Social Media / PR Archives | Page 14 of 27 | Bristol Creative Industries

PR touchpoints are the multiple points of contact that a company has with its customers/clients through public relations efforts. These can be physical, digital, or both, and they are used to communicate and engage with the public in order to shape perceptions and build relationships.

According to Rain Group, it takes an average of eight touches to get an initial meeting (or another conversion) with a new prospect. One isn’t enough, and this is just one of the reasons why we always encourage our clients to be open-minded when it comes to working with a wide variety of publications, not just one of the big nationals (where you’re less likely to be featured frequently).

Physical

Some common physical PR touchpoints include events such as press conferences, product launches, and trade shows, as well as more casual interactions such as networking events or social gatherings. These allow companies to present themselves and their products or services in person.

Digital

Digital PR touchpoints include websites, social media platforms, email marketing, online news outlets, and industry publications. These touchpoints allow companies to reach a wide audience quickly and inexpensively, and they are often the first point of contact for consumers looking for information about a company or its offering.

The benefits of multiple touchpoints

One of the key benefits of PR touchpoints is that they mean that companies can proactively shape the narrative around their brand and reduce the risk of negative publicity.

PR touchpoints can also be used to build relationships with employees and the media. By regularly engaging with these groups, companies can build trust and credibility, and foster a sense of community and connection.

Effective PR touchpoints require a well-planned and executed strategy, including identifying the target audience and determining the most appropriate ways of reaching them, as well as developing a clear and consistent message and tone.

In addition to traditional PR touchpoints such as events and media relations, there are partnerships with influencers or celebrities, experiential marketing campaigns, or interactive social media campaigns.

PR touchpoints are an important tool for companies to communicate with and engage their customers, build relationships, and shape perceptions of their brand. By creating a strategy that includes a variety of touchpoints, companies can more effectively reach and connect with their audience.

Why is it always a good idea to have a person as a case study waiting in the wings on a PR campaign? Because journalists love them and will usually feature your story if there is strong personal evidence to support it.

Reading reviews has become part of the buyer’s journey, and that’s what a people case study essentially is – the ultimate customer review that can make or break your PR campaign. People case studies are an independent voice that can add weight to your creative content and provide that human element in an article.

They are telling the world that your client’s product or service is credible, trustworthy and authentic. They are unique to your campaign.

So, you are ready to go, and you have got your case study all lined up to speak to the press and tell their story. But here are a few things to keep in mind to make sure it leads to a best seller and not ending up in someone’s bad books.

Do use a current case study. Media aren’t interested in speaking to someone who had their experience with your client pre-pandemic. Make sure they are relevant for today’s reader, usually within the last 6 months.

Don’t assume that your case study knows how to talk to the press. Give them a media briefing that anything they say may appear in print – even those little comments they thought might be “off the record.”

Do incentivise your case study. They are likely to grab the media’s attention and support you in achieving your KPI’s, so a gift voucher to their favourite retailer is a good investment.

Don’t forget images! So many case studies are cast aside because of a weak image. Make sure it’s good quality, requested size and shows the case study in a positive light if this is not possible – factor in a photoshoot pronto!

Don’t pitch far and wide thinking it’s a one-size-fits-all. Get to know your case study and find out which titles they want to be featured in and which ones they don’t. Are they age/gender appropriate for certain publications, and will they identify with the target audience? Investing in this research now will avoid unnecessary disappointment later.

Do use your case study for other channels. Feature them in newsletters, across social media platforms and on your website. There’s no better PR than a happy customer!

What is Domain Authority?

Domain Authority is a metric that details how likely your website is to rank in search engine results. The metric is on a scale factor of 0-100.

You need to have a knowledge of many factors that play a part in this to understand how this is calculated. The most important factor is a backlink that points to your domain (inbound links)

Your backlink profile is a key player in the performance of your Domain Authority. Sites with more backlinks are far more likely to have a higher Domain Authority rating.

You’d think the higher your score is, the better you’re doing overall, wouldn’t you? But it’s not all based on this. It’s more a case of knowing how your doing in comparison to your competitors! You want to outrank these companies who you compete to win business on by having important keywords for your industry.

So, how do you improve your Domain Authority?

First, let’s look at the key factors in more detail that populate the Domain Authority.

Evaluating the Domain Authority metrics

When it comes to evaluating our PR strategies, we use metrics on Domain Authority for each campaign we do. It’s a key part of our process. To do this, we use a platform called Coverage Book that breaks down key information from each piece of coverage.

You the want to be able to feedback on results achieved, right? So with the correct tracking in place and thorough planning you’re able to see many useful metrics. The estimated views on each piece of coverage. The unique number of visits per coverage and the publication Domain Authority ranking.

