Public Relations For Dummies, 2Nd Edition

Proven techniques that maximize media exposure for your business


A seasoned PR pro shows you how to get people talking

When it comes to public relations, nothing beats good word of mouth. Want to get customers talking? This friendly guide combines the best practical tools with insight and flair to provide guidance on every aspect of PR, so you can launch a full-throttle campaign that'll generate buzz -- and build your bottom line.

Discover how to
* Map a winning PR strategy
* Grab attention with press releases, interviews, and events
* Cultivate good media relations
* Get print, TV, radio, and Internet coverage
* Manage a PR crisis

Eric Yaverbaum: Eric Yaverbaum co-founded Jericho Communications, a New York City–based PR firm, and served as its president for 21 years before moving to Lime Public Relations and Promotions, where he currently serves as a Managing Partner and Director of Client Services. He has more than 25 years of experience in the practice of public relations and has earned a reputation for his unique expertise in strategic media relations, crisis communications, and media training. Eric has amassed extensive experience in counseling a wide range of clients in corporate, consumer, retail, technology, and professional-services markets and in building brands such as Sony, IKEA, Domino’s Pizza, TCBY, Progressive Insurance, and American Express, among many others.
Eric has acted as corporate spokesperson on behalf of dozens of clients, including Domino’s Pizza, Hain-Celestial Food Group, Prince Tennis Rackets, and Camp Beverly Hills Clothing. He is a regular on the lecture circuit, speaking to professional organizations across the country on the art of public relations. He has been a guest on many national and regional television and radio programs and networks, including all of the network morning shows, FOX & Friends, and Larry King Live, to name a few.
Eric has written many articles for trade journals and daily newspapers on various topics in public relations and co-authored the best-selling book I’ll Get Back to You (McGraw-Hill) and Leadership Secrets of the World’s Most Successful CEOs (Dearborn). A graduate of The American University, Eric is an active member of the highly selective Young President’s Organization, where he served as Chapter Chairman from 2000 to 2003 and founded the “Walk a Mile in My Shoes” initiative that lobbied the U.S. House of Representatives and U.S. Senate to pass the bill calling for increased funding for stem cell research.
Robert Bly: Bob Bly is an independent copywriter specializing in traditional and Internet direct marketing. He has written lead generating sales letters, direct-mail packages, ads, scripts, Web sites, Internet direct mail, and PR materials for more than 100 clients, including IBM, AT&T, The BOC Group, EBI Medical Systems, Associated Air Freight, CoreStates Financial Corp., PSE&G, Alloy Technology, M&T Chemicals, ITT, Phillips Publishing, Nortel Networks, Fala Direct Marketing, Citrix Systems, and Grumman Corp.
Bob is the author of more than 45 books, including The Copywriter’s Handbook (Henry Holt), Selling Your Services (Henry Holt), Business-to-Business Direct Marketing (NTC), The Advertising Manager’s Handbook (Prentice Hall), and Internet Direct Mail: The Complete Guide to Successful E-mail Marketing Campaigns (NTC). His articles have appeared in Direct, Business Marketing, Computer Decisions, Chemical Engineering, Direct Marketing, Writer’s Digest, Amtrak Express, DM News, Cosmopolitan, New Jersey Monthly, City Paper, and many other publications. A winner of the Direct Marketing Association’s Gold Echo Award, Bob has presented seminars on direct marketing and related business topics to numerous organizations, including IBM, Foxboro Company, Arco Chemical, Thoroughbred Software Leaders Conference, Cambridge Technology Partners, Haht Software, and Dow Chemical.
Ilise Benun: Ilise Benun is the founder of Marketing Mentor (www.marketing-mentor.com), as well as an author and national speaker. Her books include Stop Pushing Me Around: A Workplace Guide for the Timid, Shy and Less Assertive (Career Press), Self-Promotion Online and Designing Websites:// for Every Audience (HOW Design Books). Her work has also been featured in national magazines such as Inc., Nation’s Business, Self, Essence, Crains New York Business, Dynamic Graphics, iQ (a Cisco Systems magazine), HOW Magazine, and Working Woman.
Benun publishes a free e-mail newsletter called Quick Tips from Marketing Mentor, which is read by 7,000+ small-business owners and has been excerpted in many other e-mail newsletters, including Bob Bly’s Direct Response Letter and Early to Rise.

"…the ideas herein will make your creative mind fly for sure!" (TamsPalm Blog, September 2006)

Introduction.
Part I: PR: What It Is, How It Works.
Chapter 1: The Power of PR.
Chapter 2: X-Raying the PR Process.
Chapter 3: Hiring Professional PR Help.
Part II: Brainstorming and Thinking Creatively.
Chapter 4: Setting Up Your PR Department and Program.
Chapter 5: Formulating Ideas.
Chapter 6: Using PR Tactics.
Part III: Putting the Wheels in Motion.
Chapter 7: Creating a Company Newsletter.
Chapter 8: Putting Your Message in Writing: The Pres Release.
Chapter 9: Writing and Placing Feature Articles.
Chapter 10: Promoting Yourself through Public Speaking.
Part IV: Choosing the Right Medium for Your Message.
Chapter 11: Getting Your Message Out.
Chapter 12: Handling the Media.
Chapter 13: Tuning In to Radio.
Chapter 14:Getting PR on the Tube.
Chapter 15: Getting More Ink (Print Isn’t Dead Yet).
Chapter 16: Going Public in Cyberspace: Your Web Site.
Chapter 17: Getting a Grip on New Technology — Blogs, Webcasting, and Podcasting.
Part V: Creating Buzz.
Chapter 18: Getting Hits from Buzz Marketing and Viral Marketing.
Chapter 19: Staging Publicity Events.
Chapter 20: Spotting and Seizing Opportunities.
Chapter 21: Knowing What to Do in a PR Crisis.
Chapter 22: Evaluating PR Results.
Part VI: The Part of Tens.
Chapter 23: The Ten Greatest PR Coups of All Time.
Chapter 24: Ten Myths about PR — Debunked.
Chapter 25: Ten Reasons to Do PR.
Chapter 26: Ten Things You Should Never Do in the Name of PR.
Chapter 27: Ten Steps to Better PR Writing.
Appendix: Recommended Resources.
Index.