Social media, two words that were relatively non-existent 15 years ago, have now become a vital part of everyday business, so much so that entire campaigns are now focused around them. Facebook, YouTube, Twitter, LinkedIn and Instagram are some of the top social channels used by businesses today.
Before your company dives deeper into social media, it’s important to remember what your company stands for and what you want to portray across each platform. Your brand, target audience, leadership team, company policies and imagery all play key parts in how you will be received on social media.
While each business and brand are different, the following tips can help you prepare as you dive headfirst into social media:
- Identify your target audience. In the advertising and marketing world, knowing who to target is an integral part of any strategy and choosing the wrong demographic can be seriously detrimental to the success of your campaign. There is a bit more flexibility when it comes to social targeting. Social media allows you to set up campaigns and target specific audiences, but pressing send on a social ad or paid campaign doesn’t mean you have to cross your fingers and hope it works. You can track the success of a campaign and alter the target audience based on how it is trending. Even with this flexibility, it is still important to identify your key audience early on, because knowing who to target will also help you with the next step – choosing the right platform.
- Choose the right platform(s). While many businesses implement multiple platforms in their social media campaigns, not all platforms are the right fit for your brand. Each platform serves a different role and encompasses a different style of user. LinkedIn is primarily a business platform and is a great way for businesses and business professionals to reach out to other businesses, customers, employees and job seekers. Facebook and Twitter serve a more social role by incorporating more personal information, and Instagram and Pinterest focus more on sharing through images and captions. Thinking through who you want to target and how you want to portray your content will help you choose the right platform for your brand.
- Be unique to your brand. If you choose to implement multiple platforms in your quest for social supremacy, your brand needs to be equally identifiable in each platform. This goes for imagery as well as tone and the quality of content. Create a tone and voice that is unique to your brand. If you have multiple people in charge of creating and sharing content across your social sites, make sure everyone is in sync when it comes to the type of content and phrasing you want associated with your business.
- Know the rules. Each platform has a different set of rules as to what is acceptable in terms of content and interactions. For instance, Facebook penalizes content that appears overly promotion or might be considered “click-bait.” Penalties like these could affect the placement and frequency of where your ad is shown. Familiarize yourself with each platform’s guidelines before making the decision to join.
- Join the discussion. Post engaging content and ask questions to connect with your followers. Reply to comments on your posts and wall or newsfeed to keep the conversation going. By engaging with your followers, including working to resolve issues or problems, you help grow brand loyalty and encourage users to return to your page for updates. You can also use hashtags when appropriate to join larger conversations and organically put your content and brand in front of users who may not already be part of your following.
- Have fun. This may be one of the most important aspects of social media. For most brands, success stems from storytelling more than product news. When appropriate, and only as it applies to your brand, have fun with your audience. Be inviting, make jokes and go with current trends in the marketplace. This can be tricky for brands that have a more professional tone and voice, but an occasional fun post can be refreshing to your followers. It’s okay if your brand doesn’t necessarily allow for you to share the funny cat video or meme currently trending on social media. You can still look for ways to make your content more engaging without losing the character of your brand. Know your audience and your brand and find the connection between them.
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September 23, 2016 | 01:11:57
Writing is one of the most important parts of a successful public relations campaign. To quote Malcolm Gladwell, “Good writing does not succeed or fail on the strength of its ability to persuade. It succeeds or fails on the strength of its ability to engage you, to make you think, to give you a glimpse into someone else’s head.”
People with the skills to write a wide range of content – from bylines and features to blog posts and pitches – are invaluable to their internal teams and business partners. Writing for public relations differs from other types like newspaper, magazine, essay or novel writing. The main purpose is to gain positive exposure, or get a message across to the public.
And no matter how well you write, there’s always room for improvement. Let’s take a look at some tips that can help you become a better public relations writer.
Open with a strong, compelling lead. When writing any type of PR copy, the first step should be coming up with an engaging lead that grabs the reader’s attention. A good lead will set up your copy in a way that doesn’t overwhelm a reader but offers just enough insight to make them want to continue. We strive for brevity, unlike this overly wordy version. So devote some time and attention to your lead and make sure you get it right – it can make or break your piece.
Read your copy aloud. You can spend hours editing and proofreading your copy but still manage to overlook grammar mistakes, run-on sentences and awkward phrases. While many public relations writers often skip this step, reading your copy out loud before submitting to your editor or client is a helpful way to catch any errors that you might have missed. Following this step will help you avoid gaffes like these.
Say more with less. Sometimes, PR bylines and articles come with strict word counts. That’s why writers often feel the need to add unnecessary words to their copy. Instead, try tightening up the copy to give it a clean, natural flow and make it easier to read. Some things to look for include empty phrases and words that don’t add any value to the piece, simpler ways to get your points across, and wordy sentences.
Immerse yourself in written content. The best writers are usually the ones who are obsessed with the written word and love to read. Reading content from other writers is a simple way to help you improve the way you write. Whether you prefer books, magazines, newspapers or any type of online content, any type of reading is a great way to expand your vocabulary and enhance your overall writing skills.
Eliminate passive voice. If you’ve ever submitted copy to an editor, you know that use of the “passive voice” is one of their biggest pet peeves. Passive voice – “The Phillies were beaten by the Mets” conveys less than active voice – “The Mets beat the Phillies.” It’s good practice to use active voice throughout your copy to make it cleaner and less wordy.
Let your copy breathe. Reading the same thing over and over again can cause you to miss mistakes. Try stepping away from your copy for a few hours, or even a day, and coming back to it with a fresh mindset. This strategy can help you spot any extra words that don’t belong and allow you to trim and tighten up your copy.
Keep writing. The last tip to help better your PR writing is an obvious one, but it’s just as important as the others — practice. From driving a car to learning a sport to perfecting an instrument, the more you do something, the better you’ll be at it. No matter how much advice or feedback you get, repetition is the easiest and most efficient way to improve your copy.
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