The practice of news-jacking, or posting about current events, has been in vogue for some years now, but festively themed posts have reached new heights—Presidential turkey pardon, anyone?—as brands race for the highest engagement around the fall and winter holidays.
So who's doing the best job on social this Turkey Day? PR News took a look at some of the top Thanksgiving posts this holiday season in different industries—and what made them resonate with audiences on social media.
Lititz Police's emergency checklist. This Pennsylvania police department used a winning combination of humor, video content and useful information for a #ThanksgivingEve post. Utilizing emoji, relatable family humor and an adorable GIF, the post served as a PSA to keep the phone lines open for emergencies only on what is surely a busy day for the precinct every year.
Since it's #ThanksgivingEve we figured we'd review proper use of 9-1-1 for tomorrow
◾Uncle Joe ate all the pumpkin pie Don't call ????
◾Aunt Doris made lumpy gravy -Don't call ????
◾ ????'s still frozen - ????1-800-Butterball -not us
◾ Turkey's on ???? - yes???? (not us but we'll watch) pic.twitter.com/3ob47p8bUD— Lititz Police ???? (@LititzPolice) November 21, 2018
Visit Florida's delectable food footage. Thanksgiving is a big time of year for pie, and Visit Florida added its own twist with its slow-motion video footage of key lime pie. While key lime is not a traditional Thanksgiving treat, Visit Florida successfully inserted itself into the Thanksgiving conversation with its unique take, simple message and use of the #ThanksgivingEve hashtag.
We know what we're bringing tomorrow. #ThanksgivingEve pic.twitter.com/31eqQJtXe5
— VISIT FLORIDA (@VISITFLORIDA) November 21, 2018
Truman Library Institute's classic quote. Quotes tend to perform well on social, especially when overlaid on an attractive or emotionally moving image. For its Thanksgiving post, Truman Library placed a humorous Elizabeth Truman quote on top of an image of the former First Lady celebrating.
No time to brine? Take a tip from Mrs. Truman.#Thanksgiving pic.twitter.com/eRwImZrb7A
— Truman Library Institute (@TrumanLibInst) November 21, 2018
St. John's University's adorable Thanksgiving mascot. Who says turkeys get to have all the fun? St. John's paired the tried-and-true cat video trope with relatable copy and emojis to woo its college-age audience.
Waking up like this on #ThanksgivingEve because you dreamt about all the food you're going to eat tomorrow... ???? ???? ???? pic.twitter.com/fWxHONSiVa
— St. John's University (@StJohnsU) November 21, 2018
The U.S. Navy's live initiation of boot camp graduates. Live video is a good bet for brands whose viewers are taking off work or school, scrolling through feeds while they're caught in holiday traffic. The U.S. Navy live streamed its boot camp initiation to give Thanksgiving revelers a peek behind the curtain.
Every year we are thankful for the over 30,000 young men and women who join the Navy! Headed into #Thanksgiving help us celebrate them by watching as the #USNavy's newest Sailors graduate boot camp and join the fleet! https://t.co/h9dgr4Rgqd
— U.S. Navy (@USNavy) November 21, 2018
How is your brand celebrating the holiday season on social? Tweet @PRNews with your top posts.
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