I’m a little torn by this question. On the one hand, I do appreciate the benefits that come from meeting clients face to face. It can certainly help to build an initial bond more quickly.
On the other hand, I just finished working on a book manuscript with a client in Denmark and all of our “meetings” occurred via Skype. I feel I have a very strong relationship with this client and the fact is that one of the reasons he gave me for wanting to start to work immediately on another book is that he enjoys working with me. He is not the first remotely located client I’ve worked with on lengthy projects. I’ve had three or four others and have felt a real connection with each of them despite never laying eyes on them.
To reduce my carbon footprint, I have made a real effort over the past two years to limit the number of face-to-face meetings to a minimum. The only downside I’ve felt is that as someone who works at home, it can be isolating.
Yes, I agree that the company news you mention is definitely newsworthy. Press releases would be the way to go. I’ll be happy to send you some examples. (I’ll do that through your regular e-mail.) For most media these days, you can get e-mail contact info from the publications’ Web sites. Until you’ve established a relationship with a reporter or editor, it’s best to cut and paste the press release into an e-mail rather than sending an attachment that they might hesitate to open. If you check either the About section or the Contact section, you can usually find what you need. One big piece of info…you’ll need to follow up via phone to make sure your press release rises to the top of the pile of dozens (or even hundreds) that the average editor/reporter receives each day.
Excellent advice! I phoned a client the other day after we had been e-mailing endlessly about a potential big new project. By the end of the call, I knew all about the project (actually there are THREE potential projects!) and we agreed that I would send him a budget. So I made more progress with one phone call than I had with a month’s worth of sporadic e-mails. Sometimes the old fashioned way really is better.
Peter,
My workshop colleagues are planning to do their own free e-books with their 10 tips so I will wait until those are ready before posting here.
And you’re absolutely right. There are plenty of poor Web sites done by professionals. We had an example of that at the workshop too! :-/
Jeanne
Commented on the post Is an amateur Web site worse than no Web site at all? on the blog http://greenspringfield.com.I’m a little torn by this question. On the one hand, I do appreciate the benefits that come from meeting clients face to face. It can certainly help to build an initial bond more quickly.
On the other hand, I just finished working on a book manuscript with a client in Denmark and all of our “meetings” occurred via Skype. I feel I have a very strong relationship with this client and the fact is that one of the reasons he gave me for wanting to start to work immediately on another book is that he enjoys working with me. He is not the first remotely located client I’ve worked with on lengthy projects. I’ve had three or four others and have felt a real connection with each of them despite never laying eyes on them.
To reduce my carbon footprint, I have made a real effort over the past two years to limit the number of face-to-face meetings to a minimum. The only downside I’ve felt is that as someone who works at home, it can be isolating.
Commented on the post Face to Face Meetings on the blog http://greenspringfield.com.Hi, Barbara,
Yes, I agree that the company news you mention is definitely newsworthy. Press releases would be the way to go. I’ll be happy to send you some examples. (I’ll do that through your regular e-mail.) For most media these days, you can get e-mail contact info from the publications’ Web sites. Until you’ve established a relationship with a reporter or editor, it’s best to cut and paste the press release into an e-mail rather than sending an attachment that they might hesitate to open. If you check either the About section or the Contact section, you can usually find what you need. One big piece of info…you’ll need to follow up via phone to make sure your press release rises to the top of the pile of dozens (or even hundreds) that the average editor/reporter receives each day.
Best,
Jeanne Yocum
Commented on the post Publicity: What Makes News on the blog http://greenspringfield.com.Excellent advice! I phoned a client the other day after we had been e-mailing endlessly about a potential big new project. By the end of the call, I knew all about the project (actually there are THREE potential projects!) and we agreed that I would send him a budget. So I made more progress with one phone call than I had with a month’s worth of sporadic e-mails. Sometimes the old fashioned way really is better.
Commented on the post The Greenest Appliance in Your Office on the blog http://greenspringfield.com.