Approaching Digital PR with measurement in mind, provides actual results that can be used by PR teams and the clients allowing learnings on both sides.

Coverage with a trackable link in to a publication with a high domain authority ranking will increase the page ranking and SEO authority of the clients website. Meaning they will be ranked higher in search engines as well as pointing people to their site.

Want to understand a little more about your SEO Strategy? We have a great blog post that helps you write an SEO-friendly blogpost. Take a look here for more details.

With continuous algorithm tweaks, and ever-changing marketing methods, it might feel like you’re always playing catch-up with Instagram trends. With 1 in 2 people using Instagram to discover new brands, it’s never been more important to utilise the platform as a business owner.

We’ve compiled a strategies anyone can use to keep up with Instagram social media trends. By following these strategies, you’ll be able to keep up with trends on at least a basic level. And then get the experts to help you with the really tricky stuff!

Follow Influencers In Your Industry

If there’s someone you can be sure is up to speed on the latest social media trends, it’ll be an influencer. Find Instagram influencers or public personalities relevant to your industry, follow them, and keep an eye on what they’re doing. What type of reels are they creating (video content is king), what trending music are they using, which of their posts are getting the most engagement, etc. It’s also important to remember that different niches will have different trends.

Now, you can even set post alerts and notifications for when these Instagram accounts post, so you’re always in the know.

Remember that social media moves FAST, so jumping on trending memes and using trending music really needs to be done within days of you coming across it.

If you’re looking to outsource your social media management to maximise your reach, get in touch here.

Make Use Of Exploding Topics

Exploding Topics is a freemium tool that shows you topics in various categories that are trending. Simply enter a date and a niche, and the tool will present you with a list of trending search phrases.

Think of it like doing keyword research for SEO. But instead you’re doing topic and trend research for social media.

Often a good strategy is to combine your upcoming planned content with a trending factor if possible. In practise, this might be using a trending sound on a reel you’ve already planned or made. Or using saved photos to create trending memes.

Meme Accounts

Highly relatable, clever and humorous content can be just as if not more successful than high-quality and tailored content. Today, social media accounts are all about brands having a human voice and connecting with their customer base, rather than stagnant corporate content.

By following major memes accounts you’ll be sure to keep up with a wide-variety of trends happening on Instagram. Even current affairs and breaking news!

Stuck On Your Social Media Strategy?

If you can’t remember the last time you posted or your social media strategy was on track, you can reach us on hello@trusty-social.com!

Is LinkedIn worth the time and investment when there are so many more social media platforms to pick from? Well, in a recent study we found that it’s not only worth the investment but could be one of the most important platforms for you to use for your 2023 video marketing campaign.

What is LinkedIn?

It’s that platform that’s been around forever. It’s where people go to find jobs, join events and put their professional appearance out to the world. Over the years LinkedIn has slowly been picking up pace and whilst the other social media platforms squabble over new features, age demographics and user base, LinkedIn has continued to grow into its space as one of the greatest B2B marketing tool on the internet.

Here are a few stats that will make you consider LinkedIn as a must use tool for your next video marketing campaign.

If you are a B2B company or you’re simply looking to expand your online reach, it’s clear that LinkedIn is a must. If you are looking for help on how to create hard hitting content for LinkedIn Here Now Films offers free consultations and would be happy to jump on a Zoom or a call.

Having a social media presence as a brand means that at some point, we’re more than likely going to receive negative comments or criticism of some sort on our online channels.

It could be a simple misunderstanding that has gone public or an unhappy customer leaving a negative review but it’s important to respond and act quickly to ensure it doesn’t turn into something bigger. There are many well-known brands that have led the way in dealing with negative comments and so in this blog, we’ll take a look at a few of our top tips that make your work a little easier!

1. Firstly, never ignore a negative comment online.

Your business is likely to be something you have worked incredibly hard on building and it’s easy to take negativity personally. Not every troll comment online will be worth a response, however, it’s important you consider each comment carefully and think about whether you can improve in some way. Be critical of your business so it can be better.

Not replying to a negative review that calls out poor customer service or something similar will only make your brand look disengaged and put off potential leads.

You should always reply thoughtfully to comments online, whether that be a positive or negative comment. It’s all about maintaining that relationship with your audience and showing you are willing to adapt and assist, it shows you care.

2. Be understanding and polite, and apologise!

Okay, now you’ve considered the negative thoughtfully and critically you need to show understanding and apologise for the situation. This is the first step in gaining control of the matter and resolving any bad feelings or conflicts.

