2020 Archives - Wellons Communications

How to prepare for media interest now

Posted on April 9, 2020 by Wellons team

A great TV story about your business’s latest charity effort runs on the 10 p.m. news. The local business journal publishes a feature on your growth strategy. The trade publication your partners read runs an item on your latest product.

Who doesn’t want that?

As an Orlando PR firm, we are no stranger to gaining media attention for our clients. In fact, earned media placements are one of the most common requests we get—and we’ve seen what they can do for a client’s reputation and reach.

Even so, there’s a big misconception with how these kinds of hits happen. Clients tend to expect that they will put out a press release and the media will come knocking. Sure, that happens sometimes (when it’s a good story, or we use our connections and skills to pitch media the right way). But often, media attention comes from being flexible. It comes from working a current event angle or building a relationships and reputations. And more often than not, it comes fast.

If clients aren’t prepared to make things happen, they might miss out on an once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. And nobody wants that.

Businesses who want to truly take advantage of media opportunities need to be ready. Below are a few steps you and your business can take to prepare now.

Nail your talking points

You know your elevator speech…right? CEOs and business leaders know what their company does, but you’d be surprised by how often they realize they can’t quite verbalize it. Before you take an interview with any media outlet, you need to be sure you can share your mission in a clear, concise way. Take some time to boil what you do down to just a few talking points, and be sure to share them with anyone who might handle media requests so your message is aligned.

Flag potential problems

Just like you want to know all the good things about your company, you’ll also want to do some introspection and identify any potential problems. Once in the public eye, anything and everything is fair game. If you can identify any tricky spots, you can be proactive in developing responses to any questions you might be asked about these things. This will help you avoid being caught off guard so you can mitigate any negative attention you might receive and position your company in the best light.

Identify a spokesperson

When time is of the essence, you need to know who’s stepping up. Identifying a spokesperson in advance allows that person to have time to complete the above steps. Be sure to choose a company leader who is comfortable in the role and who can confidently speak to the company’s mission. Your reputation rests in their hands.

Know your visual opportunities

It is important to not only tell a great story, but to show it. Words are a powerful and often essential aspect to telling your story, but there are many times a story will die without visuals. This is particularly important for TV media. Be prepared to offer visual opportunities to journalists. You should also start to build your media kit with high-resolution, professional photos of your company, including headshots for all executives, shots of important services or activities, and videos. You don’t want to be scrambling at the last minute to get these, and often, if you can offer these assets, you can land a story that might otherwise be passed over.

Complete media training

Completing the above steps will take you far, but when you find yourself in front of a camera with a microphone in your face for the first time, it’s natural to freeze up. Completing media training can help you know the tips and tricks of the trade so you can feel comfortable and properly prepare for each individual interview.

How we can help

At Wellons Communications, our Florida PR agency is made up of former journalists and PR pros. We’ve been on both sides of the camera and notepad, so we know how to help you prepare and put your story in the best light.

We also understand how media works and can craft the right pitch to gain media interest in the first place.

Need some help? Call 407-339-0879 or email will@wellonscommunications.com and see what we can do to help you prepare for any media interest and news coverage that may come your way.

The power of storytelling in businesses

Posted on April 3, 2020 by Wellons team

One of the most powerful tools in your marketing arsenal is also one of the simplest to develop and put to work for you.

It’s storytelling—the art of sharing your story and explaining how your business or service helps customers.

It works in just about every situation, and despite the fear you may have of writer’s block or your notion that “I can’t write,” it’s actually surprisingly easy.

That said, not everyone has the inclination or ability to write their story. Most often, the challenge for business owners is simply finding the time necessary to sit down in front of a screen and keyboard (or a sheet of paper for old-school writers) and compose their story.

That’s where folks like us—Wellons Communications—enter the scene.

Who cares about your story?

Actually, nobody. That is, until you give them a reason to care about your story.

At Wellons Communications, we craft narratives that connect your story to the needs of those who can use your services.

We start with your customer. What is it they need? Your customer comes first because your story is really all about them.

Once the needs of your customer are identified, your story ends with explaining how your service fulfills that need or solves their problem. Your service provides a means to their end.

So how does Wellons Communications construct stories?

Every story has three basic elements: a beginning, a middle, and an end.

