Instagram. Facebook Cover Photos. Twitpics. It seems everywhere you look, things are becoming more visual than ever before. The same goes for the world of public relations. What once was an arena based solely on succinct and efficient writing is now a place where visuals are all but demanded. Here’s how to stay ahead.

Multimedia Content Drives Results

A recent blog post published by PR Newswire discusses a study of press release activity based on PR Newswire.com. The study shows that multimedia content drives better results…77 percent more views actually.

But why? For starters, it is more interesting to look at. The visual content gives a break to the eye from text, and is interesting. Then there is the distribution aspect. When there is a video, picture, etc., that component can be shared on different channels than the text release, increasing the audience exposure. Think social media. The probability that something will be shared increases when multimedia content is involved.

Social Media News Release Provides More Resources

This is where a new concept, the Social Media News Release (or SMNR) comes in. While it may not be completely accepted just yet by PR Professionals, it is definitely something being slowly incorporated into the world of public relations. The difference between an SMNR and a traditional press release is its content. Whereas an old-fashioned release contains a basic headline, subhead, introduction, quote, story information and boilerplate, a SMNR takes it to the next level and anticipates what journalists will want next. Typical components include photos, headshots, logos, social media links and related audio and video clips. A 2012 Survey by PWR New Media says that 87% of journalists want easily accessible images, and 79% say that including an image increases the chances that they will pick up a story.

Making Use of Social Media News Releases

So what can you do to stay ahead in this visual environment?

The first step is getting (or making) the actual multimedia content that you will need later on. Recognize opportunities for taking photos and videos, creating graphics and producing other visual content. The more you have to chose from, the more channels you can expose your message to later. Some things to keep in mind:

• Videos: Make sure the speaker is articulate and speaks loud enough. If the video features an interview, have a simple backdrop and make sure the speaker is dressed in appropriate clothing. Avoid stripes, patterns and metallics on screen. If the video is footage of an event, frame each shot to avoid any distractions in the background. Get short interviews with key staff and attendees on the event grounds.

• Pictures: Like they say, a picture is worth a thousand words. So make sure your picture is telling the story you want it to. Be creative, but don’t get distracted by all those filters and fancy features on most cell phone camera apps. A good picture will speak on its own without anything but maybe a little cropping. In terms of formatting, make sure the picture is the right size and doesn’t become pixelated or blurry when enlarged.

• Graphics: Infographics are a big trend on Pinterest and other social media channels. They are great tools when done right, which is easier said than done. The trick is keeping it simple. Create a path that is easy for the eye to follow, and keep the colors limited and cohesive.

The next step is distributing your content. Determine what the best methods to spread your visuals are. Some ideas include:

• News Releases: For more traditional press coverage, think about spicing up some of your press releases with pictures and links to video content. Make sure to take note of how you are sending the content. Many reporters won’t open up an email attachment due to fear of viruses. Paste the content directly into the email when possible. If you need to send it in an attachment, make sure you save it in multiple formats in case the reporter has a different default program or version than you.

• Facebook: The new timeline feature forces you to be more visual, so embrace it. Make sure you have photos of appropriate dimensions to fit in the cover photo, profile picture, and timeline photo space. Highlight landmark events with pictures, and be creative about it. Don’t be afraid to show pictures of your events, the office environment, or any other ideas you may have to make your brand more personable and approachable. Click here to see a how Greenpeace International uses Facebook to motivate supporters.

• Pinterest: Pinterest may not be the best outlet for everyone, so make sure you take time to consider if the effort it takes to maintain is worth it. If you decide to go for it, make “pin-boards” that are appealing and engaging. Pin pictures, quotes, tutorials, infographics, etc. and write intriguing captions that motivate people to respond. Click here to see how charity:water shares their story on Pinterest.

• Twitter: Twitter is a little different because your visuals show up as links at first, not just pictures. But they are still effective. Including a “twitpic” will increase your chances of getting retweeted.

• Instagram: Instagram is a social phone app that allows users to share pictures.  Like Pinterest, Instagram isn’t for everyone. But ifyou feel like it  would be a good tool for your brand, by all means, go for it. Make sure to follow other organizations like yours and comment on pictures that fit with your missions. Check out @twloha to see the account for To Write Love On Her Arms, an organization dedicated to helping people struggling with depression, addiction, self-injury and suicide.

