As a former TV executive and producer, I still have a lot of friends in the entertainment business. There are perks attached to that, such as getting to go to events, screenings and premieres. Last night, I was able to attend the premiere of Hallmark Hall of Fame’s “Firelight”, starring Cuba Gooding, Jr., Q’orianka Kilcher and DeWanda Wise. The movie, which is wonderful and moving (there wasn't a dry eye in the house), was written by my pal, the amazing Ligiah Villalobos and will air on ABC Sunday, April 22 at 9:00 pm – I hope you watch it.

The reason I’m writing about this event is that it was very interesting to look around the crowd of attendees and see whether or not people were wearing clothing that expressed their “brand”. I think it’s important to extend your branding through everything you do – even including how you dress in public. Show biz events tend to get this aspect of business right; people in the industry tend to have a pretty good idea of who they are and what they’re doing – and know how to express it via clothing; there are a lot of “uniforms”.

Last night’s event was held on the lot at 20th Century Fox. Although it did have a red carpet, and all the amazing cast were in attendance, it was not one of those glamorous, black tie premieres. Therefore, most of the people there were dressed to express, rather than dressed to impress. By that I mean, people were dressed as what they are – clearly expressing their “brands”. The many agents and managers in attendance were in their full-on business attire – suits and ties or chic business dresses for the agents, “business casual” jackets, suits and dresses for the managers (who tend to be a little less corporate). The other showbiz guests there mostly dressed their parts – writers, directors and other creative types were more casual and bohemian; the businesspeople looked, well, biz-y; it was, after all, held at the end of everyone’s business day and most people came straight from work. One exception: the actresses from the wonderful cast of young women were all dressed beautifully for the red carpet – in glamorous dresses, fab heels, jewelry and bags – dressier than all the other guests, looking their part; standing out from the crowd, a little exotic. They were just right.

With most of the other guests, it was hard to tell who they were and what they did – friends? Family? It was the usual gamut from jeans and a tee to something you’d wear to drinks. I brought my sister Sarah Shaw, who helps entrepreneurs create successful product-based businesses and we had fun trying to figure out what everyone did, based on their clothing.

In your business life, it’s important to know how to dress for meetings, networking events, pitches, trade shows – anything you do. Most businesses have a “uniform”, the standard attire for your field. Some are super-corporate, some are more relaxed. It’s good to figure out the “uniform” and then add your own personality to it so that you are comfortable and confident. As a publicist in my area (mostly fashion & beauty), I need to look fairly stylish, not too corporate, but must never “speak” louder than my clients; my job is to stay more in the background visually – I am not the story, my client is. My own style is fairly casual/classic (East Coast upbringing), so I try to stick to that; I’m more comfortable and it works for me and for my clients.

What are YOU wearing?

Yes, he's pretty suave*

It’s important to find a way to speak to your audience/customers/clients in such a way that they can hear you and get what you’re saying.

Each of us has our own authentic voice; you’ll notice that when you’re telling a great story in which you’re totally involved, your listeners are also fully engaged; they are responding to your passion and enthusiasm for the subject, as well as to the actual way you speak and the words you use.

When you talk about your business, product or service, it’s important to find a way to speak about it in your own voice, not just the industry-speak. This is the voice of you and your brand; it’s the YOU that makes it different from others in your field or market. Just because some people in your industry describe something in a particular way, it doesn’t mean that that’s the only way to talk about that thing – you may have a slant or perspective on it that others don’t; it’s good to find those points of differentiation.

This is on my mind because at the moment, I’m doing a lot of writing for a new client. I’ve had to think a lot about their target audience, of course, but I’ve also had to think about them and how they think and speak about their product. You may be walking a fine line between speaking to your spot-on target audience, speaking to as many people as possible, or finding the lowest possible common denominator that might appeal to an even bigger audience; you need to make a decision about who you’re actually trying to reach.

