Do you dream of combining your passions for travel, languages, culture and public relations? Like me, you may be interested in public relations work for embassies.

But how do you make it happen?

Of course it’s best to have some connection to the country you are approaching if you want them to take you seriously. I wouldn’t say it’s necessary to be a native or have family ties, but if you  have visited or lived in the country, can speak and write the language and are enamored with the art, cuisine, etc. you are in a much better position to sell yourself and skills.

Matt Francis is Government Relations Manger for Tourism Australia, and he served as the Counsellor of Public Diplomacy for the Australian Embassy in Washington, DC from 2002-2006. He offered these tips for approaching embassies to carry out public relations work.

Be Flexible There may well be project-based opportunities rather than ongoing consultancy arrangements for public relations practitioners. Many embassies in Washington are small in terms of staff resources, and not all have a designated public affairs or communications staff. So they may require public relations services on an ad hoc basis for particular publications or campaigns. Their needs will differ from country to country so it’s probably worth being flexible in your approach and expectations, and tailoring what you have to offer for each different country.

Pitch the Ambassador’s Number Two. When approaching embassies, try pitching to the Deputy Chief of Mission or most senior official after the Ambassador.  Some may have designated press or information counselors. A good guide to consult is the Official Diplomatic Directory, which includes listings and contact information for all diplomatic missions in the United States. Also, look out for the Washington Diplomat newspaper which covers the diplomatic community in Washington. It’s a good way to keep up to date with the names and movements of key embassy personnel.

Stay Way Ahead of the News Curve in Both Countries. One thing I tried to do when I was working at the Embassy of Australia was to keep ahead of the news curve in terms of placing media about Australia.  Try and get a sense of the issues these countries are dealing with in Washington and ways in which you could perhaps offer your expertise to help them meet their objectives whether it’s through the publication of printed materials, newsletters, media releases etc. My experience has been that a lot of embassies are not very well plugged in to the communications and public affairs business in this town, so if you take a proactive approach you may well get results. Visits by government leaders, major international meetings and other events may provide a good platform to pitch a proposal (ie. country x’s national day / anniversary of relations with the US / major political, economic developments in that country etc.)

Research the Country’s Key Issues. It’s crucially important to do you research before approaching the embassy – show that you know something and understand their issues or circumstances. I was always amazed at the number of pitches I received from people who should have know better but failed to do their basic research on an issue involving Australia before they came to us and tried to persuade us to spend money with them.

I have a joke in my house. Were you networking or “notworking”? Basically, when you were out last night at that reception, were you gathering contact information with no plan of action for putting it into use later on? Having a plan of action for the day after a networking event is crucial. Once you gather a stack of business cards, or enter those names and numbers into your Blackberry, you must find a way to efficiently and systematically keep in contact with your new contact.

It could be as simple as connecting on social networking sites so that you are both ambiently aware of each others comings and goings; it could be as sophisticated as entering your new contacts into a database after which they would receive periodic updates from you or your company about new promotions, publications,etc.

I reached out to Brian Sarff, a marketing consultant out of Kansas City, Missouri who writes the Marketing Bull Blog. He shared a few tips about how to close the circle of networking and make networking work after the in-person part is over. Here are some of his insights:

Gaining permission from a prospective client is the best and only way to effectively build  relationships [after meeting in person].  There have been a number of books on this subject, but they all boil down to the same basic principles.

Get Permission:  Having permission from the prospective client is imperative.  So after the initial meeting, send them a kind note of thanks and mention that you have a blog, weekly email, monthly newsletter, whatever it is that you have, and subscribe them to the service.  The first step in the service is to ask them to opt-in to your email campaign.  Then you are free to begin building the relationship.

Tailor the Message:  Now what to send to your prospective client?  That’s a good question and one that is easily answered, but not all at once.  Through an online email service like Constant Contact, iContact or myEmma, you can build in surveys to go out after the 5th or 10th or whichever email makes sense in your process.  Just ask questions that can be easily answered and will provide you more insight into the mind of your prospective client.  Once you have this information about the prospective client, then you can mold your periodic email to address the topics that are of most interest.  Now, should you have a prospect that you really want as a client,  look for things that only they are interested in, “clip” them from the internet using Snagit, and send them a direct email with a note.  “Hey Tyrone, I ran across this on the internet and thought you would really enjoy reading it.  Sue.”

