A Delightful Dilemma: Scrambling To Keep Pace With Fast-Growing J.C. Restoration

It's a blast working with a company that is clearly on the grow, as is the case with one of Inside Edge PR's newer clients, J.C. Restoration. Among other developments, the company recently hosted Continuing Education courses at its 102,000-square-foot facility in Rolling Meadows.

And company president Warner Cruz is developing this uncanny habit of winning awards left and right. In May, he was named Small Business Person of the Year in Illinois, leading to coverage in publications such as Hoy (click on the image below).

The latest is the Entrepreneur of the Year Award from the Chicago Latino Network.

The flurry of positivity creates a wonderful dilemma, as one of my biggest challenges is prioritizing the company's growing list of accomplishments and outreaches. For instance, when shooting and posting video, do we want to put it first on J.C. Restoration's Facebook Fan Page or do we upload it to the J.C. Restoration YouTube channel?

The answer, of course, is to post the good news in as many spots as possible.

Like Hansel & Gretel, publicists need to keep alert to any way we can drop our marketing bread crumbs for folks to find along their day-to-day paths.

And you may not need to know much about the company know, but if your building is damaged by floor, fire or some other calamity, you're going to want to know more how to reach J.C. Restoration,

Finding Creative Win-Wins To Generate Traffic, Inspire Community on Your Facebook Fan Page

Developing and growing Facebook Fan pages is a contact sport.

If you run a business or organization, have you driven a stake in the Facebook ground yet? And if so, what are you doing to give your fan base a reason to keep coming back--and to suggest your page to those in their spheres of influence?

Develop creative ways to spur on interaction with your peeps--and to explore ways to create win-wins with fellow (non-competing) businesses.

Here's one effort that Inside Edge PR has under way, the Halloween Decoration Declaration contest at Better Homes & Gardens Real Estate Gloor Realty's Facebook Fan page
The contest will reward three people, including one with a $100 gift certificate at Maya Del Sol, a popular Oak Park restaurant. In addition, the goal is to grow BHG/Gloor Realty's presence on Facebook and throughout the community.

Psst...you can visit (and become a Fan of) the Inside Edge PR Fan page here.

Humor + Humanity in Communication Paves The Way to a Great First Impression

I really am trying to write shorter blog posts--I preach it all the time and you are more likely to read this entire ditty if I stopped right after this sentence.

But I promise this one is worth the extra effort you'll require to dig in here. In fact, extra effort--just a modest amount, mind you--is at the heart of this missive.

Think about your day-to-day journey. You know, the one that can often be filled with so much drudgery and sameness? Honestly, don't you crave a little humanity--and more than a little humor--to come across your path as often as possible?

What if you were to offer those precious commodities, especially at unexpected moments and in unexpected places, to those whose path you cross?

Folks would rave about you. You'd generate the right kind of buzz. And, according to a recent survey, you would be 87 percent more likely to become a millionaire.

OK, so I made up that last one. Just trying to practice what I'm preaching and inject some humor into your life.

These ruminations flow after a decidedly pleasant encounter I had today with the Terms of Service for a new outfit called Patch.com. Yes, you read that right: terms of service--that dry legalese that hardly anyone ever even looks at, let alone reads (at least, that's how I operate).


For months, I've been hearing rumblings of Patch and noticing veteran journalists, including at least one former editor of mine, have jumped aboard with the company.

But it was only today that I dug a little deeper. (Here's the link for the Oak Park, Illinois patch, if this is all news to you.)

Because I plan to post stories and other content on behalf of various Inside Edge PR clients in the future, I decided that I really ought to click on the link for Patch's terms of service.

I was treated to a living, breathing narrative that communicated all the required points (read: legalese), but it did so in a way that was a downright delight.

Some excerpts:

"We ask that you read these Terms of Use carefully before registering or using the Service. If you do not accept these Terms of Use, we promise not to get mad. But in that case, you may not use the Service."

"You are responsible for the security of your password and will be solely liable for any use or unauthorized use under such password. Therefore, if you share a computer with others, don’t allow your Internet browser to automatically save your password. Also, don’t write your password on a Post-It note and leave it on your desk for all to see."

Later, after spelling out some of the no-nos that will get your butt kicked off of Patch, there was this simple summation:

Instead of trying to memorize all that, you might boil it down to three main policies: “Keep it clean,” “Don’t try to trick people,” and “Treat others as you’d like to be treated.” Easy, right?"

By the end of it all (and by now you shouldn't be shocked to learn that I read to the end), my regard for the company had skyrocketed. Bear in mind, I know little more than what I've already described, and this halo effect has already taken root.

How would you like your customers, clients, audience base, fans, whomever, to begin with that kind of overwhelmingly positive impression?

That's the power of effective--human, humorous, real--communication.

So what are you doing--in your e-mails, in your voicemails, in any interaction that you're having with others--to do that little something to bring a smile to someone's face?

Do people dread or look forward to hearing, or reading, from you again? The answer lies at least partly in whether you take the extra effort that, in Patch.com's case, inspired me to give them this rousing shout-out.

Teeming With BHG/Gloor Realty Promos, Activity

For the second straight year, Inside Edge PR client Better Homes & Gardens Real Estate Gloor Realty is holding a clothing drive.

(The photo here is from last year's initiative, which led to more than 2,000 items being donated.)

This year, the effort launches on Oct. 17 and has been expanded to include toys. If you're looking to do some fall cleaning--and clearing-out--of articles that remain in good condition, we would appreciate your consideration.

Also, I've recently upped activity on the BHG/Gloor Realty Facebook fan page, including a weekly feature dubbed "Tuneful Tuesdays."

The lifeblood of any Facebook Fan page is interaction and engagement with those fans, and so we've offered a modest incentive (a $10 gift certificate to Erik's Deli, a longtime Oak Park restaurant) to spur on suggestions for future songs with real estate-related names in their titles.

The River Forest Citizen Corps Wants YOU

Last week, I had the honor of writing and distributing a news release on behalf of my friend, Jim Flanagan.

It bears the headline, "River Forest Citizen Corps Seeks to Educate, Enlist Volunteers for Emergency Preparedness" and can be found here at TribLocal.com.

Over the past year or so, Jim has led a group of volunteers who have poured their time and energy into bracing for times of crisis. Special heads-up for those of you who reside in River Forest, there are two meetings later this month (Sept. 23 and Sept. 25) that will provide more details.

On a separate note, to learn a bit about how Jim serves those approaching or in retirement, through Bentron Financial Group, there is also a recent post about a free seminar that Jim is presenting on Oct. 2 in Lisle.