There are plenty of ways to incorporate visual content into your messaging strategy that keeps you from being boring. Be smart about it–trying to conquer all social media channels at once is going to most likely spread you too thin. Choose the strategies most appropriate for your brand and do a good job maintaining them. The more interesting the content you provide is, the more widespread your audience is going to become. And the more likely your stories are going to spread. So get on it!

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Jenna Stasiewicz assists with marketing and public relations efforts at Red Rooster Group. She has a BA in Public Communications with a minor in Graphic Design from American University. Contact us at info@redroostergroup.com.

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Using Content to Engage your Audience

We’ve all heard the buzz about social media. Many companies and organizations have realized that platforms like Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and blogging sites can provide a powerful tool for marketing their services or causes to the public. Mary Lynn talked to us about how a company or organization can most effectively use social media.

Mary Lynn’s main point was that content reigns as king in the realm of social media. That is to say, almost any company or organization can create a Facebook or Twitter account, a LinkedIn profile or a blog with just a few easy keystrokes. But the key to making your organization’s social media presence a compelling and hopefully profitable interface between you and your clients is what specific kinds of information your organization chooses to relay through which social media channels.

Understanding Your Audience

Before posting to your organization’s social media page, take the time to research and find something genuinely interesting that will appeal to the demographic of your clientele. If you’re marketing your cause or services towards a target audience that reads about news and current events in the world of philanthropy, then posting an article from the Chronicle of Philanthropy, while relevant, might prove to be redundant.

However, if you find an article on a similar topic written for a different type of publication (the Wall Street Journal, for example) then it will still appeal to the target audience but is less likely to overlap with the news sources the members of that audience already routinely read.

Use Different Social Channels Appropriately

It is also critical to remember that a Twitter account serves a very different purpose from a blog, which is also different than a Facebook page or a LinkedIn account. You may notice that many companies post the same links or information in each of their social media platforms, but as Mary Lynn explained to us, this strategy does not use each platform to its fullest potential.

Additionally, Mary Lynn explained t how important it is for an organization to use only the social media platforms it has time to cultivate with care. While many people might assume that creating a blog for their organization is a great way to reach out to clients and prospective customers, which it is, it is also easy to forget that keeping a blog is a very time-consuming task! If your organization can’t dedicate the time or people necessary to the project of a blog, it’s probably preferable and better for your brand image to just not have one, as opposed to creating one and then only updating it once a year.

Social Media Resources

For more information about social media and its role in marketing, check out the two books that Mary Lynn recommended:

• Content Rules: How to Create Killer Blogs, Podcasts, Videos, Ebooks, and Webinars that Engage Customers and Ignite your Business by Ann Handley and C.C. Chapman
• The New Rules of Marketing and PR by David Meerman Scott

And for more information about content marketing or social media campaigns, give us a call. It’s something we know something about. Red Rooster Group has a strong social media content strategy that has achieves consistent page 1 rankings for numerous high level key words. We can do the same for you. So, if you are looking to develop an effective content strategy, contact us.

Katie Feller is Red Rooster Group’s social marketing intern. She is helping to develop and implement social media and website marketing for Incarnation Camp’s alumni program.

Website for a professional service.

> MarketcomPR.com

Looking to redesign your website or upgrade your agency’s branding and putting out a Request for Proposals (RFP)? Make sure you get the best consultant you can by making your RFP the best it can be. Consider this list of what to include gleaned from our 17 years of responding to RFPs.

1. Overview of Your Organization: Explain your mission, services, history and structure so that the consultant can understand what you do and determine if this is the right match. You want to attract someone who understands your issues and is compelled by your cause, so provide them with that information (this can be derived from your website, brochure or grant proposals).

2. History of Your Marketing: Your brand, website or campaign does not stand in isolation, Describe your current website, brand, or prior marketing efforts and what you have found successful and what you would like to address.

3. Reasons for the RFP: Explain what’s precipitating the need for a new website or brand – whether it’s operational, competitive, fundraising, move, merger or other impetus. The more the consultants know the better they can address your needs. And often, there are other issues that need to be addressed before or during the project to ensure its success.

