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While some communicators have the benefit of focusing solely on social, the majority of us must take a marcomm approach for our organizations, merging public relations with social media management. For those of you tasked with media relations on top of social, I’ve got a major grievance with the online media relations world to air: the current state of pitching is infuriating. Online communicators need to break the cycle of bad pitching practices and start giving media relations the strategic attention it deserves.

Messages now flood our digital channels, and these messages are usually drawn from experience. Morning Consult released a new survey on influencer marketing that found 61 percent of participants are likely to support and talk about brands they love, without—get this—being paid. Without any brand prodding or pushing, consumers have become a public relations channel for companies. And hopefully, most of what they are saying is good news.

Imagine practicing PR when your organization’s business objective is protecting democracy and defending millions of lives. Veterans Day affords us a moment to reflect on the 4,000 men and women who make up the U.S. military’s public affairs team. Many of us might be surprised to discover how some of the work they carry out is similar to what we as strategic communicators do every day.

We can’t wait for our 2020 Crisis and Measurement Summit, taking place February 25-26 at Miami’s Downtown Hilton. Sure, maybe part of that has to do with the idea of flying down south for the winter. But moreover, we were thrilled to see such a turnout at this past February’s inaugural crisis summit—a sellout crowd that flocked to Miami Beach for two days of real talk about every stage in crisis prep and recovery. Ahead of this year’s summit, let’s look back on a few takeaways that changed the way we, and our audience, think about measuring, communicating, and staffing around a crisis. 

The word “engagement” gets thrown around so often, it’s become nearly meaningless in the social media world. And, while most buzzwords come and go, real engagement is a long-term play. If you’re not seeing a lot of engagement from your Facebook posts, tweets or product pictures on Instagram, you may want to take another look at your long-term strategy. True audience engagement isn’t easy, and it takes a long time to see results.

We’re guessing the sudden and untimely death of Deadspin (no pun intended) as a purveyor of no-holds-barred sports and social commentary will provide a case study for business students in what not to do with a successful endeavor. This post, from PR pro Dave Dykes and PRNEWS staffer Nicole Schuman, argues that the incident also offers a bevy of PR lessons.

You’re a communicator who loves what video can do for your brand. The problem is that you’re a PR army of one. You lack the resources (budgetary and personnel) to create video. PRNEWS has gathered a trio of video experts who believe otherwise. Ahead of a Nov. 19 webinar about this topic, they share tips about how to create video as a PR soloist.

Most companies remain silent when a competitor makes news. An unorthodox approach is to seize the moment to get your company’s views and executives into the conversation. Just as important is to make sure your customers are aware that you have their best interests in mind at a time of unsettling industry news.

On November 4th, Apple announced a massive initiative intended to combat the housing crisis in California. The $2.5 billion plan not only marks a larger investment than Google’s previously announced $1 billion effort to combat the California housing crisis, but goes into much greater detail than Google’s initiative around how, exactly, those funds will be allocated. Apple’s ownership of its role in contributing to—and remedying—this crisis offers lessons for brands hoping to take on a social good program with substance.

Airbnb gives users a lot of freedom. It allows people to become entrepreneurs and host strangers in their homes. In addition, travelers can forgo expensive and occasionally bland hotels for the comforts of home, or the adventures of living as a local. But with freedom comes responsibility. After a tragic event occurred at one of its host properties, the company worked quickly to limit the PR damage.