Viva’s newest client, Point of Wealth Systems, Inc., officially launched at DEMO in San Diego on Tuesday.  The response has been amazing!  They’re still riding the wave of coverage streaming in from the event with news in top tier publications including USA Today, CNET, VentureBeat and UberGizmo.  Viva! Consult managed all PR and marketing efforts in support of the event.  The press release, DEMO presentation and coverage can all be viewed in the social media release at http://pitch.pe/26360.  Congratulations to our wonderfully inventive clients!

In doing PR for an NBC affiliate fresh out of college, I was amazed by how many poorly written press releases crossed my desk. I had the responsibility of filtering through literally hundreds of press releases a day and determining which to keep and which to discard. The decision-making process was quite easier than one might think and fast…so fast. I’m sure some great news ended up slipping through the cracks because a press release was too long or too fluffy or just too hard to follow, but I learned some valuable lessons in dealing with the media.

Below are my basic rules of thumb for writing a news release. There are exceptions, but for the most part, this is a recipe for success. I’ll elaborate on each bullet in future blog entries:

• The press release must be newsworthy.
• Begin with a catchy title that grabs readers’ attention.
• The first paragraph of the press release should clearly and concisely state the news – preferably in just two sentences.
• Avoid using buzz words (i.e. “innovative solution”) that provide no hard facts or details about your news or product.
• Be brief. Try to limit your press release to one page, double-spaced.
• Eliminate descriptive words (i.e. picturesque, lovely, incredible, fabulous) that make your press release look too biased.
• Include third party validation when appropriate.

Happy writing!

Presented by: Leigh Havelick, Viva! Events PR Consultant

There are vast opinions on the effectiveness of press releases in telling a story. I believe it’s the responsibility of a PR practitioner or company insider to make your story part of a picture that’s larger than just your company. Many organizations for which I’ve done PR have measured success by the number of times their press releases appeared in industry websites or online news outlets. And to be honest, most websites only include the first 2-3 lines of a press release. While this may increase awareness, how much are people actually learning about your news or product?

To me, press releases are one piece of a puzzle in sharing information. To get in-depth coverage, it’s important to piggyback current news stories, events and trends. This doesn’t mean press releases are a waste of time. If written well, they can provide the necessary facts – and more importantly a hook – to help editors/journalists determine if it’s news they’d like to pursue further.

I’ll be posting a series of blogs that will provide tips on how to write an effective press release and later, how to pitch them to the media to get the results you want. After all, telling your story should be fun…and easy!

Presented by: Leigh Havelick, Viva! Events PR Consultant

If strangers on the street were asked the top five things that come to mind when they hear the name of your business, what would they say? Would you be satisfied in their response or would you be compelled to drive change? How about your employees? Would they say the company’s direction and values are in-line with your mission statement?

For many businesses, large and small, there is significant emphasis and thought put into advertising and marketing. But one of the key elements – often an after-thought (if considered at all) – is the implementation of a public relations strategy. A strategic public relations campaign can strengthen a company’s position and competitive edge and is crucial to business success. Why?

• Public Relations drives awareness and motivates targeted audiences to take action
• Perceived value is much more influential than simply offering a good product or service
• Reaching decision-makers and industry influentials directly impacts your bottom line
• Internal communications and employee relations ultimately impact the morale of your business

I will be posting a series of entries that outline simple tools you can use to better reach your target audiences and ways you can leverage PR to your advantage. Best of all? Most have low associated costs, so you get big bang for the buck!

Presented by: Leigh Havelick, Viva! Events PR Consultant