Reading negative comments online can be frustrating but it’s important to stay calm and be polite to maintain your reputation and humility. Be respectful. You want your audience to see you care and this will help to keep your followers on side.

3. Reply in a timely manner

Though it’s important you take the time to consider negative comments properly and reply in a thoughtful way, you also need to respond in a timely manner. Be responsive. Show your audience that you hear them and are engaged with their experience. Keeping them waiting will only leave time for festering grudges and misunderstandings to spread.

4. Take the conversation offline and be personal

Although it’s key to show a response online, you don’t want to have the whole conversation in full view of all your customers. Reach out privately and deal with what you can behind closed doors. This gives you and the source of the negativity the privacy and space to deal with any issues. You can share a public statement regarding the resolution publically when you’ve come to some kind of conclusion.

5. Be willing to offer solutions

Once you have taken the matter offline, make sure to listen to the feedback you’re getting and be willing to offer positive solutions. Demonstrate you and your company’s willingness to come to a resolution that puts your customers first.

6. Learn from your experiences

It may be that the whole situation was simply a misunderstanding but if you have made a mistake, don’t worry. We’re all human and we will make mistakes along the way. There will always be something we can learn from a negative comment or piece of feedback.

Analyse the negative comments online, and try to find out what it is that your customers aren’t happy with. Is it a specific product? Or is it a company policy? Whatever it is, take the comments as constructive criticism and adapt so that you can move on from this and avoid similar mistakes in the future. Make sure you put a plan in place for how you’re going to fix this and ensure to inform your audience of the actions you’re taking to resolve the problem, build back that trust and show you care.

Having an online presence means that negative comments are pretty much unavoidable but there is always a way to minimise any impact on your brand and that is by generating lots of positive comments! A positive comment will always out-way a negative so just keep working hard to build on these.

We hope these tips will help you if you ever need to respond to any negative comments online. You can also find more great advice on dealing with negative social media comments here.

If you’re looking for more tips on letting your guard down and earning your audience’s trust then take a look at another blog from Carnsight Communications on why PR only works when you keep an open mind.

Writing for marketing purposes is a little different from other types of writing. You can forget some of the rules you were taught at school, but that’s not to say grammar and fact-checking should go out the window. Longer pieces such as feature articles and business blogs might be a bit daunting for those new to marketing, or even those who are suffering from creative block, so here are a few top tips that might not only help get you started, but also keep the words flowing.

Have a plan – For longer pieces it’s helpful to start with bullet points. Map out what you want to say to make sure there’s a sensible flow to the whole piece. You may be perfectly confident in everything you want to say but pouring out what’s in your head onto the page, without planning the structure first can be a costly mistake. Bullet points don’t need to be massively detailed, and don’t need to take hours of your time, but they might save you hours of editing, so they’re a worthwhile investment.

Just write – Once you have your broad structure, start writing. I have worked with many copywriters in the past and some feel the need to agonise over every sentence to make them word perfect as they write. But when you have finished the whole piece, sentences will get cut and you will find better ways to phrase the points you’ve made. So, the important thing is to make a start.

An empty page is so much more intimidating than a page full of copy. You can and indeed should always edit when you’ve finished anyway, to make sure the piece works as a whole and flows as you intended, so you don’t need to aim for perfection on your first draft. I’m not suggesting you produce substandard work, but if you spend an inordinate amount of time trying to perfect every sentence as you go, you will leave yourself no time for the all-important editing process. I have witnessed deadlines being missed before because a writer was so determined to achieve perfection, which obviously isn’t going to meet anyone’s objectives!

Get your facts straight – Whether you are writing a profile piece on your business, or a blog about an important issue in your industry, it’s often useful to include some facts and figures to provide context. To give you an example, when I write an article about blogging for business, I might start with a statistic about how many businesses blog. With some words wrapped around this figure, it shows readers why it’s important that they read on. Or why I am writing about that topic. It also demonstrates that you have done your research and what you say can be trusted, building authority for the brand you’re writing for.

Be useful – It can be tempting to make your copy all about you, but the most interesting copy offers thoughts, opinions, advice, or market information that are useful to your target audience. It’s sometimes helpful to think about one person – someone you would really like to work with – and write for them. What would they like to know? What would make their lives easier? Don’t take your experience for granted – other people want to know what you know. If you identify who you’re writing for at the beginning of the process and keep them in mind throughout, it will also help you ensure you stay on message for the entirety of the piece.

Edit. I read any piece of written work I create multiple times once I’ve finished it, making sure I have a break in between readings too. It is possible to stop seeing what’s right in front of you when you are constantly looking at the same piece of work.

