Posted By Amanda Collins on February 27, 2010

I just received a résumé from a client who asked if I have experience in brand management. It seems like my life is about brand management, as should your life be. After all, branding is essentially your reputation, and whether you are a business owner, professional, or job seeker, you should have your reputation at the front of your mind.

If you’re as old as I am, you likely remember the Clairol commercial about one woman telling two friends, she tells two friends, and so on, and so on. Although great news can spread fast, negative news will spread like wildfire. At a BNI meeting this week, the educational coordinators were relaying a story about how a man refunded a client’s full price paid on an automotive repair because he’d rather lose a few hundreds of dollars immediately than the potential thousands he could lose on the bad publicity for years to come.

You don’t need to be McDonald’s or Pepsi to be a “brand.” Susan Smith or ABC Marketing are just as powerful brands to the people you’re trying to cultivate and influence. So how are you managing your brand? Are you seeing what people are saying about you on Google, Facebook, LinkedIn, and Twitter? Are you conscientious about the things you share in person and through social media? In the digital age, everything about you can be shared – quickly. Everyone is a member of the paparazzi, it seems, and YouTube submission is just a click away.

I encourage you to consider what your brand is, no matter if you’re looking to land a client, a job, or a date, and start to create a strategy around managing it. Unless you hire a PR firm, no one else is going to do it for you.

Category: reputation management | No Comments »
Tags: brand management, marketing, reputation management

Posted By Amanda Collins on February 5, 2010

Acclaimed media strategists discuss the pros and cons of DIY media strategy vs. hiring a professional firm

Phoenix, Ariz. (Feb. 5, 2010) — As a business owner, you know you need to let people know about your company, but you may be stumped on which components are the most important and how to best achieve your goals. What’s a reasonable cost for an advertising strategy? Should you advertise on television and radio? Where is your target audience and how do you reach them? Business owners need to balance working “on” their businesses with working “in” their businesses, and it’s impossible to be an expert at everything, so where do you begin?

Alma Steger and Chris Pollack, partners in Untitled Advertising and Public Relations, have been successfully placing clients in media outlets both in Phoenix, Ariz., where the firm is based, and across the country. As small business owners themselves, they understand the challenges others are facing in driving traffic while maintaining a manageable budget in the process. As Ms. Steger shares, “You truly need a strategy in media relations; you can’t write one press release and call it good. It’s an ongoing process to keep yourself in front of press contacts to become the go-to expert in your field.” In fact, Ms. Steger cautions potential clients that a firm that offers ala carte services may not be the best approach. “The first promotional piece may not catch anyone’s attention, but after they’ve heard from you a few times, editors get curious. You have to maintain interest.”

Steger and Pollack will be providing their guidance at The Grammar Doctors‘ monthly brown bag series in February, discussing the pros and cons of building your own media strategy vs. hiring a professional firm. Attendees will have the opportunity to ask questions and learn more about all of the components involved in creating a successful media strategy, leaving with valuable information on how to get started achieving more exposure immediately.

Untitled Advertising and Public Relations and The Grammar Doctors are strategic partners, providing marketing communications and media relations support for businesses and corporations to enhance outreach efforts. Untitled also has a strong presence in the local Hispanic market.

Business owners and entrepreneurs are invited to attend this free workshop on Tuesday, February 16, 12 pm – 1 pm at the office of The Grammar Doctors, 3420 E Shea Blvd, Ste 200, Phoenix, Ariz. Sign up online or call 602-953-5278 for more information.

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Category: Communications | 1 Comment »
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