|
|
Getting free web-publicity for your organization
Lots of people read CWIRE each day. Wouldn't it be great if all of them dropped-by your website, too?
There is a lot you can do right now to attract CWIRE readers to any particular internet webpage at no cost whatsoever (Yes, even you!). In fact, most of them do not require access to the internet! Whether you are a volunteer for a local charity, a small business owner, or corporate executive, the following strategies will work very well for you, and they will benefit CWIRE at the same time.
The following is a brief list of ways to "grab hits" from CWIRE. All of these can be done quickly and without a cash investment (with a little coaching, perhaps):
Write Articles
You can put your ideas onto CWIRE in the form of a letter or article and
sign your name to it (and include as many external hyperlinks as you like).
Post Clippings
You submit an article to CWIRE that came from another source (provided
that the author/publisher has given you permission to republish it). This
might be faster/easier than writing your own article. You can make a strong
argument with very little typing just by posting a sentence or two and
then linking to an article that already exists at your site (or elsewhere).
If appropriate, you can grab the entire text of an article and send it
to CWIRE to be posted in your name. (eg. This report has been brought
to you by [insert your name/organization here]).
Start a New Section of CWIRE
If you are very ambitious, and want to post many articles on a particular topic, you might want to "sponsor" an entirely new section of your own. Becoming a "Contributing Editor" could involve lots of additional work on your part, but not always. We will be happy to discuss the pros and cons with you personally. Having your own section just might deliver the best results for your investment of time and effort.
Make Your Own "Banners" and "Buttons"
You can make CWIRE Readers "stop in their tracks"
with a good ad banner. It doesn't take a lot of artistic skill to come
up with an attractive ad banner (or button). All it takes is the right
software and a bit of practice. Remember: even the "best-looking"
ads don't always do as well as expected. You just have to make a good,
consistent effort -- and then continue trying to improve on it. Why not
have a high school intern whip-up several banners for you and see
which ones work best? Don't let the lack of dollars prevent your nonprofit
organization from taking full advantage of CWIRE. We've already bankrolled
CWIRE -- now all we need is community participation!
Use "Found
Art" to Promote Your Organization
It's easy to find unique artwork and images
to promote your business. Your business card, a photo of yourself or your
office, a photo of your handiwork, etc. With their permission, you can
use photos of your employees, customers, or volunteers. Be careful: usually
you cannot use a "published" (professional) photo without the
permission of the photographer and/or publisher. 
You
can decorate entire sections of CWIRE with your artwork/graphics and create
multiple links to your website. Here's an example:
can you guess where this image came from?
Post "Favorite Quotes" There are, of course, many other ways to use CWIRE which involve raising/spending
money. Look for more articles in the near future. Please send
us other suggestions, and start using CWIRE to your advantage today!
CWIRE has a section
dedicated to favorite quotations which you can use for free advertising/promotion
(http://cwire.com/pub/FYI/quotes/).
You can put your *own* words onto CWIRE (i.e. a joke, quote yourself,
quote someone in a newspaper article, quote someone that validates your
ideas or endorses your candidacy, or quote a famous person (for the sake
of your business or charity fundraiser). With every quote you post on
CWIRE, you can create several hyperlinks:
CWIRE archives all the quotes into one document (like a guestbook).
This makes an interesting and useful resource from which the local community
may draw. So send us a quote!
Please report errors, omissions, or technical
problems to
the CWIRE Community Editor
URL: http://cwire.com/pub/PR/free.publicity.asp
Viewed: 5/17/2008 1:05:40 PM
Last Modified: May 17, 2006 8:09 AM
Source: Robert Marston, CWIRE Editor (10/05)
URLID: /pub/PR/free.publicity.asp
CWIRE supports local charities by 1) helping them to create and promote
independent websites, 2) promoting their events, 3) syndicating their newsletters and
press releases, and 4) recruiting volunteers and donors in the nearby Los Angeles area.
Please support CWIRE by advertising with us (or supporting those who do), by referring
new merchants, by sending us information to post, and by telling others about CWIRE.
HTML and scripts by Robert Marston Copyright © 2007 Community Wire Service unless
otherwise noted. All rights reserved.
