For many companies – particularly startups – contractors offer a vital resource for keeping things running smoothly. If you have a job that requires a specific set of skills, but can’t offer enough work to constitute a full-time, in-house position, freelancers offer the perfect solution.

But when looking for a provider, often it isn’t practical to go through the same rigorous interview and assessment process as you would for a permanent employee, so how do you get quality work without the HR headache?

In my opinion, word of mouth recommendations are great when you can get them, but otherwise, advertising online (via your website or a job site) is the way to go, and then it’s all in the job description:

Make the title count

The first step to attracting quality bids is to make the most of your post title. Whether it’s on a general job site like Reed.co.uk or a site specifically for freelancers like People Per Hour, front page listings tend truncate titles to around 30 characters, so it’s wise to keep your title below this mark and get straight to the point. For example, rather than writing ‘Help needed with sales letter for accountancy firm’, you could write ‘Sales letter (accountancy)’.

Write clearly

As a provider on several freelance job sites, I read dozens of job listings per week where the project description is so vague, it’s almost impossible to fathom what the advertiser is looking for.

While this might present a challenge to the service provider looking to place a bid, the main victim of the vaguely worded project listing is the buyer themselves, who not only risks receiving dozens of irrelevant bids, but might even go so far as to accept a bid from a provider who has a false notion of what is required.

Be specific

When it comes to the project description, bidders will find it much easier to price up a project if you are explicit about what’s involved. So, for a web design project, for example, aim to explain how many pages are needed, what functionality the site must have, whether you will need a logo and so on.

Outline required skills

If you any specific skills requirements, such as being able to work with a particular piece of software, you should list them and state whether they are essential or preferred. It is also worth mentioning what industry your company operates in, as this can attract bidders with useful experience. For example, an accountant who already understands the typical transactions of a firm in your sector might be better placed to give industry specific tax advice.

Sell yourself

To attract strong bids, you should also consider giving some details about your company’s achievements and reputation. Just as with any job, people may be more inclined to apply if the company has an appealing profile.

Set a realistic budget

It is also important to be as realistic as possible about your project’s budget. If your budget range is very low, you may not attract the standard of provider you are looking for, and if it is unnecessarily high, you might find people bid higher than they otherwise would. If you have time, research what constitutes a realistic budget before submitting your listing. Alternatively, mark the rate as ‘negotiable’ and judge what constitutes a reasonable price based on the bids you receive.

Clarify with bidders

Finally, remember that you are not bound to agree to work with someone based on their initial bid alone. If a bid looks great, but doesn’t answer those last minute questions that have arisen since you posted the project, ask them. A good provider will be happy to discuss your requirements in more detail before asking you to accept their bid.

(This post is adapted and updated from a post I published on PeoplePerHour.com in March 2009)

This is a guest post by Toby Reid, the founder of In A Fishbowl, a business reality website that follows the progress of three entrepreneurs.

If you are in the service or advisory sector these days then, as unnerving as it sounds, your best marketing strategy is to give away everything you know for free. When you think you have given away nearly all the information you have, go and dig up some more and then give that away as well.

It is called content marketing and here are three reasons why you should be doing it:

Reason 1

Because you will no longer gain and maintain customers by guarding and restricting access to information you hold. “We can tell you this but we could tell you a lot more if you pay us”. Really?…

NO and double no. Those days are gone. They are gone because with the internet nearly all information is freely available. Conceptually, people refuse to pay for something that can be found free elsewhere. They may not find it, or understand it when they do find it, but that doesn’t matter because the damage is done… they have already switched off from you.

Free information is your hook to attract the attention of your target customers.

Reason 2

Brand is no longer just about logos and strap lines, it’s about voice. You want to be a market leader, be a market leading voice. It’s difficult to be a compelling voice without talking about what you know and what you think, so don’t hold back, tell them what you know. Providing quality content establishes you as an authority on your subject and gives you serious credibility in the eyes of your target customers.

Proving you’re an expert in your field sustains the interest of your target customers.

Reason 3

Because your customers still need you. In this age of free information, information isn’t your asset anymore. So give it away! But what will your customer buy from you? Well, your interpretation of the information and application to their personal circumstances, the time savings you can offer them in doing so, the peace of mind of outsourcing to an expert and the customer service you offer along the way.

