Sabina Hitchen's blog

I wanted to think of a sassy title for this blog but then I decided forget it, I want you to know exactly what you're getting - great advice from a fellow entrepreneur!  

I knew social media had really saturated our country when both of my parents started messaging me on my Facebook wall, and my friend's dog Janet launched her own fan page.  In fact, last week while watching CNN International I heard these interesting facts about Facebook:

* If it were a country Facebook would be the 3rd largest in the world
* Indonesia is the fastest growing country of FB users
* Facebook is rapidly taking the place of social interaction.  Okay I kid that last one was mine, but     sometimes it sure feels that way.

That said, I came across this article today about the 5 Misues of Social Media and I thought I should pass it along!  Though it was written for freelancers I believe many of the rules apply for small businesses and entrepreneurs.  From a PR perspective, the two I come across the most often are Self Promotion Overload (I've hidden so many Facebook feeds in the past few months just to escape these irrelevant promotions) and those who share too little.  Also, though he didn't really delve into it, I feel that at times we can try to be too clever or mysterious on Facebook and end up just confusing the end user.

Sure understanding social media is a work in progress, but while we work to learn how to best use it to our advantage, I encourage you to watch out for the things talked about in THIS ARTICLE! 

Today I was reading one of my favorite online outlets, Jezebel, and came across an article about singer Katy Perry, and the media and pop-culture loving demographic of the population going nuts over her Tweets lately, tweets that supposedly hinted at a possible pregnancy.  (Back story: @KatyPerry recently got engaged to actor/comedian Russel Brand which she recently tweeted about in a cryptic message as well.  As with many celebrities, much of her life has been tweeted lately and as of this posting her following was at 1,618,694).

Sure the story is on the surface about a celebrity and our country's frenzied need to know everything about famous people all the time (and their often feeding it to us), but to me it's also another great example of how Twitter allows you to connect with and grow your customer/ambassador/database and your brand's reach more than ever.

As Jezebel's blogger explains, "the peculiar world of Twitter, and the direct contact people feel they get with celebrities, will only lead people to keep reading between the lines in order to solve a mystery that may only exist in their minds."  This is one effect of Twitter that is at times negative....but you can use this same power of Twitter and instant and intimate way the audience connects with your brand to propel it to new media opportunities, sales, visibility and get your message to spread virally if done correctly!

A brand's longevity is largely due to a loyal customer base and true brand ambassadors - especially during a recession when every sale counts more than ever.  Knowing that, be sure you create a passionate base of followers on Twitter who really care about what you say - they probably won't tweet about a possible pregnancy but they may instead give your brand exponential reach!

Find out more about what Jezebel had to say about Katy Perry's tweets HERE! 

Today while going through artcles I deemed a "must read but don't have time right now" from the past week, I sat down to read New York Magazine's coverage of the UBS Media Conference.  One of the hottest topics there was the discussion of the phrase we've heard time and time again "content is king".  This was not only true in traditional media, but seem

Today while going over my long overdue pile of news clippings and articles to read, I came across two bits of information you may have looked over in WWD or other outlets, but that I thought would be relevant to you.  File it away in your "'media news" part of your busy entrepreneur's brain, but also think about how this news will effect y

There's not doubt it is and has been flu season across the country for quite some time now, and not just flu season, SWINE FLU season.  This is bad enough because the flu is just not fun - it makes life physically and mentally challenging for too long - but when you are an entrepreneur/small business owner it can hurt that much more!  Who's going to take client calls if you are a so

    It's Oprah Time!

Today while rushing out my door I ran smack into two women who were ringing the doorbell to disccuss the topic of "Technology:  Blessing or Curse?".  Ironically I was juggling my iPod, Blackberry, carrying a laptop, and staring at an iTouch when this collision occurred.

Needless to say I was in a hurry, mildly frazzled and in no mood to talk to strangers about something that I had no interest in at the moment (though I'll admit it was a great topic for a coffee break, just not for the first few minutes of my morning).  Just as I was opening my mouth to tell them how late I was and that I was not interested in whatever they were selling, the lead woman did the following:

Smiled calmly and looked into my eyes
Handed me the flier
Said "I know you weren't expecting us and we don't want to take any of your time, just wanted to share this information about (insert info on their mission here) and leave you with this follow up information" in a kind and clear manner.
Introduced herself and asked what my name was (I automtaically answered)
Said thanks and have a nice day
Was on her way

Before I knew it I had stopped disliking them, I had grabbed the pamphlet and stuck it in my bag, I had given her my name and smiled back at her, and I had listened to her entire "pitch" which took about 30 seconds max.

This is a perfect example of pitching come to life and we can all take valuable reminders from it: 

Don't tell them your whole life story and purpose just give 'em the points that matter

Introduce yourself and smile (even smile on the phone, it changes the pitch I swear)

Ask for their name - make that personal connection

Keep it short and sweet, speak clearly and calmly, and then acknowledge you appreciate and respect their time

Leave them something (whether a follow-up email, a media kit, a press release, a link to your site)

Be gracious and move on

These are techniques that apply whether you're pitching via email, the phone, in person or clearly door-to-door.  If someone can pitch me when I'm rushing off to catch a morning train, they can surely work on editor or producers!

Happy pitching!

Deskside appointments.  You may or may not have heard of them, but chances are if you are a product based company whether it's food or baby toys or fashion-based or a beauty product, you'll need to conduct them at some point during your quarterly pr outreach.