Key Questions to Help Guide Your Content Creation

1. What different types of content will resonate with consumers?
There are many ways to make your content resonate with consumers in a way that will leave them wanting to know more about your brand. These people are the ones that will hopefully become loyal followers of your brand. Keep in mind that not all audience members will want the same content; it simply depends on your brand and the effect you want to have on your audience. Try utilizing either ethos, pathos or logos into your content while keeping the message consistent with your brand’s image.

2. How do you want your content to work for your brand?
Different types of content will do different things for your audience. Much of your content should simply be to better the lives of your consumers by making them “feel good” or providing essential information about how their involvement in your brand will help them in the real world. Doing this will also improve your long-term relations with your consumers as well as improve their trust in your brand. You also want to create content that will further your own brand’s overreaching goals. Try to think ahead as to what the effects of successful content would be for your brand and how you can create it to have those effects.

3. Who would be the best person to develop your content?
There are some people who just know the ins and outs of creating content that will resonate with broad audiences as well as taper to individual audiences. You need someone who knows your brand’s image, mission, goals and journey. This person will have previous knowledge of what content worked best in the past and be able to utilize current culture trends to develop content that can be deciphered easily by a current audience. The final piece of content development is engagement. You want someone to write content that will spark a reaction and create a conversation about your brand.

4 Social Media Marketing Tips to Watch in 2018

1. The Rise of Micro-Influencers

In this digital-based era, word-of-mouth via social media is one of the most powerful ways to attract attention to your brand. In fact, eighty-eight percent of people trust online reviews written by other consumers as much as they trust recommendations from personal contacts. Make sure to utilize online word-of-mouth and encourage your clients to spread the word about your business.

2. The Focus on Generation Z

Gen Z are more inclined and likely to be on social media platforms than even millennials are. With this in mind, Gen Z will be the biggest group you will want to market to in terms of numbers and actual potential growth. Research which social media platforms are most popular among these young people and create relevant and original content that will grab their attention. Younger generations are very image and video-centric in today’s social media age, so keep this in mind when you’re creating digital content and trying to reach your target audience.

3. Brands’ Use of Messaging Platforms

More brands are starting to use messaging systems to create a personal connection with their audience and potential consumers. By doing this, brands create trust online by showing their audience that they are individually listened to and that each of their opinions are heard and noted. Don’t just reach out after feedback is given. Try to be proactive and reach out to loyal followers to show they are appreciated by your brand.

4. Impact of Call-Out Culture

Social media has given online users the power to call out brands. This can be used in favor of your brand or against it. Forty-six percent of online users have called out a brand online. Fifty-five percent of these people call out a brand to get a response or to solve a problem, and of these, thirty-five percent said they would never buy a product from that brand again if they didn’t get a direct response. Try to resolve issues over direct messages since each incident will be different from the next and last.

How to Market Your Practice in 2018

Create a blog.

Assuming that you already have a website, which you should, starting a daily or weekly blog on your webpage can add a personal tone to your site, as well as show that your site and business are still current. Instead of writing lengthy paragraphs and stories like you are probably more used to in your field, keep your content short, sweet, and original. This will keep your audience interested and engaged. Posting daily will make your site more relevant and get you higher results on Google and SEO optimization.

Have an accessible meeting place and easy contact information.

It can be confusing and frustrating for clients who can’t find your contact information or your office. You should have a Make sure that your office is local, central, and easy for your clients or potential prospects to find. In addition, you should ensure that there is a sufficient amount of parking available for your guests. You want to avoid clients thinking it’s a hassle to reach you, which can drive away business.

Send referrals often.

As you know, the business of law can get hectic, demanding and overwhelming. Sometimes, you can get bombarded with people who require assistance that goes beyond the scope of what you specialize in. Try your best to help as many clients in your specialized field of law. For the clients who will take more of your time or whose cases go beyond the scope of your expertise, you can send referrals to lawyers who you know would be best suited to help them in the least amount of time. This will show you have the client’s best interest at heart and increase their trust in you as a lawyer. Plus, this is a great way to network and get more clients referred to you in return.

Keep up with current events.

There is nothing more vital than staying up-to-date with your local news and news within your specific profession. Remaining in touch with what is happening around you means that you have an advantage over your local competition because your work will stay consistent with current laws. This will also help you properly assess any current legal needs and counsel people might come to you for.

5 Ways to Tighten Up Your Media Relations

Spring is a time for rebirth, new beginnings and a fresh start. As a PR professional, this can also apply to your work and the relationships you make and help to blossom. There are some key steps that the best PR pros use to improve their relationships with clients and journalists and improve their chances of success.

1. Do more research.

One of your jobs as a PR professional is to find data to back up what you are communicating. You must yourself fully understand the topic you’re writing about to communicate your intended message. Use data and find evidence to support your claims and to better convey your message to your audience.

2. Get to know your clients.

In this digital era, communication is now a two-way stream. You must treat each client like a unique individual with a unique story to tell. Better targeting equals greater success in the PR world today. There are online tools you can use that can help target the best journalists to pitch your stories to. This will increase your odds of getting your story written and help your business to be more time efficient.

3. Spend more time perfecting your writing.

Whether you’re dealing with events or crisis management in the PR world, many times, time is of the essence. You’re always going to want to try to get things finished as soon as you can. However, don’t forget that quality and correctness are just as, if not more so, important. Find the steady medium between quality and time management and work on improving your editing skills so you can perfect your work in less time.

4. Don’t forget to follow up.

Show you are a proactive and reactive PR professional by following up with the people you are working with. Most journalists appreciate PR professionals reaching out. However, don’t call multiple times before giving them a chance to call you back. Remember, they have a time frame they need to work with, too.

5. Consider pitching to new clients.

If you’ve already spent time reaching out to a journalist that hasn’t replied yet, try pitching to someone new. A journalist could just be too busy to reply to you that your story isn’t in their realm at the moment. Try pitching to other journalists who cover similar topics so you can get your story pitch read by the most pairs of eyes possible.