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Trellis
News
The newsletter for Garden Designers
Welcome
to November's edition of Trellis News.
New designers often comment how much they appreciate the opportunity that
Trellis News gives them to learn from the experiences of the 'old hands';
please do read the letter from Jane Lambert and offer your wisdom on her predicament.
Spread the word! If you like this newsletter, then please share it with your
friends and colleagues, and invite them to subscribe by emailing me,
.
Letters Page -
Your opportunity to have your say, to ask questions, look for resources.
Thanks
for the feedback on Sarah Frith's garden obelisks, which has been forwarded
onto her, and for the useful information about blackspot in viburnums.
Jane
Lambert would appreciate your advice:
I am a relatively new designer, and have just completed my first garden
for a paying client. I have a serious problem - the client said she liked
the design when I showed her the plans, and paid me my fee. However, now that
it has been built and planted by a local landscaping firm, she's saying it's
not what she wanted after all. She is refusing to pay them all of their fees
until I have fully interpreted what she claims she wanted. They are insisting
they have completed their work to the agreed plans, and she says it's definitely
not how she imagined it, so they are all looking to me for a solution. Help
- what should I do?
To respond to Jane's plea, please reply by email to
. Your advice will be forwarded straight on to Jane and then published in
the next edition of Trellis News.
Article
Build
Your Image with Press Releases
by Annie Meachem
One of the important actions of the Effortless Success Marketing strategy
is to undertake regular marketing activities that you enjoy, or at least find
less tiresome than others. If you find writing easy, press releases could
form one of the strands of your marketing.
Publicity is a far more effective way of building your image as 'the' designer
to contact than advertising, both from a financial and a reputation viewpoint.
Getting an item published about your company in the sort of newspaper or magazine
that your target market reads will reap benefits for you in terms of increased
work.
It will have more effect on your audience if they see your name regularly,
rather than an occasional announcement. It's been shown that the majority
of people need to see an advert seven times before they respond, so dripfeeding
information about you will build up your audience's awareness, and has the
advantage that, whilst advertising is an expensive format, publicity is free.
So how to go about it? The thought of finding something newsworthy to say
can be daunting, and newspapers will only print news, not blatant adverts,
unless you're paying advertising rates. However, they have got space in their
paper to fill, and will consider press releases that are relevant to their
readership, and are well written. You can study the style of the desired publication
and write your material to suit. It is well worth contacting the Editorial
desk of the publication you wish to target to ask them in what format they
prefer press releases. or look on their websites for press release submission
guides. Even better, gradually establish a relationship with the journalists
so that they think of you to contact when they need a quote on a garden design
matter.
If you send in a press release regularly, say monthly, not all of them will
be published, but it will again build your relationship with the journalist.
Ask what do you need to do to get something published, and ask for feedback
on your submissions regarding your style and content. If you're supplying
them with well written appropriate material, it's making their lives easier.
So, what to write about? Here are some suggestions to spark your creativity:-
An important
point to consider, especially for newspapers, is that they are publishing
news, which means it has to be current. Also, if they can link a photo to
the piece in some way, that's even better.
Developing a strategy of using press releases as one strand of your marketing
can, if you're willing to devote an hour to two every month to it, produce
dividends over the longer term. Seeing your name in print is easier than you
imagine.
End
Piece
My 11 year old daughter has been counting down the days to Christmas, starting when it was 55 to go, and now it's less than a month left! Following on is the New Year, which often gives people the chance to reflect on their progress and to make plans for doing it differently in the future. If you'ld like to make 2004 your most successful year yet, do contact me about the Effortless Success Marketing programme, so you can discover how to attract all the clients you need, leaving you free to get on with doing what I guess you love doing best, namely designing and building beautiful gardens.
Best
Wishes
Annie Meachem, ACC
Trellis
Coaching
0845 456 9382
+44 (0) 1243 545010 (from outside UK)
email
"I
help designers and entrepreneurs grow their success - who do you know who's
serious about being effortlessly successful, and is willing to invest in themselves
to achieve their dreams?"
Important
Notes - (the small print)
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- Trellis Coaching will never release, sell or give a subscriber's name or e-mail address to any other party or organisation without your permission.
- As Editor, I reserve the right to select and edit items submitted for the newsletter.
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Meachem 2003/4. Copyright in this document is owned by Annie Meachem. All
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