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

The seven worst words to utter in business: this is how we've always done it...blah, blah, blah.

There are a number of plausible explanations for saying them.

• "It" worked in the past. There is a record of success by doing "it" this way. 
• People don't respond well to change. This is how the clients and the bosses like "it." 
• There aren't enough resources to come up with or implement new ways for doing "it."
• There is a lack of enthusiasm, energy and moral for doing "it" in the first place.

Those excuses may have sufficed at one time, but not anymore. Organizations and stakeholders are looking for, and have come to expect, innovative thinking, out-of-the-box ideas and no-holds-barred solutions. Doing "it" as you always have just won't work anymore. As the saying goes, nothing ventured, nothing gained…now is the time to take a risk and push “it” to the next level.

1. Get motivated. This is an opportunity for you to learn something new, do something different and make a difference in your organization. 


2. Build a team. Take this occasion to work with different people in the organization; new people bring new energy, new perspectives and new ideas. 


3. Pace yourself. Use this moment to make one or two distinctive incremental changes, instead of rebuilding “it” from the ground up. 


4. Seek counsel. The people who’ve done “it” for the last several years have the wisdom of experience and lessons learned; they are your allies. 


5. Keep smiling. “It” has been done the same way for seemingly eons, some people may not understand, be comfortable or want “it” to change. Remember, in the end, adjusting “it” is for the betterment of the entire organization.

Take "it" on with gusto and make it yours!

"It" is due on Friday.
You say "it" will be done by Noon on Wednesday.
You turn "it" in on COB Tuesday.
You're a superstar!

Really?

One of the dilemmas with the "under promise and over deliver" concept is in the execution. If it becomes a regular way of doing business, then stakeholders will raise their expectations, as you have surpassed every milestone by leaps and bounds. Isn't that what you wanted to avoid in the first place?

Nugget of Knowledge: You want to manage expectations to your benefit, not your detriment.

It is a good idea to prepare realistic timelines and set achievable goals. Be sure to check your calendar, check your calendar and check your calendar before agreeing to any project timeline.

It is a good idea to give yourself a little cushion to complete the project. Adding a little extra time in your project workflow allows for the unexpected, especially if you are dependant on other people for their parts of the project.

It is a good idea to strategically to beat deadlines. Demonstrating your eagerness and diligence to a new client or customer can go a long way to securing future collaborations and partnerships.

It is the best idea to be forthright and on time, not too early and never ever late.

What do you think?
How do you manage expectations?

Microsoft’s BHAG: A computer on every desk and in every home.
Google’s BHAG: Organize the world’s information and make it universally accessible and useful.

What is your Big Hairy Audacious Goal? Do you want to…

• Be the keynote speaker at an international conference? 
• Have 40-50 employees and clients from the Atlantic to the Pacific? 
• Get your doctorate and be a tenured professor? 
• Start a non-profit, foundation or be a philanthropist? 
• Own a 120-unit apartment building? 
• Be an elected official? 

So often businesses expend a lot of resources to develop their "vision.” You hire consultants and coaches and you go on retreats and attend seminars, and usually the answer is right in front of you all along … you simply forgot it.

Think back to when you first had the idea for your business, before you launched, before you registered for your L.L.C., even before you secured the domain. Go all the way back, when you dared to share the idea with a girlfriend, sister, Mother or spouse. In the midst of the excitement about your new adventure, you had the arrogance, foresight and courage to utter your BHAG. Do you remember? Are you still on track to achieve it or has the day-to-day of doing business clouded the vision for your business?

Here are some simple steps to keep your BHAG alive:

1. Write it down – it does not exist if it it is not written down. 
2. Post it – put it somewhere you can see it everyday and multiple times a day. 
3. Speak it – repeat it to yourself out loud several times a day. 
4. Track progress – acknowledge the small steps to achieving to your BHAG. 
5. Move it, move it, move it – your BHAG won’t accomplish itself. 

From the proverbial horses mouth, Jim Collins, BHAG co-creator on How can you tell if you have a good BHAG? (video)

Necessity
Work?
I don't have to work.
I don't have to do nothing
but eat, drink, stay black, and die.
This little old furnished room's
so small I can't whip a cat
without getting fur in my mouth
and my landlady's so old
her features is all run together
and God knows she sure can overcharge-
Which is why I reckon I *does*
have to work after all.
--Langston Hughes
Montage of a Dream Deferred, 1951

As Langston wrote 60 years ago, there are very few "have to's" in life; however, in business there are a great number of "need to's."

You need to market your business.
You don't have to have a Facebook page (Gasp!).

You need to find your customers.
You don't have to have a Twitter account (Get out!).

You need to generate revenue.
You don't even have to have a website (Blasphemy!).

