Shannon's thoughts on marketing, public relations, social technology, entrepreneurship and other things

Shonali, let’s begin at the beginning, what is your story?
I started my professional career as an actress.

Huh, what, you’re an actress? Who knew?
Yes, I earned my bachelor’s degree in economics and then completed a three-year program from the National School of Drama in New Delhi. I was an actress and director in India. I did mostly theater, but also some television and radio; my acting name was Shonali Ghosh. I began helping people with their public relations needs, which led me to start a business in event management and PR before I moved to the US.

[the author’s mouth hangs open as Shonali continues]

I moved to the US in 2000 after marrying an American, and he was very keen that I continue my acting career. But frankly, I’d been in the throes of the whole “drama thing” for so long, and I didn’t want to have to start at the bottom all over again in the States. Since I had some experience of PR, I started networking and found a job with a boutique PR agency in San Francisco, where we were living at the time. That was actually a terrific fit, because at the time, the agency did a lot of PR & marketing for Bay Area engagements of Broadway shows…so, in a way, I was still getting my theater “fix.” The rest is history as they say.

Now, having worked at small and large agencies, as well as in-house, I consider myself a PR agency of one. I’m not your typical agency, though, focusing solely or primarily on media relations. I like to work with individuals and organizations on their overall communication strategies.

Nugget of knowledge: My goal is to get them to understand how good communications can help them solve problems.

How have you been able to capitalize on your acting training and experience to help organizations with their communications?
Excellent question. First, part of acting is reacting, listening to your fellow cast members and reacting to them, this is where magic happens. To become a good actress, you have to listen with your eyes and your body. You have to pay attention and react to your audience as well because their reactions are not predictable. My training taught me how to be a good listener, and in turn, I’d like to think I help organizations become better listeners. Second, I learned to understand body language, which is an invaluable skill. Our tweets have body language. Word choice, capitalization, grammar and so on, comprise the body language of our tweets. Finally, I learned to project, not just my voice, but my energy. I leaned how to interact with an audience and bring them into the story we were telling.

Nugget of knowledge: This is key for organizations, as they have to capture and hold an audience’s attention with stories about products and services. It’s about my clients first, not me.

How did you begin your virtual life?
I began slowly with Twitter. I followed people I knew and respected in real life. My “tipping point” came after the terrorist attack in Mumbai, where I was anxiously trying to find out how my friends and family were. When the attacks started, there was nothing on TV here in the US. So I found news feeds from Indian television online and started sharing what I was seeing, or “secondary reporting” via tweets. I became immersed in it over those days; I remember it was Thanksgiving, and I pretty much spent it in front of my laptop and then the TV, when they started reporting on it here. And as you know, once you start, you can’t stop. Twitter is tough to understand until you actually do it. It was my comfort level with Twitter that led to my blogging.

Speaking of which, your blog is Waxing UnLyrical, how do you maintain it with everything else you’re involved in?*
It is difficult to get one’s head around blogging if one hasn’t done it before, and I’m trying to get better at it. I was hesitant at first, thinking like a lot of beginner bloggers, “why would anyone want to read my blog?” But as I got comfortable on Twitter, I realized that I often wanted to share opinions that needed more than 140 characters, and felt more and more compelled to turn to the medium. I jumped in at the start of 2009 and am trying to find ways to make it engaging, entertaining and enjoyable.

One advantage is that it’s a personal blog, so I write about whatever I want. Initially, I took this all over the place, even sharing recipes that I developed (I love to cook), but as I’ve been reading and learning more—I subscribe to quite a variety of different blogs to see what I can learn from them—I’m trying to focus it more and more on PR, social media and related topics. But there’s still a personal voice, I think, which I would not want to let go of, if I can help it. The other thing I’ve started doing recently is bringing on regular guest bloggers. This helps with the regularity of content and it also helps keep the blog fresh.

Is this a personal pay-it-forward plan?
You can say that, my first blog post was for Communication Overtones, by Kami Watson Huyse, APR, aka @kamichat. She really gave me the confidence to start writing; I mean, I’ve always been a decent writer, but not having written consistently for a while, I was intimidated by some of the blogging I saw. I still am, but a little less scared now, and I want to give that same opportunity to other bloggers.

