How to use social media sites to enhance your PR connections
By Bhawna Sharma on May 6, 2009 in PR2.0, mediarelations
Most of us today are active on various social media sites and in fact, some of us use these sites in our day to day work. So what are the various sites we can get started with?
One of the ways I have used social tools successfully in my PR job is in the media relations bit – forming new contacts, pitching to journalists, getting fast information about the media, etc. Below are the top five sites for me. Which are yours?
1) Twitter: We have been hearing from everyone that journalists don’t have the time to read lengthy emails, or that the first couple of lines decide the fate of our pitch notes and press releases. How about now pitching to the media in 140 characters? Some marketing bloggers have already written about it, but how many of us have actually given it a try? Recently, not only I got the name of a tech journalist, I was looking for, from a Twitter friend but also organized a good telephonic interaction for my client on a very short notice using a Twitter pitch. An open question to friends asking if some media is doing story on a particular subject, say valentines day gifts, can result in some good opportunities. Direct messages to journalists have worked for me and can also for you.
I have also done a press release follow up by sending direct messages on Twitter to some journalists. However, you need to know or presume correctly, with much significant reasoning, beforehand if the journalist would mind receiving a direct message for a press release followup. Some journalists may not like this idea and can tweet about it, quashing all your efforts, which can then be bad for your and your client company’s reputation.
2) LinkedIn: One thing I have benefited the most from Linkedin is in finding information about a particular journalist. Everytime we have to create a profile of a journalist, we don’t have to depend on our colleagues, friends in industry, of friends in the media. We can use Linkedin, which will most likely have the updated information of the journalist you are looking for, and if you are lucky, chances are that you might make just a good connection.
3) Facebook: Facebook presents an easygoing atmosphere wherein you can play a couple of quizzes and have some Superwall comments exchanged with journalists, thereby building up a relationship that is harmless and friendly without being entirely business.
A friend on Twitter told me once that he has added many journalists as friends on Facebook and has also successfully organized interactions for clients through his Facebook contacts, resulting in good coverage. That quiz you played, an application you added to your profile or forwarded to your friends, some threads on group you are a member of, etc. could all be potential hooks to build story pegs on.
4) Gchat: Gchat helps you to remain constantly in touch with your journalist friends. Not only you can pitch them there but they also share their story themes and seek your help. They can also sometimes confide in you when they are running short on deadlines as it is just a message away, and they know you can reply instantly.
5) Journalist Blogs: Nowadays many journalists blog and have wrote about what they expect from PR folks – how would they prefer to be contacted and so on. This can provide good cues. Also, how about posting some opinion on their posts? That way, you get into their radar and next time you pitch, they might just possibly remember you.
The emergence of the social media rounds
Just as we regularly go for media rounds to media houses and meet up with journalists to maintain the ‘connect’, today I think it is increasingly becoming important to do what we can call ‘social media rounds’. More and more journalists are adopting the social media for various purposes – research, to voice their opinions in an unedited form, make connections, or just plain explore. Our half an hour social media rounds can sometimes in this situation become a good alternative to that of traveling all the distance to journalists’ offices and showing up with little or no announcements. Also, this serves another important purpose for PR folks – in understanding the culture of the new media by being an active participant.
So is using the social sites just to connect with journalists a plain deceit in disguise
While writing this post, I cannot help but wonder if this is like deceiving the journalists, if we use social sites to connect with them to just leverage our clients. There can be many sides to this debate. What I feel is that if we are open about ourselves from the start and we are not making anyone believe we are somebody else, then it should be fine. And if you become too irritating, they can always unfriend you. And if you provide them value, you can become a contact they are happy to keep.
Connect with me on Linkedin and Twitter.
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On May 6, 2009, meenakshi said:
well said Bhavna..all those you have listed out are extremely useful.. unfortunately I havent seen many folks utilise all.. the younger lot seem to be more focused on gchat primarily.. furtermore many organisations do not allow browsing on such networks…
On May 6, 2009, Shahnawaz said:
Nice compilation…
On May 6, 2009, n00b said:
“Below are the top five sites for me”
4) Gchat: – How is Gchat a social networking “website”. It’s a service :-/
On May 6, 2009, somit biswas said:
Social networking sites or social media or web 2.0 (whatever you want to call it) are definitely added tools which professionals of the day would do well to arm themselves with. Its a great way to stay connected and be on top of things pertaining to your interests. Careful observation will however reveal, that these are only a reflection or extension of your character on the web. You will not find a basically introvert person gaining much from having such weapons in their arsenal as far as their professional objectives are concerned.In fact they might act as distractions to their day to day work.On the other hand a gregarious and extrovert person by nature, can leverage these tools to great professional advantage.
On May 6, 2009, Palin Ningthoujam said:
Somit, on tha other hand, we have successful bloggers and active social media participants confessing being introverts in real life. Often these social media tools provide an non-threatening outlet.
