Tips for Effective Client Monitoring

There is no greater feeling than finally landing the perfect placement for a client. After working hard, pitching, and drafting releases, seeing your clients name in print or on camera feels like the ultimate success. When working with lower profile clients, such as a startup company or a small business, you may find that you pitch to smaller publications. This can often make it harder to monitor your client's notable mentions. Here are a few tips to help you master client monitoring:

• Subscribe: If you know that you frequently pitch clients to certain small papers or magazines, it's a good idea to buy a subscription to those services. This will insure that you get the news first, delivered right to your doorstep. If you find your clients fall into certain niches such as culinary arts or music, having those subscriptions will also help you stay up-to-date on industry headlines.
• Search often: Make it a part of your morning routine to Google search your clients name or the name of a client's products. Look closely at what the top 10 or so results are, and of course make notes of any mentions you see so that you can present them to the client.
• Google Alerts: Google Alerts allows you to get the lastest on any term or topic delivered right to your inbox. Make an alert for your clients name, any products they have, or anything you've recently pitched the press about.
• Watch TV: If you've been pushing to get a client mentioned on a certain TV program, be sure to watch the show to see if your client gets a mention. Even if the show doesn't bring up your client, it's go to know what they are talking about so that you can pitch them more effectively later!
• Surf the hashtag: Hop onto Twitter and search your clients name or product as a hashtag. If people are talking about it in detail, take a screen shoot of the buzz! You may even find links to articles online that didn't show up in your google search, like the link to a small blog's post.

Monitoring for clients is just as important as pitching. Even if you aren't seeing the results you want, keeping a close eye on the progress you're making allows you to refocus on time, instead of just disappointing the client.

Have you had to do client monitoring at a job or internship? Did you use other methods to monitor clients? Let us know!

Out With the New, In With the Old

Okay, so traditionally the saying goes, "Out with the old, in with the new." But for all intensive purposes, old content can sometimes outweigh the new. Think about how excited you get when a 90s song comes onto your Pandora, or when your favorite movie comes on tv and you have to watch it, even if you own it on DVD. We love to think back to our past and reminisce, and the same thing goes with content. Below are a few ways to pull from old content:

You don't always have to create something new: If you're in charge of creating content for a company that specializes in snow boots, then your peak season will probably be in the winter. There are only so many times you can create content around snow. Still talk about snow, but find new ways to approach it. Instead of talking about only snow, mention how the boots are also perfect for rain, thanks to their waterproof exterior.

Share archived content: With most companies taking to Facebook and Twitter to post content, stuff is getting pushed back through feeds at breakneck speeds. It's okay to use content from the past, in fact, using old content will show the reader that even though a certain statistic or fact is from 5 years ago, it's still relevant and useful.

Play on nostalgia: Think about the cell phone. Less than 20 years ago it was bigger than the average person's head. Now, cell phones can fit in the palm of your hand and will even talk to you. Seeing such a significant difference within such a small space in time consistently amazes people. The same strategy can be used with content. If you have coverage from a product that previously failed, bring it back! It's fun to show your audience where you once were, and where you stand now.

Have you ever brought life back to old content? How did it work for you? Let us know!

Keep your Message Clear: Brainstorming the Perfect Media Statement

Right after an event occurs involving your client, the media will definitely be on your tail for a statement. A media statement is the perfect alternative to a direct response from your client, as it provides a united front and gives you the chance to ensure a clear message without any misunderstandings. Below are some tips on creating a media statement that will hold up against the media:

• Keep it short and to the point- Doing so will give you a better chance against having your words cut off or switched around to appease their purpose.


• Send the statement before the reporter's deadline- You want to make sure your statement is heard, because it will be in the most complimentary towards your client. Turning your statement in early will make it easier for the reporter to place your statement in a high traffic location and in its entirety. Understandably, statements that come at the end of the deadline will most likely be haphazardly placed into the article as an after thought.


• Keep it positive- A give in, as you always want to put your client in the most positive or optimistic light as possible. Keeping it possible will also stray your client and yourself from any impending drama, fueled by the media.

The media is always looking to skewer your client, so treat your media statement as a sparring match, block as many attacks as possible.

To read more on building a great media statement, click here.

The importance of media training clients

The following blog post was written by '97 Temple Alum, Jason Mollica.

