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Media relations

1. you are never off-the-record
2. respect journalists as professionals
3. include your contact details in your release and be on standby to take any media queries once it is released.
4. reply to media queries immediately. if you can't give an answer, tell them that you will need to get back to them in a while. return the call no later than 15 mins.
5. never say no comment

What is news?

1. It is important, current and timely.
2. Bad news sells.
3. The bigger they are, the harder they fall. Controversy involving famous or important people are news.
4. Controversy
5. It affects a large segment of the population or has far-reaching effects.
6. Has some novelty value, break some record
7. Locality. If it happens overseas, it's not news here.

Hallmarks of a good media release

1. A good headline is an invitation to journalist to read the release. If it is good, the editor will use it as it is in the papers.
2. Structure of a media release is an inverted pyramid. Put the most important points in the first para.
3. Having a quote will create human interest. Have someone important say something important that is not mentioned in the body text.
4. Picture tells a thousand words. It will help you get better coverage. Send video footage if you want to get into broadcast.
5. If your media release reads like your sales literature, it will be binned by the editor. Don't sell features, sell benefits.
6. If making an annoucement, make sure it is timely.

Hallmarks of a good headline

1. readers can tell the story just by looking at it
2. usually just one line, short and sharp in seven words
3. usually contains no acronym or abbreviation
4. must be grammatically correct

Steps to producing a marketing collateral from the client-side perspective

1. Draft up a marketing plan with budget estimates to secure funds for your projects. In order to do that, you may need to check yellow pages, internet and make cold calls to vendors who can supply the product that you need. See if they are willing to do a no-obligations sales meeting to show you their portfolio, products and services. Some vendors will not quote you unless you engage them for the project.
2. Once your marketing plan or campaign is approved, you can proceed to invite for quotation for your specific projects or collateral.
3. A written specification may not be clear. Sometimes you may need to get vendors to attending a briefing. Be clear in your specifications e.g. whether you need content research/copywriting/design/printing, state whether you want the vendor to transfer the copyrights for the entire works, whether you are require commissioned photography or stock images, formats for the output, finishing e.g. gloss/matt, binding e.g. saddle-stitch, paper type, 4C/2C/1C printing (if it is print collateral), corporate identity guidelines, target audience, languages. You can request for vendor to submit mockups as part of the quote. However, it is not industry practice for vendor to do so.
4. receive quotes, evaluate and submit for management's approval
5. send out letter of acceptance and rejection letters. purchase order, which is a legally-binding document, may also be sent to award the project.
6. vendor will do content research, copywrite and submit design for client's approval. Client may comment and vendor will usually allow for one round of changes.
7. approve artwork
8. vendor will
show you a color proof in the form of color separation film or a digital
proof. this is for you to check color. colour sep can costs S$600 and is more expensive than digital proof.
9. approve color proof
10. printing (if you are printing double side, it will take longer as the
printer will print on one side first, let it dry and then proceed to print
on the other) it may takes 1-3 days to dry.
11. printer to deliver product

Timeline: min 2-3 mths

Bad copy?

- Starting a sentence with "But", "To", "And"
- Using title caps for acronyms

Challenges of a tabletop campaign

Coffeeshop is a peculiar place in Singapore. More than just an eatery, it is also a place where people from all walks of life gathered to watch a football match or engaged in mindless banter about politics.

Placing stickers ads on top of tables at coffeeshops may seem like a good viral campaign for the advertisers. Here are some potential pitfalls that may prevent you from getting your ad message across:
- coffeeshop owners who took your placement fees but refused to display your ad
- other advertisers may also advertised at the outlet, so there's no exclusivity
- your ads may be vandalised
- how to conduct periodic audit on whether your stickers are installed properly or if at all?
- how do you know if the campaign is effective at all? Is there a specific call-to-action or is it pure branding?
- how to conduct an effective post-campaign survey to measure ad recall?

Rules of design

Design and aesthetics are often a source of contention between the client and vendor. A well-known figure in the ad world is reputed to dislike white text reverse out of a black background saying that such ad copy are illegible. Yet we see many ads that do that.

Here are other debatable issues:
- left or full justify text
- river
- leading
- tracking
- kearning
- orphan
- widow
- having a line with only one word
- balancing the height of all columns
- no more than 3 colour themes on a page
- have a standard grid

recommended books on marketing

1. any text by Philip Kotler
2. permission marketing by seth godin
3, clueless about marketing
4. guerrilla marketing by Jay Conrad Levinson
5. differentiate or die
6. irrefutable laws of advertising

The 4 P's of marketing

1. Price
2. Product
3. Place
4. Promotion
4.1 sales promotion
4.2 advertising
4.2.1 print
4.2.2 broadcast
4.2.3 online
4.2.4 outdooor
4.3 public relations

hallmarks of a good title for a publication

1. aptly describes the essence of the publication i.e. tells the reader what the publication is about e.g. pcmag, photoshop user, guitar techniques, computer arts
2. uses a catchphrase or theme that is relevant to the subject matter e.g. pulse (a SGX publication)
3. short and sharp