On May 6, 2009, | Balu | said:
Well the problem is not all journalists are on twitter. There are very few who use “social networking” sites regularly. The same issue with linkdin too. Apart from senior journos, most guys who have been working for 2-3 years don’t have a profile there. So if you need to make a pitch via twitter you need to do some PR work for twitter first =D
On May 6, 2009, Roopa said:
I completely agree with you Bhawna. I like your clear and comprehensive write up on utilization of social media sites for PR activity. Though its the same I do while publishing anything, your article provides a clear picture for one to implement it objectively.
On May 6, 2009, Rahul said:
I wont say using social media tools to interact with journalists is any sort of deceiving. It depends on how well you build a rapport with a journalist through these tools and also what kind of value content you offer them. It’s a give and take scenario, journalists themselves use these tools to pitch for inputs for their stories, and on other hand the PR guys can offer them with content/ inputs for stories.
In all a nice post, and U finally giving out tips to your fellow PR colleagues.
On May 6, 2009, Manjari, VARIndia said:
Well I completely agree with you that how important these social sites are to build and maintain your Media relations. Not only PRs, even Media uses these tools to maintan good PR relations and pitch PR for their stories etc. Also, it is one of the fastest medium to get in touch.
But you can’t find a solace through these sites alone. I would like to highlight few points. First of all, some of these sites are not allowed in various organisations, (and it can be an imp. media house 4 u), then how will you contact the journalist there?
Secondly, media rounds are also important- just to give a face to the name. As a media person I know that reporters do like media visits by PRs.It just makes them feel very important. I can understand it can be very tiring for the PR to come all over facing the heat & dust just to say a simple Hi but still it works wonder.
A good PR should know how to maintain a balance between both the things- Media relations through social sites & physical media rounds. Depending on the time & situation, you can use either of the method. Both are equally important.
On May 6, 2009, Nimesh Shah said:
Greats ideas. Thanks for sharing them.
I believe that Social media sites and the medium per se is an end in itself. Using themto follow up for offline work is utilizing it partially. These platforms can in itself be used to share out brand info.
Also using FB for business purpose can be little tricky. I personally don’t add business contacts there and restrict is as a personal space.
What your post nicely highlights is that time has come to adopt social media in its true sense and inculcate it as part of daily working life.
On May 6, 2009, Anubhav Gupta said:
Hi, I am throwing a question for all…
Importance of good media relations for a communication professional…
or you think a well written pitch plays a larger role.
On May 6, 2009, Manjari, VARIndia said:
To answer your question Anubhav, I would say good media relations play a larger role. One need to be a good practicing PR, so that a Media guy can’t say no to you for any of your story idea even though its bit difficult for him/ her to feature your story. You should have that kinda realtion. But mind it, it doesn’t mean that you should get very personal with the media guy, maintain the distance.
Good pitch comes second, as it helps only when the company is a very prominent & renowned company and every publication wants to feature it/ or the story idea is relevant to current situation that every Media will take up the story.
On May 6, 2009, Palin Ningthoujam said:
there you go, straight from the journalist…
On May 6, 2009, Asfaq Tapia said:
Damn.. I was going to write abt this in a day or two. Good post! However, you fail to mention that while these tools help you keep in touch, they can be VERY invasive if not used with care. You need to make sure that if you want to maintain a professional relationship with the person, you stay away from commenting on albums or getting into commenting discussions that involve the person’s friends.
Thanks much!
Asfaq Tapia
Corp Comm-wala
Pinstorm
On May 6, 2009, Aditee said:
This days networking sites are really very helpful if used intelligently.I have added most of the journalists in my gtalk and most of the times i pitch stories to them via chat.Its saves you from the hassle of making a call……….
Cheers!!
On May 6, 2009, kanika said:
Some great ideas Bhawna. I especially liked the pitching stories via twitter one.
On May 6, 2009, sonal said:
very well written Bhawna, even i think Social Media is best to enhance the role of PR.
once for my client i had pitched to a blogger, he carried the review.At the same time we got around 50 hits for the same.
it was so brilliant.
On May 6, 2009, Muneeb said:
Good article … looking forward to another article talking about how corporates can use social marketing to enhance their brand value….
On May 6, 2009, Vijay Rayapati said:
Nice post – In India first we need to evangelize usage of social media tools among our critical mass like marketers,journos and PR friends then only we can see wide adoption and also people/brands will realize what kind of benefits social media can offer else it will be like people equating social media with social networks & saying I don’t have time for time-pass:).
On May 6, 2009, Yogesh said:
Social networking has moved much beyond casual talks .PR companies are aggressively using them for client pitch ,which i feel is fine to an extent. Overkill is not good in any form of communication ! In todays connected world and economic climate,even clients have stringent policy with PR agencies. So leverage your contacts on social sites .Happy Networking !
On May 7, 2009, Elizabeth said:
Interesting read Bhawna. I totally agree with Manjari regarding importance of media rounds to put a face on the name.
It is commendable how journalists politely spare few precious minutes (despite bn in midst of a story deadline!) to even meet PRs who at times pressumtiously drop by without taking an appointment.Hats off!!