In public relations, we are taught that preparation is key for any crisis or situation that may need our attention. But, it is equally important on how we train our clients. One of the integral parts to keeping a client prepared is media training.

How your client looks and sounds on television or comes across in a newspaper story can go a long way to showing they are credible. I entered public relations after a long career in television and radio. Taking that experience, I've been able to assist clients in making sure they are well prepared for the media.

Television can make or break you and your client if they are not prepared. Here are five examples of what you can teach your clients.

Rehearse: Just like you would practice the piano before a concert, it's important to think over answers to possible questions from a reporter. Teach your client to review his talking points prior to any interviews.

Don't Fear the Camera/Microphone: That light on top of the camera isn't from an interrogator. It's there to help make you look better. Remember, most reporters don't want to make your clients look bad. They want the facts. There's nothing to be afraid of.

Be Concise: Don't give rambling answers. In television, soundbites run approximately 10-20 seconds. You need to get your message across in that amount of time. If you go longer, you risk having your message cut up.

New Media Awareness: Platforms like YouTube and blogs are very prevalent now. Newspapers use blogs to supplement their normal coverage. Some papers even turn their print reporters into new media journalists. Make certain your client is aware of any additional avenues a reporter may be using to tell a story.

Don't Want to Read It? DON'T SAY IT: This seems simple enough, but there are people who feel the need to tell a reporter more than necessary. If it's not something that needed to be revealed, damage control is necessary. Stick to the talking points!

Using these tips will not only assist your clients, they will also prove you are looking out for their well-being.

Jason Mollica is a 1997 graduate of Temple University's School of Communications and Theater. Since then, he has worked in television and radio in Philadelphia and New York City. Upon leaving the industry in 2005, he began a career in public relations and marketing. He is currently the public relations manager for Carr Marketing Communications in Amherst, N.Y. You can follow him on Twitter, @JasMollica and read his blog at http://oneguysjourney.wordpress.com

TUTV Student Organization Filming Recap

Yesterday (March 3), PRowl Public Relations assisted client TUTV (Temple University Television) with an event to promote the March 16 launch of TempleTV.net, the channel's interactive online platform. One of our largest audiences for the launch campaign is current students on Philadelphia's main campus and abroad. When doing our research in the planning portion of the campaign, we found that Temple University has more than 300 registered student organizations on campus, with a total membership reach of 15,330 students.

In order to engage these students and get them excited for the website launch, PRowl planned a four-hour event where student organizations were invited to film a clip welcoming all visitors to TempleTV.net and introducing their organization to Temple's global community. On the upcoming March 16 launch day, these student organization "welcome" messages will rotate on the homepage. Every time a visitor enters the site, a new student organization will be there to greet them.

After a lot of e-mails and attending meetings to talk to student organizations, we got a great turnout of 58 organizations throughout the day. Students were invited to either share a message about what their organization does, or demonstrate their mission through a creative act. There was even more creativity than we expected! Singing, dancing, guitars, keyboards, flags, acting scripts, and other props appeared in the room throughout the day, and we were happy to have them!

Thank you to all Temple student organizations that stopped by. We look forward to sharing the messages we got yesterday with visitors who enter the site around the world on March 16!

Quantcast

Evaluating the effectiveness of your campaign is an essential part in the public relations process. Analyzing the success of each tactic shows whether or not each was useful in achieving a goal or objective. Not only do you want to evaluate each tactic, but you want to provide value for what you were successful with. Collecting the articles and mentions about a client is one way to measure the success of your campaign. However, it is also important to attach a value to each medium where the client was mentioned.

For internet hits, use Quantcast to measure the value of each site. This free toll allows a user to type in a website and find out the number of viewers nationally and globally per month, while also breaking down the viewer's demographics. The site continues to break down information, which is useful when attaching a value to the media coverage that has been obtained.

Not only can you use this site for evaluation, but you should also keep this site in mind when you are planning the outlets to pitch to. Check out the site to see what else it can do for you.

"Best of Philly" Client Winners

Every year, Philadelphia Magazine releases their "Best of Philly" edition, the region's guide to the best places to eat, things to do, people to hire, places to spend, ways to save, and more. Earning the "Best of Philly" title is a great honor that is given to well-established businesses as well as those that are up-and-coming and show great promise. As you walk down the street, many businesses who have earned this recognition proudly display the "Best of Philly" decal on their window.