Since so many people helped me get started, I figured that if I can help someone find their voice, then I want to do it.

*For those who don’t know Shonali, she is an adjunct faculty member at the Johns Hopkins University, the current president of the International Association of Business Communicator’s DC Metro chapter, managing editor for Women Grow Business, contributor to BNET.com, an entrepreneur, public speaker and last, and certainly not least, a wife.

On Thursday October 28th, Network Solutions hosted a Twitter chat, You Don't Have to be BIG to Get Media Attention: PR Tips for Your Small Business. PR expert Shonali Burke (this week’s Awesomely Fantabulous Woman) and Washington Business Journal blogger Jennifer Nycz-Conner, along with the collective brilliance of the Twitterverse, shared valuable information on how small businesses can generate buzz about their organizations, products and services.

Below are some of the edited nuggets of knowledge from the chat. The complete stream is found at #netsol.

Where do I start with my public relations strategy?
@Shonali: Far too often we focus on PR tools & tactics without laying a foundation to tell a good story. That should be #1.
@Shonali (cont): I wrote this for @ownersonly recently: first lay the PR foundation for your biz: Three Keys to Laying a Strong PR Foundation
@CathyWebSavvyPR : PR strategy starts with goals - what do you want to accomplish, who is your audience, etc.
@ShannonRenee: [PR] strategy is like planning a road trip, gas up car, get snacks, map out direction, hotels, sites along way...then hit the road

What makes a story newsworthy?
@WBJonline: Newsworthiness comes down to one thing: News.
@WBJonline: For us, news means: Something new. Something different. Some big change that our readers will want to know about to run their biz.
@WBJonline: For #WBJ, news can be company A buys company B, or trend X is happening here.
@Susan_w: News = change or controversy!
@WBJonline: Also, exclusivity is important. By the time a press release goes out, it's no longer new news usually.
@CathyWebSavvyPR: A story's next steps are matching it 2 the right publication & writer & crafting it 2 meet needs of their readers
@WBJonline: Timeliness is key, too. We used to have weekly deadlines. Those are now daily, hourly.
@Baskervill: news is anything that is of interest to your audience

How can I get the media’s attention?
@WBJonline: Get our attention by knowing what we care about on behalf of audience and when we need it.
@Shonali: Remember the media are getting pitched a ton of stuff all the time. If you start using [social media] smartly, you can use that to get attn.
@CathyWebSavvyPR: PR is not about getting "THE MEDIA'S" Attn - but about finding the right media outlets that match your audience & theirs
@WBJonline: Getting media's attention is like anticipating client needs.
@Baskervill: You need to build a relationship with the media prior to submitting to their publication.
@WBJonline: Know what we're looking for. In the #WBJ case, we write stories about local businesses. Don't pitch non-local companies w/o DC tie.
@WBJonline: What does get our attention: Good, targeted, short pitches with exclusive info.
@WBJonline: Example: "Company A is about to hire 150 people because they landed client X. Would you like to know more?"

