7 Worthwhile Ways PR Can Tap into Social Media

 

As social media has become more popular and pervasive, it has changed how businesses communicate and opened new opportunities for public relations. Understanding how to take advantage of those opportunities is more important than ever for PR pros.

A key challenge is finding key PR applications on social media. In addition to the standard PR fare, there’s many ways PR can make an impact on social media. Here are some suggested approaches from experts.

Provide sneak peeks and inside looks. Provide an inside look into your company. If your company is a manufacturer, post a video of the manufacturing process. Post video or photos of customers using your products or services. You can also offer sneak peeks of products in development to generate advance interest.  Customers and prospects invited into the company’s inner sanctum often develop an interest in and unconscious loyalty to the company and its products.

Prevent crises. Many companies assign responsibility for social media monitoring solely to the customer service department. That’s a mistake. Customer service can often miss reputation management issues or potential crises. Customer service can also create a social media crisis. PR must also monitor social media to identify potential corporate issues – and respond quickly to any issues that could damage corporate or brand reputation. A social media monitoring tool can alert PR to positive and negative comments about the organization and emerging issues related to your industry.

Share case study snippets. PR teams frequently produce case studies about customer success stories. Unfortunately, most people don’t read long articles these days. The solution: Pick key facts from case studies to share on social media. Showing instead of telling can produce strong emotional reactions. Capture interviews of customers on video when researching a case study. Then post the video on YouTube and post excerpts or quotes on other networks.

Take key statistics from case studies to create an infographic to share on your networks. Remember that images typically attract more people than only text does.

Publish on LinkedIn. Only a handful of CEOs actively participate on social networks. Strive to change that in your organization. Start by publishing posts from your CEO on the company blog. Also share company updates and opinion pieces on LinkedIn’s publishing platform.

Under the CEO’s byline, your opinion pieces will have greater influence and greater reach. Your audience will receive the content faster than if you submit articles to traditional media like newspapers and trade publications. You can either create content specifically for LinkedIn or republish from an existing blog or other source. Jayson DeMers, CEO of AudienceBloom, republishes content from his Forbes.com blog on LinkedIn where over 3,000 followers receive his posts.

Respond to breaking news. As industry-related stories break, share insights from your organization using appropriate spokespersons including the CEO. The news will pass and drop from the public’s attention and you’ll miss your opportunity if you go through the full cycle of developing a press release. Example: When a credit database is hacked, security companies immediately offer advice, position themselves as experts, and cite their products or services.

Building solid relationships with journalists in advance assures you a better reception when you offer expert analysis of breaking news.

Create a plan describing how you’ll respond to breaking news situations and assess each opportunity as it arises. Be sure that your content adds value and you’re not being strictly self-promotional. Be absolutely certain that what you’re doing can’t be perceived as trying to capitalize on a tragedy.

Promote events. Social media channels can help generate buzz and publicity about events, including conferences, webinars, and speaking engagements. Share news about your event on your Facebook Fan Page or Twitter feed, and write articles for your company blog. Create a Web page dedicated to the event. Even if people can’t attend your event in person, reading about it will help advance their relationship with your organization.

Communicate with employees. An internal wiki can serve as a hub for internal communication and collaboration. A wiki can help communicate new ideas within the company, feedback from employees, and news about internal company events like picnics or other group activities.

Beware of implementing a restrictive social media policy for employees. No one wants to be told what to do, especially in their personal life. A restrictive policy may only create disgruntled employees. Keep any social media policy simple – as a reminder that employees should use good discretion on social media. Training employees to serve as ambassadors of the company and its brands on social media can pay substantial dividends.

Bottom Line: Social media has become a powerful public relations tool. More aggressive use of social media can greatly improve PR results and its contribution to corporate goals.

Resources

4 Ways to Use Social Media in Public Relations
Social Media Examiner

How to Leverage Social Media for Public Relations Success
HubSpot

4 Ways to Rock Public Relations with Social Media
Business 2 Community