Lots of tools in the roundup this week

[Readers frequently ask me how to keep up with all the developments in technology and the online world. That's why we've introduced a new feature: a weekly link roundup curated by Matt Mansfield.   -Becky]

Matt About Solutions Weekly Link Roundup

Each week, I collect the 10 best posts that I've read and share them with you here. These posts focus on either choosing, or using, small business solutions online (or both!). Enjoy!

Should You Advertise on Facebook, LinkedIn or Twitter?
http://www.socialmediaexaminer.com/should-you-advertise-on-facebook-linkedin-or-twitter/
A good overview of the three platforms and with pros and cons of each.

How to Use Skype in Your Business
http://www.bridiestypingservices.com/how-to-use-skype-in-your-business/
An overview of some of the ways you can use Skype.

5 Free Ways To Track Twitter Sentiment
http://smallbiztrends.com/2010/03/tracking-twitter-sentiment.html
How is your company perceived on Twitter? Use these tools to find out.

How We Hired a Web Developer
http://boss.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/04/27/how-we-hired-a-web-developer/
A good case study from the NYT.

My Favorite Tools
http://www.evancarmichael.com/blog/top-tools-i-use/
A great roundup of online solutions.

5 New Tactics For SEO Post-Panda
http://searchengineland.com/5-new-tactics-for-seo-post-panda-73982
The changes at Google have hit many hard. Here are some approaches to take to recover.

10 New Twitter Tools to Boost your Productivity
http://designmodo.com/10-new-twitter-tools-to-boost-your-productivity
More of the ever-growing list of Twitter tools.

How To Get Long Laster And Targeted Traffic From Twitter
http://www.technshare.com/how-to-get-long-laster-and-targeted-traffic-from-twitter/
Actionable tactics for making use of Twitter.

Stop Copying Everyone Else's Business Model!
http://www.passionforbusiness.com/blog/stop-copying-business-model/
Insight on differentiating your business.

11 Great Technology Tools for Small Business
http://succeedasyourownboss.com/04/2011/11-great-technology-tools-for-small-business/
Another great roundup of online solutions.

[By the time you read this, Matt and I will have finally met in person at SOBCon in Chicago. Here's to real life meetings!  -Becky]



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Brag Basket goes to Chicago

One of our traditions at Small Biz Survival is the Brag Basket. The basket is always free and open all weekend, this one from April 29 through May 1, 2011. Since I'm away in Chicago, I hope you will take the lead and cheer for each other.

Basket of donut holes
at Lou Mitchell's, in Chicago.
Photo (cc) by Sheila Scarborough.

Even though I call this the Brag Basket, it's not really about bragging. It's about sharing. It's here so you can introduce yourself, share some good news, or congratulate a friend. Don't hold back because of that word, "brag." When you hold back, you hide your good news and accomplishments that might inspire others.

Speak up and add yourself or another deserving soul in the comments. We all cheer, and everyone feels great. It lets you meet each other a bit. Reading each others' stories brings us a bit closer to being a community.

How does it work? You write a comment on this post, email me, tweet me, or comment on Facebook. You tell something great about your week, or you give applause to someone who did good stuff this week. Or you celebrate something wonderful that you tried that failed.

This is not an ad. (I delete the ads.) It's a conversation with friends. So jump in. And remember to cheer for each other.

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How to pack Main Street for a big sale

[My friend Gayle Machetta from Henryetta, Oklahoma, sent me the story of how one local merchant has created a sales event that packs hundreds of people into their downtown twice a year. --Becky]

Burnett Furniture getting ready for the big sale.
Photo by Gayle Machetta. 

Sending you an invite to come to Henryetta and see what happens on our Main St. two times a year.   Our large home-town family owned furniture store (Burnett’s) does a blow-out sale in April and November every year where the manufacturer’s representatives actually attend and serve as sales staff on the showroom floor because there are literally hundreds of people who come to the 3-hour sale.  They line up outside the doors of the store for an hour before the doors open.  The dealer will close down this evening and cardboard up the windows until the night of the sale in order to re-price everything in the store.

