Targeting your earned media for maximum impact

Targeting your earned media for maximum impact

In today’s media environment, it’s important to use multiple channels to get your story out there -- don’t give up earned media quite yet, there are plenty of opportunities to be seen and heard in newspapers, online, on the radio and on TV.

Story? Or no story?

Story? Or no story?

Sometimes our friends in the nonprofit world complain that you need a fortune teller to know what will end up being covered by the so-called mainstream media.

Even though there are times when a really good story goes unnoticed, the reality is it's actually pretty easy to know what a reporter/editor/producer will – and won't – consider a story. All you need to know is the "Six Elements" they teach in Journalism 101 – and lucky for you, we're going to hook you up with the SparkNotes.

1. Conflict

Perfection is boring – controversy is irresistible. Beyonce has dominated online news this week not only because she released a killer album, but also because her album and video inspired passionate disagreement and conversations about power, race, gender and sex. Another way to understand this is to look at the POTUS-FLOTUS relationship:

Story: The President and First Lady could be on the verge of a divorce!

NOT a Story: The President and First Lady are happy together.

2. Impact

People care when something impacts them personally but otherwise, not so much. With so much happening in the world – and so many ways to get information – it kind of makes sense. We can't possibly process it all, so our brains sort out and attend to things that affect us most.

Story: Colfax is closed from construction between Lincoln and Broadway.

NOT a Story: Braun Court in Golden is closed for construction

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3. Novelty

If it happens all the time, it's not news. The old J-school example is "dog bites man" is not a story but "man bites dog" is! Here's a local example that shows you what we mean:

Story: RTD bus is involved in major crash on Broadway.

NOT a Story: RTD drivers get riders safely to their destinations.

4. Prominence

We are socially wired so people care what prominent or "influential" leaders think. That's why you see well-known politicians endorsing campaigns (ew, looking at you, Chris Christie) and movie stars advocating for their pet causes. In Colorado, we can look for our own examples:

Story: Gov. Hickenlooper supports the Clean Power Plan.

NOT a Story: Jenny Davies supports the Clean Power Plan.

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5. Proximity

The closer to home, the more folks care. This is sort of related to Impact – because there's no way we can cognitively process all the information that is streaming in at all times, we all tend to pay attention to those things that are right in front of us. 

Story: Students in Colorado are in overcrowded classrooms

NOT a Story: Students in Togo are in overcrowded classrooms

6. Timeliness

Yesterday's news isn't. Unless it's the Broncos, then all bets are off. So even if YOU care that your organization organized a yuuuuuuge rally, passed a bill or released your endorsements, if it wasn't TODAY (or even in the last few hours), it's not a news story.

Story: IF this were to happen...well-known political person goes to jail today.

NOT a Story: TABOR author Douglas Bruce goes back to jail (so March 2016).

So what does all this mean? If you want to increase your chances of attracting media interest, add in as many of the six elements as you can! Here's a quick case study on how to use the elements to maximize coverage:

On April 14, the Denver Fight for $15 campaign staged another rally – something we've done every three months for almost three years now. This one was a three-part event – a Civic Center rally, a march downtown to hold mini-rallies outside major office buildings and a short protest at McDonald's – to 1) kick off new, metro-wide master janitor contract negotiations and 2) draw attention to the business model of mega-corporations that leave low wage workers economically desperate and taxpayers holding the bag for the public assistance employees are forced to use to make ends meet. 

To overcome the expected media "haven't we done this before, and who actually cares?" reaction, we figured out how to use five of the six elements in our pitches to maximize interest by highlighting:

  • Conflict: Janitors/healthcare/fast food workers (David) vs. rich, corporations (Goliath)
  • Impact: 700 participants interacting with thousands downtown
  • Novelty: Kick-off of the janitor negotiations (which was completely new)
  • Proximity: Civic Center/downtown location, close to media outlets, Capitol & business
  • Timeliness: Tax Day Eve (to talk burdens low-road employers stick taxpayers with)

And CBS-4Fox 31Univision, Telemundo, Denver Post, Clear Channel radio, KBNO, Onda/1050 AM and others responded!

