ProfNet Experts Available on Price Transparency, Direct Marketing, More

NEW YORK, Jan. 20, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Below are experts from the ProfNet network that are available to discuss timely issues in your coverage area. If you are interested in interviewing any of the experts, please contact them via the contact information at the end of the listing. To receive these updates by email, send a note to [email protected] with the industries you cover, and we'll add you to the appropriate edition. 

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EXPERT ALERTS

• Price Transparency and the Legal Marketplace
• Retail Real Estate Investment Trends for 2014
• Google Ranked Among the Top Ten Technology Direct Marketers for 2014

MEDIA JOBS

• Education Reporter – Corpus Christi Caller-Times (TX)
• Internet News Manager – Newsday (NY)
• Local News Reporter – The Daily News (WA)

OTHER NEWS & RESOURCES

• From Apple[ton] to the Big Apple
• Blog Notes: Yoga and Boat Blogs
• Grammar Hammer: Passive Aggressive

EXPERT ALERTS:

Price Transparency and the Legal Marketplace
Josh King
General Counsel and VP of Business Development
Avvo, Inc.
"Price transparency exists in virtually all marketplaces for goods and services – it's what allows consumer to compare prices and providers in just a few mouse clicks. While the marketplace for non-elective healthcare is biggest exception to this rule, the legal marketplace runs a close second.  It's shockingly hard to find price information.  Hourly rates, sure.  But that doesn't offer much help.  An hourly rate doesn't tell someone with a limited income, with a budget, what it's actually going to cost to address a legal problem.  I'm talking about fixed prices, packaged legal services, things that are predictable and comparable.  That sort of offer is rarer than a blue moon when it comes to lawyers. Why?  Because our industry is both incredibly conservative and shockingly risk-averse.  And it's not doing consumers any favors. It's time to lose the lawyerly, risk-averse mindset and embrace the commoditization.  So what if some of the clients who are attracted to your fixed-price offer need more complicated services?  Every other business in the world calls that an 'upsell.'  As long as you clearly disclose what's in – and what isn't in – your fixed price offer, you shouldn't fear the upsell discussion.  In fact, you should regard the fixed price offer as a great lead generation source for your higher-end services."
As general counsel and vice president of business development at Avvo, he is responsible for Avvo's legal, business development, business operations, customer service, finance and human resources functions. He is also a frequent writer and speaker on interactive media and professional ethics issues. Prior to joining Avvo in 2007, he spent over a decade in the wireless industry, in a mix of legal and non-legal roles: vice president, corporate development at AT&T Wireless, director of business development for Clearwire, and general counsel for Cellular One of San Francisco. He started his legal career as a litigator in the San Francisco Bay Area.  
Bio: http://tinyurl.com/ojzbdal
Website: http://www.avvo.com
Media Contact: Kari Day, [email protected]

Retail Real Estate Investment Trends for 2014
Greg Schott
Managing Principal
L3 Capital LLC
Retail was hit hard in suburban locations during the recession, but one market that remained strong and continues to improve is the urban luxury market. As a result, real estate investors have found this to be a very favorable market for returns. Says Schott: "Cap rates in urban cores are reaching historic lows and rents are continuing to increase in prime locations. Investors who have entered these markets have seen favorable returns and strong retailers view them as safe moves. For example, L3 recently sold two properties in the Beverly Hills and West Hollywood market for a combined $62 million, approximately $27 million more than it paid for the properties a few years ago. However, as cap rates continue to decrease and prime locations become more expensive, investors will begin to look at secondary and tertiary markets for opportunities in 2014."
Schott is available to discuss trends in retailer activity, specific urban markets in the U.S. -- including Chicago, New York and LA -- and retail investment strategy. Based in Chicago, L3 Capital LLC is a real estate investment firm focused on institutional quality urban retail investments within first tier U.S. metropolitan markets.
Website: http://www.l3capital.com
Media Contact: Mark Thomton, [email protected]

Google Ranked Among the Top Ten Technology Direct Marketers for 2013
Craig Simpson 
Owner 
Simpson Direct, Inc. 
"Google is ranked among the top ten direct marketers for 2013. Their use of direct mail shows that even large online companies have found direct mail to be extremely effective. Even those companies that promote advertising online use direct mail to find new customers. Direct mail may be an old advertising medium, but it is still relevant in today's marketplace."
Simpson is available to discuss why companies that collect data and sell online advertising still choose to promote their services with direct-mail marketing, and how small-business owners can effectively converge their digital and direct marketing efforts. He is the author of "The Direct Mail Solution: A Business Owner's Guide to Building a Lead-Generating, Sales-Driving, Money-Making Direct-Mail Campaign" (Entrepreneur Press 2014) which reminds business owners of the importance of direct-mail marketing in a digital advertising marketplace. 
Website: http://simpson-direct.com   
Media Contact: Vanessa Campos, [email protected]

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MEDIA JOBS:

Following are links to job listings for staff and freelance writers, editors and producers. You can view these and more job listings on our Job Board: http://bit.ly/pncjobboard

• Journalist – Long Island Business News (NY)
• Editorial Assistant - Wilmington News Journal (OH)
• Reporter – Law360 (CA)

See more listings here.

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OTHER NEWS & RESOURCES:

Following are links to other news and resources we think you might find useful. If you have an item you think other reporters would be interested in and would like us to include in a future alert, please drop us a line at [email protected]

• 5 OLD-SCHOOL FREELANCE WRITER RULES YOU SHOULD BREAK. Want to know what successful freelancing veterans have learned about the changing nature of the writing business? Read on to see Dawn Papandrea's take: http://bit.ly/1dqPy8o
• MEDIA 411: FOCUSING ON JOURNALISM SKILLS. There are lots of useful skills to make you stand out in the newsroom. Although this list is not all-inclusive, these are some of those considered particularly important in today's media world. Do you have any skills you would add to the list? http://bit.ly/19gCwhK 
• HOW TECHNOLOGY CAN HELP WRITERS. Technology serves many purposes. It can really help make one's work less time consuming and more efficient. In a recent #ConnectChat, we discussed how technology can benefit writers with our guest Julio Ojeda-Zapata, author and technology writer at St. Paul Pioneer Press. http://bit.ly/1cPrsTM

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SOURCE ProfNet