The day after Halloween, I started seeing Walmart and Kohl’s holiday television ads. Pottery Barn already distributed its 1st holiday catalog, Target featured a toy guide in Sunday’s paper, Santa is already appearing in the malls, and just this week I started seeing direct response televisions ads for holiday music CDs.  It is like we skipped Thanksgiving and went straight to the holiday season.

For as long as I can remember, publicity (a primary tool in the public relations toolbox) has been positioned and/or referred to as an efficient, if not inexpensive way to promote a product or service or organization or person.

From your experience what are the best times to distribute email marketing campaigns? President at ProNetworkMedia ___________________________________________ By Jennifer Manocchio The answer to this question is not black and white.  While there are studies conducted on the best day and time to send business-to-business and consumer emails, the answer really depends on your subscriber base.

You know that Beyonce song, "If I were a boy"?Anyway, I've been thinking a lot lately about clients and the decisions they make, as well as the decisions they don't make. Having been on the agency side my entire career tends to put me at a disadvantage when it comes to understanding what goes on behind closed doors on the client side.

This past weekend I ran the Marine Corps Marathon in D.C.  In our race day packets, runners received a sample of KT Tape.  The tape claims to relive muscle soreness.  Even though I had never heard of this product before, with both my IT bands hurting beyond belief, I was willing to try anything.

I was watching the Antique Roadshow on PBS last night and saw the most unusual early 20th century invention. It was a heat-powered house fan. For real. There was a kerosene lamp at the base of a fan that was lit and emitted heat through a series of turbines that powered the fan to begin rotating and cool the room.

We recently hired several new employees and have written a news release announcing the growth. What media outlets and journalists at those outlets should I send the news release to? _____________________________________________________ By Kayleigh Fitch, Guest Blogger When announcing corporate news (i.e.

WARNING: THIS IS NOT A JOKE!So, a woman goes onto a medical discussion group on the Internet and asks all the participating group members the following question:"Can anyone suggest the best way to spend my health care dollars to relieve crippling back pain?"Within minutes, the following answers appear in the discussion room:John Doe, Chief Acupuncturist replies: You need acupuncture.Jane Smith, VP of Sales with Johnson's Massotherapy replies: You need a back massage.Doctor Vinnie Goomba, Surgeon replies: You may need surgery; we'll take an X-ray.Alice Jones, Director of Marketing with Osgood Orthotics says: You need special inserts for your shoes.Hank Witherspoon, manager with Professional Office Supplies replies: You need an ergonomically designed desk chair.Franco DeLupi, personal trainer replies: You need to exercise.Artie McSmarty, dietitian and nutritionist says:You need to eat better and lose a few pounds.Bob Jones, DrugStuff Pharmacist replies: Take Aleve or Advil and apply a heating pad (aisle 4).Lucy Alluette, Yoga Instructor replies: Yoga will relieve your stress an stretch your muscles.And on and on and on...Of course, any one of these replies could work.

What are the most popular, yet inexpensive, methods for promoting a web site? David __________________________________________________ By Jim Sweeney If by popular you mean “effective,” and if by effective you mean “drive traffic to your site,” there are many ways - online and offline - to achieve this goal.