Five Steps to Stop Wasting Your PR Spend
Exciting news! You've earned a media interview and now you have an opportunity to share the good news about your company’s new product or service with an important media outlet. The interview with the reporter goes great and you send b-roll and photos to supplement the coverage.
The story runs and you’ve just hit a PR home run, right?
It used to be.
If you want to take full advantage of your PR wins in the digital age, however, you have to take it further.
Are you wasting your PR?
The ugly truth is that you are wasting your PR wins if earning the media hit was the beginning and the end. In today’s media environment, that is just the first step.
It takes time to research the best media contact at your target outlet then craft the perfect pitch. Spending all that time securing an ideal story isn’t worth much if you’re not taking full advantage.
At BizCom we know all too well how much goes into landing a client’s dream interview. That’s why we don’t let client media hits run without taking them to the next level digitally. And here are five digital ways you can make the most of the media hits you earn to be sure you’re not wasting your PR efforts or dollars.
1. Get social
This is always the first step. Sharing the publicity on social media casts a wider net of potential readers, further spreading the message. While it seems pretty simple in theory, there’s some nuances to be mindful of to make the most of your social posts.
Think about where it should be shared and how it should be worded. Different social outlets appeal to different audiences, so your posts should be written in a way that will appeal to each audience and ultimately make them want to click on the story.
For example, you wouldn’t want to share your hit using the same caption on Twitter and LinkedIn. Keep in mind that on Twitter, people are scanning hundreds of tweets every minute, so you want something short and punchy to grab attention.
Your LinkedIn audience, on the other hand, is on the platform primarily for business reasons. Be sure you’re sharing a business development related message with your caption. Also, don’t forget about opportunities to share the hit on Instagram stories, and Facebook.
Additionally, be sure to encourage others in your organization to share the hit on their social handles. At BizCom, we regularly draft social media posts for the CEO’s on our roster to push out when we secure media hits for their companies, even if they weren’t the ones being interviewed. Your employees are the strongest advocates for your brand, so be sure to encourage them to shout from the rooftops when you earn positive coverage.
2. Incorporate it into your blog
Chances are you didn’t get to share everything you might have wanted to during the media interview. A great opportunity to tell the full story, including behind the scenes info, is on your personal or company blog.
Your blog is also the perfect place to tell your brand’s story in your own voice and help make a more personal connection with your customers.
Whether your blog helps further share your message of values in business, achieving the American Dream, or giving people a peek into the life of a Redneck CEO, sharing the news on your blog helps connect the story to your personal message.
3. Share it with your industry trades
No matter the industry you operate within, it’s very likely that there’s at least one industry trade publication. In addition to the reach they achieve with print, these trades typically have their own social channels, e-newsletter blasts, and they typically accept outside content to help populate these channels.
Next time you earn a media hit, make the most of it and send it to the editor or digital editor of your trades. You might just see it in your inbox as part of their next e-blast!
4. Spread the word to your mailing list
Speaking of e-blasts, when is the last time your pipeline heard from you?
Seeing your story featured in an important media outlet just might be what they need to see to earn your next sale. Next time you have a media hit to share, be sure to include it in your next e-blast as a reminder to your pipeline that people are buzzing about you and your company.
5. Use analytics to tell your next story
After you’ve officially made the most of your media hit, be sure to go back through all your platforms and check your analytics. This will be a good indicator about whether your audience was interested in this topic. Perhaps there’s another story idea you can pitch that will earn similar reach.
Social media sites today offer awesome in-app analytics that are free and easy to navigate. Take advantage of them! Check to see how your posts performed and make notes on key indicators (what time your audience is online, etc.) to make adjustments for your next post.
Additionally, be sure to check your Google Analytics to see what social site or industry trade drove the most traffic to your blog or website.
Lastly, track the open rate of your email. If it’s particularly low or high, spend some time looking at what recipients clicked on to get an understanding of what they’re most interested in.
Next time you earn that coveted media interview, use these five tips to help make the most of it. After all, great PR is too valuable to waste!