The other merchants in the same block  figured out awhile ago that this was a captive market for those few hours. The Men's store next door stays open (Bob's Clothiers) and does a tremendous business.  The Flower/Gift shop and Jewelry store (Rheba's and Cave's) also stay open until about 8 and do a good trade.  The Burnett Hardware Store and Burnett Gift Store in the next block participate in the sale and the hardware store also has manufacturer's representatives on hand to do special orders on lawn tractors, chippers, tillers.  This year, there was even a church youth group that set up a Hamburger cookout to raise money for their Relay for Life team and they made several hundred dollars in a couple of hours on the light crowd.

It’s a real phenomenon.  Reminds me of when our Main Street was bustling like that every weekend and during the holiday season.

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Creating a Business That Can Thrive Without You

Built to Sell: Creating a Business That Can Thrive Without You by John Warrillow is a direct and effective tool to help you do exactly what it says: make your business something that can survive without you and is sell-able.

Built to Sell delivers
on its promise. 

• If you think you may want to sell your business someday, or someday soon, get a copy now. Read it, and start putting it into practice.

• If you have a business that is eating your life, this book stands up there with the E-Myth Series and Work the System as a tool to help you get your life back, while building a stronger business.

• If you are just starting a business, I recommend you read this first. It's a good peek into the future, one where your business gives you options. 

I blazed through my copy of the first edition and passed it along to a colleague. I'm excited to have a copy of the second edition in hand. In addition to the basic business fable, it now includes an outstanding implementation guide. So it includes an engaging story full of implicit lessons, plus an explicit "how-to" guide. And Warrillow added lessons from his own experience in building and exiting four businesses. Some of these real-life stories are quite revealing, like his early attempt at a subscription model that would make his market research business more sell-able. It failed, but he learned the lessons that made it possible to succeed later. (And yes, he does share those lessons.)

This week only, you can get in on a promotion, where you can get a $65 basket of goodies along with your copy, including

• a one year subscription to Inc Magazine, 
• an e-book from the E-myth, 
• a BizBuySell Valuation Report, 
• a two hour conference call with Warrillow and 
• a $25 Kiva loan in your name.  

But you have to order and send in your confirmation by this Saturday, April 30, 2011. Check the details on the basket of goodies offer.

Honestly, I don't care about the goodies. I think you want a copy of this book no matter what. It's well worth it all on its own.

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How risk management saved a guest ranch $10,000 on liability insurance

Risk is part of everything we do. Any business could be sued by anyone. We can't change that, but we can manage the risks and reduce our potential liabilities.

A shooting station at Claythorne Lodge:
a risk that must be managed.

Agritourism businesses have some extra risks to manage: being around animals and horseback riding, shooting, being around water and fishing, and more.

At the recent tri-state agritourism event, Sharon Glidden from Tiger Mountain Ranch talked about her risk management strategies. Now, Sharon is not your everyday person when it comes to risk management. She said she used to manage risk at an assisted living center in Florida, where she learned that caring about people is your number one asset.

Her risk management manual cut her insurance cost from $21,000 to $11,000 per year. She said to share your strategies with your liability insurance agency in order to achieve a similar savings. Here are some of her other tips and ideas:

One way to get business immediately

What can you do when you need business and income right away? Here is one thing that almost always works:

Call your existing customers.

Phone by Ant & Carrie

Pick up the phone, and call your existing customers. Just say hello, check in that everything you've done for them is still working, or whatever the equivalent is for your business. Thank them for being a customer.

Feeling brave? Tell them you have some extra time right now, and tell them exactly what kind of work you'd love to pick up. But that's optional.

What's the worst that could happen? 

• If you find an unhappy customer, you get the chance to make it right. Result: they become your biggest fan. 
• If you find a happy customer, you feel great and they feel great. Result: they will watch for work to send to you. 

