After one of the worst periods for sales in retail history, some of the largest retailers in the country are saying that this year they are going to work harder than ever at increasing sales while trying to contain marketing expenses, according to a Dow Jones story that ran this morning.

Their solution? The Internet.

“We’re looking at how we can be more targeted in how we talk to our customers,” said Barbara Hagen, senior marketing director for brand strategy and communications at Best Buy Inc., who was speaking at the National Retail Federation’s annual convention in New York City on Sunday.  She described marketing tactics designed to increase their visibility and drive people to their Web site to buy online or head to their retail locations. “It’s also a way of increasing loyalty and retention.”

She’s right – PR is the best way to leverage the Internet. It is the only marketing tactic that combines the power of print, both offline and online, with one stroke.  A single article in traditional print publications can also appear in their online publications and then can be republished and redistributed by numerous others on social networks.

The new media and PR are a match made in heaven for increasing awareness about your company and products:

1. PR is trusted – According to Forrester Research, 45 percent of people surveyed trust the editorial sections of the newspapers and magazines they read (offline and online).  But, 85 percent of consumers don’t trust the advertising that bombards them.
  
2. PR delivers credibility – If the reporter at your local daily newspaper sees fit to write about your company in a positive light, it amounts to a tacit endorsement of your company by the paper. That carries weight and trust that you just can’t buy with display ads in that same publication.
 
3. PR reaches the masses – In an age where more people are getting their news online than offline, it would appear on the surface that PR is losing its punch, but nothing could be further than the truth. Every newspaper and magazine repurposes its content online. In fact, the Audit Bureau of Circulation said the Internet readership of newspapers exceeded 75 million unique visitors last year, an increase of more than 23 percent over the previous year. People are STILL reading newspapers and magazines – and they are doing it online.
 
4. PR on the Web is closer to your customers – No matter your business or your potential customer, the ones who are ready to buy go to the Internet to research their decisions BEFORE they reach for their checkbooks.  Articles about your company and product can confirm their buying decision and, in many cases, put your consumers one click away from your Web site – your virtual storefront.
 
5. PR is Social Network Compatible – The best way to draw the ire of the millions of Facebook and Twitter users is to be too commercial in your updates and links. If you currently use social networks to generate new business, you already know you cannot be too overtly commercial in your posts.  Tweeting and providing links to legitimate stories in the media about your company is not the same animal, however. In fact, these postings typically help generate greater buzz and far more one-to-one contact with potential customers.
 
6. PR online is happening NOW – Right now, your competitors are working all these angles in growing numbers. No matter your business, companies – like Best Buy – are getting smarter about connecting the dots between their customers, the Internet, their message and their sales. Every day that you wait, they gain ground and you lose it.

The challenges of the new decade aren’t going to get easier, and economic recovery won’t be a magic wand waved by the government. We have to do what we know is smart, prudent and cost effective to drive our businesses forward. PR meets all those requirements more so today than it ever has before.

For 20 years Marsha Friedman has been a leading authority on public relations as CEO of EMSI. Go to www.emsincorporated.com to signup to receive her free PR Insider Newsletter today! Or call at 727-443-7115, ext. 202, or email at mfriedman@emsincorporated.com.

Article Source:http://www.articlesbase.com/marketing-tips-articles/how-can-businesses-increase-their-revenues-while-spending-less-1730836.html

Whether you’ve completed your book or you’re still writing, it’s important to develop a book promotion strategy. All book proposals should include this crucial element—and it’s often one of the most important sections of the proposal to many agents and publishers.

If you attempt to take the advice of most internet gurus you’ll drive yourself crazy. Recently, a client of mine who’s still working on her book took some classes in preparation to grow her business and also develop a platform for her book.

She spent thousands of dollars on these classes, but found little result for all the time she put in. This is someone who sold a very successful business so she could work short weeks and take off a week every month to enjoy life—and that worked well until recently. She didn’t want to spend 60 hours a week tweeting or on facebook.

And it’s not just social marketing classes that can require Wall Street hours with [often, not always] little results. I have clients who have taken courses on being your own internet radio host—a great strategy for some people – but for her it didn’t pay off because she never created her radio show. Such programs are often sold as the way you will sell your book, but really they are just one tactic…and maybe not the best one for you.

So, how do you figure out what’s right for you? First you get clear on your goals. Do you want to reach the masses or did you write your book to help you get high quality speaking engagements or attract ideal clients? If these are your goals, concentrate your efforts on those people you most want to reach for your primary goal. Where do they hang out, both online and offline? Who knows them? How can you best get your books into their hands?

For one client, I am suggesting he give away free books to CEOs. If he sells his program to one company, the investment pays for itself. But he needs to follow up those book giveaways with phone calls (from a seasoned sales person, or with an excellent script). I also want him to speak in front of small to mid-size business owners and CEOs. Social marketing can support that strategy, but social marketing is not a strategy in itself: it’s a tactic.

Also, ask yourself what you enjoy doing…speaking? Reading blogs? Networking virtually? Interviewing people? You may need to do some activities not on your preferred list, but start with your strengths and play them up.  Most importantly, make it fun. If you enjoy it, you’ll stick with it and you’ll attract more success with your magnetic attitude.

National book writing coach and published author Lisa Tener helps authors write books and get published. Lisa has appeared on ABC World News with Peter Jennings, and PBS-TV. Her book writing clients have been featured on Oprah, Montel Williams, and CNN. Lisa speaks, coaches and teaches how to write a book throughout the US, and serves on the faculty of the Harvard Medical School continuing education course on book writing and publishing. Get Free book writing & publishing updates here.

Article Source:http://www.articlesbase.com/marketing-tips-articles/to-sell-books-use-strategy-not-tactics-1444112.html