Topics

This week’s Data Dive, which looks at consumer engagement with U.S. B2C brands during Q3 (July 1-Sept. 30) on Instagram, is more proof that brands shifted their effort to the photo-based platform, as opposed to Facebook, where engagement was relatively tame during the quarter. The data, provided by Shareablee exclusively to PRNews Pro, also shows the power of video, even on Instagram, which was designed originally as a platform for mobile photos.

There were so many candidates for Image Patrol this month, and with the year ending we decided to forego the usual comparison of two brands and instead create the ultimate image disaster list for 2016. This PR News Pro premium content is offered to you free in the spirit of the season.

With the New Year only a few weeks away, now is an ideal time to reflect back on the past year and look ahead to 2017. The public relations industry saw its importance elevated in 2016 due to a number of high-profile corporate missteps. There are a variety of lessons 2016 taught us but one thing is inarguable: The PR industry is primed for significant growth. Here are five PR trends that will help shape our work as PR pros in 2017.

As organic reach increasingly becomes a thing of the past, winning a budget for paid social—and proving out its value—is a must for any brand’s social strategy. But that doesn’t have to be a scary thing for those making their foray into the paid social world. As Facebook continues to roll out product updates—and other platforms grow more sophisticated in analytics, tracking and even marketing automation—the opportunity to leverage paid social content into real-world results has never been better. Here are some tips on how to approach promoted posts.

Google Analytics can be a powerful tool for measuring the effectiveness of PR work—but only if you know where to look. New users can easily be overwhelmed by Google Analytics, falling prey to “analysis paralysis” in trying to navigate its many moving parts. Here’s a quick checklist of where to look, and what to look for, as a primer on navigating all of that data.

The choice to use a picture without any dark-skinned people to pat oneself on the back for “diversity” is an odd and ill-informed one. The lesson that communications pros should remember is that visual storytelling is a language—a language that, though as rich and nuanced as any language can be, relies heavily on the first impression, the momentary glance.

Live streaming has seen a huge surge in popularity this year, and Facebook Live has provided communicators with a powerful new platform to share their brand stories. Despite its popularity, it’s difficult to show ROI with Facebook Live campaigns, and it can be tricky to ensure your audience is ready and waiting when you go live. Karen Vega, director of social and earned media activations at Viacom, has brought a potent combination of influencer marketing, measurement and media outreach to her Facebook Live strategy. She offers some tips here.

Anne Glauber is using her 30 years in PR and communications to offer a hand to people like her. In truth, of course, there really are not many people like her. It’s become her mission to inform pancreatic patients of the possibility of clinical trials and experimental treatments.

What would you do if you found out you had a life-threatening disease? Another question: What would you do with your life if you’d overcome the disease, at least for the time being? About two-and-a-half… Continued

Facebook has reported more metrics troubles for those who use its mobile platform (read: most Facebook users). The social platform has reported a discrepancy between Like and Share counts when a user enters a URL into the search bar in its mobile app. The true count of shares could be above or below the number reported; Facebook says it is working to resolve the issue.