Your language, idioms and references help your core audience feel comfortable with you. If you have a product that appeals to a higher-end, higher-educated audience, I think it’s important to use language that appeals to this group, without being 100% inaccessible to the rest of the world. So bust out your big vocabulary if it’s applicable. If you have a product for teenagers, you need to speak in a voice that appeals to them; it’s a good idea to know your market and know their cultural references – you may think George Clooney is the epitome of suavity, but to a 13 year old, he’s older than their dad (gulp!). And when pitching to women, a lot of people (read: men) think you need to use “girly” language, when actually, it’s important to talk to women the way you actually talk to women – the way you do when you’re engaged in the subject and are excited to tell them all about it; use those words and that voice – that’s the real you.

To reiterate, I don’t believe in dumbing down your language to a 3rd grade level; people are smarter than you think, and no one appreciates being talked down to – man, woman or child. So think about your target audience; talk directly to them as if you’re talking to a friend. Be clear, be engaging and most of all, be YOU.

* Sorry – don't have the credit for this image

Yes, you can be businesslike and have fun, too!

One of the really important things to think about when getting yourself, your product or service out into the market is your own image. This can mean your actual image (the portrait of yourself that you may have on your Facebook profile or business page, on Twitter or on your website or other marketing materials) and it can mean the image you project out into the world by the way in which you self-identify.

Do you want to be taken seriously as a businessperson?  Do you want journalists, potential clients or potential customers to feel confidence in you and your brand? Well, it’s important that your “image” acts like a grownup!

By this I mean: take a look at two of the pieces of you that people see in public.

What is your email address? As a business owner, it’s important to have a businesslike email address; this may seem elementary, but many people don’t. It’s always good to use your name, or some form of your name, plus your own domain in your email address whenever possible – i.e., mine is lizzy@lizzyshawpr.com. Or try firstinitiallastname@ or lastname@ or firstname.lastname@. If you are a consultant or service provider who doesn’t “sell” a product on a website, it’s fine to use your name and a businesslike email provider such as gmail.com, etc., but I do think it’s better to have and use your own domain whenever possible (free services like gmail, yahoo, etc. can deliver directly into that email address). I admit to having a prejudice against yahoo.com and hotmail.com in particular as ISPs; they just don’t seem as “businesslike”. Show potential clients that you have taken the time to get your domain or that you are identifying yourself as a business by using that name in your email address; let go of that “cute” email address you’ve had for 10 years, or just keep it for pals.

Honestly – which seems more like a businessperson’s email address: jane@janedoedesigns.com or cupcake31@yahoo.com?

What photo do you have up on Facebook? As a business owner, remember that most of the time, on your personal Facebook page, people want to see your face as the icon, not a photo of your celeb fave, kids, dog or favorite cartoon character. Keep in mind that potential clients may search you there; although your privacy settings shouldn’t let a stranger view your information, they can see your photo/icon. The same thing goes for your business/fan page. That’s where you should have your business’s logo or a good portrait of you or perhaps an image of your product or storefront as your icon. Your Facebook fan or business page is a work space and should have content that reflects that. Not that it has to be stuffy or totally buttoned-up, but your content should reflect the kind of business you have and the customers/clients you’re trying to reach.

Another thing to keep in mind is that once something’s posted on Facebook, it can be re-posted by others and can live FOREVER, so please make sure that anything you post is something you can live with if it goes viral. We’ve all heard this a million times, but it’s worth it to say it again: keep anything potentially embarrassing in your private life off public forums.

Now show us your fab photo and share your business email address!

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One of the things I think and write about a lot is consistency.

In PR, as well as in business in general, it’s important to make sure that people get what they expect from you and your brand. It’s really important to be consistent in how your product or service is represented by the look or imaging involved in your brand (packaging, printed materials or collateral, website, etc.), but it’s equally important that there is consistency in the product or service itself, as that is the physical extension or manifestation of the brand.

Many successful companies take the core of what they’re offering and then extend the brand in relation to that. So, if you have a gourmet chocolate truffle company, it makes sense to think about what other products or services can be logical extensions of a chocolate truffle company, such as different types or flavors of chocolates, luxury cocoa powder, pretty plates on which to serve the chocolates, gourmet chocolate-tasting events and other things of that ilk. It doesn’t really make sense to also sell meatball subs or flashlights or cd’s, even if you absolutely love those things and wish you could incorporate them into your business. In the same vein, a luxury chocolates company should have packaging, cards and materials that reflects the high-end nature of the product – a gorgeous package can go a long way toward “justifying” a luxury price like $3 and up per piece, but cheap boxes, badly-printed labels or no packaging at all make the product seem low-rent; customers won’t feel comfortable paying a high price for such an unevenly-presented product.