Of course, the best that can happen is that you turn up someone who needs some work right away, right?

Does it work? 
Well, I've seen it work. A local small business person asked me what he could do to get business right away. I encouraged him to make some calls to current customers. He reported back that he picked up two new jobs immediately.

What have you tried to find business immediately?

P.S. Don't forget the webinar Tuesday, "No You May NOT Pick My Brain!" with Sheila Scarborough and me.

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Webinar on How To Draw the Line Between Free and Paid

Join us for a live webinar this Tuesday only.

Photo (c) by Matthew Lemke Photography

Sheila Scarborough (my business partner at Tourism Currents) put together an outstanding webinar called "No You May NOT Pick My Brain!", but it was for a members-only site, and cost $39. I convinced her to bring it back and share it with us.

So we’re doing it this Tuesday, April 26, 3pm Central time. It will only be offered live this one time. Anyone who signs up after Tuesday will have to settle for the recording. During the webinar, Sheila is going to add some valuable tips:

• The advantages (yes, there are a few) and disadvantages of sometimes working for no pay.
• How to tell the difference between predatory brain-picking and friendly questioning.
• Why social media tends to cause us to be overly casual about the value of our work.

You can participate live in the webinar, and get a copy of my toolkit, How to Draw the Line Between Free and Paid, for $37. (That's less than what the members-only site charged for just the webinar.)

All the details are here: http://is.gd/DrawTheLine

And if you're ready to sign up, go stratight to the registration page: http://is.gd/DrawTheLineSignUp

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Getting more customers and more sales in the weekly link roundup

[Readers always ask me how to keep up with all the developments in technology and the online world. That's why we've introduced a new feature: a weekly link roundup curated by Matt Mansfield.  -Becky]

Matt About Solutions Weekly Link Roundup

Each week, I collect the 10 best posts that I've read and share them with you here. These posts focus on either choosing, or using, small business solutions online (or both!). Enjoy!

How to Measure Your Facebook Engagement
http://www.socialmediaexaminer.com/how-to-measure-your-facebook-engagement
My Take: Basic tips on measuring how well you're doing at gaining the right kind of attention on Facebook.

How Apps Can Help Market Your Business, Increase Sales
http://www.smallbusinesscomputing.com/biztools/article.php/3930736/How-Apps-Can-Help-Market-Your-Business-Increase-Sales.htm
My Take: Can a mobile app really boost your business? Find out.

How To (Successfully) Break The First Rule Of Social Media
http://www.socialmediaexplorer.com/social-media-marketing/how-to-successfully-break-the-first-rule-of-social-media/
My Take: Some valuable tips that transcend social media and can be applied to many aspects of your business.

Your good news can inspire others

One of our traditions at Small Biz Survival is the Brag Basket. The basket is always free and open all weekend, this one from April 22-24, 2011.

This week's basket photo
by angela7dreams

Even though I call this the Brag Basket, it's not really about bragging. It's about sharing. It's here so you can introduce yourself, share some good news, or congratulate a friend. Don't hold back because of that word, "brag." When you hold back, you hide your good news and accomplishments that might inspire others.

Speak up and add yourself or another deserving soul in the comments. We all cheer, and everyone feels great. It lets you meet each other a bit. Reading each others' stories brings us a bit closer to being a community.

How does it work? You write a comment on this post, email me, tweet me, or comment on Facebook. You tell something great about your week, or you give applause to someone who did good stuff this week. Or you celebrate something wonderful that you tried that failed.

This is not an ad. (I delete the ads.) It's a conversation with friends. So jump in. And remember to cheer for each other.

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21 Ways To Use Video For Your Small Business

[Because she does such great videos for her own business, I invited Heather Thomas to submit a guest post about different uses for video in promoting your small business. I think you'll get some great ideas from what she came up with.  --Becky]

By Heather Thomas

C.C. Chapman shooting
video from kayak. 

