make it easier to see positive publicity and feedback you’re receiving as a result of your hard work.

If you’re a public relations professional, do you plan to implement Storify as a part of your clients’ social media plans? What’re some other reasons why public relations professionals should use Storify?

A recent example of lost authenticity was the “outing” incident of a PR person, which reminds us just how distasteful it is to manipulate the facts to fit an agenda. A PR person wrote an online review for a restaurant that just happened to hire his PR firm. After being called out, he claimed his review was his personal opinion rather than his professional one, but his failure to provide the audience with the necessary information up front caused some turmoil.

Ethical practice of PR can establish your credibility as a business owner, attract potential clients and build a strong reputation. Remember what public relations is all about: the goal is to establish a relationship with your audience, and making the wrong move can harm that relationship.

As a business owner who handles your own public relations, you likely post about news, events, and all things related to your business on different media outlets to spread the word. If it’s not your company’s blog you are writing on, remember these rules when writing about your business:

• Use full disclosure

Make sure you identify your profession and intent. People need to make their own decision regarding the content of the comment, and it is only fair that they do so when they know who the writer is, and if  there are any motives behind the comment.

• Be honest

Avoid asking relatives and friends to post positive reviews for your business, if they are not clients or are unfamiliar with your services. We recently discussed this in another blog post. Potential customers appreciate reading positive and negative reviews who are written by people just like them, because it gives them a better understanding of the business. Asking anyone you know to praise your business just to increase positive comments is dishonest and misleading.

• Use social media wisely

Twitter, Facebook, and blogs are there to help you build and maintain credibility. Distinguish between your professional and personal account, and don’t repost information from one to the other, making it to look like someone else thought it was interesting. Like we said in this post, when a third party retweets or comments on your tweet or post, your audience gets an objective thought, rather than an intentional marketing effort.

Remember: you don’t have control over what others say about you, but you do have control over what you say and do. You can make or break your reputation. Stay true to your audience and it might just do the same.

That is a question we get asked every so often.

I simply don’t subscribe to the belief that all knowledge should be held close to the vest. After all, if everyone did that, how would any of us be good at what we do today?

Our public relations blog is filled with a variety of information. Sometimes we brag on ourselves. Other times, we share some do-it-yourself tips and tricks of the trade. We like to spotlight our interns occasionally. Part of the reason we do all of this is that we are doing what we pound into the minds of our clients daily- developing fresh, new, relevant content.

When we provide step-by-step instructions on how you can make improvements to your website that will help your search rankings and get you more business, or how you can be your own PR pro, we know not everyone will take heed.

We’ve learned that by providing helpful information, people who read it tend to put themselves into one of three categories:

I suggest that you do the same on your website’s blog. I think you’ll find that people will categorize themselves. Some people will take your valuable information and run with it, but some will also get the notion that you know what you’re talking about and they’ll entrust their business to you.

Photo courtesy of WendyPops

What if you’re not the one duplicating content? Say you have a successful business blog, like the Disney example we provided in part one. If you find that a fellow blogger has used your work without giving you credit, what do you do?

Image Credit: "stealing on flickr continues..." by Nisha A

Before we jump into the answer to that question, there are many tools you can use to discover if your content is being duplicated. You can conduct a Google, Yahoo! or Bing search using a phrase from a post on your blog (make sure you put it in quotation marks). Other tools such as Copyscape and CopyrightSpot allow users to simply copy/paste a post’s URL into a search box. These free, online instruments are not only easy to use, but they do the searching for you.

Once you’ve found that someone has stolen your blog content, there are several steps you’ll need to take to ensure that the problem is fixed.  Lorelle VanFossen offers some great tips on how to do just that:

• Contact the blogger – Before you do anything else, go straight to the source. The easiest way to do that is to shoot them an email telling- not asking- them to remove the information from their blog.
• Send a cease and desist order—If a few days have passed and you still see the content on their blog, it’s time to send a cease and desist order to all parties involved, not just the blogger, even if that means advertisers and the blog’s server host. They can only be of help to you if they know what’s going on.
• Get their advertisers involved—If the initial cease and desist order doesn’t do the trick, send the businesses that advertise on the violator’s blog letters stating the specific violations and your attempts to have the content removed. Make copies of the original email you sent to the blog’s owner as well as the original cease and desist order.
• Involve search engines—Due to the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DCMA), search engines are willing and able to join you in moving toward a solution. You can see the DCMA violation policies of several search engines here. Search engines will begin the process of banning the blog from its search results once you have provided them with all of the required information.

