DianaEnnen : An article you can put links in the bio and not the article itself. A press release you can do in the release itself. (Try and get your website link in the top portion too. They go to different databases so I recommend doing both. One month do articles, the next month do a release.

DianaEnnen : Normally you have to fill out the following when submitting press releases or articles online: Author / category / summary / title / body / bio

DianaEnnen : It's important to put the right category. Don't just go with "business". Go with business, entrepreneur. Many article submission sites now even have a category for VAs - that's great.

DianaEnnen : Make your bio for your articles rock and not just sound like a I did this and this and this and this and this. Relate it to the article. If your article is on taxes, don’t use the bio that announces your PR. In the bio, give out a free report or something. Also, always have "article is free to be reprinted as long as bio remains." You want it to go places. And they will go places. What’s exciting is that so many things work together. For example, you send out an article or press release, then use social networking to share it via your social networks.

DianaEnnen : When you submit your articles - look to see if it has a “share” button that allows you to share on other networks – Ping, Twitter, Facebook, Dig / BizSugar, StumbleUpon, Etc. Share the article with others and try and get them to social bookmark your articles and press releases as well. Make it go viral.

DianaEnnen : Send articles and press releases everywhere, blogs, newsletters, sites, etc. Add to your facebook page. When you send out an article, it might be a great idea to do a Google Adword campaign then you are already out in the media more, so it's a great time to get out there as much as possible!

DianaEnnen : I love submitting to both the free and the paid ones. Some free sites get picked up by more websites than others. For example, the press release that Tess did announcing this chat was posted on Pr-Inside. I have a Google Alert Set up for my name and found that many other home-based business sites picked it up. That tells me to always send to them. I encourage you to go look over the other chat I did on press release writing http://www.virtualassistantforums.co...sistant_Events. Also, email me for my free PR booklet to learn more. It has many of the how to's for how to write a press release -- such as it should be 300 to 500 words, have an impressive title, great introductory paragraph, supporting body that tells what the release/article is about, and then the call to action paragraph. That call to action paragraph is key!

DianaEnnen : You need to tell them "what it is that they will do with this release. Call you, buy your book, etc.

DianaEnnen : Send your press to reporters who regularly write on your industry. Be sure to build your credibility, show your qualifications and direct insight into that topic. It's hard sometimes to think of a topic for your article or release. Think what's in the news today that could relate to my business. What do I offer that is unqiue. What great press or event can I share. For example, did you get a mention in the local newspaper, etc.? Write about it. Did you win an award? Can your business help struggling realtors survive this economic downfall? Can your business get those small business owners get through tax season? Write about it.

DianaEnnen : Now onto other marketing - FaceBook is HUGE now. I know it’s time consuming but many professional PR Pros say that this is where you need to be and remain (at least for now.) Build your presence there. Remember that key word – relationships. You can’t just put up a page and expect them to hire you, you need to communicate. One recommendation from Scott Fox is to add a business page onto your personal page and put keywords in the name (instead of company name). I’m trying that now with Publicity Virtual Assistant

DianaEnnen : Set up a Facebook ad campaign. Scott also recommends to set the keyword amounts low. They give you a price that you should pay but go far below that. It will result in more exposure and also keep your budget down.

DianaEnnen : Linkedin is great way to market. Find groups that interest you and be active.

DianaEnnen : How can you network on Twitter – Give tips and recommendations. Include Virtual Assistant. Don’t go overboard. You lose your audience if they feel they are being pitched to. I love Twitter!! I've gotten many speaking engagements, clients, radio shows, etc. It just works!

DianaEnnen : Consider instead of pitching to offer assistance. You see someone say they are strugging with a shopping cart issue, you offer help, BAMO – they know you. In addition to tips give articles of interest, (including your’s) RTs from others, business updates and a little of you. You don’t want it all business. However, and most of you already know this. But don’t just give an update of your day just to post. I think it’s okay sometime to say, out to dinner with friends, love working at home. But if you haven’t posted in a month

DianaEnnen : And you write that followed by 5 pitches, well there’s not much relationship building going on. People will feel pitched. Learn to listen. Read what others say and comment to them. Don’t let it be a one-way conversation with you talking.

DianaEnnen : Follow those that would be beneficial. Use Twitter to find media to pitch to: Set up Twitter searches though aps such as TweetDeck., Reporters & Your Target audience use these too. And again, build relationships. For example, I follow a reporter from my local area. I personally responded when she asked something once. I RT what she says occasionally, I listen and connect. I put a search on her Twitter name to see what she’s up to. Guess what, when I once posted a link to my article, she knew me already, knew that it was important to her audience, and ran it. BAMM, It worked!

DianaEnnen : When connecting with media though, think about it more than just pitching them. Learn from them. It’s priceless what information you can get. They blog, they post, they attend Twitter parties, etc. Connect with others even when you don’t have an event. Have you seen those who just tweet when they announce events. Glad to hear of their events, but I haven’t build a relationship.