How do I dertermine what outlets would be interested in my story?
@WBJonline: I know this sounds totally obvious, but read them. Know what we have written.
@WBJonline: Oh! And don't, for the love of everything, try to interest us by telling us a competitor wrote about you. Please. Please.
@WBJonline: Nothing makes my eyes glaze over faster than "XYZ publication just wrote about us, so you should too."
@WBJonline: When someone else has written the story, it's no longer news. (See A2)
@Shonali: No way around it, gotta do your research. Learn who the media/bloggers are that are important to you/your biz. Local + national.
@Shonali (cont): there are several databases you can subscribe to to build media/blogger lists. Note: they are usually not cheap.
@Baskervill: You have to research the publication. You can't send a press release to everyone.
@Baskervill (cont): It needs to be specific to that audience
@Shonali: When you're doing your media research, CRITICAL to find out more than name/contact. What are they interested in? Recent stories?
@scottstead: great resource for getting ur story in front of reporters, is be a source
@Baskervill: You have to remember that the journalist is more than an email address to send a release to.
@WBJonline: Re: Best time to contact: Deadlines, in a way, are dead. We're all publishing around the clock.
@WBJonline: Best thing to do is pitch short, bulleted, and if on phone, ask if it's a good time.
@WBJonline: Also, when pitching, keep in mind newsrooms are small, open spaces. If you pitch my colleague, and then me right after, I know.
@WBJonline: This is off Q, but something a lot of people don't know: Skip the attachments. Please. Keep emails short and attach free.
@WBJonline: Don't worry about making releases pretty. Just get us a few lines of text with the important why we care stuff first.
@WBJonline: Being a source doesn't always mean revealing a massive story, or even talking about yourself.
@WBJonline: Some of the best sources just call and say, hey, did you hear about XYZ... Or, I heard this thing is happening, did you know?

These are some of the other questions posed during the chat, along with resources:

What online tools can I use for public relations for my business?
Using Online Smarts to Become a Media Source

What are the best strategies & tactics for blogger relations?
The 5 C’s of Blogger Relations

Moving forward, How do I make a plan/set goals for PR for my small biz?
STACK the Deck in Your Favor

This is short, sweet and to the point, let's go:

1. Boost your SEO by spending the little bit of money required to purchase your domain --> once you have it, it's yours


2. Ask open-ended questions and request comments at the end of your blog post --> see the bottom of this post


3. Write about something other than your organization, your products and your services --> remember, it isn't always about you


4. Mix up your type of posts: long posts, shorter posts, lists, videos, interviews, audio, polls, photos, testimonials, reviews, etc. --> mixing the format keeps your readers interested


5. Have your blog posts go to your other online properties --> whether someone reads it on your Facebook page or goes to the URL, they're reading it


6. Bring in guest bloggers and be a guest blogger


7. Participate in other online and IRL social networks: Twitter chats, networking events, blog commemorative days, meetups and tweetups --> constantly work for new readers


8. Have your blog as part of your email signature, most services allow for hyperlinking --> easiest way to increase passive traffic


9. List your blog on your business card, your Facebook page, your LinkedIn profile and your Twitter bio --> let people know where to find you


10. Regularly read and leave valuable comments on other blogs in your niche, such as "nice post, have you considered...," "I disagree because..." or "these are additional resources..." -->conversation, conversation, conversation

What techniques have you used to increase your blog traffic?
What seemed like a good idea to increase your blog traffic, but turned out not to be?

Additional resources:
Blogging Basics 101
Mack Collier

What is Indie Business?
Indie Business is Indie Business Media, LLC, the company I own with my husband. One of our subsidiaries is the Indie Beauty Network, a trade organization that provides educational and small business networking services, and products liability insurance, for our small manufacturers of health, beauty and lifestyle products. Another subsidiary is INDIEgu, an e-commerce hub for American handmade and artisan products like soaps, candles, fragrances and confectionery goodies.

When did you start?
We launched on January 16, 2000, the day we also published our first online newsletter. Launching this business with a newsletter was the biggest and most important professional achievement of my life.

Really, launching a newsletter was momentous?
Yes, because the newsletter is one of the most fun and effective tools I use to connect with my customers and other stakeholders. It allows me to do four things that are important to me: have fun, help others, increase profitability and stay in touch with people easily and consistently.

Are these four things your priority?
Yes, in the sense that I use them to evaluate how I am doing as a business leader. If I am having fun, helping others, earning a profit and staying in touch with those whom I serve, then I am achieving my purposes as a woman and a business owner. In the case of the newsletter, for example, since I was a journalist/public relations major in college, I learned a lot about publishing. I combined this formal education with my love for the writing process, and this makes newsletter publishing not only effective, but also fun for me. Writing is professionally and personally satisfying for me, as is reaching out and connecting with other people.

Tell me about the newsletter.
The Indie Experience Newsletter is published each Monday. The tagline for the newsletter is my own personal motto, "Enjoy your life! Build your business! Have your way." It is a news, business and product resource.