How have you dealt with copyright infringement in the past? What advice would you give to those who are currently battling with bloggers who have duplicated their content?

The best way to escape the duplicate content trap is to write content that is fresh, original and exciting. Let’s go back to why your business should even have a blog. You want to help your site visitors. Chances are they’ve come to your site in search of your product or service, or because they are researching the type of product/service you offer. The more information you provide that helps them make a decision, the more likely you are to gain their business, or to gain their respect as an expert in your field.

Image Credit: "Keep finding copycats?" by Dippylulu

Google loves websites that are constantly being updated. The better the quality of information you place on your site and the more often you add new information, the more likely Google is to view your site favorably and boost it in organic search results.

Stumped for ideas to write about? Here are some examples of topics you might consider:

• New developments
• New staff members
• Anniversaries and other milestones
• New honors or awards the company has received
• Interviews with winners of giveaways or contests
• Interviews with CEOs, the vice president or president
• Large-scale benefits or events the company is hosting/recently hosted
• A ‘behind the scenes” view of the company
• New products or services
• Special offers
• Grand opening of a new location
• Weekly blog recap
• Causes the company supports

It’s also important that your content is well-written and free of spelling and grammatical errors. Believe it or not, Google notices that stuff.

If you don’t have time to handle this important aspect of your business yourself, we strongly urge hiring a professional writer to do this for you.

Here’s where we come in. Our Lakeland and Tampa press release and article writers have journalism experience. They are highly capable to asking the right questions and doing their own research to create well-written, compelling stories that will paint you as the expert in your field. So if you need assistance in this area, call us. We can help.

That’s why over the next several weeks we’ll visit several aspects of this discussion topic. Today in part one of our three-part series, we’ll discuss what duplicate content is and why it should be avoided. Future posts will include information on how to avoid duplicate content and what to do if you discover that another site has duplicated your site’s content.

• What is duplicate content?

First, let’s establish what duplicate content is. Duplicate content is text that shows up on several different websites, blogs, etc. According to Dr. Peter J. Meyers’ article titled “Duplicate Content in a Post-Panda World,” there are three types of duplicate content: true duplicates, near duplicates and cross-domain duplicates. For more on this, refer to the image featured below:

• Why is duplicate content created?

The mindset of some webmasters and writers is that the more outlets they use to post their material, the higher the number of times the content appears on search engine results pages. In trying to promote their work and the causes they’re advocating, search engines cause their plans to backfire on them (more on this to come in the “Why is duplicate content bad?” section).

Other times, bloggers and others are simply copying/pasting content they find interesting into a blog post or article. They may give credit to the original source, but the damage has already been done.

Writers and bloggers who find themselves in a bind and aren’t sure what to post on their sites do themselves a disservice by posting duplicate content. Readers may see right through them and conclude that they have nothing meaningful to add to the conversation. What they long for is new primary sources, not additional secondary sources.

• Why is duplicate content bad?

Duplicate content sends search engines into a tailspin. The original source can be lost in the storm of duplicate content and search engines pick the source they think best fits the search terms, original source or not. We’ll talk about this more next week.

• How can sources be cited in a way that avoids duplicate content?

Excerpts are the best way to reference a source. Block quotes move into duplicate content territory. Don’t forget to cite any sources you use.

So, what’s an example of a business that has it together when it comes to posting creative, unique content? Disney has blogging down to a science. Its Disney Parks Blog features updates on Disney’s resorts, Downtown Disney, parks and its cruise line. The writers know how to engage their audiences and turn topics that would otherwise be boring to read about into posts that readers look forward to. I think the best practice Disney employs is using an array of employees, from social media managers to Disney parks food writers and sports media directors, to contribute to the vast amount of content being pushed out on a daily basis.