Sometimes you get so caught up trying to get just the right phrase and then fall in love with the way you’ve said something that you lose sight of the fact it doesn’t fit in that spot or isn’t relevant to the overall argument of the piece at all. This is less likely to happen if you have written your bullet points up front, but we all veer off course sometimes.

Read your copy through on completion by all means – I always find reading it out loud helps identify any glaring errors – but then move onto something else, go for a walk, have your lunch, or ideally come back to it the next day. Take a break from the copy before completing your final one or two edits. The more changes you make, the more likely you are to need to take a break before reading it through again.

Writing longer copy can be a daunting task, especially if you have to do it consistently with regular marketing features or business blog posts. But if you take it one step at a time, plan it carefully, remember who you’re writing for and why you’re writing it, and edit it at the end, you will soon have the pages of copy you want.

In our increasingly data-centric world, organisations now have the ability to apply an intense focus on the changing motives and preferences of its current and potential customers in a bid to attract, engage and retain.

Growth marketing applies to the highly personalised approach of using a multitude of channels to deliver individualised messages aligned to customer needs.

A growth marketer employs the full marketing funnel to spot trends, hone tactics, and achieve sustainable growth. The customer-centred, data-driven strategy that takes into account the entire customer journey, from awareness to activation. Public relations compliments this approach.

Traditional PR and marketing strategies are acquisition-based rather than retention-based, with a focus on the firm or organisation. Growth marketing, on the other hand, focuses on both acquisition and retention while being totally consumer-centric.

Growth marketing tries to collect and analyse as much data as possible by utilising engagement tactics like A/B testing. The most effective strategy to consistently target the right audience and accomplish growth is then determined using this data.

Public relations benefits growth campaigns by fostering strong relationships with the public, expanding a brand’s reach, and connecting more people with the company. It works well with growth marketing because both approaches are customer-centric. Additionally, they both work to engage clients through a variety of channels to establish long-lasting, solid partnerships.

Public relations fuels marketing activity by making sure your brand appears in the optimal locations to reach your target audience. There are several ways that public relations professionals achieve this including increasing online presence, strengthening connections with the media, and leveraging the influence of events.

Growth marketing focuses on increasing a user’s lifetime value. To engage and keep your audience throughout the entire funnel, content creation and content marketing are essential. Growth marketing strategies use a variety of marketing channels to get the correct audience to see appealing content.

Search engine optimization (SEO) is an essential part of a wider marketing approach. SEO encourages more website visitors and offers opportunities for lead generation by ranking your content higher on Google. Public relations can impact SEO results by creating newsworthy content, creating referral traffic and building links.

Organisations can gain clients, reach milestones, and experience growth at a rate that is unheard of by using a growth marketing strategy. To obtain client information, growth marketing teams engage in creative innovation. They then create optimised plans for each user category using this data.

Growth marketing, with a focus on whole funnel marketing, may hold the key to creating long-term success in a shifting market. In effect, full-funnel marketing methods see up to a 45% higher ROI and 7% increase in offline sales. It has the benefit of producing more informed decision making as well as generating loyalty and repeat customers.

Growth marketing experts have numerous in-demand skills, such as data analytics, optimisation, analytical thinking, experimentation and even creativity.

Here are just some of the tactics and strategies used by growth marketers today:

Conversion rate optimisation: This is a powerful digital marketing strategy used to draw new visitors to your website or landing page. Your website will be optimised and improved by a growth marketing team to maximise the number of leads you produce.

Split testing: Growth marketing campaigns are all usually rooted in creative experimentation. A/B testing is fundamentally about experimenting across a number of formats, such as social media ads and emails. Split testing divides your audience into two varieties so that you may compare a website or marketing campaign. You can collect statistics by dividing your audience between the two versions and analysing the results to see which version performed better.

Referrals and customer acquisition: A referral programme is a word-of-mouth marketing tactic that involves gaining clients by way of referrals from existing clients. It’s a reliable growth marketing strategy that aims to generate recommendations using straightforward tools like referral links or codes. Word of mouth will automatically start to have an impact as you establish your brand and raise awareness.

Paid advertising: Paid advertising campaigns using tools like social media or Google ads, provides some of the best methods of experimentation. It’s one of the best ways to bring in a new audience while increasing the lifetime value of your customers. Generally, paid campaigns are often the best way to reach people when organic reach is down.

Customer experience is a critical component of your approach. Potential customers want to feel connected to your brand in addition to feeling like they are getting an excellent product or service. Customers who stick with a brand are just as important to a company’s growth as new ones.