4. Goals & Outcomes: A new website or logo is nice, but without a clear understanding of what you want to accomplish, the initiative will not move your organization forward. The RFP should answer the questions: What do you want the projects to accomplish and how will you know the project has been successful?

5. Specific Needs: Describe the particulars of what you are looking for. These can vary widely, as can the fees, For a branding initiative, explain the process or elements you are looking for. For a web project, describe the features or functions you want: from the type of calendar functions you need, what you want your online donation system to do, and the level of flexibility in updating the site. To paint a clearer picture, you can reference desirable features on other sites that have the functionality you want.

6. Technology Needs: For a website, interactive or online project, it is helpful to include all relevant technology issues such as: how your site is currently hosted and whether you want to keep that or not, programming languages you would want or not want, current databases used for you email campaigns, donor list, invoicing system or any other systems that might need to be integrated. For branding or other projects, describe what current applications or systems are used in-house and what type of integration your expect (for example, so your designer doesn’t deliver only InDesign files when you use Word).

7. Parties & Process: Describe who will be involved in the project and what your work and approval process is. Will a subcommittee be formed to handle the project, who is the day-to-day contact, what is the boards’ role in the project, and who has final approval? Address how you would like to work – whether in person, or online, any project management systems you have and potential key dates, such as board meetings.

8. Expectations: Different consultants bring different styles, so be clear on your expectations so that you can find the one that meets your needs. Explain what you are looking for in terms of work process, service delivery, communication, results or any other aspect of the project.

9. Timing: So you have neglected your website for 4 years, and now you want it redesigned immediately so you can pump up your fundraising efforts. Be realistic about how much time the process will take to actually do the work and to get input and approval from all parties in the process. And recognize that the schedule allowed will influence the cost.

10. Budget: It is very helpful to let consultants know your budget for the project. Most consultants and vendors tailor their services to your needs and budget, so asking what something costs will yield a range of rates which ultimately won’t be helpful for you. It is best to determine your budget based on what you could afford and the value that the project will bring, and to then find the party that can deliver the most value for your budget.

11. Evaluation Criteria: Explain what criteria your will be using to evaluate consultants for this project. It takes a lot of time to develop a good proposal, so be fair to the consultants and describe what you are looking for –  for example, whether sector experience or specific skills are required, if new solutions or ideas are valued, or if the budget or timing are the key priorities.

12. Evaluation Process and Timing: Tell when the RFP is due (prominently on the first page), who it should be submitted to, in what form (PDF, email, printed, presentation, etc.), how many copies, and the address to send it to. It is also respectful to describe your selection process and timing (for example: Proposals due June 1, Review of proposals and selecting 3 firms to meet with by June 15, Meetings with firms from June 15 – 25, Final selection on June 30).

A Final Note: Agencies sometimes ask for ideas or design solutions in the proposal (called working “on spec”). This is not advisable for several reasons:
• It is not common practice, other than in large advertising agencies which stand to make millions in commissions on advertising media (and even this practice is changing).
• Independent consultants and small firms cannot afford to work for free – their income is based on billing for their time and they can’t afford to give that away.
• It is unfair to deny someone the right to a living, and a nonprofit, whose tax-exempt mission dictates that they work for the public good, undermines their own integrity by asking for others to do free work, particularly knowing that not all the firms’ work will be used.
• From a practical perspective, it will not yield you the best results, since typically, the best consultants won’t work for free, so you are likely to exclude them from the running.
• The best work can only be done with a fuller understanding of your organization and its needs. By asking for solutions without this full understanding, you rob your agency of the best ideas to serve its interests best.

If you are unsure of which consultant to choose, a common solution is to pay the finalists for some initial work before committing to the entire project.

As the Principal of Red Rooster Group, I am committed to growing our business and instituted a marketing campaign that kicked off at the end of last year. While we are still in the early stages of the campaign, it is pulling a good response so far, and so I wanted to share it with you in the hopes of inspiring your marketing efforts this year.

The Plan

The plan included developing a list of 250 Jewish Communities Centers with multiple names for each organization, creating an 8-page brochure around the specific needs of JCCs, and hiring someone to make follow-up calls. Here’s exactly how the campaign has unfolded so far, including the steps we took, what it cost, and the results.