The time saving, peace of mind and customer service are the benefits you offer. These can easily convert an audience of already interested targets into actual customers. But remember you have to attract their attention and prove your credibility first!

– By Eamonn Moore.

There’s a great history of public figures being caught making unguarded comments by the press and media, but such cases appear to be rife this spring/summer.

First there was Bigotgate. Then there was Snookergate. Then Lord Triesman was shown the red card after apparently making some unguarded comments about Spain and Russia bribing officials at this summer’s World Cup. And now Sarah Ferguson has been caught allegedly offering to sell access to her ex husband Prince Andrew. What’s next?

In my previous blog post, I looked at how Gordon Brown’s PR should be handled post-Bigotgate, but did not tackle the ethics of the situation – something that I now feel I should address, especially after the thought provoking discussion on ethics in this week’s #CommsChat.

The whole issue of ethics and the media has always been and will always be a hot potato. Do we have a right to know everything that public figures say (even if it’s said ‘behind closed doors’) or is everyone entitled to their privacy? Should we perhaps only be alerted to conversations that are of genuine national interest, and if so, what constitutes ‘national interest’?

Personally, I feel that there are circumstances when it is genuinely important that the contents of a private conversation are aired – Watergate perhaps being the best example of this. However, in cases such as the one involving Lord Triesman, the desire to have a sensationalist headline (and increased sales) seem to have been received by some as a neglect of ethical standards by the newspaper in question. Whether his allegations are correct or not, you could argue that Lord Triesman has a strong case to say that he has been the victim of entrapment. Furthermore, surely potentially irreversibly damaging England’s 2018 World Cup bid is not in the ‘national interest’? Gary Lineker certainly didn’t think it was.

Working in public relations, I am acutely aware of the importance of ethical and responsible media reporting. We rely on the media to do our jobs, and they rely on us, so I see it as our duty to help uphold, support and encourage the highest ethical standards. Indeed, if the media fall short of such standards, it often impacts on the world of public relations (and vice versa).

Various recent public mudslinging matches between PRs & PRs, and PRs & the media have shown us that it cuts both ways. Of course, there is absolutely nothing wrong with being critical of something (or someone), provided that you go about it in a considered manner, choosing to value ethics over link-bait opportunities, and always aiming to offer constructive criticism by suggesting possible areas of improvement, rather than just celebrating perceived misfortune. It seems to me that events of late have left the PR world feeling somewhat tarnished.

The world of communication is developing apace along with technology, but if we’re not careful, we risk losing sight of the basics, especially when it comes to ethics. As PRs, it is our duty to both protect and enhance our industry’s reputation from within by being positively and proactively ethical at all times (even when we’re being critical of something). If we don’t fulfil this duty, the whole industry’s reputation could well be left in tatters, and none of us want that, do we?

This is a guest post from Chris Lee, founder and managing director of PR and social media consultancy, Planet Content, and founder/editor of DIY PR and marketing blog RunMarketing.

Are you proud of what you have achieved for your customers and clients? Can you prove tangible benefits and returns on investment that really illustrate what your company does best? If you can, then this is where case studies come into play.

Publications love the “proof in the pudding” – real-life examples of where companies have used a product or service which has had a demonstrable effect on their business. Could you gain approval from a customer and draft an 800-word account on how you helped it operate more efficiently?

If you could, then this is how a customer case study – or ‘customer evidence’, to our friends across the pond – should be constructed:

Title: Hard-hitting, catching title outlining the crux of the case study in a single line (particularly benefits) – e.g. “Company X saves Company Y £X million a year with product Z”

Subtitle: Add some more quantifiable facts about the customer case study – time savings, staff efficiency etc

Introduction: You have a single paragraph with which to capture the audience and encourage them to read on, so make sure your opening paragraph is tightly written and neatly summarises all the key financial, time and efficiency benefits.

