[Sponsored by Style House PR] Top Fashion PR Links

This Top Fashion PR Links post is sponsored by Style House PR, a New York-based boutique fashion PR company founded by Janna Meyrowitz, provides clients with media and celebrity outreach, including social media and blogger relations, as well as press and consumer-driven events. With Style House PR at the helm, emerging fashion/lifestyle brands receive the passionate, holistic support of an in-house PR team, while benefiting from the diverse opportunities and areas of expertise of an agency staff.  Learn more about Style House PR on their website, blog and Twitter.

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Video: How and why you should have an Online Newsroom (via Ragan’s PR Daily)

WSJ given Social Media Guidelines (via Editor and Publisher)

  • “Openly ‘friending’ sources is akin to publicly publishing your Rolodex,” the rules state, adding, “don’t disparage the work of colleagues or competitors or aggressively promote your coverage,” and “don’t engage in any impolite dialogue with those who may challenge your work — no matter how rude or provocative they may seem.”

Shannon Estrada of Pitch! Press shares insight into her work and life as a working mom (examiner.com)

  • I started my own business for freedom. And I believed I had something unique to offer the market in the public relations arena.

10 Tips for Social Media Marketers (via Positively Paula)

  • Utilize your brand promise as a guiding principle across all your social media efforts.  Reflect it in the content that you create, the tone that you use, and the programs that you develop.

Lisa Maas, president of Publicity Works, is guest blogging (via MetroMode)

  • As president of Publicity Works, Lisa has fostered a diverse business-to-business client base, including clients from legal and media sectors, entertainment and culinary venues, and the fashion industry and construction industries.  Despite the diversity of its client base, her vision is constant: provide “the relentless pursuit of results” – a tangible result that will positively impact client businesses and provide them with the highest-level of media exposure.

Lovely ruminations on Ashley Olsen’s shoot with vman magazine (via my empty closet)

  • but what stood out to me was that she really seems to have hit the mark when it comes to building up the row brand: it’s miles away from being a celebrity brand, but it’s not cutting edge fashion either. it’s that sneaky little fashion brand, that when paired with just about anything, from dressed up to dressed down, gives the person wearing it an ounce of mysterious, which when it comes to personal style, is gold (and something the both ashley and mk have a ridiculous nack for.)

Is the Model still a Muse? (via JC Report)

  • “The model will always remain as muse,” insists Louie Chahan, director of Women Management, the agency behind Kate Moss. “When it comes to advertising, I think some designers think a celebrity is more of a powerful selling tool.”

Show Me The Pretty: Fashion PR Advice with Nostalgia-Inspired Every Little Counts

smtp-logo1The indie fashion PR component to top fashion PR blog PR Couture, Show Me The Pretty features 5-question interviews with hand-selected indie fashion labels. PR Couture shares the pretty and then turns it back to the designers to ask questions and get advice and feedback about their own fashion PR strategy from a variety of industry experts. Sound like fun? Email info[at]prcouture.com for more information.

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Every Little Counts, a graphics-driven line of romantic, often love-song inspired tees, dresses and totes, has just launched their fourth collection, for Summer, 2009. In addition to these new 20 designs, husband and wife team Amy and Adam have expanded their vision into a vintage store, Dreams Never End. Every Little Counts is made exclusively in the east side of Los Angeles, where Every Little Counts provides provide affordable and feminine garments for women that express feelings of romance, independence, and nostalgia.

Amy is our interviewee for this installment of Show Me The Pretty, if your interest in piqued, she also pens a lovely blog filled with inspiration and behind-the-scenes  insight into Every Little Counts.

P.S. Exclusive for PR Couture – Take 20% off your Every Little Counts Purchase with code prcouture until June 15. Yes! Shop! Love!

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You worked as a fashion designer for six years in New York and Los Angeles. Where did you work and how did that experience encourage you to go out on your own?

I’ve designed for pretty much every market, Harley Davidson for kids, junior sportswear for Macy’s and Urban Outfitters, Jaclyn Smith for Kmart, and finally contemporary sportswear for Beau & Eros here in Los Angeles. The job market in NYC and the fashion industry in general was definitely tough- lots of stress, little pay, intense work environments. After only two years working in the industry, I was beginning to get burnt out. In the fall of 2003, an opportunity to move to LA came about, so I took a chance and I’ve been out here ever since. I dabbled a bit in costume design for film and theater and I had a great time. But ultimately, the bills were calling my name and I started working for Beau & Eros, a contemporary knitwear company in downtown LA.

Working at Beau & Eros definitely opened my eyes and got me thinking that starting my own business could be a real possibility. Two of my co-workers had already left to start their own labels…Lauren Fong for Itsola and Farron Walker for Farron Elizabeth. I spent 3 years there, learning & doing everything I could from design, sourcing, patternmaking, production, shipping, and sales- really just about everything! It was a great work environment, but ultimately I grew tired of working for someone else’s vision. Beau & Eros closed shop back in 2007, and by then I was ready for a new chapter in my life. It took about a year of soul searching and development before creating Every Little Counts.

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Fashion PR Tip: Getting Personal with Media Relations

Jon and Sonya by Sophie

Jon and Sonya by Sophie

Obtaining press coverage can be a daunting task for the fashion-focused designer who is busy selecting fabric, drawing up sketches and fitting models all season. You work hard on your line and then hope for media professionals to take notice of all of your hard work. The challenging part is that you are one of many designers reaching out to this reporter, each of you touting your ‘latest collection’ and ‘this season’s best…..’

When it comes to reaching out to media professionals, you may want to reflect inward for potential pitches. No one will care that you own a cocker spaniel, and it certainly won’t make its way into a reputable media outlet or blog. However, they may take notice if your show is going to benefit the local Humane Society and there are 200 puppies looking for homes. And, a little digging into your media contact’s internet communication, and you just may find she is a staunch supporter of animal rights, OR blogs about Louie, her beloved spaniel. You never know what might spark an opportunity.

How do you get personal for creative fashion PR pitch ideas? Here are three jumping off points to get you started.

Start with Inspiration

Who inspires you? What inspires you? Did seeing the local mayor dressed impeccably influence your passion for design? What was it like when you met her? Now take the information you’ve obtained and segue that into your story pitch. Example: Governor *** is the inspiration behind local designers new collection…

Share the Story

Your pitch should invoke curiosity. Make the reporter want to learn more about you and your collection because…you have a story to tell. One of our clients is launching a Patriotic line for the upcoming related holidays i.e. Memorial Day, Fourth of July and Veterans’ Day. Instead of only talking about the great new designs in symbolic red, white and blue, her press release also touches on her father being a Retired Air Force Vietnam Veteran and her inspiration for the collection. Included in the release are quotes from her and her father. This shows reporters that they can interview more than one person to help them create their story, plus reach a different audience who may not know about our clients’ brand.

Get a little uncomfortable

Make something happen by doing something different! If you’re a couture dress designer, you may not want to design swimwear…but then again, maybe you’re willing to try it out. Consider something beyond the ordinary and make time to break from your standard design routine. Perhaps you will show pics of different ways to rock your collection, use models from a local womens’ organization or non-profit and share ways to find affordable outfit alternatives, host a sample sale or form a designer co-op and create a small collection together. Just do something different so that you are able to generate ‘new’ news.

One extra media relations tip: You’ve heard it from Golden Rule teachings, the B-I-B-L-E, and your mother. Whatever you do – do NOT lie. Fabricating a story is never the way to gain press, not good press anyway. If you need assistance thinking up a story angle, jot down a list of your likes/dislikes or call on friends to help you see the things about “you” and your brand that you may be overlooking.