There are a number of "old school" marketing tactics you can employ for your business. None of them are better or worse than any other, all of them require different levels of commitment and resources and all have been successful in one form or another. It is a question of which one(s) will work for you, not which one(s) you have to do. 

Some "Old School" Marketing Tactics

• transportation advertising (signs on buses and at bus stops)
• posters, flyers and postcards
• radio, television and print advertising
• movie advertising
• newsletter and program advertising
• referral and word-of-mouth
• incentive programs
• sponsorships
• networking
• billboards
• promotional items
• tradeshow exhibitions

These are a few methods for getting your message out; however, the best marketing campaign is the one that works for you in meeting your business objective. Before you begin expending valuable marketing resources, consider the following:

What is the goal of my marketing campaign?
Do I want to generate revenue, increase brand awareness or intimidate my competitors?
What marketing tactics are my competitors using?
What are the direct (capital) and indirect (time) costs?
Who is going to manage the campaign?
How long will the campaign last or run?
How will I know if the campaign is working?
What do success and failure look like?
Is the campaign going to reach my target audience?

However you decide to market yourself, remember, the only silver bullets are time and consistency.

Does this conversation sound vaguely familiar?

Consultant: Your business should have a social marketing strategy.
Brand XYZ: Why?
Consultant: Because social technology will help you generate buzz, get people talking about our brand and in general help people know who you are.
Brand XYZ: Ok, but why is any of that important?
Consultant: Because you want to engage your customers and begin building relationships with them.
Brand XYZ: And why exactly do I want to build relationships with my customers?

Have you been on one or the other of this conversation?

Most communication vehicles had their turn as the shiny new marketing toy, billboards lined the horizon as cars began to venture cross country, radios gave voices to a generation and televisions brought products into homes like never imagined. By now, most businesses "get" they need some sort of social technology plan, if for no other reason than everyone else is doing it. However, remember what Mom used to say, "If your friends jumped off a bridge, would you jump to?"

Keeping the age old adage in mind, there should be solid business reasons for getting into the social space. Just as a business gives serious thought to choosing location, messaging and product delivery, so to should serious deliberation be given to social technology. It will take up resources, time, money, man power, etc. that could be used for other revenue generating activities. Is it going to be worth the effort?

To ensure your social technology efforts are yielding the expected results, you must first know what results you want from social technology. Right? Right. Begin by answering these basic questions: how is social media going to help your business and what are your objectives for your social media?*

Consider these sample objectives as you begin outlining your social marketing plan:

• Bring fresh ideas into the organization
• Create word of mouth
• Increase customer loyalty
• Increase product and brand awareness
• Enhance public relations efforts
• Lower customer acquisition costs
• Lower customer support costs
• Lower market research costs
• Lower product development costs

Nugget of knowledge: Your business objectives should be SMART - Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic and Time-based.

*Social technology may not be the right communication or marketing vehicle for your business, and that is okay.

The vast majority of small businesses require credit in the beginning, and a lot of them maintain some level of credit debt while in business. The debt is usually in the form of credit card(s) because they are easy to obtain, have low monthly payments and come with long term payoff plans. All to often the business's debt is tied to the entrepreneur's personal finances because the credit/charge cards are in their name, meaning the credit is backed by their personal assets. This is a necessary not-so-good (not quite at the level of evil), which many face when making their dreams come true. Using credit cards and getting into debt are not concerning in and of themselves; rather, it is the amount of indebtedness and length of time to pay off the debts that cause the problems.

Nugget of knowledge: Credit card debt may be a way to START your business, it isn't a way to STAY in business.

Additional resources:
The Credit Process: A Guide for Small Business Owners
Small Business Loans & Grants

via creditcardprocessing.net

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

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.

Whether or not you like, enjoy or follow football, Al Pacino's speech rings true for life and business.

Yes, it would be great to land a deal with a Fortune 100 or sign a contract with a Fortune 500. The reality is, most of your work will probably be with small to medium size enterprises, and it is okay, in fact, it's fantastic. It is the small to medium enterprises that keep the economy rolling: buying products & services, providing consumers with choices and living the American dream of self determination. It is the latter which drives entrepreneurs, pushing you during the lean times, prodding you during the so-so times and rewarding you during the good times.

For the small to medium organization, success is in the inches: one more whatchamacallit to sell, one more appointment or service call to schedule and one more appointment or networking event to attend. These are some of the inches you and your families work for everyday; it is the sum of these and the thousands of other behind-the-scene inches that determine your business's success.

What are some of the inches you've had to struggle for?
What are some of the inches you've given up?

Additional resources:
Examining the Defense -- Not Offense -- of Business
Manage your business or it will manage you
Setback to Resilience: 3 lessons from the Unsigned Contract

Video clip from Any Given Sunday, directed by , directed by Oliver Stone, written by Daniel Pyne, John Logan and Oliver Stone, released in 1999.