Detail: Under orderly sub-headings you should now go into further details outlining:

• The existing problem
• What your company proposed
• Was the contract put out to tender? If so, what did you do that stood out to win it?
• What challenges did you overcome, be they physical, financial, cultural etc?
• What you did in practice and more on how benefits were achieved
• What was the customer feedback? Include a customer quote
• Conclusion – include a quote from your own MD, CEO or project manager

Try to keep it to around 800 words, use images and regularly deploy sub-headings to retain reader interest. Don’t forget to get permission from the customer to write the case study before you start drafting and run it by the customer’s marketing team to make amends and approve the final draft. They might not let you disclose everything, but highlight the benefits for them – free publicity, for one!

Also, keep the hyperbole to a minimum. Nothing turns people off more than sales spiel, so speak plain English and drop words like “market-leading” and “solution”.

Spread your wings

You could pitch the case study to a local publication, or vertical media outlet, depending on your target audience and the strength of the case study or customer brand. You could also build a page especially for case studies on your company website. If so, don’t forget to make sure that the text is optimised for your company’s keywords to help potential customers find you online.

Also, don’t forget to plug it on social media channels. Tweet the link to your website, or why not post it on Slideshare.net?

Here are some examples of customer case studies from corporations such as Xerox, Microsoft and Virgin Media Business. They vary greatly in style and format, from video to basic pdf.

If you’re worried that you’ve not got the right time or skills resources in-house to generate customer case studies then seek out a professional writer, it will pay off for you.

Whilst the roles of a PR and marketer are different at face value, there is little doubt that the two areas have considerable crossover, especially when it comes to social media.

Today, Vocus (a producer of “on-demand software for public relations management”) has circulated a white paper examining the merging roles of PR and marketing, and the debate surrounding who ‘owns’ social media.

For the white paper – ‘Blurring Lines, Turf Battles and Tweets: The Real Impact of Integrated Communications on Marketing and PR’ – Vocus surveyed 1,094 PR and marketing professionals last month about their experiences and views of ‘integrated communications’, which Vocus defines as:

“A management concept that ties all aspects of marketing communication, including, but not limited to advertising, search marketing, sales promotion, public relations and direct marketing, together to function in a unified and comprehensive fashion as opposed to functioning in isolation or silos.”

Blurred lines

The key findings suggest that the lines between PR and marketing are blurring, with 79% of marketing and PR professionals stating that they report to the same boss, and 78% reporting formal working relationships when it comes to creating a common communications strategy.

However, whilst the roles may overlap in some respects, 67% of respondents revealed that they hold cross-functional meetings only ‘sometimes’, with a further 19% stating that they held them ‘rarely’ or ‘never’.

Turf battles

The white paper also illustrates that ‘turf battles’ remain rife between marketing and PR professionals, with 33% citing that such conflicts are the single biggest barrier to creating an integrated communications strategy. Budget shortcomings were judged to be the next obstacle, with 20% of respondents highlighting this issue.

Who owns social media?

The concept of ‘turf battles’ is further developed when the debate about who ‘owns’ social media is examined. From the results of the white paper, it’s clear that there is no consensus, with 43% of PRs feeling that they should own it, and 35% of marketers saying the same for their profession. When it comes to corporate blogs, 38% of PRs feel that they should control them, whilst 24% of marketers feel that they should.

Integrated communications

Common ground was found when participants were questioned about the benefits of integrated communications and how to measure them. 48% of PRs and marketers reported that integrated communications increase the overall effectiveness of outreach programs, and that sales and ROI are the most effective ways of assessing an integrated communications strategy.

It’s debatable as to whether this paper reflects the overall experiences of the industry, but it certainly highlights a growing feeling that social media is driving a merging of marketing and PR roles. Similarly, whether this will be resolved into the ‘integrated communications strategies’ envisaged by Vocus remains to be seen, but with the level of conflict described above, it seems unlikely that it will happen any time soon.

The Donuts – a group of websites offering free advice and resources for businesses – are embarking on a twenty-four hour ‘Twitterblogathon’ that will cover all the drama of election night as it happens.

Starting at 3pm, the Marketing Donut team will bring you the very latest action and reaction, supported by several ‘expert contributors’, including the team here at Emily Cagle Communications.

The event will also raise funds for The Children’s Trust. If you’d like to make a donation, visit Marketing Donut’s JustGiving page.

To follow the event, simply point your browser at The Marketing Donut. Or, if you want to follow the coverage through Twitter, use the #donut24 hashtag.

