WHEN IT COMES to successful social media campaigns, content is king. And knowing how to craft compelling content is critical to stand out and connect with your audience. Equally important, however, is your strategy for its execution.
Intelligent brands have found success in the most unpredictable of circumstances by leveraging engaged audiences to their advantage. They’ve invested resources, spent time building relationships with their online community and have a good feel for when to strike while the iron is hot.
Remember Oreo’s tweet during the power outage at Super Bowl XLVII (2012) in New Orleans? Within minutes of the Superdome going dark, Oreo tweeted out an ad saying, “You can still dunk in the dark,” which left Twitter buzzing about the cookie brand.
The concept is known as newsjacking. Google it, and you’ll see newsjacking is defined as “the art and science of injecting your ideas into breaking news stories to generate media coverage and social media engagement.”
Looking to capitalize on the next trending news topic?
Follow these simple steps:
1. Stay informed. Know what people are buzzing about when developing your content strategy.
2. Be creative. Identify different ways to convey your message during a social media phenomenon.
3. Keep it simple. Your message should always be clear, concise and focused.
4. Act quickly. When it comes to newsjacking, no campaign is buzz worthy after a week of brainstorming. Join the conversation as it is happening.
5. Be prepared. Have the necessary tools in place to communicate swiftly and decisively.
It’s a definite balancing act when deciding whether to react or refrain.
The last thing you want is to sound disingenuous or force your way into a conversation where you don’t belong. Remember you can always live to fight another day. If done correctly, though… well, you’ll strike social media gold!