To begin with, I knew that to achieve real results, more than a one-time, quick effort would be required, and that relying on my time and abilities to make follow-up calls would be a mistake. So instead of trying to do everything myself, I planned out a specific campaign and enlisted others to help execute it.

Determining the Market

Like most design firms, Red Rooster Group has a particular area of specialty (branding for nonprofit organizations), but also works with a variety of clients. We understood that to be successful in marketing, you need to focus your promotion as much as possible, and so instead of creating a general capabilities brochure, we decided to focus on one particular market. In fact, this was a very focused market. Instead of nonprofit organizations, or even Jewish nonprofits, we decided to focus on Jewish Communities Centers based on our previous experience in helping three JCCs with their marketing. There are about 250 JCCs in North America, making it large enough to do a reasonable campaign and expect a decent result, and small enough to be focused and manageable.

List Development

The first step was building a list of the 250 Jewish Community Centers in North America. After we compiled a list of the organizations themselves, we hired someone off Craigslist to research the names of people for certain job titles such as executive director associate director, development officers, and board presidents. We assigned this at a flat rate of $200.

We now had a custom, qualified list of people in our target audience. You’ll notice that we got multiple names for each organization, aiming for at least two – one from the professional staff side and one from the board side, figuring that decisions can come from either direction and that it is better to have multiple people in the organization who have heard of you.

List Management

The list was originally created in Excel, which made it very easy to monitor as the names were added. It also made it easy to sort the list by state, which is how we decided to group the mailings. Ultimately, we found that this was not meeting our needs in terms of tracking the calls, and so after a lot of research into online CRM (Customer Relationship Management) systems (we’ll be posting an article about this), we decided on salesforce.com and are in the process of uploading the lists into that online platform. This will allow us to input the interactions of each call made from our office or from remote locations.

The Brochure

While we were working on the lists, we were developing the brochure. Instead of showing our work with minimal copy, like most design firms, we created a marketing piece that demonstrated our understanding of the particular marketing challenges facing JCCs, including increasing their membership, improving their fundraising efforts, and helping them streamline their internal communications processes. This 8-page, saddle-stitched brochure features work that we had done for three other JCCs in addressing those particular needs.

The brochure had an introduction about their needs and a list of services. In addition, we invite the recipient to engage with us by including an interactive quiz that they can use to rate their marketing efforts in 10 different areas. This is intended to dramatically show their marketing needs (in effect helping them qualify themselves) and convey how we can help them.

The process for producing the brochure included determining the overall approach and content, compiling the case studies, writing copy, creating the marketing checklist, and doing all the pre-press to get it ready for printing. Given that we were drawing on our own experiences and case studies for the actual content, we were able to do this fairly expediently. The cost of our time spent on this piece was about $2,500. Printing 1,000 copies of the 8-page brochure cost $1,100.

The Mailing Package

The mailing package consisted of the brochure and a cover letter in a bright red 9 x 12 envelope to capture people’s attention. We created the cover letters in InDesign, and merged the names from the Excel file (exporting it as a CSV file). We printed them on our letterhead on our in-house printer in groups as we mailed them so they would have the current date. On a few occasions where we knew the particular recipient, we customized the letter; otherwise, we sent the generic letter.

We used the Avery mailing labels that come six per sheet and ran them through our printer to add our logo and address. We hand-addressed the labels to the recipients to give it a personal touch and to help it stand out from other mail.

Hiring Someone to Make Calls

The next stage was the mailing and follow-up calls. Instead of mailing out all 250 pieces at once, our strategy was to mail out a limited number of packets so that we could make follow-up calls. It’s ideal if the call comes from the principal of the company who is best able to speak about the services. However, I knew from past experience that these attempts would be short-lived, and not wanting to repeat that mistake, I hired someone to make the follow-up calls.

This person did not necessarily know about our design (in fact, knew little about it), but was a sales person in a different sector and was good at establishing rapport with people. The purpose of the calls was not to sell design, but to establish a connection, assess their needs, qualify them, and line up an appointment. The calls were also intended to gauge feedback on the direct-mail piece, determine their marketing challenges, and to get a sense of the overall needs faced by that market so that we are learning as well.

