Keeping track of the information agenda is a key a part of being a PR or advertising and marketing skilled for quite a few causes – whether or not it’s so you understand the proper time to promote in, or making certain you’re conscious of any information tales that will have an effect on the tone of what you’re pitching.
The information agenda can even kind an important half in your press workplace technique. The artwork of reactive newsjacking *is* a technique in and of itself, and one which PRs have to grasp to assist make their manufacturers related, use traits to their benefit, and finally enhance model consciousness.
Right here, we’re taking you thru what it’s, why you want it and find out how to do it nicely. Let’s get into it!
📰 What’s newsjacking?
Consider it as high-jacking a trending information story or occasion to make all of it about your model. The development itself has completed the work of chopping by the information agenda and is a topical state of affairs press will need to cowl – and your job lies in dragging a few of that highlight throughout to your consumer.
The important thing distinction between proactive and reactive newsjacking is time. Proactive refers to information occasions that we’ve already anticipated and have deliberate to piggy-back on – Valentine’s Day, Christmas, the Olympics, for instance.
Reactive is the artwork of reacting (duh) rapidly to a breaking information story or a development that’s unfolding in actual time. Journalists shall be below stress to cowl the story rapidly earlier than the following factor inevitably comes alongside and as such, you’re below stress to show round one thing of use to them whereas preserving your model on the forefront of the dialog.
📈 Why do I have to hassle with newsjacking?
When completed nicely, newsjacking can result in elevated model consciousness and relevance, construct a greater model popularity by positioning them as thought leaders, and lets you insert a model message into an present media dialog.
It may be tough to all the time know precisely what journalists are searching for – however a trending information story that they’re actively writing about takes the guess work out of it. Newsjacking helps us to drive the narrative as an alternative of passively ready for press alternatives and with out making a standalone marketing campaign.
An ideal instance of this was the variety of manufacturers that capitalised on the hype surrounding the discharge of the Barbie film – from Crocs’ Barbie assortment to Xbox’s Barbie-themed console.
📱 Okay, I’m satisfied – how do I do it nicely?
There are some usually accepted dos and don’ts which you’ll grasp to make newsjacking a robust a part of your PR technique.
DO:
✔️ Act rapidly: when you can sense a narrative is on the up, bounce on it earlier than it turns into outdated
✔️ Hold it related: not *every little thing* is a chance to pitch your consumer, it’s about realizing when the story is correct for the model and the media – Hubspot and Spotify are completely not the identical factor, however Hubspot knew find out how to make ‘Spotify Wrapped’ its personal
✔️ Add worth: the perception or commentary your consumer gives ought to add one thing new or newsworthy to the story that the journalist won’t have
✔️ Monitor the information: it’s a given, however put aside time every morning and afternoon to check out the information and what persons are speaking about to remain on the heartbeat
DON’T
❌ Shoehorn a message in: the development you’re newsjacking ought to really feel like a pure connection to your model, not a chance to plug a key message
❌ Hold it in good style: it ought to go with out saying – keep away from tragedies or unhappy tales, don’t exploit misfortune, and reply to information alternatives tastefully (principally, don’t be just like the Pepsi x Kendall Jenner advert)
❌ Gauge public sentiment: customers can typically inform when a model is utilizing a popular culture second for their very own acquire, so all the time keep watch over sentiment to keep away from potential backlash
❌ Miss out the analysis: don’t rush right into a reactive opp with out absolutely understanding why a narrative is trending and the broader context
At Prohibition, we work with numerous manufacturers throughout all sectors, B2B and B2C, to create progressive PR and social media campaigns that ship actual ROI and assist meet enterprise objectives. Get in contact with us in the present day to learn how we might assist you along with your Public Relations. Drop us an e mail: whats [email protected] or give us a bell on 0113 430 4160.
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