Greetings!
Nothing matters more than friends and family. This month's Web Tips tells how to provide updates on serious health issues and ask for support online at difficult times.
The first article talks about what's in the moment and what lasts forever. In the end, it's about appreciation.
The second article is about PR, that's public relations. Thanks to Richard Kostelanetz for reminding us to spell things out. I used PR without explanation in the April issue. "Puerto Rico???," he asked. A good reminder for us all. Don't assume.
So the three biggies are family and friends, appreciation and PR.
Tomorrow is the big day. I'm speaking at the NY Capital Region Chapter of the American Marketing Association in Albany. The event is open to the public--please come. The topic: Marketing a Company of One: Building an Authentic Personal Brand.
Lots of thumbs up for the new photo that premiered in last month's issue. Thanks again to Sabine Vollmer von Falken who took the picture last fall. We used several different outfits so I can be appropriate to changes of season. The black turtleneck will be back when winter is approaching. More about photos here.
Our email from last month included a reminder from Cheryl Raifstanger of Kwik Print in Great Barrington, MA, to check out local printers for business cards and other needs. Often they provide better service than online.
I'm on Twitter. Follow me.
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Shelf Life
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 It took two days for the news of Lincoln's assassination to reach California. Anything today, news or nonsense, travels the globe in milliseconds. But still, some online channels last longer than others.
Twitter, for example, has a shelf life of about two minutes, except on Sunday when the latest Tweet might stay on a Twitterer's screen for extra minutes. We're talking here, of course, about how long anyone is likely to see your 140-character post. Since the Library of Congress is now archiving Tweets, the messages, like the ancient pyramids, will exist forever.
Longer Lasting
Email marketing, on the other hand, has an attention span of days. Well, two anyway. As you may have noticed, Web Words typically hits your in box around 9:30 AM. By close-of-business on "send" day, which for many is late evening, most people who are going to open the email have done so. There's a trickle of new readers the next day. And then no more than a dribble of opens for the rest of the month. I find the same pattern for my clients, so it's not just my experience.
Of course, by archiving your email campaigns, you extend their reach for yourself as well as others. I often send articles from Web Words to clients, prospects and anyone who might benefit from the information I've published in the past. And since the archive is on my Web site, articles do show up in Google searches. But that's not a likely source of high visibility.
The longest lasting text posts seem to be on LinkedIn. I've seen some discussions stay alive for months. The famous "dog-lightening-Japanese" conversation mentioned in March is still going on. But that's likely a world's record, if anyone tracks these things.
Forever
If you want real longevity, go for YouTube. Your videos there will last forever, or as long as YouTube does, whichever comes first. And since YouTube is highly searchable, something of general interest that you post today might be found years from now.
Like newsletters, your blogs will be around a long time, too. And if you're lucky, someone will trip over them months after they were first published. But in reality, like newsletters, the seeker will likely have found the answer long before reaching your Web site.
Bottom line, like so much else in 21st Century life, look for instant gratification. I cherish the email responses I get from readers when I send out my newsletter. I thank the sender in the moment, because they took time not only to read what I wrote, but also to send a response.
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Win Win
|  In spite of the incessant chatter about monetizing the Web, a lot of valuable commerce happens for free online. HARO is an example. Standing for Help A Reporter Out, it's an online service where reporters get instant access to more than 100,000 potential sources. And businesses, entrepreneurs and everyone else can get publicity with almost no effort. You can sign up for free.
Expertise
The premise behind HARO is that everyone's an expert at something. The service is used by an estimated 30,000 reporters from The New York Times to bloggers and wannabe book authors.
Subscribers receive three simple text emails a day Monday through Friday. Queries are divided into categories such as: Business and Finance, Education, Entertainment and Media, Lifestyle and Fitness, High Tech and Travel.
I actually find it entertaining just to see what reporters are writing about. It's a way to get a quick look at what's hot without investing much time. I scan the queries very quickly to see if I can respond to any. I also consider whether someone in my network might be a fit. If they are, I forward the link to them.
How To
In any case, there are some rules of response. They are described in an over the top (literally) video by HARO founder Peter Shankman. Subscribe to HARO and you're also following Peter, who has been described as "crazy, but effective."
Shankman, whose career began at AOL in the 90's, is a poster child for how to create personal brand online. He is everywhere--Facebook, Twitter and keynoting at conferences. He also makes money--consulting on PR (public relations) to companies large and small and by advertisements in HARO emails. These are short, personalized product descriptions, mostly about online services. They are easy to skip in your daily emails. But many of the services offered are also free and worth checking out.
Personally, I've had a few positive responses. Nothing I can share with you yet, but keep reading. You'll hear more in a future issue. And if you get an email from me with a subject line "Might be of interest" check it out. It could be your own, personalized HARO query.
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| Web Tips |  Births, medical procedures, hospital stays and end of life are all times when we want to stay close to friends and family. But sending out emails and responding to concerned inquiries are the last things you need at a time like this. Of course, the Internet has a solution.
CaringBridge offers free Web sites to connect family and friends during a hospital stay, serious health event, care and recovery. This not-for-profit, established in 1997, connects over half-a-million people daily. It's very easy to set up and update. They even send you an email you can customize and send to family and friends.
Lotsa Helping Hands is a similar free service, with a slightly different mission. This Web site is focused on providing assistance in times of family stress. It's a group calendar, specifically designed for organizing helpers, where everyone can pitch in with meals delivery, rides and other tasks necessary for life to run smoothly during times of medical crisis, end-of-life caring or family caregiver exhaustion. It's also been widely used to support military families when someone is deployed overseas.
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And Finally . . .
Shawenon Communications collaborates with small businesses, solopreneurs, professionals and not-for-profits to get their messages across in the written word.
We specialize in electronic communications, including e-zines and other forms of email marketing, Web site content and social media. We also ghostwrite articles and other business communications. As a business partner, we resell Constant Contact's email marketing service. Thanks for reading. If you liked this issue, please click on the Forward email button below to share this newsletter with others.
You're also welcome to reprint material in this newsletter as long as it is unaltered and credited to the author. Be sure to send us a copy, too. If being reproduced electronically, the following link must also be included:
www.shawenon.com
Sincerely, 
Susanna Opper
Shawenon Communications413-528-6494
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