News
MIKE'S MAGIC LETTER
NETS A MILLION
PR expert Mike Truscott is a "man of letters" - or rather, an evolving letter. It has been the single most important factor in his 20 years-plus in the business, netting income approaching a million pounds.
As with all PR writers, Mike has used a wide variety of means to win work - but the lion's share can be traced back to that sales letter. There have been six versions, with each one being mailed out to around 200 small businesses in his native Cornwall.
His most recent version, building on all he had learnt from previous mail shots, was the most successful of all with a dozen new clients - way above the norm in such an exercise.
Says Mike: "When you remember that every new client, once 'hooked,' typically keeps coming back to you with further commissions - and recommends you to several other businesses, who in turn repeat the whole process - you can see how this letter truly has worked for me!"
Mike, founder managing director of Westcountry PR Services Ltd, reflects: "For my most recent sales letter, I tailored it to what amounted to the 'average' prospective client, based on my extensive knowledge of all my existing clients, their requirements and their PR concerns and perceptions."
This winning letter is reproduced in full in Mike's New Dimension PR Service (NDPRS) training and support programme for aspiring PR writers.
As part of their registration with the service, subscribers are assigned full rights to use the letter in its entirety or adapt it as desired - all in their own name, for their own promotional purposes.
NDPRS (www.newpr.co.uk) features a home study course comprehensively covering all aspects of the lucrative "hidden" market of PR - press releases and related writing services - for small businesses.
After completing the course, subscribers enjoy a further year's professional back-up from Mike - with a variety of ongoing insider tips and support services, including that letter!
MY LUCKY BREAKTHROUGH -
THANKS TO THE
NEW DIMENSION PR SERVICE
By Jonathan Dell
"You make your own luck," a mentor kindly opined, three decades ago, at the start of my career. My decision to sign up for Mike Truscott's New Dimension PR Service (NDPRS) was certainly a lucky move.
You might regard PR - writing about businesses for newspapers and magazines - as an unlikely role for a retired restaurateur and I wouldn't necessarily have disagreed.
I wouldn't have dreamed of attempting such a role before I joined NDPRS, Mike's formidable training and support programme. Although my friends say I tend to exaggerate, formidable is the appropriate adjective here.
Within weeks of my launch, I was securing clients and writing press releases that were "health-checked" by Mike and subsequently published to good effect in the local press - and for which I was collectively invoicing over £1,000.
Mike's course was comprehensive, well organised and thoughtfully structured. Beforehand, my writing skills were limited to creating credible but, on reflection, routine business letters, memos and reports.
It was very exhilarating to complete the assignments and receive a comprehensive review each time. The projects were always instructive - opening up a new way of thinking about the use and power of the written word. I developed a new perspective on newspapers, the media and the world of journalism.
Mike's approach to training is outstanding, accounting for one's strength and weaknesses and offering additional training exercises if required. Despite the demands of his own substantial PR business - still very much "walking his talk" - he never missed a beat in helping me complete the course.
Following my successful completion of the course and consequent upgrade to Mike's associate, I have enjoyed a continuous flow of suggestions from him - including regular newsletters and case studies - a host of new ideas, advice on marketing, and how best to deal with challenges.
And the proof of the pudding? Within a short period, I had issued seven press releases, and I am now targeting five a week, each earning between £200 and £300 basic. Was I lucky? Well, I think you know the answer.