Do you enchant others...in your personal life and through your work? Have you ever considered the value of enchantment? Guy Kawasaki, author of the book "Enchantment: The Art of Changing Hearts, Minds, and Actions," says that

"When you enchant people, your goal is not to make money from them or to get them to do what you want, but to fill them with great delight."

Delight? How often do you come away from personal or business interactions feeling delighted? How often do you delight others?

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Credit: Giovanni Sades

Do you have a new product to introduce to the market? Yes? Do you have a product launch plan created? No? Well, you should. Ideally, as soon as the product is defined and goes into development, your marketing team should also go into development of a plan to roll out this new product to the market. At the very minimum, you should have three months to get ready to roll it out...six months or even twelve is better. Why twelve? You may want to plan your whole launch around a tradeshow that is several months out.

So what kind of things go into a product launch? Here are a few suggestions:

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I previously wrote about The Power of Story in Marketing Products and Services. What more powerful story could there be than the one that has gripped the world since 33 Chilean miners were trapped 2,000 feet beneath the ground in a collapsed gold and copper mine on August 5th? What elements of this story make it so powerful and how can you apply those to your own storytelling about the products and/or services you offer and about your company?

Chilean President Sebastián Piñera with miners at the hospital -	Credit: Jose Manuel De La Maza/Government of Chile, via Agence France-Presse — Getty Images

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There are lots of sites that allow you to publish a press release for little or no cost. So why not just send out press releases about anything? Any publicity is good publicity...right? The answer is not really.

Remember the story of the boy who cried "WOLF!" over and over and people finally started ignoring him because there was no wolf? When he actually DID see a wolf and cried "WOLF!" he was ignored because people thought he was just seeking attention without substance. It's like that if you publish too many press releases that have little to no substance. You dilute your opportunities to get coverage and pretty soon your press releases are ignored.

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With PowerPoint, anyone can create a presentation...right? WRONG. Some people just shouldn't. Before PowerPoint, presentations were only created by marketing people who worked with graphics professionals to create slides. These are people who know how to write and how to design and use color. Most people now who create presentations don't have a clue.

I wrote a post called Three Easy Rules on How to Craft a Presentation or Talk.

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I was in Toastmasters for 13 years and learned an easy-to-remember framework of three rules for creating a prepared or off-the-cuff talk. Here it is:

RULE #1 - TELL THEM WHAT YOU'RE GOING TO TELL THEM.
That's what I just did in the first sentence above. I told you what I'm going to tell you. It alerts the listener/reader to what is coming and sets the stage for the rest of the talk or presentation.

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When you're talking to prospects, customers, the press, colleagues, or any stakeholder, it is important to STAY ON MESSAGE. What does that mean? Don't let yourself get sidetracked; make sure you get your message across.

I learned this years ago when Texas Instruments sent me to media training in advance of my stint as Technology Spokesperson. TI had an impressive television studio in their Dallas headquarters and we were put through the paces. I learned some of the tricks that television and radio personalities use to get the answers they want. These include asking or saying the following:

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Imagine that you want to buy a new washing machine. You go to the store and a sales clerk blasts you with the details about a certain model. There are many other washing machines to consider with different price points, functionality, etc. so you're wondering WHY SHOULD I CARE about this particular washing machine? If the sales clerk really wants to make a sale, he/she should ask what is important to you in a washing machine and answer this question for you. If he/she prattles on about features you don't care about, he/she is wasting your time; you'll probably go elsewhere to make a purchase.

It's the same in writing. The basic thing you should keep in mind at all times is to answer the question your reader will ask about your writing: WHY SHOULD I CARE? Sure, your technology, service, or product may have great bells and whistles. Super. WHY SHOULD I CARE? Sure, your company has a great reputation. Fabulous. WHY SHOULD I CARE? Another version of this question is the familiar "What's In It For Me?" 

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Headshot for Being Technology Spokesperson at TI

Years ago, I was a Product Marketing Engineer at Texas Instruments (TI). In that role I wore many hats -- writer, event planner, conference speaker, technology spokesperson on radio and television, tradeshow manager, and more.

One of the biggest hats I wore was to present to customers about our artificial intelligence (AI) products -- the artificial intelligence expert system software for the PC called Personal Consultant and the LISP machine Explorer. I got quite good at assessing customers' needs before meeting with them and tailoring my presentation to them. So good, for example, that I was hand picked to present in front of 500 people at a conference in Bogota, Colombia and to the Young President's Organization there.

One thing I learned rather quickly was the power of story.

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I was approached today about possible work that I found rather interesting. I watched a video on the company's website to learn more. The first thing I noticed is that the narrator had no energy in his voice and his voice droned (definitely not good). The slide presentation also needs some serious editing.

One thing in particular jumped out at me...a title on several slides, which included the word "COMPAIGN." Ouch. Of course, that should be "CAMPAIGN." If I was hired by that company, I would suggest that they take down the video until they fixed that error and tidied up the whole presentation (and hired a new narrator).

I don't know who put that video together, but it shows what can happen when well-meaning people who are not marketing people or writers step into those roles. If your small business is low on funds and you (maybe an engineer or administrator) are wearing many hats, consider hiring a writer even for a few hours to review your website and marketing collateral.

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I want to thank you for visiting my website. Some people know me as Barbara and some by the name Diane; I'll answer to either one. I am a seasoned marketing, PR, and communications professional who understands business and technology. When you work with me, you get someone who can quickly grasp and communicate what you offer and rouse the interest of your prospects, customers, and other stakeholders.

I've been in business long enough to know that people want good service and someone they can trust to deliver a quality product. I'd like to be that trusted provider for you...as a marketing consultant, PR manager, or writer. How can I help you?