DianaEnnen : Now regarding pitching PR – Follow PR pros. You can find these reporters by Google Alerts, reading newspapers, magazines, etc & seeing who wrote the article. You will pitch either via emails, on their site, by mail, etc. dependent on what they request. With emails write a brief introduction.

DianaEnnen : Know the media outlets you want to pitch dependent on who you are pitching (business, to moms, women, etc. Decide what will give you the best punch Decide the audience. Some pitches are made for radio, other newspapers, etc.

DianaEnnen : - Haro
– Reporters Connector
– Steve Harrison
- Medialistsonline.com
- RadioGuestList.com
- PitchRate
etc.

DianaEnnen : HARO is the best. Most of you are signed up for it. If not, get signed up now. But there are now a lot of free ones too.

DianaEnnen : When you pitch a HARO lead, do it ASAP when they arrive. Open with a few sentences why you are the expert they need and then give valuable information that relates exactly to what they need. They should be able to take it right from your email and put it into an article. Follow-up with complete contact information. Find out if the reporter you are interested in targeting has a blog. familiarize yourself with that blog. Ad Comments, Build relationship. I agree with you. I love your “specific comment. Would like to see more …

DianaEnnen : When building your PR campaign think, what can do I every week. PR and marketing is a process, not a one-time deal.

DianaEnnen : Too many make the mistake of sending out one release, one article to one place and then it doesn't get results.

DianaEnnen : And don't worry about being perfect. Be the best you can be. Tell it like it is and submit it out. You'll be better as you go.

DianaEnnen : Have a PR template and article template and jot down ideas throughout the week. That makes it so much easier to write all the time. Just put in a few tips as they present themselves.

DianaEnnen : I do have a free PR informational package that tells more about the how to's of writing articles and press releases as well as places to submit your PR. Get in touch with me to receive it. Follow me on Twitter too. @dianaennen ... DM me so I know to follow you back too!

sierradavis0 : Diana I wanted to know how many sites do you send your PRs too?

Your Virtual Wizard : Diana, how many of the free press release sites do you recommend a release be submitted?

DianaEnnen : I send it to all the free ones and some of the paid ones. Free ones: BigBiz.News. Ideamarketers, and 24-7press release.
Paid ones I recommend are -- PRWEb, Webwire, SBWire.

Tess : Do those three PR sites you mentioned usually index releases in Google News?

DianaEnnen : YES they do index in Google. In fact, when I submit them out, I can almost guarantee my clients front page google status for the keywords we choose. That's why it rocks so much. Of course, paid ones are great too. They go to more places.

DianaEnnen : Definitely get my listing of the free places. It is so worth it. You and your clients will just love me for it! LOL

Staceyv : Diana, you mentioned a little about FB Campaigns. Are you speaking about creating a paid ad on FaceBook?

DianaEnnen : Yes, FB -- Facebook. You can do one quite inexpensively and they can really pay off.

TaylorR : dianna i am a freelance writer and often write press releases and articles for clients - how can I educate them about determing their target market for the purposs of article/PR marketing?

DianaEnnen : Great question Taylor. It's so important to target their release and article. What I tell my clients is that we can get better results if we know who we want to approach.

TaylorR : ok thanks, because so many of my clients get caught up in the SEO-Keywords and they forget who they are trying to talk to

Your Virtual Wizard : One of the questions I always have with press release sites is to select the category for which it should appear. Most times there is a Business category but that seems awfully broad to me. Are there categories you prefer to select?

DianaEnnen : Exactly with the categories! You don't want to just pick the broadest one. You want to bring it down as much as possible. Like for me being a publicity virutal assistant, my articles will often be, marketing, PR.

Your Virtual Wizard : So the category selected is what the release is about as opposed to the market one would be trying to reach? So if I write a release about promoting baseball am I selecting sports or public relations?

DianaEnnen : Absolutely -- the category should relate to the release. Say you are working for a client who has a online shop selling handbags. Look for something that relates to them.

TaylorR : diana, if you were to suggest one thing that a client can do to get more exposure- what would it be? I ask this because many of my clients are on limited budgets and have very little time,

DianaEnnen : The one thing I always recommend to my clients to get the best PR is to send out article and press releases. We get the most bang for that.
Essential Office Solutions : Diana - can you give more info on Haro - just googled it and not finding what I think I am looking for.

DianaEnnen : HARO is Help A Reporter - http://helpareporter.com/. Every day you get three emails that list from reporters what they need for their articles. Best way to get into major magazines such as Woman's World, etc. I highly recommend it.

Staceyv : Diana can you share a little about the Facebook Campaigns.

DianaEnnen : Facebook campaigns are very similar to Google Adword campaigns. They are newer, but I've heard amazing results. Like with Google, you come up with an ad that relates to your audience (like for me PR). The key is getting those keywords in there.

Tess : We have used FB ads for a few projects with mixed results, it helps if you have a VERY narrow niche to target

DianaEnnen : Tess, that is absolutely right!! That's the key to success too is knowing your audience, using the right keywords and ads, and then having something of value for them once they click on.

DianaEnnen : Thanks so much everyone for coming!!