PRowl Public Relations is thrilled to congratulate two of our past clients on their recently announced "Best of Philly" titles!

• Casa Papel (client from fall 2009 to spring 2010) has been announced as Philly's Best Stationary.
• Ursula's About PHace (client during spring 2009) has been announced as Philly's Best Completely Over-The-Top Specialty Beauty Treatment.

Philadelphia Magazine's "Best of Philly" edition is on newsstands now! Congratulations to all the winners.

Client Update - World Premiere Ballet "Braving the New World"

Nearing the end of our contract period, PRowl Public Relations' clients have a lot of great things coming up! One of which being the Rebecca Davis Dance Company's world premiere of its contemporary ballet Braving the New World on Friday, May 7 and Saturday, May 8 at 8 p.m. at the Suzanne Roberts Theatre, 480 South Broad Street.

Braving the New World explores issues of societal control versus individual freedom. Through passion and force, founder Rebecca Davis' new ballet brings a totalitarian future to the stage. This original dance piece was inspired by the fictitious worlds created in literary classics such as George Orwell's 1984, and is set to the tone of alternative music and modern dance performance. Admission to the performance is $25 for adults and $20 for students.

To purchase tickets, call the box office at 215-985-0420 or online at www.rebeccadavisdance.com.

Check out exclusive behind the scenes footage below!

Braving the New World Promo from Carmen Emmi on Vimeo.

Connect with the Rebecca Davis Dance Company -

Visit the Facebook fan page here

Follow RDDC on Twitter: @rddanceco

Alternatives to the Traditional Press Release

With social media, the Internet and technology in general changing the ways we do almost anything, the days of the standard press release may be behind us. Here is a look at the latest trends being used to deviate from the traditional press release.

Social media release: There are various Facebook applications, such as pressreleasepoint, that are used to distribute news and press releases to the media. The same is true for Twitter, where designated Twitter accounts, like PR PressAbout, offer free posting of press releases. This allows reporters to access such sites for story ideas, and for PR professionals to publicize their client to a vast audience and for free. Posting releases on blogs are another idea and allow reporters and readers to make comments and ask questions.

Video release: Videos work well for a client, product or event that deals a lot with imagery, such as fashion.

Bulleted release: Using bullets gets your points and message out quickly. Using bold, underlined or quoted words can help highlight text as well.

Infographic release: Infographics are visual representations of information, knowledge and data. Used as releases they stand out from print news.

Website release: There are many websites that are solely for the distribution of press releases. Some include 24-7 Press Release, 1800PressRelease, Business Wire, Express Press Release, and i-Newswire.

Picture release: Sending a picture with just a caption or blurb can entice reporters to want to know more.

Not directly promoting the client: The “alternative” press release announces a service and an accomplishment, but then goes a step further to create value by explaining what tactics were used and why they were successful, and how the audience can replicate them. This is especially important with social media because social media is all about sharing and interaction!

Following a 10 second rule: People are bombarded by textual information everywhere and are too busy to read lots of information. You must grab their interest in the first 10 seconds they begin reading, otherwise you will be skipped over and ignored.

This guest blog was written by PRowl Public Relations staff member, Trish Wyatt.

Perfect Pitching

Is there such a thing? Of course not, no one's perfect, but a pitch to a journalist must be very close to gain their attention. What, then, makes up a near perfect pitch? Lately, as a PR student getting my feet wet in this fickle field I've been wondering just that. Today, at a PR committee meeting of one of PRowl's new clients, pitching was discussed quite a bit. As I sat listening to the ideas of the seasoned PR professionals in the room I realized how vital a perfectly tailored pitch is.

I've learned today that the key to tailoring a pitch is to know exactly who it is that you're pitching and exactly the type of content that they write. Becoming a news junky is vital, especially in the region where you're working. You must be able to identify the journalists who work at news outlets relevant to your clients message. For example, if your client's target audience consists of corporate professionals then you must have a contact at the local business journal.

Knowing the names and interests of so many journalists may seem to be a daunting task, but luckily there is a quicker way to figure out what stories they are buzzing about. HARO, or Help A Reporter Out, is a website dedicated to matching journalists with the sources that they need to develop their story. A journalist can post an inquiry for more information about the story that they're working on and a PR person can pitch them in response. If that pitch is uniquely tailored to the journalists story it has much more of a chance to be used. Websites like HARO make effective pitching much easier. Happy pitching!

