Three Ways To Get New clients (or not)
I’m evil with my SEO bait, RSS friendly headline. Really these are the three easiest ways to spot the tire kickers and looky-loos.
Photo credit: cohdra from morguefile.com
1. Tell ‘em it costs money. Easiest way to scare away new business.
- When you get the “how much will it cost?” question, give them an honest answer: Depends on what you want or need, but it could range from C to Z dollars.
- If a possible client does not realize that a 25-page custom website with a secure online store costs more than a 5-page static site with a blog, they are either going to require more hand holding or will fight you for every nickel and either way, not worth it.
- Public relations and social media are not free. Unless the client is willing to pay for the monitoring, research, campaign strategy, the project’s not worth it. When I read LazySusan Monthly or follow the editor of HummelzRHot.com on Twitter, it’s because it’s WORK.
2. Ask questions. I have a simple RFP response sheet of basic questions like this one about marketing goals, which often goes ignored.
- “Do you have a time line? A budget? Are you the final decision maker? May I see current marketing materials?” If the looky loo cannot give you basic information about their business or marketing goals, they are either not serious about this or unprepared to invest in a public relations or social media consultant.
- Heck asking for an email to follow up–after they called you, is a great way to kick a faker to the curb.
- Bonus: Asking questions goes a long way to showing that you are not in “snake oil” sales but a legitimate specialist. No questions of their own = red flag.
3. Refuse the spec work, the handshake, the commission. You run a business, not a charity.
- Show them samples from your portfolio, client references and referrals, white papers and case studies; give them a detailed, copyrighted proposal but not the full campaign complete with the “Just Do It” tagline or a free logo on spec. If they haven’t seen your online portfolio and profiles, another red flag.
- If the formal business proposal and contracts you submit scares them because you mean BUSINESS and they just wanted a handshake and an email, there may be a reason.
- More than just thud books of publicity placements, portfolio of design samples, I give prospective clients referrals from current and past clients, so they can learn about how the marketing and PR initiatives helped the business and added value to the company. But I do not work on a pay-for-play commission.Not only is it unethical, it’s unrealistic.
A successful publicity campaign can generate great clip numbers, but if there’s no strategy to tie the PR back to marketing back to sales and the bottom line it won’t matter. Bad products, concepts, timing, bad clients, can hurt even the most creative campaign, and you know.. NEW COKE.
Small businesses can’t always afford a big firm, or have different people for the myriad of marketing communications functions. My solo PR practice is based on helping these people and if the project requires, creating a larger virtual agency to get the job done.
Everyone wants something for nothing. But you hurt yourself and your business to give it all away, and can waste a lot of time on dead ends.
So if someone makes it through these steps, then “Congratulations,” you have a new client lead. FWIW.
Just Say So: Disclosure, Transparency and Social Media
The FTC says bloggers must disclose the relationship between a blog and any corporate or commercial ties that could be deemed sponsorship or endorsement, or pay the price. To which I say, DUH.
On a corporate blog, unless it’s over-hyped that it’s really done by the C-level exec, most people understand that someone else is involved. Other people are probably:
- Advising the firm, shaping the message strategy, and checking it against the overall marketing and PR plans.
- Helping to draft that entry, research relevant sources and links.
- Doing the physical typing, linking and posting.
In the old days a dictated business letter had two sets of initials at the bottom, to indicate that the person signing the letter did not do the actual typing or drafting. It’d be wise to stick to that model and include a “written with so-and-so” whenever appropriate.
I took a look at the DisneyParks blog today, written by different people, with their names and titles front and center. I’m sure someone is kicking the tires, selecting the bloggers, deciding which entries to publish, as part of the overall marketing program.
Motivation matters. Why are they writing about this?
For a “private” or general consumer blog, it is different. Even though there may be tons of ads, banners, links all over the blog, some readers may not realize they are reading the “paid” work of a blogger.
Would a reader feel burned more by the blogger they trusted when they find out they only wrote about that vacuum cleaner or this hotel because of a free gift or promotion, or do they blame the brands? Does this “fraud” damage the brand?
Depends on the nature of the campaign. While someone may think less of Royal Caribbean for their promotions and whether or not they disclosed the free cruise arrangements for their Champions, RC is a business after all, and they are about making money.
Maybe I’m cynical, but it’s not all hugs, free ice cream and glitter-farting ponies; it’s business. Dell, Ford and Victoria’s Secret are using social media to build relationships and create brand ambassadors in order to–wait for it–SELL Stuff…their stuff. As you recover from the shock let me add: water is wet, sky is sometimes blue, and [my love of] Coke Classic and chocolate make me fat.
A free sample of dish detergent may not seem like much and maybe that’s the point. So what if you rave about Dawn because you really like it but only did so after they sent you a free bottle? It matters more that you say so.
Disclosure is key. Just say so.
If someone gave you a product sample, a free trip, or computer for a six-month trial, say so upfront loud and clear. In the end transparency and disclosure may actually earn more trust and loyalty for the brand, the brand advocate and the blogger.
The fine print: No brands or companies have participated or promoted the development of this blog. If any wish to do so, my wallet will be open. 
A Week in Bad PR: Object Lessons from the Dark Side
Social media and the Interwebs are teaching me a lot about communication, what works and what doesn’t in Public Relations and Marketing. This week offered examples of good, bad and unethical PR practices.
Good. Since several stories of bad Public Relations surfaced this past week, Sarah Evans sent a call out to catch PR folks in the act of doing what’s right. Kudos to that!
Bad. Bad Pitch Blog (and can I just say–I hope to never make this Blog of Shame) shared this role reversal: During a search for a well-salaried position, a journalist makes a bad pitch to a PR firm by belittling the gig. All downhill after that.
Lesson learned: Do Not overestimate my value or worth, especially when seeking gainful employment.
Equal parts Bad and Galactically Stupid. A PR Agency gets caught in SpamGate, blasting everyone the same pitch. The error compounds as the email basics of CC, BCC and Reply All were lost on many.
Making matters worse was the fact that the spam email in question was sent to several PR and Social Media experts, who of course, quickly called out the Agency. This resulted in several posts and tweets, some harsh. Many just commented on the bad practices rather than bad practitioners.
Adding fuel to the fire, the agency was too slow to respond, posting the same apology on many of the blogs that critiqued their failure. On Friday the agency posted this response, but I suspect it’s too little, too late.
Lessons learned: 1) Start with better PR practices than bulk emailing pitches and 2) Have a plan for when things go sideways. Mistakes will happen. It’s what you do next to quickly fix it that’ll make a difference.
Evil. This is the horrific, unfunny version of that scene in Once Upon a Time in Mexico, where Johnny Depp fixes the bullfight by zapping the matador: a PR Agency gets caught getting interns to rig the game by planting fake positive reviews of iPhone apps on behalf of clients.
A couple of stories and tweets and blogs about this, including Rachel Kay’s query about what happens if the interns refused, and if not, “bigger issues.” True that.
Lesson learned: The unethical practice of a PR Agency actively marketing and selling the services of rigging favorable opinions on social media networks and websites on behalf of clients and their products is counter to everything good PR and Social Media practices are all about. Period.
Ethics Hold ‘Em: PR, Journalism & Ethics Showdown
A spattering of stories and blogs the past couple weeks got me thinking about ethics. Forgive the Link-apolooza.
Doubling Down
Can an agency fairly tell both sides of a story? Looks like this was a case of a joint venture, agreed to by both parties. But serving two masters or advocating two positions is a slippery Continue reading