It’s no secret that video can be an extremely effective marketing tool for your small business. It is engaging, interactive, and allows potential customers to get to know you and your business before ever stepping foot in your store. It is a chance to start building relationships with people you have never even met and an opportunity to get them to know, like, and trust you before the sale. 

If you’re like me, you can think of a thousand reasons why you need to do video. You may even know how to do simple videos for your small business. But, what kind of video should you do?

If you’re looking for ideas for small business videos, read on. Here is a list of 21 ways you can use video for your small business.

1. Tell your company story. Video is a compelling way to tell your story. Tell your customers why you are in business and what you love about it. Sharing your enthusiasm for your business is a great way to get customers to get to know you and want to do business with you. Here is an example of a small town grocer telling her story about Red Bay Grocery.
   

What CVBs can do for agritourism businesses

At the Tri-State Agritourism Conference, three local convention and visitor bureau (CVB) pros talked about what they can do with local agritourism businesses.

CVBs can help agritourism operators
put together group tours.

Karen Hood represented Pulaski County TBVC (Tourism Bureau and Visitors Center) from Missouri, Amanda Davis represented Miami CVB from Oklahoma and Craig Hull represented the Crawford County Kansas CVB.

"My visitors know no state lines, no county lines, no city limits." 
I don't remember which one of the three said that, but I think it was Amanda Davis. In other words, feel free to reach out to a neighboring CVB, even if you aren't within the city limits. They are all looking for great venues to share with their visitors.

It's important to know your local CVB, because they know all about the different state programs that might help your business. Also, some states, like the Kansas Department of Tourism, prefer to get all local info through the CVB, not direct from the attraction or business.

All three of the CVBs offer free listings on their websites and in some publications, and paid listings with more info. All three work with local and regional press and publications in various ways to share stories of their local attractions. These three do packaging of group tours, publish event calendars, and help with lots of local events. All three have a girlfriends trips initiative.

Of the three, Amanda Davis is the most active online. She participates in Twitter and Facebook, promoting Miami, Oklahoma. This is key to reaching the demographic under age 50. It's not just 20 year olds, she said. Amanda and I have been connected on Twitter for ages, it seems. She really gets the right approach for the online world: interact and be real.

Craig Hull talked about an idea he had seen in another area: a fall farm tour. They put together a driving tour of several agritourism operations, and it was a big hit with visitors. All three said they were considering such a tour. If your CVB isn't considering one, get together with a couple of nearby agritourism venues, and reach out to your CVB. They can help you package that tour and make it happen.

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Simplify your business plan

How's your business plan? Have you looked at it lately? Could you find a copy if I asked? Do you even have one?

You benefit two ways when you create your own plan:

1. Preparing your plan forces you to actually evaluate your business, and
2. having a real-world plan serves as a guide post and reminder of where you are heading. 

The problem is that a big, five pound business plan is more of a pain than a benefit. So let's throw that away, and make a simplified, real world business plan instead.

Simplified Business Plans for the Real World

Section 1: Your Business
Talk about your business. Try answering these questions to a friend. Make note of the questions they ask and the suggestions they make.Try to get all the answers on one page, two at the most. 

1. Describe your business.
   Give a one sentence basic explanation, followed by a one paragraph explanation.
   
2. Tell about the market and competition.
   List some existing clients, and a one sentence description of your ideal new clients.
   
3. What makes your business unique or special?
   Here are 8 ways to define your niche.
4. What are your business goals? 
5. Why are you the right person to do this?

Weekly Tool Roundup includes ecommerce mistakes to avoid

[Readers always ask me how to keep up with all the developments in technology and the online world. That's why we're introducing a new feature: a weekly link roundup curated by Matt Mansfield.  -Becky]

Matt About Solutions Weekly Link Roundup
Each week, I collect the 10 best posts that I've read and share them with you here. These posts focus on either choosing, or using, small business solutions online (or both!). Enjoy!

