EnTrends

organization. It should read as a
newspaper or magazine article and
should never begin with "XYZ
company is pleased to announce."

Whenever possible a good news
photo should accompany the release.
Photos showing contract signings,
products in action, trade show
exhibits and your company's people
at work will not only tell your story
better, but will increase its chances
of being used by the magazines.
Editors are continually looking for
quality photos to enliven their
stories.

The release should include a contact
name, phone number and e-mail
address so that the editor can easily
call to clarify or expand on areas of
interest. It should be dated and
should have a final concise "boiler
plate" paragraph briefly describing
your company and its place in the
industry for those editors or
magazine readers that may not be
familiar with your organization.

Internal staff or Outside counsel

Knowing when to bring in the
marketing and communications pros
is like knowing when to involve your
lawyer or outside accounting firm.
Companies that have qualified
professional journalists on staff, who
know the industry well and have the
confidence of, and access to senior
management, can handle most media
relations in-house.

Companies that do not have
experienced media relations

personnel can benefit significantly
from using an outside firm that is
familiar with business-to-business
promotion and with their industry.

Outside communications
professionals can not only give a
more balanced and objective
perspective in planning, but as
experienced writers can deliver better
results the first time around than in-
house sales or marketing personnel.

When using outside counsel, be sure
set clear objectives for your
communications, have all necessary
information pulled together and make
sure your company experts and
executives are available and ready to
cooperate. This will speed the
process and make it more cost-
effective.

Thomas B. O'Rourke, along with
Mark Handley and Wayne Perk are
the senior partners of M4B,
Marketing For Business, a Chicago -
based marketing/communications
firm. They have a total of more than
50 years experience in the printing
equipment/graphic arts industries
and additional experience in the
manufacturing, metal fabrication,
transportation and insurance sectors.
They can be reached at 815-469-3052
or through the internet at
m4b@onebox.com. Visit their website
at: http://www.home.earthlink.net/
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