On May 8, 2009, Bhawna said:
Thank you everyone, for your suggestions and feedback. This post is basically about how we can use online tools to leverage and strengthen our media relations and make our work life bit easier. However, Indeed, I agree that we need to go for media rounds and other suggestions given by industry or media friends.
Thanks for reading the post and keep commenting on what is your take on it.:)
Cheers!
On May 8, 2009, Freddy said:
Awesome insight!!! I completely agree with Bhawna’s article…
On May 11, 2009, Carpet Flooring Florida said:
social media now become very powerful but not aware that much about but as you described here on post, SM become powerful media to enhance PR Connections.
On May 27, 2009, Human Resource Management said:
Social Media did tremendous job to get people more closer via their interest, most powerful one of them is Twitter don’t know much about GChat but rest of the all are Great of SM.
On May 28, 2009, Sarah said:
Nice piece… But I can hardly find any Indian journalists on twitter. I think it’s still going to take some time for us to see a stronger presence on this platform.
On May 28, 2009, Asfaq Tapia said:
There are infact quite a few of them online: @arcopolc, @mahafreed, @kapilohri, @nixxin, @rajeshbarnwal, @sidin, @kushanmitra, @taranakhan, @rajivdingra, @pluggdin, @snolen, and @darenBBC, among others.
If you come across more, could you post them here?
Thanks,
Asfaq
On Jun 8, 2009, Payroll Service Florida said:
As Twitter goes high and response of People for Twitter. Social Media become part of life For Internet People.
On Jun 15, 2009, gas card said:
It is pretty much amazing the new opportunities that the social media websites have given the PR people and the media, I mean it such a huge difference being a PR person today, vs a few years ago, when we didn’t have the quick access to the information that we have now.
-Randy
On Nov 12, 2009, matt said:
social media is starting to control society. It seems like we’re becoming less social in person with the growth of social media sites? Anyone agree?
On Nov 12, 2009, Palin Ningthoujam said:
On the contrary Matt, social media enhances social communications, according to Pew http://pewresearch.org/pubs/1398/internet-mobile-phones-impact-american-social-networks
On Jan 28, 2010, hampton pizza restaurant said:
this is a great piece of work
On May 6, 2009, online_experts said:
How to use social media sites to enhance your PR connections … http://tinyurl.com/d75lop
This comment was originally posted on Twitter
On May 6, 2009, Bhawna_Sharma said:
Enhance media relation over socialsites http://bit.ly/zlcvs
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On May 6, 2009, rajeshlalwani said:
@Bhawna_Sharma enjoyed your social media piece on India PR
http://tinyurl.com/ipr-bhawna
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On May 6, 2009, palinn said:
Rt @Bhawna_Sharma: Enhance media relation over socialsites http://bit.ly/zlcvs
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On May 6, 2009, SaurabhSaggi said:
RT @palinn: Rt @Bhawna_Sharma: Enhance media relation over socialsites http://bit.ly/zlcvs
This comment was originally posted on Twitter
On May 6, 2009, Netra said:
RT @palinn Rt @Bhawna_Sharma: Enhance media relation over socialsites http://bit.ly/zlcvs : nice article , Bhawna
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On May 6, 2009, goutamsathia said:
How to use social media sites to enhance your PR connections http://tinyurl.com/d75lop Nice compilation @Bhawna_Sharma
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On May 6, 2009, howtotweets said:
RT: How to use social media sites to enhance your PR connections http://tinyurl.com/d75lop Nice compilation @.. http://tinyurl.com/djh7of
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On May 6, 2009, sonalchawla said:
enhance your PR connections through social mediahttp://tinyurl.com/d75lop
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On May 6, 2009, DianeMorgan00 said:
RT @goutamsathia: How to use social media sites to enhance your PR connections http://tinyurl.com/d75lop
This comment was originally posted on Twitter
On May 6, 2009, rahulsah said:
Nice post about how PR guys can use social media to connect with journalists.. http://tinyurl.com/d75lop
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On May 6, 2009, robertogo said:
How to use social media sites to enhance your PR connections … http://bit.ly/19r1BB
This comment was originally posted on Twitter
On May 6, 2009, carrieagroff said:
How to use social media sites to enhance your PR connections … http://bit.ly/JdB26
This comment was originally posted on Twitter
On May 6, 2009, bethmcshane said:
Enhance media relation over socialsites http://bit.ly/zlcvs
This comment was originally posted on Twitter
On May 13, 2009, abhinavsahai said:
sorry forgot the link in last tweet. India Pr Blog writes on power of social media http://tinyurl.com/d75lop
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On May 25, 2009, slidetv said:
How2use Twitter 2enhance PR connections
http://bit.ly/zlcvs
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On Jun 12, 2009, Lara Kretler said:
Thanks for including me, Aaron. My favorite PR/social media blog is Todd Defren’s PR Squared (http://www.pr-squared.com/). He’s extremely knowledgeable and a great writer.
@LaraK
This comment was originally posted on Bizzy Women