It's difficult keeping up with what's happening in PR in the online universe. Here are some tips worth keeping on hand:
1) To find out what your competition is doing, visit Web sites and find out if they've put up a company media kit. Read their press releases if they put them online. Also, make it a point to regularly visit PR Newswire and BusinessWire to see if your competition has sent out any releases your management should be aware of.
2) Subscribe to listservs that deal with your industry and keep an eye out for what people are saying. Is an ex-employee getting revenge? Is an employee from the competition constantly offering helpful advice to Listserv members?
3) Follow online chats through trade publications, newspapers and search engines. Is a reporter who covers your industry participating in a live chat on AOL? If so, participate. Does your competition offer real-time chats on their Web sites? If so, monitor them.
4) Get into the habit of using NewBot (Wired) (http://www.wired.com/newbot), HotBot (http://www.hotbot.com), Deja News (http://www.dejanews.com), Newspage (http://www.newspage.com) and NewMonger (http://www.techsmith.com). Punch in a key word and see what's out there.
5) Subscribe to electronic newsletters that cover your industry. More and more print magazines are offering their readers electronic newsletters as an added value.
Source: Steven Blinn & Assoc., 212/721-5529