Are These Ecommerce Mistakes Driving Newbie Shoppers Away From Your Online Store?
Link: http://mywifequitherjob.com/are-these-ecommerce-mistakes-driving-newbie-shoppers-away-from-your-online-store/
My Take: A great lesson here (with examples and tips): don't make your customers jump through hoops to pay you!

27 Money-Saving Tips From Successful Small Businesses
Link: http://www.openforum.com/idea-hub/topics/money/article/27-money-saving-tips-from-successful-small-businesses-annie-mueller
My Take: Some very actionable tips in this article - go, read and use.

3 Unique & Creative Uses For Dropbox Accounts
Link: http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/3-unique-creative-dropbox-accounts/
My Take: If you're not using Dropbox to share and backup files, you should give it a serious look. This is the first of two posts with interesting uses of the solution that go beyond the sharing and backup core.

The Brag Basket is tax free

One of our traditions at Small Biz Survival is the Brag Basket. The basket is always free and open all weekend, this one from April 15-17, 2011.

A little spare change in honor of US tax day
This week's basket photo by mondays child

Even though I call this the Brag Basket, it's not really about bragging. It's about sharing. It's here so you can introduce yourself, share some good news, or congratulate a friend. Don't hold back because of that word, "brag." When you hold back, you hide your good news and accomplishments that might inspire others.

Speak up and add yourself or another deserving soul in the comments. We all cheer, and everyone feels great. It lets you meet each other a bit. Reading each others' stories brings us a bit closer to being a community.

How does it work? You write a comment on this post, email me, tweet me, or comment on Facebook. You tell something great about your week, or you give applause to someone who did good stuff this week. Or you celebrate something wonderful that you tried that failed.

This is not an ad. (I delete the ads.) It's a conversation with friends. So jump in. And remember to cheer for each other.

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Keeping up with social media with Nutshell Mail

If you wished you had someone else to help you manage your social media and social networking, you'll like this one. 

Nutshell Mail collects all your social media updates and mentions into email digests. You don't have to monitor Twitter all day. You don't have to keep Facebook running. You might even save time and be more focused. 

It works with Facebook, Twitter, Yelp, LinkedIn and Foursquare. That covers most of the essential tools for small businesses. 

You decide when you get updates. You can schedule them every few hours, twice a day, once a day, what ever works for you. Smarties will set them to come the hour before their scheduled daily social media work time. 

The emails are interactive. While you're reading, if you see something that needs a reply, click on it and reply. No need to go log in separately. 

This is a smart tool. It makes it easier to keep up with online activity for small business, and it's free. Highly recommended.

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Education Expenses

Reader Julie R. asked:

I have educational expenses that are allowable under IRS tax regulations, but can't for the life of me figure out where to list them on Schedule C. Could you tell me which line they go on? 

Education expenses are, indeed, deductible or are eligible for an Education Credit.

For the purposes of answering the question as it was perceived to be asked, we will assume the education expenses are for the owner of the business, and are NOT necessary to achieve the minimum requirements for the position for which the education expenses were incurred.

We can turn to the very helpful Internal Revenue Service website: IRS.gov
IRS Publication 535, Business Expenses "Other Expenses"

Education expenses. ... You can also deduct the cost of your own education (including certain related travel) related to your trade or business. You must be able to show the education maintains or improves skills required in your trade or business, or that it is required by law or regulations, for keeping your license to practice, status, or job. For example, an attorney can deduct the cost of attending Continuing Legal Education (CLE) classes that are required by the state bar association to maintain his or her license to practice law.

Education expenses you incur to meet the minimum requirements of your present trade or business, or those that qualify you for a new trade or business, are not deductible. This is true even if the education maintains or improves skills presently required in your business.

Continuing Professional Education expenses are frequently placed on line 10 (Commission and Fees). These amounts paid for CPE could also be placed on line 17 (Legal and Professional Fees). If the taxpayer wants to completely segregate education expenses, they could be listed on Part V (Other Expenses).

If the education expenses were incurred for one or more employees, then the costs are most correctly listed on line 14 (Employee Benefit Programs).

