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Promoting Your Service Through News

15.00 – 15.30

Submitting news items to online

sources, newsletters, blogs, etc

Roddy MacLeod, EEVL Manager, Heriot Watt University Library

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Food for thought

“The catchphrase ‘If you build it, they will come’ is flannel” Stephen Arnold, Information World Review, May 2002

Press releases and news items are vital for promoting your services.

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Where do editors of online news services get content

?

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Where do editors of online news services get content

• TV• Newspapers• Other print sources - magazines, etc• Lurking on email lists• Press release and Wire services• Other online sources - newsletters, blogs,

etc • YOU !!!

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Internet Resources Newsletter

• Free monthly online (web & email) newsletter

• Email version - Over 30,000 subscribers

• Web version - 4,000 + hits each issue

• UK based.

• Read by academics, librarians, information intermediaries, other editors, etc

• Contains new web sites/services, press releases and news items, etc

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Some Other Online Publications

• EContentMag• SearchEngineWatch• Information Age• Pandia Search World• Information World Review• LII Week• Managing Information

Newsletter• Tales From the Terminal

Room

• NSF Library Newsletter

• SearchDay Newsletter

• ShelfLife

• UKeiG eLucidate

• Computers in Libraries

• Ex Libris

• Neat New Stuff

• ResearchBuzz

• Serials eNews from UKSG

• etc. etc. etc.

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1st rule of news dissemination

If you want your boomerang to come back…

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1st rule of news dissemination

If you want your boomerang to come back…

Then first, you’ve gorra throw it!

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Centre of the universe?

ME!

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Centre of the universe?

ME

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2nd rule of news dissemination

The more people you send your press release/news item to…the more places it’s likely to be published!

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Wire Services

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Other places

• FreePint Bar

• Print publications

• Paul Davey at JISC

• Bloggers

• etc

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Bloggers as disseminators

• Gary Price - ResourceShelf

• Peter Scott’s Library Blog

• Happenings and Events• Phil Bradley’s Blog• The Library SciTech

Library Question• On Christina’s Radar

• Confessions of a Science Librarian

• Librarians’ Index to the Internet

• Library Stuff• LISNews.com• SiteLines• Many, many more

Subject-based blogs.

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Sources on Blogs

• Laurel A. Clyde, “Weblogs and libraries” Chandos, 2004• Malcolm Moffat “RSS: A primer for publishers and content

providers” EEVL• Roddy MacLeod “RSS less hype, more action” FreePint, 161• Technorati: www.technorati.com or Waypath:

www.waypath.com - find blogs. • Kinja: kinja.com can be used to locate blogs that are similar

to blogs that are already being monitored.• Big List of Blog Search Engines - Ari Papara• Blogorama section of Internet Resources Newsletter.• Bloglines to monitor blogs

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• Bloglines www.bloglines.com - Web-based RSS aggregation service– My Bloglines - subscribe to & read feeds.– Search Bloglines for blogs posting on a

subject.– Save searches under your own service name

to see who’s posting about you.– View public subscribers to blogs, and see

how many subscribe, find similar blogs, etc

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Subject: PlotLost release eGluncher ver 2.1

To Whom it may concern,

Attached please find a pdf of PlotLost’s latest press release.

Please do not reply to this automated email.

Meaningless subject line

Impersonal - spam?

Must open another file, and hard to cut & paste

No contact

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Subject: Press release: New eGluncher reduces spam

Dear Sir,

The new version of eGluncher, the spam reduction software, was today released by PlotLost, the ebusiness arm of the Department of Trade & Industry.

Spam is becoming the scourge of the Internet […blah, blah, blah…]

Visit the website at: www.plotlost.gov/eGluncher.

For more details, contact: Candy Cramer cc@eg.com

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Subject: Press release: New eGluncher reduces spam

Dear Roddy,

Below please find a press release about the new version of eGluncher, free spam reduction software released on 10th March by PlotLost, the ebusiness arm of the Department of Trade & Industry. The website is at: www.plotlost.gov/eGluncher. If you need more information, please contact me.

Candy Cramer.

...

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Subject: Item for Internet Resources Newsletter

Dear Roddy,

Keep up the good work with IRN. I read it every month. Here’s an item I hope you can include in the next issue.

eGluncher spam reduction software

http://www.plotlost.gov/eGluncher

eGluncher reduces the amount of spam you receive. It’s free from PlotLost, the ebusiness arm of the Department of Trade & Industry.

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Subject: Item for Internet Resources Newsletter

Dear Roddy,

How are you? It was great to meet you at UKSG last month. As we discussed, PlotLost would be delighted if you can join them in their hospitality suite for the first Test Match at The Oval next month. The tickets are in the post. In the meantime, how about including the following in the next issue of your wonderful Internet Resources Newsletter?

Best wishes, and see you next month!

Candy.