Mobile technology and social media have revolutionized the way businesses market themselves today. At the same time, fundamentals such as creating brand identity and building customer loyalty have never been more important, especially for independent practitioners and their clients.

Join us for a lively presentation with marketing expert Bob London, owner of London, Ink, as we discuss both tried and true methods and new ways of promoting yourself and your clients. We’ll share tips on branding and business development as well as how marketing can be integrated into your clients’ public relations and social media strategy.

June 6, 2013
11:30am to 1:30pm

Cost:
$28 IPRA and PRSA Members in advance
$38 Non-members
$5 additional at the door
Online registration closes at noon on Monday, June 3.  No refunds after June 3.
 
 
Location:
Embassy Suites
8517 Leesburg Pike
Vienna, VA  22182

Register here
 

At this session, you will learn:
The importance of creating a marketing plan for your business and why the fundamentals of marketing still matter;
How to determine which channels are right for you and how much time to spend on each;
How to integrate marketing into the PR plans you develop for your clients;

How to evaluate various social media and whether they make sense for your business or clients;

How to create top-of-mind awareness as an independent practitioner.

Please bring one marketing/business development idea to share with your table during lunch.

About our speaker:
Bob London is the president of London, Ink, a Washington, D.C. marketing firm he founded in 1995. A veteran marketing and communications expert, Bob has a proven track record of helping companies solve business challenges through effective marketing and communications strategies—from product and corporate marketing to corporate communications.

Bob has worked with small, medium and large enterprises in both the consumer and business-to-business markets. As a result, he has come to be known as a “virtual vice president of marketing” for his ability to step in and provide interim leadership, direction and execution for companies with critical marketing and communications needs.

Bob’s clients have included MCI Telecommunications, Digex, VeriSign and ServerVault.

Bob also blogs on marketing, contributes to the  Washington Business Journal and is the creator of the popular Drivetime Marketing video.

 April 4, 2013 - 11:30am to 1:30pm

Join Us for…
Getting Ink:  Secrets to Pitching a Great (Traditional or Digital Media) Story 

Featuring:  Gwen Flanders, USA Today and Arin Greenwood, Huffington Post

In the evolving media world with shrinking newsrooms and expanding digital outlets, it can be tricky to navigate getting good and relevant press for your clients.  During the "Getting Ink: Secrets to Pitching a Great (Traditional or Digital Media) Story" session, you'll get inside advice from veteran editors representing two national outlets about how to work with their organizations to get noticed.  Also both of the panelists focus on the DC region, providing perspective on how to get press in arguably one of the nation's toughest media markets.

After the speaker presentation, we will open up the program for some sharing and learning among ourselves. Come prepared with your questions and to share your experiences and tips.
 

About the Speakers

Gwen Flanders is a breaking news editor at USA TODAY, where she has worked since the newspaper was launched in 1982. She is a former advertising copywriter, DJ and Kelly Girl.

Arin Greenwood is Associate Editor for HuffPost DC, covering weird and interesting things going on in and around the DC area. She's a former lawyer whose first novel, Tropical Depression, was put out by indie publisher Back Porch Books in 2011. Arin's second novel, a young adult thriller, is scheduled to be published by Soho Teen in late 2013.

At the March 7 IPRA lunch, learn about free web and mobile applications which you can use to save time, engage clients, and improve and market your business.

March 7, 2013
11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m.

Embassy Suites
8517 Leesburg Pike
Vienna, VA  22182

Cost: $28 IPRA and PRSA Members/$38 Non-members

Online registration closes at noon on March 5.  No refunds or cancellations after that date. Prices at the door are $5 more.

Register here

Do you find yourself spending way too much time mastering office technology? Wish there were simpler, less expensive ways to make your solo business or small office more efficient?

Actually, many web and mobile applications are available for free that you can put to use immediately in your firm—not only to improve your business but to better market yourself, engage your clients and schedule your time.

Come learn about the latest and greatest of these new e-tools from Marcus O’Malley, an expert on web and digital technology. Marcus will come armed with examples of free and low-cost applications designed to make the independent PR consultant’s life easier and more productive.

At this session, you will learn how to:

• Take advantage of all that Google has to offer, including gmail aliasing, tagging, Calendar, Docs, Voice, Boomerang and Hangout;
• Create free e-newsletters using MailChimp;
• Market events through Eventbrite;
• Build forms and surveys using JotForm and SurveyMonkey;
• Easily create charts and diagrams;
• Set up free conference calls; and
• Access management tools, including time tracking and invoicing.

After the speaker presentation, we will open up the program for some sharing and learning among ourselves. Come prepared with your questions, and share your experiences and tips for simplifying and streamlining the business side of your practice.

About our speaker

Marcus O’Malley is accounts manager for Immerge Technologies, a custom web and print services firm he cofounded in 2004. O’Malley previously served as Immerge Technologies’ first COO. He also has successfully guided two other technology firms, serving as CEO of Ephesian Solutions, a mobile application developer; and as managing partner at ConnekMedia, a company specializing in media solutions for small businesses, including websites, social media, motion graphics and video production.

Harnessing her 15+ years of award-winning work with world-leading corporations, Angelique Rewers, ABC, APR, teaches solo business owners how to stop chasing cash-strapped clients and instead land lucrative corporate contracts.  Angelique will provide attendees “insider” secrets and strategies on how to successfully tap into this $2 trillion market.

IPRA's Chair, Shawn Flaherty of Creative Strategies, had this article published on the PRSA-NCC blog:

As holiday shopping shifts into full gear, many companies’ PR departments are making their 2013 wish lists, filled with ideas, projects, campaigns, goals, and deliverables.

When the list is complete, they may discover that their current workshop of elves isn’t shoppingbagslarge enough to complete the tasks. If your organization is one of these, then the questions you need to ask are: 

Kick off the New Year by learning how to expand your online profile during our January  “Lunch and Learn”  program.  The program will walk you through a variety of best practices to establish and protect your brand online. Join us on Thursday, January 10th in Vienna!

The Independent Public Relations Alliance (IPRA) brought together its members, prospective members and partners to network and celebrate the holiday season at its annual holiday luncheon.

Diverse Cultural Publications Gain Audience, Clout

Want a hot tip? Consider sharing your news items with publications that focus on the D.C. Metro area's Latin and Asian-Pacific communities.

Editors representing those diverse audiences offered insiders' views on how to get coverage in their publications during IPRA's November luncheon. They also spoke of the growing impact of media outlets that reach diverse cultural communities.