Blogging With the Sisters

Today I went to a breakfast meeting on Blogging at Lutyens in Fleet Street with Sisters from www.sistersnog.com. It was fascinating to see who had already embraced blogging, who was right up there with all the latest technical hints and tips, and who found even just the idea totally overwhelming.

Really getting my teeth into blogging is something I have wanted to do for a long time, and have been working with a web designer to create the sort of blog I really want. The idea of coming up with lots of content isn't phasing me too much,  as I am looking forward to finally having more I can tweet about on Twitter.

PR Courses For A Global Market  

I've just started to rewrite my original PR course.  There are a few reasons.  It's been going a while now and needs an update. When I first wrote it I seem to remember that Facebook was hardly going, let alone Twitter or Linked In.

My other reason for giving the PR course a freshen up is that my audience and clients are fast becoming more global and I'd like to create a product that truly helps everybody, wherever they may be on the globe. It's an interesting project for me, as all my PR courses are very special to me, kickstarting my business as they did.

It's also come at an interesting time, as the fact that I have to take some time out, sit and think and write is just perfect for me, right now. Six or even two months ago it would feel like a bind, but right now it's perfect.

Watch this space and I will keep you up to date with how my updated PR course is going, but I hope to announce a relaunch very soon!

The Pitch

This week I had the pleasure to sit in the audience of the UK part of The Pitch 2001, held at Nesta HQ in London. We had an interesting keynote speech from MP Mark Prisk who talked about a new government scheme for mentoring, which is about to be unveiled, followed by an interview with Mark Pearson from http://www.myvouchercodes.co.uk. I am sure it makes me sound so old to say it, but I can't get over how young he looked. The millionaires are looking younger and younger.

Anyway, to more serious things. Mark talked about how the Secret Millionaire episode that he recorded was a poignant time...now he has piqued my interest I will just have to watch it.

So, the shortlisted entrepreneurs we watched were:

Cara Sayer of www.snoozeshade.com
Bruce Balmer of www.ultramo-engines.com
Jon Rathbone of www.pourty.com
Christer Holloman of www.attyr.com and Chrispin Busk of http://www.kabutonoodles.com who came in at the last minute as another participant dropped out.

All the pitches were well thought out and professional. Cara in particular was very impressive with what she had achieved so far, without any previous business experience. My own personal favourite was the Kabuton noodles, as I loved the posh Pot Noodle concept, and always have a soft spot for any food and drinks business.

The judges deliberated as we networked over cakes and coffee, and I have to say it was a very smooth professional event in every sense, at a great venue.

Finally, after a very enlightening interview with Kate Bull, co-founder of The People's Supermarket, the winner was announced at Cara Sayer.

Cara and I had a chat afterwards - after all I am donating some PR coaching to the overall winner so I was keen to meet her in person. With a PR and marketing background herself, Cara bowled me over with her ideas and enthusiasm. Well done to Cara on the English Heat!

 

I just loved this picture. My theme for the moment is stepping out of the shadows, both professionally and personally, and this just symbolises that for me.

Just Ten People

One little exercise I try to do every year is to pick out the people that I really want to meet or I know connecting with will help my business. This can be as many as ten people but doesn't have to be that many at all.

I then try to work out what I need to do to either make contact with, or build up stronger bonds with, over the year. It's a strategy that doesn't take long ...just think about who your tragets might be and work out how to reach them, and at the same time, what they might appreciate from you (referals, joint ventures etc).

Top Tip: http://www.linkedin.com can really help you here! 

It's a technique that one year brought me my publishers Bookshaker and my two books, Get Noticed and Do Your Own PR have been the result.

So, how are your ten people going to be?

Time To Get Noticed

Planning For 2011

Changing The Record

Going through the process of working our your own personal or brand message is an important one, but it's  important to change it regularly. Just as it becomes hard to drudge up the enthusiasm to write a press release on another angle on the same old theme, it's just as difficult for a journalist to read yet another one of your offerings which sounds like old news wrapped up in a new bow.

I'm not talking about revamping the whole brand here, just taking a different approach to stop things becoming stagnant.

It's vital to keep your message fresh and compelling, to give you and your brand energy and vitality.

Here are some ideas on keeping that freshness:

• Plan for a change in your PR every quarter, you and your staff will welcome the change and the new challenge
• If an angle works particularly well, there's no reason why you can't come back to it at a later date with a fresh new approach.
• Diarise dates where you and your team (or a mentor or buddy) can brainstorm new angles and ideas or use someone like me to consult with and give you bubbly easy to initiate activities and angles that will add a new lease of life.

Snow Pause

I set out this morning full of good intentions. Glove, check. Thickest coat, check. Lots of layers,  check. Hat, Check. Got a lift to the tube station. Lovely. And then find the Jubilee line is down. Bang goes my plans for swimming, meetings and my weekly Italian class.

Trudge half a mile to a coffee shop and text a friend who works from home. The end result is two hours of brainstorming and motivation over steaming hot cappuccinos and toasted tea cakes. I've got great ideas for my PR business...workshops I want to start next year, and an idea for a conference I'd like to run. She's at a crossroads in her own business and appreciated the time to think things through.

Sometimes it works out well when things don't quite go to plan.

Getting The PR Mindset

It sounds a bit evangelical but I have had a bit of an epiphany. For years I have been teaching people the nitty gritty of how to do PR...all the nuts and bolts of how to write press releases, put together a media list, pick up the phone and contact journalists etc, but I have ignored one very important step...the fear of putting yourself out there.

It's something that binds many of my clients together and I can see manifest itself as procrastination, perfectionism and getting distracted by bright shiny ideas.

I have seen clients suffer from it when they see a hostile comment written about their product or service in a forum and their reaction is to want to curl up and die.

Why are we so scared of stepping out of the shadows and into the spotlight? If we have the passion to start and the motivation to grow our own business, why do so many of us hesitate when it comes to really putting ourselves on the map? Why do so many of us accept the status of being the best kept secret around, even though we know that our products and services are, quite frankly, fantastic?

What is it that holds so many people back? It's something I've decided to investigate and I'd love to hear from you on what holds you back from coming out into the limelight...email me here. I would really love to hear from you.

I've just had a great weekend at the millionaire bootcamp for women. I find taking time out to not only just think about my business, but also just disconnect from the day to day routine, really makes so much difference. I hardly took pen from paper as ideas started to flow...not only from the speakers, but also from myself as their words triggered off thoughts and desires of my own.

It was an empowering weekend, and I especially enjoyed the fact that speakers were happy to share their own personal stories, which were inspiring and made them very real and credible as human beings at the same time. Names which stood out for me were Bernadette Doyle (who have have worked with), Jennie Armato (whom I am about to work with!) and Money Magnet speaker Marie-Claire Carlyle.

Now I am off for much with my a good friend to discuss some of the things I have come up with. It will be interesting to get her perspective on it all.

For a free PR resource pack click here