How do you use media to get the word out about your business?
Connecting with and nurturing relationships with all kinds of media outlets is an integral and enjoyable part of my business. I share information and publish content that helps people, and this ultimately grows my business. I enjoy training others to use their own branded media outlets to do the same through my one-day The Media Is You training workshops. When it comes to media, I employ what I call the trifecta: passion, instincts and training. It's a part of my purpose to help others use media outlets, to discover their voice and share their passions and ideas with the world.

Nugget of knowledge: Everyone needs to be their own best media outlet.

How did you get started on our entrepreneurial journey?
I had a traditional 9-5 job and I was unfulfilled because I didn’t learn anything about myself. I was paid to perform, not to grow. I wanted to grow, and when I realized that a traditional workplace was not helping me do that, I decided to create my own workplace by launching a business that I could design to fit my life -- instead of designing my life to fit my profession. I decided I wanted my life mantra to be, “Enjoy my life! Build my business! Have my way!" So I created that for myself and my family, and now, I help others do the same.

You’ve also found another stream of income as a public speaker, what are some of the messages you share with young people when you talk with them?
This is a great question, since I'm just back from lecturing to graduate students at Georgia State University's J. Mack Robinson College of Business. I encourage young people to start a blog, to be in control of their online identity, their brand and to use technology to reflect skills, integrity, humanity, and professionalism. Young people must be careful to take control of their online personas. If they don't, future employers, business partners, spouses and children could uncover unfavorable things (true or not), which can hurt them in down the road.

"You may not be able to control what people say about you online, but if you aren't a proactive part of the conversations about you on the Internet, you're abdicating your responsibility to present the best possible reflection of yourself to the world."

What are some of the keys to your success?

• Patience: I am willing to do tiny things no one else sees in order to take the big steps that are more visible.
• Focus: I'm not trying to be all things to all people. I have a niche and I do my best to serve it.
• Faith and Family: My husband and personal faith are integral to everything I do, and everything that is done to me.
• Persistence: I don't give up. When an obstacle comes, I assess it and figure out how to go over, around, under or through it so I can achieve.
• Humility: I ask for help when I need it. This is one of the most effective ways to achieve your goals.
• Relationships: Life and business are nothing without them so I try to maintain healthy, interdependent relationships.
• Technology: I embrace it every step of the way. I use it to position myself as someone here to help, offer a service you need, and bringing value to your life.

Finally, life is a process of constant rebranding...I’m in a constant state of beta.

Most Americans begin driving in their teen years. They are woefully inexperienced and highly enthusiastic. They tend to drive too fast, take too many chances and not give the road their full attention.

• When do they become "expert" drivers?
• When do they have "enough" experience that their judgment isn't questioned?
• For that matter, are the automotive engineers experts at driving by the fact they design cars?
• Do mechanics hold the title of driving expert because they know how to fix cars?
• And what about adults, does daily usage give them expertise?

Just as driving has become ubiquitous, the regular use of social technology is quickly becoming mainstream. This begs the question, if everyone is doing it, how can you be an expert at it?

The answer is quite simple, everyone can be a social technology expert; however, only a few will be social technology professionals. In the same vein that everyone can be an expert driver; however, only a few will be professional drivers. This is where the activity of driving isn't a way to get to work, it is the work. When you hear the phrase professional drivers, what comes to mind...race car drivers, truck drivers and bus drivers. These men and women take the simple act of driving to the next level. Professional drivers take extra classes, earn additional credentials and participate in their profession.

This scenario should sound familiar because it is how the majority of professionals are made, with training (education), credentialing (certification) and participating in the profession (publish, speak, mentor). This is true for social technology professionals as well, as you take blogging, tweeting, connecting and engaging to the next level. You attend webinars, unconferences and tweet-ups; you share your knowledge via tweet chats, meet-ups and conferences and your experience level is beyond par because you are power-user with a body of work behind you.

Yes, everyone can be a social technology expert, YOU are a social technology professional.

This is the first in the new professionalism series.