If the education expenses are for the owner and they are to gain the proper credentials to perform the services of the business, then see IRS Publication 970, Tax Benefits for Education.

3 resources to help you get away from your business

You and I have too much to do. Our to-do lists overflow, our papers stack up, and we won't even talk about our inboxes. With all that overwhelming our minds, of course we need to get away from our business. But there is a bigger reason lurking, a bigger reason to get away.



It's lurking because we're not paying attention to it, and it's shy. What is it? Our purpose, our direction, our mission. We are so busy working in our business every day, we never take time to step back and work on our business.

You'd forgotten all about that, hadn't you? Let's reintroduce you, with these three resources to get you spending some time away from your business, in order to make it better.

1. Are you building a body of work, or a cornucopia of chaos? This classic comes from Jonathan Fields. I love this post so much, I go back to it often. Really absorb this mindset, then go on to the other two.

2. Ask yourself ten questions to strengthen your heart as a leader. Cheri Baker not only asks the questions, she shares her own answers. It's a good piece to get you thinking about your leadership roles. A tip of the hat to Steve Farber who shared this post on Twitter.

3. Rethink your customers and your direction. Clovia Hamilton went through some precise reevaluation of her small business's customers and services. While you may not be as thorough, her process makes a lot of sense. Schedule time away to complete the process.

When can you get away?

• Every week. I spend an hour each week reviewing the last week and planning ahead.
• Every month. I spend an hour with a mastermind group once per month to review, share plans, and get feedback.
• Every quarter. I spend a few hours once per quarter in a kind of not-really-a-retreat. I block out time to work on a neglected project or to do some refocusing.
• Every year. I spend time around the new year each year, reviewing business plans, thinking about direction and focus, and brainstorming new ideas. Then I do some mid-year correction when preparing for SOBCon in early May.

How about you? Are you getting away from your business? How often?

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New weekly link roundup for small biz technology

[Readers always ask me how to keep up with all the developments in technology and the online world. That's why we're introducing a new feature: a weekly link roundup curated by Matt Mansfield. -Becky]


Matt About Solutions Weekly Link Roundup
By Matt Mansfield

Each week, I collect the 10 best posts that I've read and share them with you here. These posts focus on either choosing, or using, small business solutions online (or both!).

Enjoy!

Top 5 Facebook Marketing Mistakes Small Businesses Make
Excellent pointers on what not to do if you are a small business on Facebook!

4 Ways to Set Up a Storefront on Facebook
Selling on Facebook? Where's the downside on this?!

2011 Social Media Marketing Industry Report
A 41-page "state of social media marketing" report. A great resource downloadable for FREE (not even an e-mail address required!)

Why Facebook's New Questions Tool Is Good for Brands & Businesses
I've been playing with this over at http://www.facebook.com/mattaboutbusiness. Have you given it a try?

The brag basket has become a tradition

One of our traditions at Small Biz Survival is the Brag Basket. The basket is always free and open all weekend, this one from April 8-11, 2011.

This week's basket photo by Ilja.

Even though I call this the Brag Basket, it's not really about bragging. It's about sharing. It's here so you can introduce yourself, share some good news, or congratulate a friend. Don't hold back because of that word, "brag." when you hold back, you hide your good news and accomplishments that might inspire others.

Speak up and add yourself or another deserving soul in the comments. We all cheer, and everyone feels great. It lets you meet each other a bit. Reading each others' stories brings us a bit closer to being a community.

How does it work? You write a comment on this post, email me, tweet me, or comment on Facebook. You tell something great about your week, or you give applause to someone who did good stuff this week. Or you celebrate something wonderful that you tried that failed.

This is not an ad. (I delete the ads.) It's a conversation with friends. So jump in. And remember to cheer for each other.

New here? Take the Guided Tour. Like what you see? Subscribe.

How is your shop local campaign doing?

Shop Local campaigns
are everywhere!

For almost two years, we've offered a guide to help small towns create Shop Local campaigns. I'm preparing an update, so I'd love to get your feedback.

