• How to Create a Successful Business Blog: 17 Tips You Need to Know
• a.m. News Brief^TM: New Made-to-Order Daily News Digest
• Online Video: New Publicity Outlet
• Media Relations Conference: Summit on Communications
• Pitching Freelancers: Techniques to Score More Ink and Pixels
• Non-Profit Organizations Receive PR Grants
• New Akamai World News Index
• F.r.e.e Media Monitoring Trial
• Most Read Articles from Previous Issues
• 2006 Full-Year Calendar

    This two-part article analyzes the steps for planning and implementing a corporate blog. The first article on "Planning a Successful Business Blog" examines key decisions on subject, mission, audience targeting, market survey, blogger selection, securing a corporate champion, and making the "go" decision. The second article on "Implementing a Successful Business Blog" dissects the steps of selecting development tools, working out a content plan for launch, making a debut, developing a style and personality, handling responses, monitoring consumer discussion on your subject, and enjoying the process. In all, it's a 17-step roadmap to success in corporate blogging. Full Article >

    a.m. NewsBrief, a new daily news digest for business and government executives, made-to-order for each company or government agency, was announced this week by CyberAlert, Inc.
    The distinguishing characteristic of a.m. NewsBrief is that each day's news summary focuses exclusively on the key news, feature articles, and opinion pieces about the organization, its brands, competitors, industry, government regulation, and any other topics specified by the client company or government organization.
    Using CyberAlert's proprietary news monitoring software, the news briefing service sweeps news stories and editorials from major national and international news sources between 5:00 p.m. and 5:00 a.m. each day. The system also monitors each client's custom list of trade journals and government Web sites. Editors select and summarize each article and deliver a.m. NewsBrief via e-mail before start of business each day.
    "The benefit of a.m. NewsBrief is that all the organization's executives can begin the day with a quick 10-minute read that summarizes that day's news stories, editorials and business intelligence that most affect them and their organization," stated William J. Comcowich, CEO of CyberAlert. "Each day's briefing quickly gives them the gist of the important news all in one place and all expertly summarized to assure they are fully informed while saving them substantial time," he said. Each article summary includes a link to the source publication enabling executives to see the entire article, if they desire.
    A detailed product description of a.m. NewsBrief is available on the CyberAlert website (www.cyberalert.com). Pricing is available by calling CyberAlert at 800-461-7353.

    In his worthwhile monthly newsletter Web Digest for Marketers (www.wdfm.com), Larry Chase predicts that video downloads will be huge in 2006.
    Downloading video is hitting the Internet like a house of fire, he says. There have been over 3 million video downloads from iTunes since the introduction of this service on October 12, 2005. Right now, people are paying $1.99 for that missed episode of Desperate Housewives. The image shows in a small screen, and the resolution isn't nearly as good as what you see on TV. However, what you do have is the control to timeshift the program, and therein lies its primary value.
    Elsewhere on the web, he notes, you can download entire movies, including recent releases like March of the Penguins or Aviator, but it takes quite a while on a DSL or cable connection to download a full-length movie, and you still have the issues of lower resolution and small viewing area with which to contend.
    What about online video for commercial messaging? You can expect backward-thinking ad execs to propose feeding TV commercials online now, he says. In Chase's opinion, however, it is unlikely that people will download that which they fast forward over on TV.
    He sees commercially-sponsored video succeeding on the Internet in demonstrations. These may come from Home Depot by way of how-to videos with appropriate product placements, or they may be direct from the manufacturer or cataloger such as Black & Decker or L.L. Bean.
    There are many other potential free or fee applications for Internet-distributed video:

•	consumer health education videos
•	financial education videos
•	college-level lectures in for-credit video courses
•	custom-designed video entertainment programs on corporate web sites, which can then be distributed to other web sites (most videos would contain brand placements)
•	professional education programs (see http://www.hivaids.com)
•	documentaries
•	video coverage of minor sports events
•	and probably many more.