The need of your customer is the beginning. It is essential that you are able to explain the problem your customer is facing and why it even matters in the first place.

We build the story by sharing how you recognize your customer’s need or want and how you went about addressing your customer’s challenge.

And, in the end, we provide a happy ending…confirming that your customer’s need was solved.

But, unlike a fairy tale, we also remind readers that some problems need to be addressed all the time (like competitive pressures, introduction of competitive services, changes in technology). In short, your service can solve customer’s problem or, better yet, can stand by the customer’s side to continue fulfilling their need.

Our storytelling formula borrows from the best

At Wellons Communications, we don’t claim to have invented storytelling. But we do pay attention and learn from those who share their stories in the most effective and compelling fashion.

One of the most powerful storytellers in today’s culture is Pixar, whose cinematic storytelling achievements have earned them considerable earnings, as well as worldwide recognition and respect.

Pixar’s storytelling technique follows a very simple formula. It goes:

Once upon a time there was [blank]. Every day, [blank]. One day [blank]. Because of that, [blank]. Until finally, [blank].

Here’s an example of how our storytelling works

Once upon a time, there was a small group of coffee sellers.

Every day, they sold their coffee to customers who really liked their coffee.

One day, they noticed their customers not only liked their coffee, they wanted more ways to buy their coffee.

Because of that, the coffee sellers decided to make their coffee more available by expanding their store locations and selling coffee by the pound to their customers.

Until finally, their sales grew to the point where the coffee sellers could become a profitable and regional coffee brand.

Let us tell your story—and help your sales and earnings grow

Everyone has a story to tell. Our job is to help our customers clearly identify the story they have to tell, craft that story on their behalf, and figure out the most effective means of sharing that story with current and potential customers.

Our storytelling technique is not quite as easy as the Pixar illustration cited above, but it borrows heavily from successful techniques in totally unrelated industries and puts them to work for our clients.

We can apply same storytelling techniques to your product or service.

Find out more about how we can make your story come to life for your customers. Call or email Will Wellons at 407-462-2718 or will@wellonscommunications.com and find out more about how your story can be told.

Facing coronavirus: How to craft business communications during crisis

Posted on March 16, 2020 by Wellons team

Like many of you, we at Wellons Communications have been closely following the developments related to COVID-19, or coronavirus, over the last week. We have been in constant contact with our clients through this time, helping them craft communications to employees and customers and take the right steps for them to share their messages.

Truly, none of us have faced such a widespread, global challenge before. Even so, as businesses craft essential communications during this time, general crisis communications cornerstones still hold true. If you’re a business that knows it needs to communicate but doesn’t know what, exactly, to say during this time, follow these guidelines that can be used in many crisis situations.

Be honest and direct with your customers and employees. Honesty is definitely the best policy when crisis hits. You have thought long and hard about what to do at your business to keep your customers safe, and you have put procedures into place. Telling your customers and employees about those plans in a clear way is the best thing you can do to reassure them when times get tough.

Show your support. It’s pretty simple—do the right thing. You care about your customers and your employees. Show them that you’re standing with them and doing everything you can to meet their needs and keep them safe.

Don’t be afraid to overcommunicate. At times like these, you really can’t overcommunicate. COVID-19, particularly, is a fluid situation. Where we are today with this crisis is worlds away from where we were a week ago, and a week from now might be even more different. Provide updates as things change with your business, and be timely about those communications.

Be consistent. When you have drafted a message that conveys the above points, don’t forget to carry it across all platforms. If you’ve drafted a letter or eblast, create a social media response plan that picks up the main points. If you have a social post, think about a suggested reply for employees answering phone calls or emails, as well. Make sure your messaging is aligned.

Be careful about making light of the situation. When we’ve reached a crisis level, the situation is serious. Look at your communications through a different lens, ensuring all your messaging conveys the gravity of the situation. You should also be wary about any messaging that comes off as trying to sell something. You don’t want to appear to be taking advantage of a serious situation.

Few of us were likely prepared for a situation like what we now face with COVID-19, but all businesses should have a crisis communications plan for situations like this. Whether you and your business are facing a natural disaster like a hurricane, an accident or tragedy or a global health crisis, the steps are generally the same—and you should have a plan.

If you need help getting started, don’t hesitate to reach out. We have extensive experience in crisis communications and messaging, and we’re here to help.