#CommsChat, a weekly Twitter-based chat about anything and everything to do with communications, is inspired by chats like #JournChat, #PRstudchat and #BlogChat, which focus on specific subjects / participants.

These chats are typically based / moderated out of the USA, which means that the times are often challenging for people based in Europe.

#CommsChat has been developed with these things in mind, and will hopefully be shaped even more by you after reading this post.

The top line framework of #CommsChat

• A weekly chat on Monday nights at 8pm UK time (1 hour duration)
• Wide-ranging topics connected to communications, including: traditional and social media, PR, blogging, marketing, journalism and lots more
• Special guests will be invited to take part most weeks based on the subject matter

Help shape #CommsChat

The rest of #CommsChat and its make-up will be determined by you over the next few weeks.

• What would you like to see?
• Any thoughts on subjects / topics?
• Is there a format from another chat you’ve taken part in that you really like?

All this feedback will help us collectively create an engaged community and host sessions that add value to everyone taking part.

Put a date in your diary

The first #CommsChat is scheduled for 24 May 2010 at 8pm (UK time).

Although based out of the UK, it is open to anyone from everywhere – comms professionals, bloggers, journalists, students – basically anyone with an interest in / passion for communications.

Over the next few weeks we’ll provide you with more information about how it will work.

But the primary objective is simple: encourage like-minded people to get together for an hour each week to share their tips, hints and lessons relating to the world of communications.

It should be a lot of fun…and we look forward to hearing what you have to say.

Thanks

Adam Vincenzini and Emily Cagle

Staying connected / useful links:

• #CommsChat Blog
• #CommsChat on Twitter
• #CommsChat on Facebook
• How to participate in a Twitter Chat

This a guest post from Amy Cutbill, Communities Manager, BT Tradespace.

I’m often asked “Why should I get a Tradespace profile” or told “Well, it isn’t doing much for me, so I don’t do anything on it”.

The truth is, if you give your Tradespace some TLC and keep it updated with fresh content, you will soon be seeing the benefits! If you just register your business name and never do anything else, you won’t get the brilliant results you are hoping for.

When setting up your Tradespace site, or taking a fresh look at your existing site, the best thing to do is imagine you are the customer you are wanting to attract – imagine them landing on your Tradespace profile. What would they think of you when they got there? Would they instantly know what you offer? Would they want to buy from you or get more information? Chances are, if you just have a business address and business name, they won’t go much further. But if you had a logo, a header image that suits your business/product or service, an ‘about us’ description, news and posts, images, products to purchase or services and perhaps some video… you’ll be well away!

People want as much information as possible before they make a purchase these days, they want to know what other people think of the item/business and they also want to know who they are buying from; using your Tradespace allows you to give them all that. You are able to show them the person behind the business and most importantly, show them you care about their business. People want to buy from people they know and trust after all.

One of the great benefits of BT Tradespace is the fact that you can add so much content to your site, you can add keywords to all content you are adding which all helps in getting you noticed. BT Tradespace profiles do very well on search engines such as Google and we often hear from people that they have their Tradespace site ranking higher than their actual website.

You can also network with other businesses on BT Tradespace. By getting involved in the communities on site, or creating your own you can meet like minded people, get advice on new ideas and build a support network for your business. Community activity also helps you get noticed online, Google picks up the activity so make sure you give your posts relevant keywords to get yourself seen!

We’ve recently added some new features to the site and there are even more ways to network and increase your visibility. By using the Fan feature, you are able to build up and manage your online reputation. By adding some Q&As to your free customer service community, ServiceSmart, you have yet another way to increase your online visibility as Google also picks these up very well.

We’re a friendly bunch at BT Tradespace and are always looking to promote the fantastic businesses & content on site, so if you are on BT Tradespace and you have something you think we should be featuring on the site, please do get in touch or you can always find us on Twitter (www.twitter.com/bttradespace).

Are you a blogger? March is Be My Guest month, and we’re encouraging bloggers from all over the world to swap posts and reach new audiences. See Be My Guest for more information.

This is a guest post by San Sharma of Enterprise Nation, the home business website.

