Digging out today? So are we. The year is quite young, but more dramatic changes in marketing communications are starting to marinate. Ridding written communications of industry jargon? Check. Having a better feel for what makes your audiences tick? Check. Boosting online video programming? Check.
In addition to these disciplines, writing for social media and SEO is going to be paramount this year. Communicating via social channels is hardly novel, of course, and PR pros are still grappling with melding their social messaging with the top-ranking search terms on Google or Bing.
As social media creeps toward the epicenter of business communications, PR pros may need to reevaluate their social media content to get a better grip on what’s working and what needs to be dialed back or banished altogether.
With those constellations in mind, here are a few tips on how to juice your social media content to drive better results, compliments of Alyssa Runner, PR specialist and lead marketing copywriter at Surge Marketing Group and Market Traders Institute Inc.:
- Follow the forums. There are two ways to easily use forums to create great content immediately. Using some of the questions posed on a forum on your social channels is a great way to spark conversation on topics you know your audience wants to talk about. On the flip side, you can also pose these questions in a way that naturally leads to follow-up blog posts that show how your organization relates to and understands the needs of the audience as well as how your company is part of the solution to that problem.
- Creeping the comments. Sometimes, this is as simple as asking your audience if they read that article or heard that piece of news. Sometimes, you can identify a controversial or engagement-ready piece based upon how many comments there are on the article and then asking your audience which side of the fence they are on (using the exact words that the commenters used in describing the opposing sides). Other times, it just means sharing the article with the audience because you can see that they see value in it.
- Communicating objections. This is a big one. Before releasing anything, you probably go through a basic set of questions. Is there jargon? Is this written as simply as possible? Will this content resonate with the people I’m trying to reach? During sales meetings, the topic of common objections potential buyers have is oftentimes a staple for perfecting the pitch and closing the deal. But, when it comes to the writing department, do these same objections get communicated down the pipeline? These are the objections—the things holding your audience back from becoming your clients and advocates. Could we use our social media writing to get better engagement, leads and sales if we knew these objections?
To learn more about effective PR writing, attend PR News’ Writing Workshop, which takes place February 10 at the Hyatt Regency San Francisco.
Follow Matthew Schwartz on Twitter: @mpsjourno1