Newsjacking: a PR/marketing practice wherein a brand creates content around a current news story to “inject their ideas,” with the intention that reporters will find it by Googling keywords/searching hashtags & include it to flesh out their articles or present a fresh angle.
Black hat: achieving goals in an unethical or deceptive manner. For the purpose of this discussion, we’ll define it as “an ethical frowny face“.
I have no idea how PR people did their jobs before the internet, but nowadays all smart marketers newsjack a little.
We stuff craft headlines with current keywords. We comment on trending topics and hashtag our thoughts so they make it into the Main Stream. We raffle off tickets to our big deal sports franchise and run ads with our city’s celebrities, because they’re hot & they get people’s attention.
For PR folks, it means no longer offering their clients to the media for comment, but preparing that comment immediately, garnishing it with a topical linkbait headline & letting Google bring the media to them. It’s earned media predicated on reporter laziness/desperation.
Does newsjacking feel a little too black hat to you?
I totally admit it, and it works. When Travel Manitoba released the ‘Manitoba Time’ slogan, I whipped up a visual reaction of a product: iPhone & desktop wallpapers. I even wrote an SEO-supercharged bald-faced lie as a headline, with a little asterisk to deflect culpability (I can do that; I’m not the media).
And this sort of newsjacking—cultural commentary, contributing to and expanding on a meme, idea or event—seems valid. The creator gives something back to the conversation.
But are we comfy with our news being padded with product placement?
I avoid tabloid journalism because bias makes me angry. I believe anything wearing the badge of ‘news’ is honour-bound to be fair, because people who aren’t educated enough to see through spin will take opinion as fact. And they’ll have few defences against subtle advertising.
@dmscott I'm reacting (naively, I'm sure) to the idea that our news contains product placements.
I know news and PR have a long relationship (but not enough about that relationship to write something glibly sarcastic. Put that in for me, willya?). The PR folks I’ve invited to comment have been rolling their eyes since the (coveted) second paragraph. “Erica,” they say gently, patting me on the head like a small, slow child, “things are the same as they ever were, just faster.”
It’s probably naive to think otherwise. I’ve been the subject of news articles and understand how crafted the images and quotes that go with them are. I know you need humans to make a good story.
So I ask my reporter friends to read between the attractively-spaced lines when you Google for a story. I know you need good stuff to get more eyeballs on your stories < sites < ads. But don’t get jacked.
I discovered David & his Newsjacking ebook on the Marketing Over Coffee podcast. Uneasy, I almost turned it off, but I’m glad I didn’t.
Social media success ultimately comes from the same thing as general social success: be a fascinating, compelling, genuine, supercool human being. But unless you’re an art star whose career hinges on publicity at all costs, there’s a couple topics you wanna stay away from, like religion, politics, and stuff that makes the Twitterverse go (rightfully) nuts.
Today’s case study: Uptown Hockey, an NHL-level sports management firm, express their opinion of marriage.
The backstory
The disaster
Very sad to read Sean Avery's misguided support of same-gender "marriage". Legal or not, it will always be wrong.
Don Reynolds of @uptownhockey 's email & phone #...tell him directly what you think of his "tolerance" ! uptownsports.ca">don@uptownsports.ca (905) 632-549
BP’s brand disaster is as large and ill-contained as its oil disaster. The popularity of @BPGlobalPR, a guerilla attack on BP’s lame brand disaster mitigation PR, shines a light on the death of brand in the age of social media.
“Branding” is a strategy to differentiate your product/org. To set it apart through look, experience, and “serendipitous” appearances in news (earned media) and awareness (advertising) streams.
What does “branding” mean when people disregard messaging? It means your product/org is judged based on its actions and public opinion thereof. Client-facing communications—marketing communications, PR, and brand interactions like special events—now need to centre on giving people something good to talk about.
Offering quality interactions (a great product, a great time, great customer service)
I have no idea how PR people did their jobs before the internet, but nowadays all smart marketers newsjack a little.