This week’s Awesomely Fantabulous Woman is Liz Scherer. She is a wordsmith of the first order, beginning her writing career at the old age of 7. If you don’t know her, you should follow, friend and connect with her ASAP. We had a great conversation and I learned a lot about Liz and her secret to success, which makes me want to be even more like her.

I began by asking Liz how she would describe herself:
I’m a writer and a journalist specializing in health, particularly women’s health. I’ve been writing since I was a child, and I was first published when I was 7, it was a poem. I transitioned to non-fiction after I graduated from college. I wanted to combine my business skills  and my passion for writing, which lead me to healthcare public relations. This is about the time I also  started getting published as a medical writer.

I didn’t know you’re a writer, I thought you were in marketing?
People don’t know how to classify me because of my different hats. Marketing is an underlying foundation, but I’ve always been a writer. The 80s were when I started getting paid as a writer; I was first published in 86. Then I began health reporting as the digital space grew.

I know you’re passionate about women’s health, what was the impetus for your blog, Flashfree?
I started my blog in 2008 because I finally had something to say.

Come on Liz, those of us who know you, know you always have something to say.
Seriously, I had gotten away from creative writing for some time and I needed to write about what was happening to me, my body, in my own voice.

Why write about such a personal issue?
Well, I’ve been a long time advocate of women’s health, it’s a key interest of mine. As I started my journey through this stage of life, I began doing research, and I found there wasn’t a lot being written for me. I’m a “tail gater” not quite old enough to be an official baby boomer and I’m a little too old to be part of Gen X. I was unhappy with the information I found about perimenopause. In particular, there was also limited information on natural alternatives to HRT.

How much longer do you think you’ll keep writing about menopause?
Right now, I do it because there’s a need and I enjoy it. When there isn’t a need or it stops being fun, then I’ll stop.

You’re also a contributor to Women Grow Business, how long have you been in business and how have you managed to stay relevant?
I attended a TEDxEast event and heard a presentation by Baba Brinkman about evolution, and from there I was able to put a name to something I had been doing my entire career. I call it “Evolutionary Marketing,” which is based on a three -ronged algorithm: performance, feedback and revision.

Please explain.
Sure. Performance equals quality control, for instance, making sure I deliver well-researched, well-written content on schedule. Feedback means client retention, am I listening to my clients, am I still meeting their needs, is my business growing? Finally, revision is the evaluation and adaptation stage, these are my business drivers.

So, these are the keys to your longevity?
Yes, I keep adding new skill sets, offering a mix of services to my clients. “My adaptability has allowed me to run my own business and be successful  since 1992."

Every Sunday at 9:00 pm (ET), Mack Collier hosts #blogchat on Twitter, which utilizes the micro-blog's platform to harness the collective intelligence of the Twitterverse. This past week, Mack's guest was Chris Brogan, who shared learnings and best practices on the topic "How to Use Other Social Media Sites to Improve Your Blog."

In 60 minutes, Chris dropped several social media nuggets of knowledge (nok), some of them are below*. You can read the full transcript here.

#blogchat - one thing #NOT to do is use LinkedIn only for Business, FB only for fun, etc.
 
#blogchat Remember this: the goal of using networks to enhance your blog is to thread your ideas into other like-minded streams. (nok)

#blogchat The #1 social network you're neglecting: email marketing. 93% of people opt into a daily brand relationship via email.

#blogchat: @fianxu - interesting question. Blogs can be more freeform. Books should stick to one thesis. Blogs-to-magazines, more true.

#blogchat (@MackCollier) - outposts are off-main-site places, like Twitter, like FB, like LinkedIn, like forums.
#blogchat I recommend spending 50% of your social time on outposts, making relationships, prospecting, building connections. (nok)
#blogchat Then, because those places are the outpost and not the home base, put the occasional "conversion" fork in there, to invite them (nok)
#blogchat by "conversion fork," I mean a gentle invitation to your home base. Nothing too spammy. Certainly nothing overly repetitive.

