President’s Day can seem like a bit of a ho-hum holiday after the love-filled, chocolate-centric Valentine’s Day that has just passed. But, President’s Day is a national holiday, filled to the brim with remembrance! 

President’s Day. A day to remember the best of the best. Our Presidents of the United States have led this country through some of the roughest times in our history, and, managed to do so with dignity and poise. 

Hum... kind of sounds like what we do in the public relations world day in and day out! We try to create an iconic image while portraying our clients as well as our own business in a gracious light. 

Let’s join forces for a bit. Our past, brilliant Presidents could certainly teach us how to excel in public relations. Today, we tip our hats to the past Presidents; thank you for all you’ve done and for all you continue to teach us! 

I recently read an article that made me chuckle.  It started off, "There are so many similarities between SEO and gardening..."

Of course, I had to read on. 

In the article, Bernie Borges describes the stages of gardening and how they relate to Search Engine Optimization (SEO).  It reminded me of my post last week about content marketing in which Marcus Sheridan said:

"Success in this business doesn’t happen overnight. Content marketing isn’t a chia-pet—water today, a vine jungle tomorrow."

Happy Valentine's Day!!

I know it's a bit corny and a wee commercial, but I've always been such a sucker for Valentine's Day.

The cards, the chocolates, the pink, white, and red Amaryllis flowers, and the love all around. 

Valentine's Day at Garden Media is always such a blast. We spread the love all year round with love notes in office for a job well done, constant compliments, and by working as a team every step of the way.

Today, to share our Garden Media L-O-V-E with the rest of the world, we're writing Valentines to those who warm our heart all year long.

Will you be our Valentine?

As I am sure you've heard, Bonnier Corporation announced that the April issue of Garden Design would be its last.

Garden Design has always been one of our favorite magazines, so we wanted to be sure we penned a valiant, fitting farewell.

Below is Garden Media Group's tribute to Garden Design.

We're outlining the history, the end, and our favorite aspects about Garden Design.

Share in the memorial by commenting your favorite moments.

I usually start off Saturday mornings by catching up on some of my favorite blogs... from design, fashion and of course, those from the garden industry, I get my fill of information for the week! But this weekend, I read a particularly different post about social media etiquette.

Etiquette.  Ahhh... society has gotten so far from the writings in the very first Emily Post Blue book.  And as the rules of social media evolve, how does etiquette evolve with it? 

No, I'm not saying change is bad.  Change is good!  It's just that there are some basic principals of etiquette that should never change, on or offline:

Be kind.  Treat others with respect.  Show your appreciation.

This post will offer tips on how we can continue to follow these basic principals for these social media platforms: Pinterest, Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. 

Otherwise, we all will have Miss Post rolling in her grave. 

Press releases have been on the chopping block. They've always been an integral part of the public relations world, but in 2013, are they still relevant? YES! This medium has been around for so long because their impact is stellar.

But, as with most mediums, the trick is to evolve. Press releases are still an integral part of a public relations media plan, but we need to approach them differently than we did last week or last year.

One of the best ways to do this is to optimize your press release for social media. Social media allows you to easily share your content, so you'll get more eyeballs reading your big news. Sharing on social sites will help boost your SEO, and you'll get to deliver the news right where it's wanted: to the people who follow you! They're craving the news your business has, so give them what they want and share it!

Writing a press release tailored for social media is a bit different, so we'll walk you through it.

At Garden Media, we’re all about the latest social media trends. So today, we’re introducing you to our favorite new social media tool, Vine. We love Vine not only because it’s a great name (c’mon, vines... gardening… get it?) but because it’s a great tool that can help you market your business.

Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Vine, Blogging. Ugh, my head is already spinning! Anyone else's?? 

Social media plays a HUGE role in any modern, successful company's media plan, but it can also take up a good deal of time.

It doesn't have to, though.

Load up your social media toolbelt, and prepare to be amazed. These four tools outlined below will save you and your garden business oodles of time. Plus, time is money. Need we say more?

Blogging is a must for all businesses anymore. Social media platforms only allow you to say so much, which is exactly why we link every single one of our social media accounts back to our blog. We have two blogs in fact since our business is two-fold: gardening and public relations/marketing.

Our blogs are a chance for us to really hash out important issues in our industry. We're able to show that we are an expert at what we do; plus we can connect back to our main website. Blogs can also link back to your e-commerce website.

For us, the most important aspect of blogging is connecting. We've connected with new clients, fellow industry leaders, and even print media moguls.

Moral of the story: you and your garden business should be blogging! But, if you need a bit more convincing, read our ode to blogging here.

The morning after: your hopes crushed or validated, your stomach full, your jersey messy as anything, your hands still have a bit of dirt on them, and your head's buzzing with PR lessons learned.

It’s none other than the Monday after the Super Bowl and Super Sow Sunday.

Being lovers of yummy food and beautiful flowers, we had to take part in both. Yup, I sowed my seeds this year with the brawling noises of the Super Bowl in the background. Which seeds, exactly? Sustainable Seeds, of course!

With our seeds planted, let’s reflect on the Super Bowl and the hysteria that surrounds it every year.

The Super Bowl is PR GOLD. It’s the most watched sporting event of the year, it has its own culture, and each year, the paper is chock full of Super Bowl articles for weeks.

Recapping the best Super Bowl PR lessons of 2013 below.