Rember: People see the disconnect before they see the connect. If there are details of your branding or presentation that are jarring, those things are what people remember. And those things can stop a potential customer before they can buy from you, and they can stop a journalist before they will write about you. In this world of unlimited choice, don’t let this disconnect send people over to the next option down the road.

So whether you’re pitching to journalists, selling to stores, or contacting potential clients, you need to think about this: What is the first encounter that these people have with your brand? And how do you manage that, so that the perception is what you want it to be?

The best thing you can do is ask the following questions:

In terms of any logos, colors, packaging, business cards, printed materials or your website, ask: “Is this representing me/my business?” In terms of expanding your business, services or product line, ask “Is this connected?” And answer these questions honestly. Also, a good idea is to get a friend to look things over and ask them “Does this represent your idea of me/my business?” and “Is this connected to my business as you understand it?” The answers will help you make sure that in all ways, you present a consistent brand to the public.

Set your PR goals

Before you initiate your PR campaign, it’s important to determine what your primary objectives are:  Do you want to launch a new brand? Do you want to get more customers or clients? Do you want to sell more products? Do you want to establish yourself as an expert in your field? All these goals are valid, but you need to know which will be your main focus.

Once you’ve figured that out, use this info – along with your customer avatar – to tailor your PR strategy accordingly. This will help you to create a well-targeted media list. With that in hand, you’ll be ready to approach the proper media outlets with a terrific, spot-on pitch.

By Lizzy Shaw

Oscar Wilde

Oscar Wilde, one of my favorite epigrammatists of all time, once said “Consistency is the last refuge of the unimaginative” and while (as always) I admire his wit, I think that in our modern world of info overload, consistency has become more important than ever – and is a way that imaginative people and companies can break through the clutter and get the word out.

Consistency is an important thing in PR, marketing and branding. Your audience, customers, clients and vendors need to know who you are, what you are and why they should be in business with you. One way you can give this information is with the consistent use and look of your brand – as reflected by your logo, packaging, press materials, products and more. Consistency allows consumers to trust your brand – they know what they are going to get from you; there is comfort in the familiarity that builds through accumulated exposure to the look of the brand in its various permutations.

When I had the fabulous Nicole Lennol design my logo, I told her that I wanted it to reflect the personality of my business – and, because it is my own name, I needed my logo (and therefore my brand) to be a reflection of me, as well. I wanted the logo to look professional and businesslike, but I wanted it to be playful and fun as well – like me.

I extend this message about my business by how I use my logo – both the size and placement; but also in how I change the color constantly – each client has their own color, so any correspondence that comes from me in regards to them has a consistent look that is both mine and theirs alone – unique, yet within the desired consistency.

I find ways to insert my brand whenever it feels appropriate; for example, last weekend I had the honor of being a baker for Eat My Blog; I made Chocolate Meringue Cookies with Crushed Peppermint Sticks; I packaged them as PR Cookies.  They were delicious, sold extremely well, were a fun extension of my brand – and, bonus – I had two inquiries about my PR services from satisfied eaters.

So – each time someone sees anything that comes from Lizzy Shaw Public Relations, there is a consistency of look and tone that immediately identifies it as coming from my company. If you can achieve this with your own products, or the packaging of your books, workbooks, materials or services, you will build a sense of trust and familiarity for your community that will pay off over and over.

What are you doing to get a recognizable, consistent message out into the world?

By Lizzy Shaw

I was at a workshop a few weeks ago given by Donny Lobree & Kirk Prine, two great coaches (and super-sweet, amazing guys) I met over the summer. This particular workshop was about turning away from some of the traditional “hard sell”, mass-market ways of doing business, and finding a new way to network for success – the idea that building a genuine, personal community is one of the best ways to create abundance in your life and business.

One of the things they were talking about was how to find your authentic self; the real voice of you and your business. For some hard-nosed businesspeople, this could seem a little too “woo woo” to apply to the business world. However, I think that sometimes we need a little “woo woo” in our lives – not everything needs to be so right-brained. Success in business can sometimes be a mysterious thing, and it’s good to be open to different ideas. As I was listening, a lot of the things they said on this subject resonated very deeply for me.