Training

I spent half the day with him, explaining our business and how we help clients, and another half day explaining the particular needs of the market we were targeting, as well as the particular approaches to take, potential objections he might hear, and how to handle those objections.

Instead of setting him free and expecting magical results, I provided direction, oversight, and feedback to monitor his progress, and provided support so that we learn what about what makes successful calls. I listened in as he called and found that he was doing an effective job in breaking through and catching people’s attention –  and that’s the key on the phone – getting through to people establishing rapport so that they will hear what you have to say.

Mailing & Calling

We mailed approximately 20 to 30 packets per week (we grouped them by state) and contained the calling sessions to a few hours each morning, so as not to burn out and to spread out the calls. On any given day, he could make approximately a dozen calls (this included reviewing the organization’s websites to get a sense of what they did before making each call) and was able to reach one or two  people each time. For the others, we left voicemail messages, so that they would know that we were following up on the brochure. It reinforced the fact that we wanted to work with them and prepared them for the fact we would be calling them again. We then waited several days before calling these people in order to give them a chance to call us back.

Results

We started in late November and then held off two weeks before the holidays. We have mailed out 3 sets of 20 packages so far (out of a total of 500) and are in the process of making the follow-up calls. Given that it takes several calls to actually get through to people, and that we haven’t actually spoken with that many people yet, so far we have had several positive responses, including:

• An executive director who called us in response to the mailing.
• A board member who said that she had received the piece and was impressed and would present it at their board meeting.
• An executive director who passed it on to their marketing director, who e-mailed me to set up a call to discuss their needs.
• An executive director came in for an appointment, which led to a proposal for a quarterly newsletter (which we are waiting to hear back about).

Given the limited amount of packages that have gone out, I am buoyed by these results and confident that this type of targeted mailing, coupled with the follow-up calls, will result in many new clients. I would expect that we can reasonably get 10 projects from this campaign, and I’ll estimate $10,000 each, yielding $100,000 worth of work, not including future work that may result from these clients. Our total investment in actual outlay was less than $6,000. Not a bad return on investment.

Budget

Here’s our budget for out-of-pocket costs (which doesn’t include our time in coordinating the effort, and in training and monitoring the telemarketer, which I consider part of my daily sponsor responsibilities).

Designing copywriting of the brochure (our in-house time): $2,500
Printing: $1,100
Envelopes: $300 (confirm)
Mailing Labels: $40
Postage: $200
Calling: $1,500
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Total: $5,640

WAKE UP CALL: The Takeaways

1. Be Targeted. A brochure that addresses the specific needs of an audience is much more likely to resonate with that group and draw better response than one that says you can do everything. Being focused takes discipline since you don’t want to exclude other potential clients, but I believe that by limiting the scope and focusing on the needs of one particular audience, you’re more likely to achieve success. You can then build on that success to run other targeted campaigns. After all, each audience wants to see you as a specialist in their particular needs.

2. Planning: This initiative didn’t happen overnight – it took nine months to pull off, including conceptualizing what we would do, producing the brochure, compiling the mailing lists, setting up the database, and hiring the person to make the calls – but it was worth the effort. Now that the campaign is underway, it feels great that we have a systematic plan in place. And we can reproduce this type of campaign for another market.

3. Having a System: In order to make this campaign a success, we knew that we needed to have the proper infrastructure. This included a good CRM system for tracking which groups we mailed to each week, whom we called, and what was said. When we realized that Excel was insufficient for this task, I committed to investing in the proper infrastructure not only for this campaign, but one that would also allow us to grow as an agency.

4. Persistence: I decided that this is a market that we were going after and wanted to capture a certain market share, so I saw this campaign as part of a long-term effort. I was committed to not getting discouraged, even if this particular mailing didn’t achieve the results that I wanted. As with many things, success lies in the follow-up and persistence. I knew I couldn’t rely on myself alone to make the calls on a regular basis (which is where I think a lot of designers have trouble), and so I planned persistence into the process by hiring someone to make the follow-up calls. After a lot of planning and work, we now have a regular outreach campaign that is running largely without me.