1. Do you have a shop local campaign in your small town? How well is it working? Do you have any hard numbers?

2. If you've read our guide, what needs improved? What brainstorms would you add? And did you find it useful, worth the money?

3. If you haven't purchased our guide, what would make you want to: more info? comments from people who liked it? something else?

Feel free to comment here, or send an email to: shoplocal@smallbizsurvival.com

Thank you for helping!

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Three state agritourism programs

• Agritourism is the crossroads where agriculture and tourism meet.
• Current travel trends support agritourism: more short getaway trips, more travel by car, more last minute trips, and more family time.
• The general population is three to five generations removed from the family farm.
• Many people go to agritourism businesses in order to buy direct from the farm.

The Tri-State Agritourism Conference
lunching at Claythorne Lodge

Those four facts from Jeff Weeks, Oklahoma Agritourism, should whet your appetite for more about agritourism. And I have it, notes from several sessions at the recent Tri-State Agritourism event covering Oklahoma, Missouri and Kansas. 

State Efforts

Let's start by profiling some ideas from the efforts of those three states to support agritourism businesses.

PR tips to get more news coverage

My friend Mandy Vavrinak shared some great PR tips for getting news media coverage at the recent Social Media Tulsa Conference.

Mandy Vavrinak shares her PR tips
at Social Media Tulsa

Of course, getting news media coverage is different in small towns than when competing for big city coverage. In my small town, I'm three hours from the nearest TV stations and statewide newspapers. There's darn little I can do (or would want to) that would get their attention. And for my hometown paper, I can write my own stories. But I can still use Mandy's ideas about covering yourself.

Also, lots of small towns are closer to a big metro area and can compete for some "big" media attention. I know that Mandy works with smaller towns around the Tulsa metro area in her economic development work.

Here are her tips:

Build relationships first, before you ever seek coverage. Listen to the media representatives in your area on Twitter and on the news, and get to know what they want. Talk with them, compliment their good stories, and do all those basics of building relationships long before you start sharing pitches. "The most important thing is connect first, pitch later," Mandy said.

Develop good stories. Know what constitutes news your media will cover. Find the newsworthy angles. This takes practice.

Have a helpful attitude. If you have good information, and you're not spamming, you are helping the media, not bothering them.

Follow up in a positive way. Ask, "are you planning on covering this?" not "did you get the release?" The first one presumes they got it. If they didn't, you get a chance to summarize it in one sentence to see if they are interested.

Cover yourself. If you're finding the media is not interested in your stuff, cover it yourself. Use a service like small-town Wyoming based PitchEngine that allows you to build multimedia releases. PitchEngine works as a repository of your multimedia content and archives. This is different from PRWeb and related services, which are distribution networks. [Note: PRWeb stopped by to let me know they also do multimedia releases. See the comments below.]

Don't reinvent the multimedia wheel. Use supporting materials that are freely available from others. For example, Mandy was doing a release on the importance of sprinklers in fire safety. She put together a release and included video about sprinklers from an industry source.

What PR tips would you add?

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The Brag Basket is no fool

I think it's foolish not to brag in the basket: you hide your good news and accomplishments that might inspire others. So get in there! The basket is always free and open all weekend, from April 1-3, 2011.

An April Fool Brag Basket
This week's basket photo by Miss Tessmacher.

Even though I call this the Brag Basket, it's not really about bragging. It's about sharing. It's here so you can introduce yourself, share some good news, or congratulate a friend.

Speak up and add yourself or another deserving soul in the comments. We all cheer, and everyone feels great. It lets you meet each other a bit. Reading each others' stories brings us a bit closer to being a community.

How does it work? You write a comment on this post, email me, tweet me, or comment on Facebook. You tell something great about your week, or you give applause to someone who did good stuff this week. Or you celebrate something wonderful that you tried that failed.

This is not an ad. (I delete the ads.) It's a conversation with friends. So jump in. And remember to cheer for each other.

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