You may ask – “How does this apply to PR?” Well, here’s how: In my own business, it is one of my immutable laws that I won’t take on a monthly-retainer client unless their product or service just knocks me out – I have to absolutely love it. What this means is that when I call a writer or editor to pitch my client, I have to be able to say “You will go out of your mind when you see/taste/touch/use this” – and the editor feels and responds to my real, genuine enthusiasm for what I’m pitching. It is so important to me to be REAL when I pitch. I spent a whole career pitching an amazing amount of crap as a TV movie executive; I decided long ago that I never want to do it again.

I also only work personally with people I really like and who feel good to me; I realize that this all comes from the bottom of my heart – who I am as a person and who I am and want to be as a businessperson. I know that this has contributed greatly to the success I have had for myself, as well as the success I have had on behalf of my clients.

Well, what does that mean for you? These days, it feels like consumers are buying the person as much as they are buying the product or service; they are more interested than ever in learning about from whom or from where things come.

So I think that this means that when you create a product or service; write a book or develop a class; open a store or a restaurant – whatever it is you do – to be truly successful and satisfying, this business endeavor needs to be born from something inside of you. You must have a real love for the product you are selling or the conviction that there is a need for whatever you’re doing (a service or class). Then, when you pitch your product or service, you are talking from an authentic place; people can relate to you. When a business is launched just because it is something that can earn money, it doesn’t have the same authentic feel -  smart, experienced journalists and savvy consumers can tell the difference.

Is there a product or service that you bought just because you felt a real relationship with the provider? Is there a product or service that turned you off because of the inauthentic message? Tell us!

By Lizzy Shaw

Well, I need to go on a little rant today. I just found out that my favorite toothpaste in the WORLD, Pearl Drops, got discontinued 3 months ago. Why? Because no one was buying it. They told me it was because “consumers’ tastes changed” and the brand had stopped doing well. Well, I don’t think consumers’ tastes changed; I think they mishandled the brand.

Why is that, you might ask? Well, when was the last time you read anything about Pearl Drops in a magazine, newspaper or blog post – or saw an ad on TV? When was the last time you saw it on a store shelf? Probably, the answer is never or not for years.

A big mistake that companies often make is that, when a product is a hit and they get a big flurry of press at the launch, run some great ads for a while, etc. they think that the product’s success will last forever, with little or no further effort on their part. Well, as a Pearl Drops lover in mourning, I am here to tell you that that is simply not true.

People are busy; life is nutty; attention spans are short. We are bombarded 24 hours a day with the “white noise” of TV, radio, ads, emails, tweets, Facebook posts, billboards, texts and more. We keep getting told what thing is the latest and greatest, and like lemmings, many of us head toward whatever is right in front of our eyes.

So, to keep a brand, product or service new, relevant and fresh in the eye of the consumer, it is ever more important to keep yourself in front of that eye. One of the most effective ways to do that is with PR. Getting information and/or images of yourself, your service or product in front of that consumer is what makes editorial mentions reign supreme.

We all know that advertising on TV and in magazines helps a brand become visible – but advertising is different than PR. Editorial mentions resulting from an effective PR campaign also build brand awareness of course, but even more, they build TRUST. When a magazine editor, newspaper reporter or blogger writes that they tried a product or service and liked it (and why), this makes a consumer feel more confident about spending their money. And with repeated reviews or mentions, that confidence builds and turns into sales.

The converse is, "Out of Sight, Out of Mind". If a consumer never hears about, sees or is able to buy a product, guess what? They’re on to the next similar thing. It’s not that they stopped liking a favorite brand, they just can’t find it anymore. Or don’t see it anywhere in the media, so they think it no longer exists.

People can’t buy your product or service if they don’t know about it. So get your PR campaign started. If you have one in place, take a good hard look at it – give it a polish, an update, new images, a new story – fluff it up a little! Good luck and get selling!

If you want to help me try to bring back Pearl Drops (seriously, the only whitening toothpaste that works), here is a link to Church & Dwight’s contact page.

Do you have a favorite product that just “disappeared”? Tell us about it!

Hi Everyone;

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