So the next time you think you want to pitch a story, ask yourself the questions below:

  1. Is there conflict here?
  2. Does this have significant impact to a lot of real people?
  3. Is there any novelty or is this the same-ole, same ole?
  4. Do we have a prominent "champion" or celebrity to help get the word out?
  5. Does this affect folks in Colorado/my city?
  6. Is this about to happen today/tomorrow/in the coming days?

If you can't say yes to three or more, we're sorry to say it's just not a story unless, of course, it's about the Broncos or an impending snowstorm – then all bets are off! The good news is there are other ways to share the info – see our last post on social media platforms...

Photos: xonecole.com, beautifulbrowngirls.com, google.com/maps, denver.cbslocal.com, denverchannel.com, facebook.com, denverchannel.com, coloradopols.com.

Breaking Down The Personalities of Social Media

The fast-pace evolution of social media platforms is daunting. Snapchat, Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Periscope...which one does your organization need to use? Which one is actually going to stick around? Who is flocking to join it? What other platform is being gradually left out? ….and the confusing whirlwind begins.

Believe it or not, there is a way to make it simple - but you have to know a few details about your campaign first:

1. Who is your audience?

It’s usually best to figure out your target audience first - after all, who do you want to engage? Since people of similar age, ethnic background and interest tend to flock to the same platforms, knowing who you want to reach helps narrow down the social media platforms that you have to choose from.

  • Want reporters or elected officials? Go to Twitter.
  • Want to organize a broad range of people? Go to Facebook.
  • Want to reach millennials? Go to Snapchat.
  • Want to join an online community? Go to Instagram.
  • You get where I’m going with this!

Doing your audience research first - defining who they are, where they are, and what they are responding to based on what’s trending - will save you hours of frustration later.

2. What is your goal?

Once I figure out my audience, I outline a clear goal of the entire campaign. Then I develop my digital strategy to get there, setting smaller benchmarks along the way to measure and track my progress as we move followers up the “14er” of Engagement, making sure that my timeline is realistic.

The fun part about digital strategy is that everything is still relatively new & it’s yours to experiment with - have a few different options for each step up to the final goal, see which one gets the best response.

3. What kind of content will you have?

So, you know your audience and you know your goal but the next big question is: what do you actually have bandwidth to create, publish, monitor and engage with?

Good content is always king, regardless of platform. Be authentic. Be genuine. Be passionate. Be a storyteller – and personal too. Be funny where possible. You can throw away nearly all a platform’s best practices if you want to - but ONLY if you have the best content out there.

Nearly one-third of all food produced in the world is wasted, but France’s new law is trying to bring that number down. (via NowThis)

Posted by Upworthy Video on Wednesday, April 6, 2016

Last year, with the help of websites like Upworthy, video rose to the top of social media content - and it shows no signs of slowing down. Creating a "readable" video for silent auto-plays has become a must. So get a team together and think: how can you make your campaign visual? What kind of stories can you tell that you'll be able to recycle and refresh through out the campaign? How can you create shorter videos that will leave your followers wanting more? 

  • Have a newsletter? Break it up into small chunks, reframe it as needed, then schedule the posts to share on your different platforms.
  • Does a reporter or elected official need to know about your annual giving drive? Probably not, so don’t put that part of the newsletter on Twitter. Instead, opt for the advocacy ask.
  • Does your everyday member need to know about how to give? Yes, throw it on Facebook with a graphic you would want to share with your friends.
  • Will the funds protect a beautiful piece of land? Yes, then post it on Instagram.

4. How should you pick a platform?

By now you know your audience, your major goal, the smaller steps you want followers to take to get there, and your content to share. Now consider what platforms you already have a presence on and stick with them if they’re working for you. But if there are more people to be reached - people outside of your bubble - you should consider expanding your online reach.

Find out the personalities of each platform – and who uses each one – and decide those that could be a fit for your campaign or organization. The greatest social media mistake is not being genuine or authentic - if your organization feels uncomfortable with a platform, it’s going to feel uncomfortable to the audience, too. Want to become a long term influencer in your niche? Aim for the platforms where influencers & thought leaders are - make sure you have patience.

Don’t waste your time stressing out about being on every platform - just know your goal & audience with that platform & recycle content framed in a way that works. If you have an amazing photo, Instagram is an easy bet. An in-person event can be creative instant story on Snapchat. Facebook is a treat place to mix news and blog links with photos and video, too? Reporters love Twitter, so go there to reach them and use their favorite hashtags like #coleg.

