While the topic of the day is writing—the bedrock skill for all communicators—we’ll dive into what new skills you’ll need to be a next-generation communications leader.

Is the press release dying, or has it merely evolved? Whether your brand is still employing a traditional press release strategy or has instead opted for an omni-channel, visual approach, your brand’s stories need to be framed as viral-worthy content that ensures more traffic to any media site that runs with it. In this session, you’ll learn how to stand out from the masses by writing subject lines and headings, release copy, social media posts and more that will attract journalists’ attention.

You’ll discover better ways to:

• Tell a newsworthy story using data relevant to your brand
• Write press releases that even the most overworked journalist will pick up
• Tailor your story to more visual platforms, like Instagram and Facebook
• Craft email subject lines that will grab a journalist’s attention
• Create different versions of a release to suit different demographics
• Decide which messaging to deploy via email and on social channels, and how to best suit it to each platform
• Build long-term relationships with journalists to avoid pitching "cold"

How you represent yourself with the written word in any business communication could mean the difference between landing that next big story, getting a bigger slice of the budget or getting your next promotion. Are you undermining your success every time you put finger to keyboard? Here, you’ll learn how to avoid common grammar mistakes and tighten up your writing for a more effective and professional voice.

 You’ll learn how to:

• Identify and correct common grammar mistakes
• Cut repetitive language, unnecessary words and excess characters
• Use active voice to drive a stronger message
• Improve the flow and readability of your text through different proofreading techniques
• Put storytelling concepts ahead of internal marketing dictates, clichés and jargon

Meet your fellow boot campers and make long-lasting connections.

While storytelling skills are essential when dealing with the media, clear communications with internal stakeholders are every bit as key. Knowing how to craft a memo or presentation—how to manage expectations or articulate results in a cogent, convincing form to the C-suite—is an art and a science all its own. In this session, we’ll show you how to frame the narrative when reporting results to key decision-makers and demonstrating the impact of your efforts on the company’s bottom line.

You’ll learn how to:

• Use keywords and language that resonates most with senior leadership
• Define and simplify high-level concepts to quickly get to the point
• Be transparent, direct and authentic
• Celebrate successes and convey challenges within the framework of business objectives
• Translate key performance indicators into a compelling narrative

In an online environment increasingly cluttered with content, great stories need to be told more concisely than ever to get the point across to audiences short on time (or attention). In this highly interactive session, we’ll offer constructive feedback and work in groups to craft succinct social posts.

You’ll discover how to:

• Deploy the correct style and voice on different social media platforms to resonate with your audience
• Craft and test social media copy to make sure it aligns with your brand’s tone and voice
• Write the most effective messaging for Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter

Get the latest insight into writing search-engine-friendly content. With nearly all of us turning to search engines to find information and few going

beyond the first page of results, it’s imperative for PR professionals to keep pace with ever-changing rules of search engine optimization (SEO) and the preferences of Google’s search algorithm.

We’ll cover:

• Setting SEO goals
• Identifying keywords or keyword phrases to use when optimizing each page of your content
• Writing optimized content that will improve your site’s rankings
• Looking for thematic gaps between your content and that of your competitors, and exploiting those gaps
• Using research tools to ask your audience questions and find out what kind of content it really wants

This interactive session put you through some hands-on creativity exercises, priming you to craft fresh and engaging pitches. You’ll deliver your pitches to our panel of speakers, who will give you their real-time and frank onsite feedback.

A few of the topics we’ll discuss:

• Examples of the kinds of content and resources most sought after by the media
• Which email formats and subject lines are most likely to get noticed, and the best and worst times to send them
• Which resources to provide with your pitches
• If and when to offer a reporter an exclusive story
• Exercises to build your storytelling muscle and creativity