As the resident copywriter at Blue, I’ve written (and/or edited) my fair share of Press Releases. I’ve noticed that many clients and companies seem to think that press releases are only good for one thing—telling news outlets about potential stories. Think again.

PRs can do so much more than just create a news story. In fact, with the downturn in print news, it’s become more difficult for a PR to be anything other than a sheet of paper in a pile on an overworked journalist’s desk. So, why bother writing a PR at all?

1.    Status Updates—With Caution

You can let your connections know what’s going on with your business without posting updates that say “15% off of EVERYTHING in the store TODAY ONLY!!! Visit us from 9-5:30 at our downtown location for a GREAT DEAL!” Subtlety is key. Say something like “Busy getting the store ready for today’s big event! You’re all invited”—then give the hyperlink to the event information. Don’t make it an everyday occurrence. You should try to update your status with interesting information or even the hyperlink to your latest blog post (or even…ahem…someone else’s).

What use is a blog when no one is reading it? We've outlined three simple ways to start using your blog to its fullest, which can mean a larger readership and better brand awareness. Start cashing in on your blog today!

1.    Promote on Other Networks
We don’t mean that you should promote your blog on other blogs (persay), but don't be afraid to let people know that you have a blog. That means that blog promotion should start getting some real estate on your website and other social networks (probably in the form of a feed that shows the first sentence or three of your blog). Promote each post on Twitter, or on Facebook. Let people know through LinkedIn. It’s amazing how simple it is to gain readers when you just let the world know that you’re saying something online.

While some may have missed it, the Old Spice Guy was on a roll a few weeks ago, showing the world what a complete social media campaign can be. Videos of actor Isaiah Mustafa—known to many as the “Old Spice Guy”—started appearing on Old Spice’s YouTube account in response to Twitter questions/comments. The videos became viral quickly and, while it’s over now, we can learn a lot from what happened, whether you’re a multi-million dollar corporation or the café around the corner.

It can be tough to get your social media presence going...we've put together some simple ways to help you move from "what am I doing" to "why didn't I do this sooner"!

1. Educate Yourself.
It’s simple: make sure you’re as up-to-date as possible when it comes to your field. For example: if you’re a lawyer, I’m not just talking about CLEs (continuing legal education seminars). I’m talking about getting the latest in rulings, hot topics and industry news. It may mean taking an hour and diving into blogs, news sites and the latest Bar Journal…but it’s worth it when you really know what you’re blogging, tweeting or updating about. Be the expert!

While most of the world focused on the World Cup, my household’s televisions have been fixed permanently on Le Tour de France. With a husband who’s a cyclist and a parade of teammates (and friends) using our home as a between-race hostel—I’ve heard my fair share of Tour commentary. I’m going to add my two cents to the mix, with a twist. Though the race reached its end yesterday, I think that the Tour can teach (or remind) those of us in the business world about some simple practices that can enhance a bottom-line focused strategy.

We’ve all seen businesses dig themselves some deep holes. We can think of one company that spent over 80 days deep in a giant disaster. While we can’t help a company embroiled in an environmental catastrophe, we do have some tips to help your business weather the next big brouhaha that comes your way…perhaps you could even come out on top after it’s over. So whether you’ve under-priced everything in your store or have an employee whose mouth is about to get you in deep trouble…here is how to use a tough situation to your advantage:

We often hear that “laughter is the best medicine”, but when your company is in the middle of a PR nightmare…is it really the best time to begin cracking jokes on social media? At Blue, we give that question a resounding “No”.

It seems like just yesterday that I created the Blue Facebook Fan Page. In reality, it’s been nearly 11 months and the changes we’ve seen are incredible. Apparently, Facebook thought so, too.

We received a letter from Facebook on Monday. That alone had the Social Media FanGirl in me squealing. The fact that in that letter we were informed that Blue was chosen to be part of a beta testing program for businesses with Fan Pages? Icing on the cake.

If you’re on Facebook, you’ve heard of Fan Pages (or Community Pages). On Twitter, there are Lists you can use to group influencers together. On LinkedIn, you have company pages. These are an amazing opportunity for your business to get in front of customers, vendors or partners. Does your company already have a profile? If not, you should create one. It doesn’t take long and, unlike a Facebook Fan Page, it doesn’t require much upkeep. So, then…what do you do with LinkedIn? How can your company benefit from being on this particular social network? We’ve got 5 ways that LinkedIn is a positive for any business, no matter its size.

I’m surrounded by individuals who care deeply about the environment, meaning that I make gadget and technology decisions with ‘green’ in mind. Tablets and eReaders in particular have the potential to revolutionize the way we treat the world around us.

With celebrity drama coming from all sides, it seems pretty commonplace for everyone to have a few skeletons in their closets (or a few hundred, as the case may be). But how much do we share? And if there are a few lapses of judgment that could show up on the internet…is it better to bring them to light, or keep things quiet and chance that they might find their way onto the world wide web at some point in the future? Our first suggestion is simple: don’t do anything cringe-worthy in the first place, especially now that there are cameras everywhere, many of which have direct access to social networks or the internet.

At Blue, it’s our business to learn as much as we can about social media. In the process, we’ve come across some incredibly interesting, thought-out social media networks and we’d like to share our favorites with you. We hope you reciprocate!

When is a video a Podcast?
When did a Podcast become more then a media file distributed via RSS?

Hmm … great questions evoked by a lively conversation at Blue. After reviewing the latest production of a client’s (lengthy) podcast, the questions of the true nature or type of the video ensued: Is the video “just a video” that is focused on the client’s message? Is this instead a “podcast”, similar in type to so many others we have watched? Is what we previewed then 'sloppy' for a podcast? Is it too long? What is “too long”? Are there social rules in place concerning podcasts? Is the name “podcast” a misnomer of this production altogether? So, we set out to the Land of Google to see what the rest of universe thought, and came up with this definition from Wikipedia:

I came across this question while reading through comments on a popular blog post: If you’re putting all your content on Facebook…why do you need a website? I’m willing to bet that you’ve asked yourself the same question in one way or another.

“Why should I get on Facebook? I already have a website.”
“I made sure my business was on Yelp! ages ago…is a website really important if all my information is listed there?”

At Blue, we often get this question: “I’ve got a Facebook/Twitter Account/Blog…now what do I say”?

Good question. It’s a scary task to figure out what you should write about. If you can, make that decision before you create a social media account of any kind. As a company that works with digital media and advertising on a daily basis, we are especially cautious of the perils and pitfalls of social media, but we still suggest their use to our clients.