Stories by Steve Goldstein

During the Obama administration and since the political rise of Donald Trump, Americans have grown more accustomed to expressing strong convictions on social media, and brands that are even tangentially related to such commonly held strong opinions have found themselves under pressure to weigh in quickly. Trending news stories lead to social posts, and suddenly brands are in the hot seat.

Measuring media relations success has to start at the top. Meaning, before you start collecting insights from your coverage, you need to have a benchmark of what your ideal story is, and everyone, from the CEO level down, needs to be in agreement about what that is.

Whether you’re in marketing or PR or both, if you’re responsible for social media engagement then there’s a good chance “team” roughly translates to “just little old me.” In those cases, creativity and time-management skills can only get you so far. What you need are some shortcuts.

Patients and friends and families of patients avidly seek information and guidance online, and news outlets are equally hungry to report healthcare news, trends and data. This is both a boon and a curse for consumers of healthcare news. There’s so much good and bad information to wade through. For healthcare communicators, the good and bad information out there amounts to one thing, though: too much noise.

Some of us—make that most of us—who’ve spoken at conferences and in boardrooms consider ourselves to be passable speakers at best. You can’t change your basic character and erase years of habits and phobias overnight, but you can create a mental toolkit that can slowly transform you from a tic-plagued live speaker into a true performer who’s always in sync with an audience.

Bringing together people who share common concerns and interests while putting a brand’s immediate needs in the background—or, even better, on the moon—is easier said than done. But maybe that’s what we really mean when we talk about authenticity in communications and community-building—a willingness on the part of a brand to be quiet about itself and encourage others to do the talking.

Criticizing a brand or famous individual on social can be a great way to blow off steam. For the critic, there’s much less of a price to pay than if you blow off steam face-to-face or on email with family members and co-workers. In that sense, social media fills a great human need—to vent without repercussions for those who vent. You know where this leaves brands—on permanent 24-hour alert.

PR News’ just-launched Data Dynamos program will shine a spotlight on under-the-radar communicators who are excelling at using data to craft new or refine existing initiatives. We present here the initial class of Data Dynamos, who will be celebrated during a luncheon ceremony at PR News’ 2018 Measurement Conference (April 17-18 in Philadelphia).

Established in 2011, PR News’ Measurement Hall of Fame recognizes long-standing and continued efforts in advancing and championing PR measurement and analysis, and the promotion and awareness of key metrics within the PR community. On April 17 at its annual Measurement Conference in Philadelphia, PR News will induct three communications leaders into this exclusive club.

According to PR News’ 2018 Salary Survey, the most important skills for advancement in communications are written communications, media relations and content creation. Way down on the list, at No. 8, is measurement/data analysis skills. A roundtable conversation with 14 senior communications pros painted a different picture.