After an initial interaction with a prospective client, I immediately know if this is an organization with whom our company can partner. How do I know? From a strictly business sense, we have the skills and experience to recognize a need that we can fill, and fill well. Yet, there is another, more interpersonal aspect of organizational match and agreement on establishing a path of success that are just as important for a true partnership. As with the start of any deep, committed relationship, what you do in the first meeting is crucial. If you are looking for tips on recognizing true partner material, read on!

The two most effective and least expensive ways to find new opportunities:

• Existing clients
• Be the expert with a teaching spirit

Advertising is a complex topic. This is evident by the huge number of companies in business merely to provide advertising services provided to those organizations unable to successfully navigate the maze of messages, markets, and mediums on their own.  The advertising industry itself is a multi-billion  dollar operation in the United States, and contains many media-specific areas of expertise. Already sounds complicated and expensive, eh?

If you utilize e-mail marketing to prospective customers, make sure you don’t become an offensive spammer. There are a few simple rules to follow that can make a difference between happy customers and angry spam recipients. These rules are outlined in the Federal Trade Commission’s (FTC) CAN SPAM Act, which went into effect January 1, 2004. The CAN SPAM Act applies to commercial and pornographic electronic messaging and carries penalties for non-compliance of up to $11,000. Learn more about the CAN SPAM Act at www.ftc.gov/spam, including how to turn in offenders.

I hope these articles actually equip you with real tools, rather than a glossy overview. After my recent series on Advertising, I find it only fitting to follow with some dedicated print on Public Relations (PR), the other big hammer in your marketing toolkit. In this series, we’ll explore what PR is and isn’t, how to develop a mind and a plan for promotion, and how to get your message out onto the streets. In this issue, I’ll try to reveal some facts that will hopefully remove the cloud of mystery around PR.