Stories by Jim Alkon

Authenticity. Listening. Finding unique angles. Those are the keys for journalists seeking earned coverage via social media, according to Suzanne Barston, manager, corporate journalism, corporate communications at AbbVie. As founding partner of AbbVie’s StoryLab, Barton is responsible for creating stories around the company’s therapeutic areas, pipeline and philanthropy. While journalists long ago shifted their working lives to social channels, healthcare communicators have been slower to make that transition, due not only to unique regulatory issues but also industry resistance.

PR News’ just-released 2018 Graduate Education Guide for Communicators looks at the career benefits of pursuing a master’s degree in communications and how it can be a differentiator in the talent marketplace.

Whom do you trust? That’s become a bigger question in the fake news era for reporters. The PR practitioner plays a vital role building a relationship between brand experts and the media. The expectation is not that the media automatically will include our brand in an essay, but based on our relationship journalists should know they can trust us and those we put forward as resources.

At its Social Media Summit in San Francisco on Aug. 10, PR News will honor Madison Dowswell of PepsiCo, Ashley Frohnert of PETA and Jessica McGlory of Jellyfish as its 2018 Social Media Luminaries. The Social Media Luminaries awards program celebrates of-the-moment social media marketing pioneers.

It’s one thing to have an active social media strategy. It’s quite another to measure its success and adjust accordingly to achieve program objectives. As VP, audience engagement, for Audubon Society, Elizabeth Sorrell has an intimate knowledge of social media measurement trends and will share her expertise at PR News’ upcoming Social Media Summit.

Brands need to understand that a Facebook Live audience will be joining cold and that they are most likely going to be distracted. “Many brands have interpreted Facebook Live as being like TV and have taken a chat show approach to it,” says FleishmanHillard’s Chris Jackson. “Facebook Live and TV could not be more different.”

Influencer marketing has become a key part of many communication strategies. But there’s a lot to consider to achieve the desired result. At PR News’ upcoming Social Media Summit in San Francisco, Logitech’s Krista Todd will provide some insights from the front lines in “Influencer Marketing: Activating Macro and Micro Influencers for Maximum Effect.” Here’s a sneak peek of some key session talking points.

In the upcoming Aug. 10 Social Media Summit session in San Francisco, “State-of-the-Art SEO: Your Content’s Not King If It’s Not on Page 1 of a Google Search,” Ali Haris, senior manager, SEO, at Macy’s, will share best practices for brands. Here’s a peek into what’s coming on Aug. 10.

Pity the media relations pro. Not only are attention spans vastly reduced, many media outlets have responded to this with vastly shorter stories. Instead of giving up, PR pros must understand their efforts to gain earned media may result in a media hit lasting a mere few seconds. Here are a few tips to help pitchers shape messages so they will thrive in the new, short media landscape.

82% of people actively engage with brands on Twitter, so they want to hear from brands, says Nina Mishkin, brand and content strategy lead at Twitter. Brands, with their understanding of the flow of cultural conversations on Twitter, combine organic conversation with promoted messages in their strategy so they know when to pull the levers.