With all of this being said, what’re your views on duplicate content? Are you guilty of giving in to duplicate content by simply copying/pasting someone else’s work onto various outlets? I hope you’re now inspired to create story ideas that are one of a kind and outshine your competition’s online presence.

Dr. Jurbala is a pretty brilliant guy. He invented a device called the Trigger Tome that corrects in the office what once could only be fixed with surgery.

Prior to this, we didn’t even know what trigger finger was. But now that we do, it’s nice to know that if we or anyone we know ever is diagnosed with it, there’s an expert right here in Central Florida who can fix it in an office visit and prevent the need for surgery.

For more information, please visit: www.triggerfingerdoctor.com.

That is one reason why we recently launched a very simple blog called PerfectlyPR. It’s not flashy or fancy. But it enables us to do something important for our clients- it houses press releases and articles we write, and enables us to spread the word via social media, regardless of whether other media outlets pick it up.

Here’s a real-world example: we recently helped a new business get the word out about opening in a large city. We didn’t have a great deal of luck getting the news into major newspapers in the area. But by posting the business’s release on PerfectlyPR, it gave us an opportunity to post information on Twitter and Facebook, complete with a link to the entire press release. It gave us an opportunity to tell our client’s story our way. And it’s easy for us to show the client how many people responded to the tweet and Facebook post and retweeted/shared it. All of this helps show ROI.

Our hope is that this will generate great results for a variety of clients. We intend to use this for most clients at least for the near future, just to see what shakes out.

The Basics

Paid media is a message that the company pays to be delivered to the customer in the form of advertising, sponsorships, pay per click ads and display ads. Companies favor this type of media because it can be implemented on-demand, while still having some degree of control.

Earned media is a message passed between consumers as a result of an experience with a brand. It is the result of public relations efforts to gain coverage in publications. Earned media often refers specifically to publicity gained through editorial influence, whereas social media is gained through grassroots actions on the Web. Editorial media can include newspaper, television, radio, letters to the editor and even editorials.

No advertising dollars are spent with this type of media, which is why it is regarded as the most credible channel. Forms of earned media are word of mouth, buzz and viral content. Companies have little to no control with this type of media.

In a recent article posted by the Council of Public Relations Firms, they listed the top trends for 2012 and number five was earned versus paid media (http://prfirms.org/inside-pr/top-trends-for-2012). However, they point out that it may be difficult for customers to tell the difference between paid media and earned media.  For instance, when a company launches a social media campaign, they typically hit all avenues – Facebook, Twitter and YouTube – to get their message out. Now companies are being told it is not enough to just launch a campaign, they need to advertise on the social media platforms as well.

As an SEO writer, I don’t care how you spin it. Earned media is far more credible to customers than paid media ever will be. There- I said it. Everyone has an opinion and we, as PR professionals, have a different approach to this topic in our office.

Take the newspaper for instance, when you look at it, whether in print or online, do you spend your time reading the articles or looking at the ads? Sure, your business can spend a lot of money on ads that say whatever you want about your business, but do the readers care? Not often. With earned media, if a reporter writes about your business, it frequently works in your favor because articles are seen as objective. You have no control over what the reporter says and that’s exactly how earned media is manifested.

Let’s make this simple: customer opinion can’t be bought. Customers trust each other more than any other source when making a buying decision and only earned media has that power.

Yes, social media is giving earned media a boost by allowing companies to connect with brand users, but the companies need to learn how to respond to the good and the bad and think of ways to stimulate organic marketing efforts.

While earned media is a powerful tool for companies, it is not entirely free. Companies still must focus their efforts on creating high-quality products and services that are able to speak for themselves.  There is some risk in possibly losing control of your message or having it unexpectedly change direction, but you take the same risk when dealing with paid media.

By understanding the importance of earned media, companies can create deeper, long-term relationships with customers that are engaged advocates of their organization.

• Write for people, not for search engines

Google is smart, but your readers are smarter. Avoid SEO-overkill and don’t stuff your content with keywords. Keyword stuffing can actually hurt your rank on Google. Write your posts thoughtfully to your audience, and listen to what they have to say. Often people will remember the brand that talked with them more than the brand that talked to them.