Relax, do your research, conduct some social listening to see how influencers are already using a promising platform, then see if it works for you. Still intimidated? Check out a cheat sheet I made for a recent training:

Xlick the image and you’ll get the PDF version.

Xlick the image and you’ll get the PDF version.

Swap out my pup for your issue or campaign topic and see if you can mesh your organization's voice with the platform’s voice. Do you have an offline portion of your campaign? See how you can layer it with your digital strategy.

This cheat sheet is by no means complete or a silver bullet for helping you decide what platforms to engage, but I hope it makes learning social media easier. Overall though, knowing who your audience is, where you want them to be, & creating the best content you can for the bandwidth you have is going to get you further than adopting every new platform that comes out.

Digital Change

Digital media is a constantly changing game.

 

Just when you think you know what’s going on, some current event or random viral meme changes all the rules. Anyone working in this space will tell you that it’s what they love and loathe most about it - but, still, it’s easy to forget.

Since starting at Progressive Promotions this winter, I’ve gotten into a groove. I have my search engine keywords, my industry handbooks. Polls and trends can give you the idea that you will know exactly what you should do to make a desired impact.

And what all of the best practices have in common?

 

They know things are not static.

For instance, did you know that 82.3% of baby boomers are on Facebook? That means millennials and younger generations are opting for Snapchat and other networks where their parents are nowhere to be found. Another fun fact: we have finally reached that fateful day when Facebook has surpassed Google as the leading traffic site on the internet. Did you ever think you would see the day?

The big question comes: are we nimble enough in our communications and engagement strategies to alter them accordingly?

Even when we have laid out the exact path to take, it’s just as important as ever to be able to pivot our thinking to take advantage of the conversations that are already happening among our target audiences. Perhaps your story is better told on Snapchat than Instagram? Maybe your blog will do better on Medium or Tumblr than your organization's website? 

Data is often hailed as the key to it all - with good reason. Data informs us where we are now and what we can expect from the next step. It allows us to track how well we are meeting our goals and what's trending among targeted audiences. However, it takes creativity to break through the noise, get those actions, and make an impact with your message. 

Still don't get it?

Audi teamed up with The Onion for a SuperBowl spot about "All the news that isn't football". Their platform? Snapchat. Check it out.


Spotlight: Online News

Inspired by Spotlight's big Oscar win, the good people at M+R wrote up a list and review of 11 (mostly) new, national, online news sources. Once it hit my inbox this week, I knew I'd have to share the love around!

It's no surprise that more and more people are consuming news on their phones, tablets and computers. Online news dominates in the U.S. – three out of four of us Americans get news online, followed by 64% who watch TV news, 25% who listen to news on the radio and 23% who read newspapers and magazines for their news. dominates, followed by TV, radio and print.

You'll want to check out the whole M+R article, but here are a few I was excited about adding to my news feed: 

Hope you enjoy them as much as I do!

 

 

 

 

Score(s)!

Score(s)!

Wondering what kind of earned media we've been able to leverage for our progressive clients lately? Well wonder no more! Check out some of our recent media hits: 

The Stand With Women coalition made a big splash with their equal pay message in Denver Post, Denver Business Journal, Grand Junction Sentinel, Durango Herald, Colorado Statesman, Colorado Independent, CBS-4, 7News, 9News, Fox 31 and more.

Conservation Colorado was delighted that the Durango Herald published an article on the rain barrels bill – and the Aurora Sentinel editorialized in favor of it. too.

Build Our Homes Right made their consumer protection argument on the construction defect issue in the Denver Business Journal, Denver Post and more.

Faith eaders and immigrants advocated for safer roads and an improved immigrant driver's license program in the Denver Post, Durango Herald, Colorado Statesman, KGNU/CNN Radio, Telemundo and more.

We’re excited the Colorado Consumer Health Initiative was part of a Denver Post piece on the expensive confusion surrounding freestanding Emergency Rooms, a Colorado Public Radio story about their rap video to motivate Millennials to sign up for health insurance and a Public News Service radio story about remaining barriers to getting insurance in English and Spanish.

We’re excited about our work with other clients, too – Generation Latino, Stand Up for All Students, Colorado Ethics Watch, Colorado Impact Finance Initiative and Creating Opportunity for Colorado.