[The Smart-Savvy Entrepreneur's Download]

April Edition

VOL 1. Issue No. 12

"I'm Certified!"

Greetings!

So many updates for you. April was another really big month for me. I recently shared some big news with my clients, and now I want to make sure that you hear it too!

As you know, I've been plugging along, talking about social media and building my online communities. The more I thought about where I wanted to go with this, the more I felt the need to get official training and certification.

Well, I've just been granted my certification as a Social Media Specialist!

Since my core service is Virtual Assistance, I've decided to provide group and one-on-one training in Social Media and focus on the ongoing maintenance that my clients will need to keep their social networking activities rich and active (i.e. the Social Media Virtual Assistant). I want to stay true to my brand as I incorporate this niche.

Virtual Partner goes LIVE!!
I was blessed to speak at the IAAP's annual Administrative Professional's event on Friday, April 24th in Columbus, OH. Wowweee - my first 75-minute live workshop! The audience was very kind! I'll be sure to share it with you and a few videos we took during the workshop.

My first FULL-day workshop is planned for June 25th at the Columbus State Community College sponsored by the Small Business Development Centers (SBA.gov) in Ohio. Here's the link to learn more and register:

The event website is almost done (http://www.talksocialnetworking.com)!

Virtual Partner becomes an author!! bookcover

Stay tuned too for my first book: "So Now What Do I Do: The entrepreneur's guide to the next step." Social media is this first topic in this series. I'm uber excited that the concept, so far, has been well received. We gave away the first 75 copies to a group who was thrilled to preview the book. We'll keep you informed as we finalized the hard-copy release scheduled for June 26th.

Please spread the word and by all means, share any feedback you might have.

Virtual Partner launches a talk radio show!!!
Now, we're excited to announce our Featured Speaker for April, Meredith Liepelt. Rest assured that she will be sharing some amazing ideas and tips for building your business. We'll be hosting our featured guest during our first Blog Talk Radio Program this week. Mark the date now (April 30) for another is this popular series. Read about her below and be sure to tune in! http://www.blogtalkradio.com/smartsavvyentrepreneur.

Virtual Partner's Smart-Savvy Entrepreneur Newsletter goes MONTHLY!
I know you've been receiving this newsletter on a weekly basis. However, with how quickly things are ramping up for me, I've decided to "test" a monthly e-zine packed full of great articles, newsworthy mentions, event listings and great featured speakers for the radio program. You'll still get periodic updates too. I hope you'll embrace this change and continue you reading and forwarding this newsletter to business owners that would benefit.

For now, skip to next two articles and learn more about "How To Get Local PR on a Micro Budget"!

Virtually yours,
Red Signature

How To Get Local PR on a Micro Budget

Imagine seeing your name in the local business newspaper and magazine, being highlighted in a local publication or TV show, your family, friends, clients and potential clients gathering calling to congratulate you on your press coverage. If building your credibility through local public relations is appealing to you, you will want to join us as Meredith Liepelt of Rich Life Marketing shows us the exact steps she takes to secure local press coverage for herself and her clients. And how you can too!

Join us as Meredith teaches us how to get local PR on a micro budget!

You will learn:

The #1 thing that makes up the news
Four kinds of stories that reporters love
The simple components of a press release
How to know where to send your press release
The one thing you should never say to a reporter when you call to follow up
How to get your name in the paper next week - really!
The key components of your press kit

To learn more about this month's speaker, please visit Meredith's website and be sure to tune in to our NEW CHANNEL on Blog Talk Radio to hear Meredith LIVE!! http://www.blogtalkradio.com/smartsavvyentrepreneur

Short Press Releases For Big Results
by Meredith Liepelt

Have you ever wondered how the business magazines and papers fill all of those sections called "People in the Know" or "Movers and Shakers" and so forth? The fact of the matter is that every day, these publications are waiting for you to send them your news so they can fill their publication!

One quick and extremely simple strategy to get your name in one of those sections is to send out an announcement. Announcements are basically very short press releases. They are great visibility builders that you can write in four sentences or less! They create general awareness of who you are, and you can send these out up to once a month and increase your visibility to your target market and also to the press.

There are four basic components of an announcement:

1) Your name
2) Who you are - your company
3) What you're announcing (new product, service, client, speaking engagement, etc.)
4) A short bio (if there is room)

Remember that these are around four sentences or less.

Topics can be just about anything: a new product or service, an appointment to a board, a new client, a speaking engagement, an award for you and/or your business, a joint venture, a new certification, a renewal of a certification, national press coverage you receive or an event you hold. Really the topics are limitless!

Once you have your announcement, look in the publication itself to find the name of the person who coordinates the section you are targeting. Alternatively, you can go on the web site and find the contact information there. Email is generally the best way to communicate with this section of the publication. Put your announcement directly in the body of the email. Do not attach it in a Word document or PDF. It is not likely that your announcement will be opened.

Here is an example of an announcement I recently sent out that was picked up by local business paper. I'm including my entire email so you can see how I do this:

Dear "Name",

Please consider the following for publication:

xxxx of XYZ company and xxx of YZX company announce and congratulate the graduates of their program called "XYZ Series." The 15 graduates include (we listed the names of the graduates). Graduates successfully completed the 12-week educational workshop designed to provide women entrepreneurs with marketing strategies and business guidance to significantly grow their businesses. More information can be found at www.xxxxx.com

Thank you, xxx (my name) And I include my signature line here.

Keep in mind that the news for your announcement can be up to a year old! Take 15 minutes today and brainstorm about any news you have that you can offer to your local papers and magazines about you and your business. Write up a few and have them in queue for the coming months and see how many times you can get mentioned in the press!

Copyright (c) 2009 Meredith Liepelt

Meredith Liepelt, President of Rich Life Marketing, publishes Smart Marketing, a free bi-weekly ezine featuring marketing tips, insider secrets and thought provoking articles designed to help the busy female entrepreneur become known as an expert in her field, build trust with clients and prospects and generate more income than ever before. Claim your free subscription today at http://www.richlifemarketing.com .

Article Source: U Publish Articles

In This Issue

Featured Guest: Meredith Liepelt

Featured Article: Short Press Releases for Big Results

The Smart-Savvy Call!

Events & Exciting Announcements

Networking Opportunities

I appreciate...

EVENTS
The Smart-Savvy Entrepreneur's Expert Call

WHAT:

How to Get Local PR on a Micro Budget

WHO:

Meredith Liepelt

WHEN:
April 30, 2009

5:00 PM EST
4:00 PM CST
3:00 PM MT
2:00 PM PST

NEW!!!!! via Blog Talk Radio!!!
Here's the link: http://www.blogtalkradio.com/smartsavvyentrepreneur

Announcing:
Social Media Workshops!

WHAT:

"LIVE Social Media Workshop"

Go from 0-to-60 and be Done in a Day.
The Social Media Success workshop is ideal for the business owner new to social media. Want to learn, implement and hear from a local expert, all in one day? Then be sure to register for this class.

Each hands-on workshop will be divided into a morning session, power lunch (with an expert and offline marketing) and a hands on afternoon session. You may attend one, or all three.

Discounted pricing will apply to early bird sign-up and for attending the full-day's activities.

WHO:

Tiffany Odutoye and featured guests / expert in each city

WHEN:
East Coast

May 28th - New York
This is a pre-launch workshop with lots of perks. Be sure to ask my how you can be one of 10 who attend for free and receive a total value of $2,900!!!

Midwest