We hear Lorrie sometimes tell clients, “If you’re writing for search engines only, you need to stop.”  She reminds them that a search engine isn’t going to come into your store; buy your product; tell friends about you. People are.

Photo Courtesy of GlamourSpot

• Duplicate content duplicate content

There are many reasons to avoid duplicate content on your blog. Consider this: the more time Googlebots spend looking through your duplicate content, the less time they spend searching through the other great things on your site.

No one knows what your customers need to know better than you, the business owner and expert extraordinaire. Instead of rehashing something that’s already been done, say something new and relevant. If you don’t have something fresh and significant to say, don’t say anything.

If you can’t find the words to make a great blog post, consider hiring someone to write it for you. Good writers can interview you, extract your knowledge and write a post that coherently shares your expertise.

• Remember why you chose your topic

Writing can be hard when you don’t feel like there is anything good to write about. Think about why you started your business, why you implemented a blog on your site, and refocus your writing direction into one solid area. What do your posts have in common? WordPress has a great “getting started” game that would greatly help refocus anyone who’s lost their way in cyber-world.

Caution! Don’t write just for the sake of having new content. While new content will get noticed, too much irrelevant content will get your blog ignored.

• Also, pictures.

Everyone loves photos and graphics. Pictures are worth a thousand words, and that’s a thousand words no one has to read. Have you ever tried to read a thousand words? That’s like, 5 pages, double-spaced. You know how big a photo on your blog is? Like 3×3 inches. Tops.

Interesting Charts:
How Google Works
Where Should You Post Your Status?

Matt Cutts, the head of Google’s Webspam team, recently produced a video in which he discussed the value of content over search engine optimization.

In that video, he said that as a business owner, you can have great content on your site, but be completely lacking in good SEO, and still wind up with a site that ranks well on Google.

Ali Husayni, CEO of Master Google, agreed with that assessment, and so do we.

“By virtue of being great content, it will attract quality, inbound links,” Husayni said. “Sites that write great content on a regular basis attract visitors as well as Google spiders.

Google ranks old and new pages of these sites above their competitors, which should eliminate the need for anyone to even attempt black hat SEO techniques.

That is what Matt was getting at in his video. Just because someone is an SEO expert, it doesn’t mean they are good at creating great content. And even if you are the best at utilizing all the little SEO tricks of the trade that will make your site friendly for Google spiders, that still has its limitations.

At the end of the day, a Google spider won’t buy your product or service. You need real people to visit your site. And once they get there, you must give them a reason to stay. You either need to provide something that helps them make a buying decision, or you need to have useful information that educates and informs.

That is where good content comes into play. Good content is original and relevant. Good content answers a question; meets a need; paints you as an expert in your field.

So while it’s no secret that we are huge believers in the power and benefits of SEO, we also are solidly behind Matt Cutts in his assessment of great content. SEO and content should compliment one another. 

“Great content also needs great SEO to get ranked better,” Husayni says. 

Understanding people’s interests plays hand-in-hand with writing great content. For example, if you are opening a massage therapy center, but you’re unaware of the most popular types of massage therapy, you will lose your business to your competitors who have a clue.

When you have lots of ideas for great content on your site, you need to be diligent in posting it to your website frequently. Google loves websites that add new, useful information often. This tends to be where many of our clients stumble. Sometimes they struggle to come up with good ideas. Other times, they have ideas, but lack the time to write the content.

We come to the rescue on both fronts. Our writers are as skilled at generating ideas as they are at writing about them. If you want to put your website to work against your competitors in 2012, call us. We can help- 863.614.0555

Something happened recently to a friend of mine in Lakeland and she attempted to get the situation corrected by working directly with the business owner. After five days and an apparent lack of cooperation from the business owner to right the wrong, she weighed her options. Small claims court, where there was a 50-50 chance of winning. Or social media, where she felt she could at least warn others so they could avoid being a victim of an apparent scam. This is what she wrote:

