Trunk Show

TODAY’S BUZZ TIP | March 31, 2009

A great way to jumpstart sales and develop stronger relationships with your retailers is to have a trunk show.  A trunk show is when a designer hosts an event at a store.  According to Jose Soto, fashion designer, it’s the best way to also get to know your customer base.

“In today’s recession customers want and need attention. They want to be in on the process to a degree.  A trunk show gives you an opportunity to meet with your customer base and gain insight on their preferences (giving you invaluable information for your next collection).  At the same time it will force your vendors, your retailers, to do some market research on their customers.”

It’s also a great way for the buyers of the store to test your products with their customers and if they have a succesful trunk show with your brand, next time they may increase their orders. So you get to know your customers, gain valuable insight and, most importantly, make some sales!

Hospitality PR

TODAY’S BUZZ TIP | March 30, 2009

There are many different kinds of PR, one to match almost every industry.  And for each the underlying strategy is the same but the approach is very different.  Take today’s tip.  It’s about Hospitality PR and it comes from Didi Lutz, an expert in the area.  She goes on to explain:

“Hotel and travel PR is certainly a glamorous business, fun and exciting, and tough during hard economic times.  Falling under the umbrella of Hospitality, this type of PR includes hotels, resorts, spas, events, restaurants, bars and even travel agencies.  Anything that reaches the potential “guest” is part of hospitality.  And if your business is hospitality, what are you doing to make a difference in tough times?  How are you getting exposure to your existing and potential guests?  What PR initiatives are you taking to put yourself in the forefront of surrounding competition?

For one, relationships are key to getting exposure.  Invite media to experience your establishment be it a hotel, spa or restaurant.  Give them the red carpet treatment and if they don’t write about you immediately, keep in touch.  Invite them again, send more news and ask what stories they are doing.  Rest assured, when the right story comes up, you’ll be in it.”

You can also find Didi at her website:  Didi Lutz PR

Poor Jennifer…Not!

TODAY’S BUZZ TIP | March 26, 2009

Poor Jennifer Aniston, once again she’s been dumped by yet another man or maybe she dumped him. Whatever the case, she’s alone again.  Must be tough to fill Brad’s shoes; God knows it’s hard to measure up to that.  And isn’t it funny how Jen comes off so down to Earth yet her entourage of attorneys, managers and publicists is huge.  She was also recently interviewed by Vogue and during the interview her assistant came in with her lunch.  Please! So, yes, Jen is not as casual as she seems.  So I’m sure she’d appreciate some freebies and of course it doesn’t hurt that the papparazzi camp out on her street.  Perhaps they might just catch her red handed in one of your duds.

Jennifer Aniston
c/o Stephen Huvane
PMK/HBH
700 San Vicente Blvd. Suite G910
West Hollywood CA 90069
Phone: 310-289-6200

Sweet Smell of Success…

TODAY’S BUZZ TIP | March 25, 2009

Well, I must say I can breathe a sigh of relief today as my Press Day yesterday went very well for a few reasons.  Grab your pencils!

They actually came. Media folk are notorious for cancelling or just not showing up to events.  That’s why it’s so important to confirm the day before or morning of an event to gently remind them.  That’s what we did and the result was that most of them actually showed up.

They were enlightened. It always amazes me that no matter how many emails I send with information, press releases, pitches, etc. there are always a number of editors that still don’t get it.  There were quite a few of them that came yesterday and were pleasantly surprised by the breadth of the collections and how amazing the footwear was….duh!  That’s what I’ve been trying to tell you!!!  So, proving my point once again that having editors actually see the product is hugely important.  The sad fact is that they have very little time to read the mountain of emails and correspondence that they receive so “getting in their face” is the most effective strategy of all.

They were wonderful. Editors may seem cold at times and indifferent to your eager advances.  When you meet them in person though, they are quite lovely.  Everyone was so, how should I put this, nice.  Even though they had already been to a dozen appts. they walked in with a smile and very interested in seeing the products.  They chatted, they talked about stories they were working on and even pulled shoes for future shoots.  And even one reporter, from WSJ.com, came up with an angle for a story, featuring our products, right then and there.  I immediately pulled the client into an interview and voila a placement was born.

So I challenge you to arrange your own little event and tell me about it.  Next month I will be debuting the new “Buzz Spotlight” where I will feature one company that has successfully implemented a Buzz tip.

Press Event Do’s…

TODAY’S BUZZ TIP | March 24, 2009

Here are some key Do’s for any press event:

Do 1: Make it compelling. First off, you must have something compelling for them to see or hear about or else they won’t bother coming.  Are you launching a great new product that will revolutionize the world as we know it?  If not, then you need to get creative.  If you are just showing your new collection or a new introduction to your product line, then make sure you provide plenty of reasons why this is so exciting in your invitation and press release –make it so enticing that they will want to be there.

Do 2:  Target, target, target. It might seem obvious but it’s imperative that you painstakingly target your list to ensure you are inviting the right editors. A tech editor will have no interest in attending a fashion event of course, but you have to target even deeper.  Invite the tech editors that cover your specific product category whatever widget segment that might be.  Be very specific and you are more likely to get interest in the event and a high number of rsvps.

Do 3:  Offer a little bribe. We’re giving away shoes to each editor that attends today’s event and I made sure they knew it in the invite.  Believe me, they were quick to sign up and provide their shoe sizes when they knew they were getting a pair for free.  Everyone loves freebies.

Do 4: Feed them. Your event should be treated with as much formality as possible including providing food and drinks.  If you are having a morning event, make sure you have coffee, tea and lots of breakfast goodies.  For a lunch event, a nice selection of finger sandwiches, mixed salad and tray of small, beautiful desserts is fine.  And for an evening event, go all out and have it catered.

More Do’s to come….

And remember, keep Buzzin’ for your chance to win a free week of PR.  For details on the Buzz Challenge and to catch up on all the Buzz, go to www. buildabuzz.wordpress.com.

Ciao for now!