So what’s it like to be a business editor at a newspaper these days, with slimmer budgets but more news to cover than ever?

The Publicity Club of New England held a panel discussion of regional business editors to hear their likes and gripes – and to find out what works and what doesn’t when trying to secure your clients in these highly sought after publications.

The panel was moderated by Tina Cassidy, VP of Soloman McCown & Company, and consisted of the Boston Business Journal’s Eric Convey, The Boston Globe’s Shirley Leung and the Boston Herald’s Frank Quaratiello. The competition among these publications was clear but despite this, or perhaps because of it, the dynamic among them was great – engaging, entertaining and most importantly, helpful to us PR folks.

Here are some highlights:

* Wait for the no *

According to Leung, even if a reporter likes your story it’s almost guaranteed not to be published if they realized you’ve pitched multiple people.

If you don’t hear back from someone in one department, wait for them to say “no” before pitching another department within the same publication. If you must move on to another reporter before you get the “no”, be transparent with the next person you pitch – letting them know you reached out to someone already.

* Phone calls and beyond *

We were all dying to know about follow up calls, and basically what we learned is that every reporter is different. Here’s how it breaks down with these three –

Globe: Leung likes follow up calls, especially after timely pitches

Herald: Quaratiello won’t let you off the phone if he likes your story (but beware if he asks you to send him an email).

BBJ: Convey says not to even bother with phone calls (understandably so, according to Convey he wouldn’t be able to get any work done if he took every call)

* Twitter and Social Media *

Globe: Leung’s staff is adapting to twitter more and more and they have a specific person to keep up their Facebook page with events, postings stories, contests etc.

Leung realizes that social media drives traffic and amazingly, is about #4 out of the top ten facets that do so.

Herald: Quaratiello doesn’t really use Twitter and doubts much of his staff does either. Although, they will check Facebook to get photos to support any crimes/incidents.

BBJ: Twitter is very important to them and an important factor in driving traffic to their site/specific stories. Some of you might recognize one of their biggest cheerleaders, @lvanderpool

One thing they all seem to hate is mass pitching! When it comes to quality vs. quantity, quality always wins.

What are some pitching faux pas you’ve come across (or dare I say tried yourself)?

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Technorati Tags: editors, PubClub NE, public relations, Social Media

I was recently at the Performance Racing Industry’s 22nd Annual Show in Orlando with Evans Cooling (client). At the show, all manners of technological advances were showcased as they related to the racing industry.

At the show, Evans showcased their waterless engine coolant. This is a unique engine coolant that overcomes the drawbacks of water-based coolant. Essentially, with Evans product, a vehicle can get better performance, better gas mileage, reduced maintenance, a lifetime coolant that never needs to be replaced providing a reduced the impact on the environment.

While Evans solutions have an application in high performance (race cars, motorcycles, ATVs, etc.) engines, it is also a viable option for virtually any internal combustion engine that has a radiator.

The benefit of Evans that was most interesting to the editors we talked to at the show – with all the talk on climate, the environment and being “green” – was the fact the Evans coolant is currently in testing to be declared non-toxic. With 88% of regular coolant ending up in landfills, this is a tremendous benefit.

Evans is available worldwide, but few folks know about them. Take a minute to visit their website and check out their coolant…www.evanscooling.com. I think you’ll find it interesting.

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Technorati Tags: Events, Marketing, PR, technology, Topaz Partners

From February 21st through the 25th, at the Palm Springs Convention Center in Palm Springs, Calif., the Applied Power Electronics Conference and Exposition – APEC 2010 – will focus on the practical and applied aspects of the power electronics business. Not just a designer’s conference, APEC has something of interest for anyone involved in power electronics.

Not only is this an ideal venue for exhibitors to learn the latest information in the power electronics business, it is also a great opportunity for companies to leverage their tradeshow investment by building a package of communications activities to support being at the show.

Some ideas to leverage your investment at APEC 2010:

- Use your company blog to highlight your tradeshow message. This can help drive traffic to your booth, and the web.

- Leverage other social media channels, like Twitter or your company Facebook page, to expand your reach.

- Have your agency or internal PR team arrange editorial and analyst meetings at the show. This expands your reach after the show, extending the benefits from your investment.

- If budget permits, consider taking advantage of show offered sponsorships, especially pre-show mailings to bring people into the booth.

With only a few months left before the show, now is the time to take the steps to leverage your investment and maximize your ROI from APEC 2010.

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Technorati Tags: Communications, Events, Marketing, PR, Tech