I’m a sucker for free stuff. My very first forays onto the internet in 1995 consisted of scouring the 5 sites out in cyberspace for free samples, whether I needed them or not. So you can believe my eyes nearly popped out of my head when I saw the goodies we got at BlogHer 08 [...]

If I hadn’t gone into marketing, I probably would have become an event planner. I love trade shows and conferences. I think they’re fun, and marvel at the work put into planning them. As I did end up in marketing, I appreciate the advertising potential businesses can get by either attending or sponsoring at a [...]

Last week I was at a blogging conference, BlogHer 08. The marketing and advertising around me was mind-boggling. And the shwag. Oh, the shwag! But that’s another post. Big corporate sponsors like Quicken and Microsoft spent thousands of dollars trying to get our attention. But you know the marketing that impressed me even more? This:

Now, [...]

This will be my last post for a week. I’m going on vacation and TURNING OFF MY COMPUTER, which is a very big deal for me! Exciting things to come for this blog too, so check back in a few weeks!
We all love the little tschotschkes we get at conventions. But think for a minute: [...]

Holidays are some of the best excuses to get a little PR and marketing out. If you remember, “Holidays” were #20 on my list of 24 Reasons to Toot Your Own Horn post. Real or otherwise, there’s something to be said about riding on an event that’s on everyone’s mind.
Here are some ways you can [...]

So you’ve told the reader what’s in it for them. You’ve included a great offer. Now what?
“Call now and we’ll throw in an extra Ginsu knife absolutely free!”
“Act now! Quantities are limited!”
“Discount good through January 30.”
“100% money back guarantee for 30 days.”

You need a call to action. Something to stimulate your reader to get off [...]

I’ve always been a big proponent of press releases. They’re short, simple, and to the point. But lately I’ve been asking myself if they’re relevant in a world where journalists are bombarded with releases and there are thousands of releases online at any given point online.
I decided, yes, they are relevant. Here’s why.
1. Press [...]

Well, maybe not a celebrity, but I can get some attention for you and your business! Darren Rowse of Problogger wrote a great article called Make a Reader Famous where he gives suggestions to put a reader in the spotlight. My blog is relatively new, but it’s growing, so I want to do this as [...]

I’ve been thinking a lot about viral marketing lately. Primarily since I spoke with Kevin Eikenberry (see last week’s Blogging & Your Business forum for his input on that topic). Today, his goal is to unseat Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows as the #1 Bestseller on Amazon.com, just for a day, with his book, [...]

Once you start blogging, you’ll find it can take a lot of time if you don’t do it right. Many bloggers hire writers to write some posts, and some use guest bloggers to help them. Let’s ask our panel who does the blogging.

Are you the business owner AND blogger, or do you have an employee [...]