Experts in growth marketing are always looking for ways to gauge client satisfaction and enhance the customer experience. And there’s a valid justification for it. It seems that it could cost around 5 times more to acquire new customers than to retain old ones. According to Harvard Business School, profits could also rise by a startling 25-95% with just a 5% retention increase.

Growth marketing can provide brands with a way to stand out from the competition and build a sustainable future.

Pretty much every client we work with comes into PR with an idea in their head of what kinds of opportunities they are looking for when it comes to promoting themselves and their business. This is great! It’s a solid foundation to work on, but today I want to talk about how being open to PR opportunities you may not have previously considered will benefit you much more in the long run.

It’s worth clarifying that I’m not suggesting you say yes to anything and everything. Good PR is targeted, of course, but we’ve seen time and time again that clients who are open to trying things out and embracing slightly more unusual opportunities get better results overall.

Some clients can be reluctant to go for opportunities with smaller or more niche publications. Some sit on the other end of the spectrum and push back on opportunities that are a bit more generalised. The truth is, both have their place and depending on the circumstance can be wonderful opportunities to get your name out there.

We’ll always have a conversation with our clients around why we’ve suggested a particular publication or press opportunity. And of course, clients are welcome to feed back on which best suit them. Over time, this will help us understand what kinds of opportunities to send through and which we know won’t quite hit the mark. However, we always encourage clients to keep an open mind.

The reality is that those small, general opportunities that might feel a little more nebulous can actually be a stepping stone to the more specific wider spread content platforms, as well as great content in and of themselves!

Lewis Reeves, CEO and Founder of Walr, was recently featured on a running podcast. Now, this might not seem immediately relevant but Lewis is a keen runner and on the podcast was able to talk about the parallels between leadership and running, how he supports his employees at Walr and his business ambitions for the future. If Lewis had turned down the opportunity based on the fact it wasn’t explicitly linked to the market research sector (the sector in which Walr operates) he would have missed out on all of the fantastic feedback he’s received since his podcast interview aired.

We’ve had clients who have been everywhere – from very small-reach industry publications to the BBC – sometimes within 24 hours of each other! And we’re able to achieve success with them because they are open and welcoming to all kinds of opportunities. They have fun with whatever is presented to them and they’ve been able to reap the benefits because of that, including great reach, meaningful connections and plenty of interesting content.

PR opportunities you might not have considered or expected can lead to fantastic benefits you might not have considered or expected. For this reason, to get the most from your PR it’s worth being willing to try things out and allow yourself to explore what works and what doesn’t. You can use your PR agency as a guide, and should always feel free to ask them why it is they think a particular opportunity could benefit you. Embrace a challenge and be open to trying something new. If you do this, you’d be surprised how much you will enjoy it and your PR presence can really soar!

Welcoming an external team into your business can be challenging. As a PR agency, we understand that we have to earn our client’s trust and we’d like to think we’re pretty good at doing that, with a number of retained and returning clients acting as proof of this.

Therefore, we put a lot of time and energy into building those relationships with our clients. We respect and value them and what they do, both as individuals and as a business. We work hard to understand them (see our messaging session blog to learn more about how we reach this point).

For us to deliver the best PR results possible, our clients have to be able to let their guard down.

Let me explain what I mean by that.

Think of it like a relationship

Any relationship needs to be built on the foundation of mutual trust, respect and understanding – a PR/ client relationship is no different. As a PR agency, our job is to get to know the business inside and out, pretty and ugly. If things are being kept from us, we can’t do our job. We can’t address issues and we can’t control the message.

On a bad day

One of the things we cover in the very early stages of working with a client is what they are like ‘on a bad day.’ Basically, we talk about the negative bits – the gaps in the business, the places where things have been overlooked, the experiences that were handled poorly, the challenges faced internally. It is absolutely vital that we lay that stuff out on the table in order for us to do the best job that we possibly can.

We’re not here to judge. We’re here to help! It comes back to developing trust.

We can be off the record

Although we never advise off-the-record conversations with journalists – we have many of these with clients

We need to know the full picture so we can understand what to focus on.

We are happy to sign NDAs if the information is challenging.

It will help us to prepare and focus on the good stuff

It also helps us to prepare lines for the questions that you don’t want to answer or the eventualities that will hopefully never happen – such as:

The event we were helping to plan where someone with a vendetta could have turned up
The disgruntled ex-board member who was a loose cannon
The unhappy customer who was threatening to go to the media

An outside perspective

Your PR agency is ultimately on your side, but they’re also an outside perspective. This is a positive thing! They can look at things from a different point of view and may be able to shed light on some of your business blind spots.