Pump up your speech with a personal story

I recently heard a client, Rachel Iskow, speak about the desperate need for apartment rentals that people who earn minimum wage can afford.

Iskow opened by giving her credentials, the years she’s worked for Mutual Housing California as the CEO and how challenging it can be.

But, she also said that whenever she spoke with a former resident whose children were now in college or working as lawyers, doctors and other professionals, she knows that the solid footing Mutual Housing communities give the parents makes the frustration worth it for her.

She also talked about her best friend in childhood, the daughter of a mother trying to make it on her own. 

After two years of friendship, the little girl disappeared from school one day.

No one knew what had happened to her until her mother found out that the family had been evicted from their apartment.

With no forwarding address and no way to contact—or to help—her, Iskow was distraught. But the incident planted an early seed that led her to her current career.

Talking about real-life, emotional experiences did two things for Iskow’s speech. One addressed why she became involved and the other gave an “ah-ha” moment that helps her when the obstacles feel overwhelming.

In talking about her own life, she touched issues everyone could relate to and made what could be a very dry subject resonate. 

For more information on marketing and public relations, call (916) 455-4790 or visit our website at www.dellrichards.com.   

Mistakes that wreck credibility with journalists

Journalists use a very specific writing style. Errors will wreck your credibility.

Here are some of the biggest mistakes people make and how to fix them:

First references always include the title. Obama may be used in a headline, but not in copy. The first reference is "President Obama".

Everyone else needs their full name and complete title: “Rachel Iskow, Sacramento|Yolo Mutual Housing Association Executive Director”.

Another example: “Mary Smith, a Sacramento resident”. The explanation depends on the subject of the story.

After that, use “Iskow”, “Smith” or ”S|YMHA”.

Description: For nonprofits and companies, you also need a sentence that explains what it does. Keep your audience in mind, however.

For trade journals, S|YMHA would be “a multifamily developer”. For mainstream media, it would be “an affordable housing developer” or “a housing developer for modest-income families.”

The most common mistakes are errors of upper and lower case. Use lower case for everything after the first reference: The “executive director” or “the nonprofit”.

Two other common errors:

“Over and “under” are for objects; “more than” and “less than” are for numbers.

“Last” is for the final one. “Past” is for this past week.

If in doubt, use the Associated Press Stylebook.

For more information, call Dell Richards Publicity at (916) 455-4790 or visit us at www.dellrichards.com.