#blogchat @CoachKarenG - no. Frequency certainly doesn't improve open rates. #RELEVANCE improves open rates. (nok)

#blogchat Promoting your own stuff over and over again is lame. Promote others 12x to ever[y] 1x of your own stuff.
#blogchat - @MackCollier - outposts is about meeting with people on neutral ground, where THEY are, vs always trying to make them come in. (nok)
#blogchat When I say promote others 12/1 over your own stuff, I mean on Twitter. Like, when @JasonFalls has a killer post, promote IT, not u
 
#blogchat If you're looking to build from outposts, do good things for others on those outposts. Write referrals in LinkedIn, ...
#blogchat Do good things elsewhere. Promote great causes on Facebook. Do TONS of not-promoting-you stuff with no hope or ask of reciprocity.
#blogchat Want more readers? Stop writing about yourself, except as a way to relate to others. Give THEM new tools to succeed. (nok)

#blogchat Ask yourself this: what's the GOAL of your blog. And don't lie. Sales? "Thought leadership?" A channel? Media property? (nok)

What nuggets of knowledge would you add?
Which nuggets are you interested in learning more about?

Additional information:
Mack Collier's blog
Chris Brogan's blog
Jason Falls' blog

*These tweets are taken out of context and reading the transcript is recommended to receive complete understanding of Chris Brogran's tweets and the full value of the #blogchat.

You have dreamed of being an entrepreneur --> owning your own business --> calling your own shots --> being your own boss

You have had ideas for a business since you were in college --> you talk to friends about it --> you dream about it

You have been told time & again that you're too smart to work for other people --> family & friends know it --> colleagues know it --> YOU know it

Do any of those statements resonate with you? If so, then why haven't you started your own enterprise?

This isn't one of those blog posts about overcoming fears, doubts or insecurities, you can find that information elsewhere. This is about the nuts and bolts of making your business ownership a reality. Ready...let's get started.

First and foremost, write your idea down. If it isn't written down, it doesn't exist.

Magical things happen when you write down your ideas:

1. "It" becomes tangible, and once it becomes something you can touch, then it becomes something attainable and achievable.
2. "It" gains clarity, moving from an abstract concept to a sentence to a paragraph.
3. "It" grows as you can now envision taking it from here to there to everywhere.
4. "It" starts to manifest itself as you have gotten the proverbial ball rolling in the direction of fulfillment.

What are you waiting for...you (we) aren't getting any younger. This is the first step to making "it" a reality...remember, even baby steps move forward.

It is August and a lot of people are vacationing this month. The process – having passion and a purpose, doing proper planning and careful preparation – to execute an enjoyable time away from work, traffic, email, et al is the same process for launching a new venture, be it a business, a blog or personal improvement.

Passion
You want to go to a place about which you're passionate. You will end up spending a lot of time and money getting there and enjoying yourself once there. It is a place that brings a smile to your face when the thought of it crosses your mind. The same holds true for your next venture, the mere idea of it gets your mind racing with ideas and your spirit excited with anticipation. Your enthusiasm about the project is contagious.

Purpose
You know exactly why you're going on vacation. You need time away from "those people" and "that place" to relax and rejuvenate. This is time for you to reconnect with yourself: your body, mind and spirit. Similarly with your venture, there is a reason you're heading down this path. You dream about it or wake up in the middle of the night with ideas. There is an unction in your spirit to do it, if you don't who will, if not now, when?

Planning
You have done the research: you Googled, purchased guidebooks and talked to family, friends and colleagues. You know exactly where you are going, how you’re getting there, where you’re staying and what you're doing. You know how much it is going to cost and you know it is going to be fabulous. For your new venture, you have researched the industry, your competition and the gaps in products or services you can fill. You know the big players in the field, the up-n-coming and where you want to fit.

Preparation
You saved the money and made the lists: to do, packing, emergency numbers, etc. You put in for the time off and you set your email and phone to the out-of-office auto-replies. Likewise, you have secured capital, the domain name, P.O. box, phone number and business cards. You’ve put a support team in place and set-up your home office.

Now…GO!...DO!...BE!