SKC Insights

A wise old woman once said, "There is more to life then meets the eye, including the success of your business. If fame and fortune are what you seek, then perhaps it would be wise to look to the lunar calendar."

Before you consult your friendly neighborhood fengshui master, the answers to a prosperous year may be found in the Chinese zodiac animals of public relations.

Here are five signs that PR is meant for you:

1. When You're Out & About, But Nobody Knows You

Industry trade shows are high-powered affairs where major players are conveniently located under one roof. So you mingle with a mission. But without any buzz about your company, you will most likely be dismissed with the networking kiss of death. "Oh...hum...what's the name of your company again?" These words strike you in the heart as your potential client nods, smiles, and walks away. If you are crying inside because you were branded a "nobody" among your peers, this, my friend, is a sign. Our zodiac advisor says it's time to summon the PR DOG, the best friend of man as well as the best friend of business.

Email, a major pillar of any savvy company's marketing strategy, is the only channel where we have full control of our messages, design, and distribution. Plus, the ROI and conversion rates are consistently higher than other marketing tools.

So what makes a marketing email effective? Is there a secret formula that can help produce consistently great emails? There is!

AIDA is one of the longest serving models in marketing, commonly attributed to American advertising advocate Elias St. Elmo Lewis. Time tested, AIDA is a foolproof method of creating effective marketing emails with four essential elements. In fact, once you understand AIDA, you’ll start seeing it in every piece of marketing content that makes you say, “I need to buy that!”

1. Attention - Catch the Eye with A Killer Subject Line

Attention spans are shortening and you may only have seconds to attract a customer as they scroll through their inbox. So that attention-grabbing subject line is your essential foot in the door. Those few words will have to get your customer to read the first sentence of your email, which will lead to the next and the next. Peak their curiosity and self-interest with the promise of a benefit to them.

You have considered every angle of your PR launch. You've double-checked that you have every message a company needs. And you've planned for every stage of maturing your online presence. Yet you are still not getting the web traffic you thought you'd get.

With today's over saturation of competing media, it can be hard to stand out among the noise. So if people won't come themselves, you will have to get them to come. And the best way to grow traffic is email. The ROI figures alone prove it: every $1 spent on email marketing nets an average return of $38!

Here are 4 reasons email marketing can bring you the traffic you want:

With 2017 drawing to a close, you reflect on the milestones crossed and goals achieved. You also plan your marketing and PR goals for 2018. Does your company need greater brand recognition? Do your executives need more exposure to influencers and decision makers? Are your products, services, or spokespeople appearing in news sites that can bolster your sales efforts? Are you challenged by how to meet these goals without adding head count? Finding support in a PR/marketing agency might be your answer.

Here are five reasons for tapping into a PR and marketing agency in 2018:

1. Abundance of Resources

Securing media coverage, launching content marketing campaigns, winning awards and industry allies all begin with research - who to reach out to, what tools to use. Your PR and marketing agency will have already invested in the best, most comprehensive media databases, and received training in marketing automation tools thus saving you thousands of dollars in subscription fees and expanding your capabilities ten-fold.

With new forms of media appearing every day, it’s easy to forget tried and true methods of getting your story out. The company newsletter survived the transition from mailbox to inbox and continues to attract new customers while making current customers feel valued. Compared to social media, which can be done in as little as 10 minutes a day, a good newsletter requires time and effort.

A PR partner can put together the juiciest bits of information and services like HubSpot, MailChip and ConstantContact can make a newsletter easier to distribute. But even with all the support, you might ask why a newsletter is necessary?

Here are three reasons why a company newsletter is a valuable tool for your business:

Growing up is never easy. There are always unexpected twists and turns, but as children there was that shining light of adulthood at the end of the tunnel. Building an online presence for your company can feel the same. We dream of skipping those awkward adolescent years of slow news coverage and empty email lists and moving straight to being the go-to website for your market. But we need to learn to walk before we can run.