Be Consistent:  This is the one step that is usually violated. Consistency or Discipline.  If you are going to publish every Thursday or on the third Wednesday each month, then make sure you never miss a date. If you promise content on specific subjects- make sure you deliver. Consistent messages, emailed over a period of time, addressing items of interest to your clients, will pull them closer to you.  They may not be ready to purchase  the day after they meet you, but by staying in contact, and by calling or emailing on a regular basis (every 90 days or so)  then over time you will become their go to for information.  And one day, when the need arises, they will hopefully ask you for your product or service and not your competitor.

Bryan Sarff is an infopreneur, entrepreneur, ghost writer, and business owner.  He has worked as a consultant in the financial services industry for several years and coaches financial advisors how to consistently attract more clients.

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Autumn is my favorite season of the year. It’s not just the high drama of the fiery foliage, leaves crunching underfoot, the wind whistling through the trees, acorns thumping down on the pavement below (while I do love all of this). It’s also a time of great reflection and preparation for the coming winter months. Like any other mammal, I’m readying for the cold season–fretting here and there getting my cave ready for  a sort of professional hibernation.

When it comes to business, this certainly means generating leads to last me through the colder months.  I do some of my best prospecting in the fall. Because the season is ripe for events of all kinds, I find myself on the circuit more than normal, so it’s a great time to network. This greater movement coupled with the  biological need to prepare for a physical and seasonal slow-down, I’m motivated to get out there and get some business to last me at least until the next thaw.

This September, after a busy summer of working with one of my main clients on our big annual project, I got to work reaching out to prospects who I thought might be a good fit for my services and followed up on a number of leads. I received an overwhelming number of positive responses. One response that stood out to me most was from a national cultural organization that I was *dying* to work with. The contact told me that my timing was “excellent” because the organization is gearing up for it’s ten year anniversary next fall. So they will definitely start the process of working with a public relations consultancy much like mine very very soon.

I think fall is a busy time for most of us because of the back to school season, gala season, etc. And the holiday season is busy in its own way. But the very end of the year and the very beginning of the new year can be rough for some PR pros, especially independents, who are between contracts. My advice? Look forward, towards “the thaw”.

Think Spring. For your existing clients, already start thinking and talking about great campaigns for spring. Especially if your contract is up at the end of the calendar year, let your current clients know that you see yourself on their team past the winter months.  Don’t give away all of your great spring ideas, of course, but let them know that you enjoy working with them and look forward to continuing the relationship and are hoping to renew a contract at the beginning of the year.

Prospect 2-3 Years Out. To do this, you can study calendars and conference schedules. If you’re looking to build a relationship with a new, dream client, keep your eyes peeled for large conferences that may be coming to your city. You may be able to help an organization facilitate a nice  reception for local leaders on the ground. Large conferences are generally booked 1-2 years in advance, sometimes more, so you have time to develop your pitch. If a large event isn’t coming to your city until 2011 or 2012 even, you have time to get your ideas together, research the proper contacts and even do some targeted in-person networking before you pull the trigger. Obviously, if you want to land a good client for 2010, you need to have started yesterday. But there is still time. There are a lot of great conferences happening towards the end of the year. Find out when and where they are and whether or not you can help out on them.

Keep an Ear to the Business Ground. An organization’s launch, anniversary, etc. is obviously a great opportunity to introduce yourself to a public relations prospect; many times the organization or business that’s having the anniversary isn’t in planning mode, so it’s up to the enterprising  to capitalize on insider knowledge. So keep your ear to the business streets by knowing what business projects are in the pipeline of your industry. I read the Washington Business Journal’s business leads section for general ideas about what’s going on behind the storefronts-who’s applying for business licenses and liquor licenses, who just registered a business, etc. As long as it’s not another PR firm, there’s a chance they could need PR, right? So just ask yourself the questions that pertain to the kind of PR that you do. What restaurants will be opening in a few months? What art galleries will be hosting the work of a prominent artist in the spring? What organization will be releasing an important study and will need help putting together a press conference? Now is the time to begin the big PR push.