Last Chance for Student Discount!

TOMORROW is the Rebecca Davis Dance Company’s latest performance Dancing to the Edge of Darfur at 8 p.m. at the Prince Music Theatre, 1412 Chestnut Street.

It’s your last chance to buy Temple University student discount tickets for only $10 each (that’s $35 off the normal price)! To purchase tickets, go to “The Reel” box office, located in the Underground at the Student Center.

If you’re a student, but not at Temple University, e-mail Brianna Fisher at Brianna.fisher@temple.edu to get access to your online student discount code.

About the event: With money raised through the Rebecca Davis Dance Company’s original Darfur performance in April 2008, Global Grassroots was able to fund a theater group in Rwanda to help educate the population about the causes and consequences of violence against women. Video footage of the theater group will be combined with excerpts from the original Darfur ballet performance to demonstrate tangible ways in which audience members can aid those affected. In addition, photographs smuggled back from Darfur by U.S. Marine Brian Steidle will be shown along with readings by his sister Gretchen Wallace Steidle, founder of Global Grassroots and co-author of “The Devil Came on Horseback,” an account of Brian’s time as a soldier in Darfur. Excerpts from the award-winning documentary “The Devil Came on Horseback” will also be part of the event.

100 percent of the profits from Dancing to the Edge of Darfur will go to Global Grassroots, a non-profit organization advocating social change for women in war-torn Sudan.

SEE VIDEO BELOW FOR BEHIND-THE-SCENES FOOTAGE!

Not a student? Click here to purchase tickets today!

Creativity is Key

PRowl Public Relations will be beginning a new year with a new set of clients in only a few weeks. This is the first year we will be taking on clients for an extended nine-month contract instead of the four-month contract we've used in the past. It is very exciting for us to have an entire school year to work with our clients and become fully immersed in their public relations needs. The longer contract period will allow us more time to develop a more detailed campaign with multiple communication strategies.

The longer contract period is exciting, but it will test the creativity of our firm members. Having more time with one client, we will have to develop multiple story angles and guerrilla marketing tactics to continually receive renewed media interest in our client over the nine month period.

The firm will have a chance to show our true potential this year, and we will be successful if we always remember that creativity is the key to great public relations.

The Process from Pitch to NBC 10's Evening News

Last Wednesday, April 15 PRowl Public Relations landed coverage for our client Ursula’s About PHace on NBC 10’s 6 O’Clock news. This was one of PRowl’s biggest achievements thus far and was a great moment for our members. It is a testament to our hard work and a sign that PRowl Public Relations is taking off!

The process leading up to this coverage was a very detailed one. We spent quite a few hours crafting the perfect pitch for Ursula’s Phillies PHacial, and with the advice from our faculty adviser we decided to pitch to television outlets. As an new Account Executive for PRowl Public Relations, TV seemed very daunting and I was skeptical that our student-run firm would have much success. Little did I know…

I learned yesterday that with pitching, timing is everything, especially when it involves a television crew. We received an email at 12:30 p.m. from NBC 10 saying that their planned segment for that evening was canceled, and asked if we’d step in. Of course we would! They wanted to be at our clients studio at 1:30 p.m., leaving us only an hour to prepare. We rushed downtown from Temple’s campus to Ursula’s About PHace at 1700 Sansom Street just in time for the taping. We knew we had hit the big one, the great coverage that we’d only dreamed of snagging our client!

By 3 p.m. the segment was taped, and everyone felt a sense of excitement and achievement. The camera man was so impressed by facialist Elina Safin that he scheduled an appointment for a Saturday morning Phillies PHacial on the spot! The segment aired at 6:15 p.m. in the middle of the evening news cast. It was a full 90 second story preceded by two teasers that were seen by over 119,000 viewers!

The shock and excitement still hasn’t worn off yet and I’m very excited to see what PRowl Public Relations can do in the future.

This guest blog was written by PRowl Public Relations firm staff member, Brianna Fisher.

Mud on Your Face!

If you haven't already seen it... here it is!

Watch this segment featuring our client Ursula's About Phace (Ursula Augustine and Elina Safin) with NBC host Tim Furlong.

Check back this weekend to hear from Brianna Fisher, Account Executive of PRowl Public Relations, to get an exclusive recap of the process of pitching the story to the actual filming of the segment!