    For creative PR and marketing professionals, video downloaded from the Internet represents a new opportunity to reach customers and consumers with programs to enhance corporate reputation and promote brands. And there's an even greater opportunity for viral marketing distribution of downloaded video files. (Viral marketing idea starter: Paris Hilton taking a shower with Dove bath products - with Roman Polansky directing and a soft focus on the lens? Just kidding).
    Late Addition: Other Articles
As Internet TV Aims at Niche Audiences, the Slivercast Is Born, New York Times, March 12, 2006

    The upcoming Media Relations 2006 conference "Bold New Solutions for Higher Impact", sponsored by Bulldog Reporter, focuses on enhancing PR skills including such topics as:

•	advanced pitching secrets
•	new techniques for marketing to women
•	deploying blogs, podcasts and streaming video to publicize products
•	promoting experts and executives as spokespeople
•	analyzing strategies of thought leadership
•	learning from the greatest crisis blunders of all time.

    In the summit's "meet the editors" sessions, participants can meet and question reporters, bureau chiefs and producers from such media as the The Wall Street Journal, NPR, USA Today, CNN, Marie Claire, CNBC, Fortune, Bloomberg News, Good Housekeeping, AP, Fast Company and Time.
    Media Relations 2006 will feature keynote addresses by TV news anchor Aaron Brown on "The Future of Television News;" controversial magazine editor Bonnie Fuller on "Confessions of a Magazine Editor: Secrets of Reaching the American Consumer;" PR industry legend Al Golin on "The Bright (and Scary) Future of Public Relations;" and NPR media critic Bob Garfield on "The Chaos Scenario: What Happens When the Old Media Collapse."
    The event will be held at New York City's Marriott Marquis Hotel on Times Square April 9-11 and features 51 sessions featuring 38 leading journalists and 81 high-level media relations experts. For more details and registration information, go to www.bulldogreporter.com or call 800-959-1059.

    Want to know successful techniques for pitching freelance writers at major publications? In this article which first appeared in The Daily Dog, Matt Villano, a freelancer who writes the twice-monthly "Career Couch" column for The New York Times Sunday Business section, presents an inside look at what works best in pitching freelance contributors at newspapers and magazines. He includes the successful techniques used by the PR professional who has been most successful in pitching him. Full Article >

    For the third consecutive year, CyberAlert has awarded PR Grants to worthy not-for-profit organizations.
    More than 300 not-for-profit organizations applied for the grants during 2005. On January 16, 2006, CyberAlert announced 16 grant awards. The total retail value of the 16 awards approximates $40,000.
    The grants consist of one year of free media monitoring service with CyberAlert 4.0. All not-for-profit, educational and charitable organizations in the United States and Canada are eligible for the grants, except previous grant winners.
    The award winners for 2006 include JA Worldwide (Junior Achievement), Relief International, Oklahoma City National Memorial, Partnership Against Domestic Violence, Marine Biological Laboratory (Woods Hole), and Canada's National History Society. The CyberAlert web site contains a complete list of grant winners and grant application. CyberAlert accepts applications throughout the year. Grant applications close on December 31 and are reviewed in January.
    In the grant announcement, William J. Comcowich, President and CEO of CyberAlert stated: "The grant program is a direct, tangible way for our company to give back to the public relations profession that has helped our business grow and expand over the past six years."

    Akamai recently introduced its Net Usage Index for News. The index monitors online news consumption around the globe in near-real time and maps trends in online news consumption. As the delivery platform for more than 100 global news portal companies, Akamai is able to gather aggregated statistics based on millions of users of those sites during any given minute, assuring reliable data for geographic areas throughout the world. The service also includes a Retail Index.

    CyberAlert is now offering a 2 in 1 no-risk 14-day F.R.E.E TRIAL of both its CyberAlert 4.0 online news monitoring and clipping service and its CyberAlert TV broadcast news monitoring service. The online news monitoring service monitors over 25,000 online news sources worldwide in 20 languages while the TV news monitoring service monitors the closed caption text of all news programs on more than 500 TV stations in the U.S. The F.R.E.E. TRIAL is available by completing a simple online form at https://secure.cyberalert.com/ftpyoorder.html. Service starts the next day. No credit card is required. In its special promotion, CyberAlert is offering a 2 for the price of 1 news monitoring special. New clients who order the news monitoring service at the regular retail price of $225/month for online news monitoring also receive the broadcast monitoring service at absolutely no additional charge for one year.

    Optimizing and Measuring News Releases on the Internet

    The Truth About Website Analytics

    Media Monitoring Market Survey Results

    Tips for an Effective Online Newsroom

    Preparing Executives for Media Interviews

    The 18 Immutable Laws of Corporate Reputation

    Full-year calendars on 8-1/2 x 11 are often difficult to find — especially ones that are easy to read. Here's one that you can print out and post near your desk for quick reference.