Stay Way Ahead of the Prospect. Whatever your field of interest, always be a few months ahead of the potential client so that you can approach them before they even realize that they need you. When they do realize they need you, they may value you even more for your timing and instincts.

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Eleventh Hour Requests: Turn it down or turn it around?

Ah the constant considerations and mental multi-tasking that make up the ever-evolving job description of the public relations professional. We’re the unofficial keeper of the company brand. The assessor of image and public sentiment. But we also keep up with the daily duties that must be made systematic; the tasks that without our thinking must become second nature, commonplace, routine.

Long-range and short range pitching and planning.  Searching for angles, securing opportunities for spokespersons, leveraging excitement around campaigns/seasons/holidays. The list goes on. Yet all of these tasks fit neatly into a package that clients and the public will eventually see as a finished, polished product.

But how do we get there? And how do we handle those eleventh hour requests from would-be clients who think it’s so easy to get there?

How many times have you been approached by an amazing potential client with an amazing story or an amazing product for which you could create an amazing pitch except this would-be client gave you absolutely no time to do your job? As in, one week to pull off a campaign? Or better yet two days? [Yes, this has happened to me.]

While this may fly at a large agency that has minions working around the clock, you may be dealing with 2-3 people max when you are working with a smaller firm. As PRos, we have to ask for, no, we have to demand time. And this may mean explaining that hey, when you work with a smaller firm you’re not dealing with layers of bureaucracy, or dozens of junior staff members.  You’re dealing with a greater attention to detail, a higher level of customer service, and of course a lower overhead.

Don’t be ashamed to turn down a project because there isn’t enough time to turn it around. Believe it or not, just because you are a public relations pro, doesn’t make you a magician. As with anything else, it takes time to do a thorough job and produce professional results. Clients expect nothing less than that from you. Demand that same level of professionalism from your clients.

When you are running your own consultancy, it’s easy to get caught up in how to get clients, keep clients, and how to get more out of clients. The client chase as I like to call it, is probably the number one consumer of a consultant’s time, outside of doing actual consulting work. We’re so obsessed with getting and growing that we sometimes fail to take the time to think long and hard about the people who we have supporting us.

Because at one point or another, you will come to depend on the services of a freelancer or subcontractor to help you with your client work. While you’ve heard me talk about the kind of clients to avoid, there also quite a few subcontractors to avoid, too.  Here are a few subcontractors to steer clear of:

The Diva Don’t let the feminine title fool you: a diva can be male or female. It’s the attitude and behavior of this dangerous contractor that will clue you in. Divas are generally very inexperienced and lack business acumen; they don’t understand the ins and outs of running a business so their actions and attitudes indicate as much.

The diva wants to do all of the glamorous things-attend red carpet events, get photographed, hook her friends up with VIP tickets, mix and mingle with the client or worse yet, the stars. But the diva does not want to do the simple tasks that keep the firm afloat. The diva does not want to be told what to do; the diva wants to tell you what she’s going to do.

There are service-oriented divas. The copywriter who can’t stand to be edited.The graphic designer who refuses to grant client requests because said requests will diminish “the integrity” of his “artistic work”.  Whatever the case may be, all divas have similar core characteristics: they think that somehow they are above instruction or menial tasks. They think you’re an idiot, and that they should already be running the show.

The Ditz Don’t we all know a ditz? This lovable character somehow makes it past even the most stringent screening processes and finds him or herself at work in the best firms. You know the ditz: you have to repeat everything to him 3 times. You spend so much time explaining a task that you wonder to yourself, would it have been faster to have just done it yourself. Continue Reading

So…a few people have mentioned to me that they would be freelancer by now if they only knew how to make it happen. I’m here to tell you, there’s no magic formula: but talent and persistence will certainly get you far.

I was inspired to post this by one particular PR pro who I know is going to light the Midwest ablaze as soon as she figures out how awesome she is. If you’re looking for help getting started with a new business idea, or as a freelance copywriter or marketing/public relations professional, you may benefit from my experience. It’s certainly not a road map for everyone, but for those looking for a little direction, it may be a start.