Potential buyers don’t judge a book by its cover any more – they judge it by your website. And nothing lets down a website, publication or new business proposal more than incorrectly used apostrophes. And no, in this case, there is no apostrophe in apostrophes.

Many employers will automatically dismiss a CV if it contains incorrect grammar. Potential customers may treat you the same and will judge your overall professionalism by how rigorously you have proofed your website or proposal.

I am indebted to Laura Hale Brockway of Austin, Texas and her great blog – “10 rules for using the apostrophe”. See: http://www.prdaily.com/Main/Articles/12989.aspx#  This should be distributed to everyone in your organisation, especially those who write proposals, website copy, press releases or have any written contact with customers, which in view of email means most people. For more sound advice on writing see Laura’s blog at (http://impertinentremarks.com/).

P.S. First rule of apostrophes: the word its’ does not exist!

P.P.S. And since when did “&” replace “and” in a sentence? Like Lions defending their line against the Wallabies, we must resist the attack on the English language as a result of text speak.

In  the current edition of Accountancy Ireland, corporate finance specialist Darren Cunningham of Life Science Ventures (www.lsv.ie) highlights the importance of Online PR in building your profile in order to attract an international buyer or investor.  Of course Online PR is also great way to cost effectively boost your profile in terms of potential customers and partners.

Customers are out there looking for you through search so it is important to implement an Online PR programme so that your positive stories and news pop up in the organic section of a Google search. But in his article “Looking to be acquired?” Darren explains that cash rich companies on the acquisition trail are also likely to use “search” in terms of drawing up their acquisition prospects.

In the article he points out, “Business development executives at acquiring companies use internet search to help uncover new target companies. It is therefore important for any company seeking to be acquired to have a good online presence.”

This includes not only optimising your website for search but getting your positive news out there. “Issuing regular company updates (e.g. data from clinical trials, new contracts won) via press releases with any of the established newswire providers helps enhance your online profile. These newswire services are designed to feed into industry specific online websites, trade journals and media. Careful consideration should be given to the reach of your press releases since a potential acquirer may be located in the US, Europe or Asia.”

In my view this is even more important than optimising your website. Your website is you talking about yourself. How much more credible if positive news stories on customer wins, new products and other company successes appear on independent third party or online media  sites?

Online PR is just part of Darren’s advice in preparing a company for acquisition. The full article may be viewed on the Accountancy Ireland website:

http://www.accountancyireland.ie/AccountancyIreland/digital/2013/February/files/46.html

or contact Darren Cunningham, FCA, Managing Director, Life Science Ventures (www.lsv.ie). Life Science Ventures is a boutique advisory business with a track record in providing advice and assistance to life science companies with licensing, acquisitions, disposals and fundraising. Darren may be contacted at dcunningham@lsv.ie or +353 (0) 1 4003615.

Working as a PR guy in technology can be a frustrating business. The reason being that all one’s principles about clear and simple communications are threatened by the first encounter with most technology products (and people). A bit like talking to your broker about pensions. Remember, I am a child of that impenetrable PC operating system MS-DOS.

 
Which is why the recent eulogising over Steve Jobs’ retirement as CEO of Apple is understandable. Barry Napier, chairman of major Apple accessories distributor BPI Telecom kindly gave me my first iPod. The theory was that if I was doing PR for his products then I should at least know how to use them. (I’m still waiting hopefully for the Porsche account).

 
The thought of having to load my CDs on to my PC through iTunes and then hope that it connected to the iPod was daunting. I speak as someone whose wife does all the complex electrical stuff around the house like changing light bulbs. But guess what. It worked. You just connected the iPod to the PC and off it went.

O2 (thank you Diarmuid O’Neill) gave me my first iPhone adopting the same principle as Barry. Now I was high wiring stuff. Downloading like a teenager tracks and albums from iTunes. Accessing my email in a café in the middle of Prague. Downloading the Pat Kenny Show in a wi fi zone in the Algarve and listening to it that day.

Accessing blues and jazz stations from all over the world. Downloading a Portuguese dictionary that not only tells you the word but helpfully pronounces it in audio. Playing computer games again…and there’s still a couple of hundred thousand more apps to discover. I even made a few phone calls.

 
And all through and because of the iPhone. And all because it is intuitive, easy to use and what all technology should be about.