Every year since 2001, Rebecca Morgan and her cadre of volunteers have been going into the Willow Glen neighborhood in San Jose, Calif., just before Halloween and encouraging readers to give 6,500 of their “gently read” books to children in place of trick-or-treat candy. “Books feed children’s minds, while candy only feeds their cavities,” says… Read More
Publicity Blog
9 easy places to find content for your blog
If you’re blogging, or you want to start a blog but you’re afraid you won’t have enough content, forget the binoculars! You don’t have to look far to find it. It’s all around you. The trick is to be aware of it, learn how to recycle it, and be willing to tweak it, edit it, and repurpose… Read More
Facebook makes it easier to reply to wall comments via email
By Joan Stewart If you’re a Facebook user, you might rely on email messages from Facebook, like I do, to let you know when someone has commented on your wall. That’s a nice feature. But if you want to keep the conversation going, you have to drop what you’re doing, log into Facebook, and then respond to… Read More
30 PR experts you should follow on Twitter
I’m thrilled that I made the list of 30 PR experts you should follow on Twitter, compiled by eReleases, the press release writing and distribution service. Here are several things you can learn from lists like this: I’m not quite sure how the list was compiled, but I’ll bet somebody searched Twitter for “PR expert.” That… Read More
3 business blogging tips to save time—even if you hate writing
If you aren’t blogging yet, or you’re looking for shortcuts to save time and blog more frequently, here are three ideas to get you started: 1. Can’t write? Then talk! Too many people don’t blog because they can’t write, or it takes them too long to write well. The solution? A small tape-recorder. When an… Read More
Social media boosts book marketing guru's Alexa rankings
By Joan Stewart Too many people make the mistake of looking for immediate sales as validation that they’re receiving a return on their investment of time at social media sites. That’s a mistake. Here’s more proof on how social media participation can bring a not-so-obvious ROI. During the webinar that book marketing guru John Kremer hosted with Jeanne… Read More
Meet Jeanne Hurlbert, my new (and unlikely) business partner
If you asked me to describe my ideal business partner, never in a million years would I envision someone with a PhD in sociology. Such degrees, I always believed, are expensive pieces of paper printed by the diploma factories otherwise known as universities. They seldom lead to “real world” jobs outside of academia. I certainly wouldn’t want a Phi Beta… Read More
How do you pitch a story on washable mats?
Jeanne Krieg of Savage, Minnesota writes: “DryMate is a manufacturer in Minnesota with a line of absorbent and washable mats for home, pets, autos, hunting, garage and outdoors. We even sell a mat that goes under your Christmas tree stand to catch spills, dirt etc. “Since our product is made from a fabric with a bonded… Read More
Web designer needs marketing ideas—tips, anyone?
Alissa Rothstein of Alissa Rothstein Design Studio in Woodbridge, NJ, writes: “I am a graphic/web designer, and I’m stuck when it comes to marketing. “I’ve tried email blasts to different industries, postcard mailings, and am a member of the Chamber of Commerce which, incidentally, had promised but never provided any leads. “I am not really targeting… Read More
How to create an effective strategy on LinkedIn
By Joan Stewart If you’ve just started networking on LinkedIn, the site can be a little intimidating. And you might be stumped about how to create an effective strategy on a site that’s so big. The best place to start is with LinkedIn’s three-step New User Starter Guide. It gives a quick summary, with links, to the… Read More