Strut your stuff through pro bono work

If you do it right, pro bono work allows you to strut your stuff while branding your firm.

By having fun, we've been able to show our creativity through our freebies.

We've pitched fire troupes, ballroom dancers and Buddhist events.

We've sent the media releases on performance troupes wowing them with fire and dancers making a name nationally. 

We've sent out info on the four-ton Jade Buddha traveling the world and, most recently, the Sera Jey monks raising funds for the school in India by making a local sand mandala.

We not only received press for the events, but made a name for ourselves by having interesting projects.   

As a result, journalists usually ask what we’re up when we see them. 

 

And, we now represent a nationally known antiques appraiser, a concert pianist, an author and a nonprofit that develops affordable housing—as well as more “corporate” clients.

Doing pro bono not only creates good karma, but often pays off in more mundane ways, too.    

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

Use your USP in your public relations

When I first began doing public relations, I had got a lot of dentists as clients.

At the time, dentistry was an even harder sell than it is today. To cope, my staff and I looked at what made the dentist really unique—not just in their work, but in their life.

Tying the hobby to the work, we pitched the dentist whose eye for detail showed up in his award-winning duck decoy carvings as well as his cosmetic dentistry and another whose drive for excellence led to four black belts in martial arts—and a reputation for being on the leading edge of his field.

We got a ton of press from this “Hollywood-style publicity,” more than we would have pitching sealants and implants.

Even though this type of marketing worked for others, we never used it for ourselves.

We were very creative people with many unique interests, but we concentrated on our professionalism, not our USP.

When I began studying fire arts, I never dreamed I’d be using fire as a unique selling point.

But, then a mutual friend introduced me to a member of the mayor’s staff because we both loved fire.

The connection opened a whole new realm for us, not only in our work, but in our marketing.

For the first time, we realized we should be publicizing our own unique interests because doing fire arts shows I’m disciplined, fearless and creative in a way that words never could.

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