It's all about people

Many years ago, a wise friend said to me, "If you want to succeed in marketing, PR or sales, you only have to remember one thing, people sell to people.” And it's so true!

Today, more than ever before, reporters are flooded by email, video and other electronic communications, just as they were flooded with paper back in the snail-mail days. While they need access to large amounts of information, eventually they must prioritize what they will publish or distribute. So, it’s not about how many messages you send, but about how many are digested, followed by some action taken. Your chances of being published are greatly enhanced when the person making the decision knows you. Solid personal relationships are the foundation for getting your message across, not your expertise with or commitment to laptops, cell phones, iPods and other technology.

Technology is not a substitute for personal effort, face-to-face contact or even voice contact. The human touch is still required. You may think it’s more efficient to send 1,000 emails to every press outlet available, but it is decidedly less effective than maintaining relationships with 10 or more journalists and editors in your market.