It used to be that the measure of a successful website was how many hits it had. But more recently, when people have asked, the question has felt intrusive, as if they were asking to see our medical records or our bank accounts!

These days, however, it’s about engagement – and not hits – that determines what makes a successful website. And it’s a measurement that’s far more transparent anyway. You can pretty much see for yourselves when a website has comments beneath its blog posts, activity in its forums, @replies or retweets on Twitter.

And that’s why, at Enterprise Nation, the home business website, we started #watercoolermoment. It’s a Twitter trend that happens every morning at 11am, when homeworkers across the UK gather to discuss topics ranging from last night’s TV, to family, to books and business. It’s a chance for our followers to recreate that feeling of ‘office buzz’ without any of the downsides of working in an office. You can always tune out, we say, if you’re too busy, which is where we think we have the edge!

How it works is we tell our followers to use the hashtag #watercoolermoment in their tweets between 11am and 12pm each day. We usually set a topic beforehand (apart from on ‘freestyle Fridays’!) and tune into Twitter’s live search results to see the responses. Our followers can too. So, what you get is a huge conversation taking place, linked together by the hashtag we came up with.

It’s a fantastic way for us to increase engagement with our followers and to raise awareness of our brand. Their followers might wonder what #watercoolermoment is, and if they click the term, they’ll see the conversation taking place and us leading it. More than that, it’s a fantastic way for our followers to get to know one another, to overcome the cabin fever of working from home and share ideas and experiences.

#watercoolermoment is only in its third week, but it’s already a huge success. We love getting involved! It’s great for us and it’s great for our followers. And it works because it achieves our goals and adds value for our followers.

Visit Enterprise Nation at http://www.enterprisenation.com and follow at http://twitter.com/e_nation.

Are you a blogger? March is Be My Guest month, and we’re encouraging bloggers from all over the world to swap posts and reach new audiences. See Be My Guest for more information.

This is a guest post from Bryony Thomas, Chief Clear Thinker, Clear Thought Consulting Ltd.

Most people initially think of public relations as a technique for generating awareness for their products or services. This is absolutely true, but if this is the only way that you’re using your public relations effort, you’re missing a trick in squeezing every ounce of value from your marketing budget.

In considered purchases, people move through a process of decision-making. At each stage, you have an opportunity to influence whether they continue through to purchase from you, or choose to look elsewhere.

Using Kotler’s model of rational decision-making, here are some ideas for using PR at every stage in the process.

Generating awareness: In addition to getting the word out through press coverage, you can also:

• Add key phrases to your press releases that people are likely to use as search phrases.
• Post links to your news coverage on your LinkedIn status, Twitter feed, etc.
• Add comments against online news stories that your audience is likely to read.

Generating interest: This is about getting people to take the next step of not only knowing who you are, but of being interested in what you have to say:

• Use decent coverage as an insert for direct mail or email (NB You’ll need permission).
• Use snippets of coverage you achieve in your promotional materials.
• Post a response to a news item as a blog, YouTube video, etc.

Standing up to evaluation: When people are evaluating your products or services against the competition, you can:

• Point them to positive news coverage.
• Use a news story as the basis for a live Q&A or webinar.

Supporting the trial process: When someone is assessing your products and services in detail, you can:

• Add PR quotes in your proposal documents to substantiate your claims.
• Use press coverage as a reason to drop someone a line when they’re trialling.

Encouraging adoption: At the point where people part with significant money, public relations can:

• Create a feel-good factor amongst the wider decision-makers reducing chances of them saying no.

Generating re-purchase and loyalty: If they’ve bought once, you can:

• Drop them a line with positive coverage on what they’ve bought for that all-important post-purchase reassurance.
• Keep them up-to-date on new offerings by sending them links to press coverage – often more compelling than blatant sales material.

With a bit of thought, you can make more of your PR coverage. This is particularly true if you have a social media set-up in place that allows you to make intelligent re-use of the coverage you’ve worked hard to secure.

For more on this and a few more ideas, you can watch a 10-minute tutorial on how PR supports the sales funnel on the Clear Thought website.

Are you a blogger? March is Be My Guest month, and we’re encouraging bloggers from all over the world to swap posts and reach new audiences. See Be My Guest for more information.