Small Business Center

The Press Release Isn’t Dead - It Has Evolved

October 30th, 2008 by Admin

I hear a lot lately that the press release is dead. Or that your press release isn’t enough. You must use social media press releases. They’ll have you think that a press release must to be transformed to include social media, including video, images, and/or podcasts. This is not true.

Instead, the press release has evolved. It’s now online and the audience has shifted from a journalist to your customer or web searcher. Instead of being distributed by people, it’s more often by a search engine.

Traditional media don’t often use press releases as sources of news. They search for news in search engines and they read blogs. Most get stories via email pitches. Today, your press release...

PR Firms: Spend your Money on SEO

October 21st, 2008 by Admin

I just got off a call with reporters that gave some great insights in how to get media coverage for a business. Ideally you’ll get stories both off and online.

Reporters use the Internet to find and develop stories, if you’re a PR firm looking to get your clients noticed, your first focus should be online. “I don’t know how I did my job without the Internet” claimed one journalist.

The Internet is how you reach reporters. Start with email, get onto blogs, and invest in SEO.

What’s DEAD in PR:

• Press releases - most journalists don’t read them.
• Inviting reporters to lunch, for coffee, your event, or to meet you in person. They’re too busy.
• Calling reporters to check to see if they got...

An Approach to Getting Top Keyword Rankings

October 11th, 2008 by Admin

Court at Court’s School of Internet Marketing wrote about how to rank high on a particular keyword. This is one approach that can help your SEO efforts to rank on very competitive keywords. We apply many approaches based on the need of the business or client and their budgets.

Rather than going after the biggest most competitive term, you can circle around your keyword phrase by providing content about related topics. He uses the example of trying to rank for “cell phones.” That is going to be difficult. It could cost a lot of money and still take years.

Many small businesses don’t understand or grasp how competitive and difficult it is to rank well on some terms. It’s not tangible...