Friends in Lakeland, please be careful if you ever do business with [COMPANY X]. The owner says that he sells Rolex watches, but BEWARE. All of the Rolex links on his website are no good and there is no documentation other than he has a Certified Rolex-trained technician that can help with service and repairs. He advertises all over town on billboards, bus benches and else where that he sells Rolex watches. We thought he would be legit, but we were mistaken and TAKEN by him. We purchased an upgraded Rolex face for my watch and it started to look dirty so I took it to a Rolex dealer to have it cleaned. Well, it’s not dirty, the paint is coming off. Paint????…You got it, he sold us an aftermarket face and it’s FAKE! I purchased it from [COMPANY X] for almost $700 and it’s FAKE!!! But the real kick in the teeth is that he is refusing to make good on it. Never mind he has my real Rolex face that he replaced the fake with. No wonder he can afford to advertise all over town, he’s ripping people off. My only legal recourse is to file in small claims court. The filing fees are $175 and an additional $40 to have him served. I find it hard to believe that he can get away with doing this to consumers. I’m really not extravagant, this was a 20th anniversary gift from my husband….a special purchase that had a lot of meaning and the owner knew it. Should have known better when he refused to give us the Rolex paperwork saying that he would file everything for us. His wife would fill in the serial number and do the paperwork as a courtesy to us for being his customers. What a scam artist. I wonder if he’s just started doing this recently or if he’s been scamming unsuspecting customers for awhile?

One factor worth mentioning is that she didn’t go straight to social media in a fit of anger. She tried to get the problem corrected. I would recommend that everyone put themselves through a bit of a cooling off period before posting something that potentially could damage a business. She is a small business owner herself, and didn’t want to ruin a business’s reputation. She just wanted to not be taken advantage of.

I’m using this as a public relations teaching moment for businesses. In my opinion, this is what a business that finds itself in this situation should do:

- Take action immediately when a customer comes to you with a complaint. Customers in this situation likely are angry and feel taken advantage of. You need to listen to them and allow them to vent. They need to feel as though their concerns have been heard and that you care about correcting the problem.

- If you’ve done something wrong, say so. Apologize. Make it right. In the situation above, perhaps it’s possible that this jeweler believed he had purchased authentic Rolex parts and unknowingly scammed the customer. If that was the case, voicing that possibility and vowing to investigate it might have helped calm the situation.

- If you find that a disgruntled customer has taken to social media instead of allowing you an opportunity to rectify the situation, reach out. Invite the customer to come in so you can try to correct the problem.

I’m a firm believer that just as you want to read positive comments about your business in social media, you NEED to read the (hopefully) occasional negative comment. If some aspect of your business is not as good as it should be, don’t you want to know that? Don’t you want an opportunity to address it and make it right?

I keep a note on my computer so I will read it often. It reads, “Be transparent. Be authentic. Be humble.”

Six words can pack a great deal of meaning. If you will be transparent, authentic and humble in your business dealings, I’m convinced you will achieve success.

Photo Credit: Gipiosio

Taylor Flumerfelt and I connected through the student chapter of the Florida Public Relations Association at Southeastern University, where she is a junior. Once Taylor discovered that she would graduate a year earlier than anticipated, she called on me for help at the end of her sophomore year.

Taylor says she knew this was the right public relations firm for her because of our “level of skill and professionalism.” Color us flattered!

“I know this will be an enriching experience in building my PR skill set and widening the breadth of my knowledge of PR,” she says.

Taylor is majoring in journalism/public relations and minoring in psychology. She has gained experience in event planning through Southeastern University’s Student Body Leadership Council and working with local companies such as Kreative Kartel. Taylor is the president of the student chapter of FPRA at Southeastern University and a member of the Dick Pope/Polk County chapter of FPRA.

The job market in the PR field has become increasingly competitive and PR firms are looking for graduates who don’t need additional training to fulfill the responsibilities of the jobs they’re interviewing for. That’s why internships are so important—they complement the material students learn in the classroom and prepare them for what they will face after graduation.

We know Taylor well enough to know she loves to learn, and she’s excited about the experiences she’ll have during her time with us.

Upon graduating from Southeastern University’s Honors Program in May 2013, Taylor plans to earn a Master of Science in Public Relations and find an event planning job.

We’re excited to help Taylor make the most of her college education and prepare her for the next stage of her life. We’re also excited that she joins two other interns who elected to stay with us for another semester: Melissa Rodriguez and Karen Snir.