Twitter leadership claims the 11 year-old company is no longer just a social media platform, but is moving toward being the world’s leading source of breaking news and information.
CEO Jack Dorsey didn’t mince words when he released a memo to employees sharing his vision for what he wants the $16 billion company to become.
“People choose us for news because we’re the fastest,” Dorsey said. “Fastest to get news, and fastest to share news with the whole world. Now let’s strive to be the first. The first place people check to see what’s happening … and the first place to break what’s happening.”
So what does this mean to those in the PR industry and our clients? For one, it means it’s a legitimate source of breaking news that shouldn’t be taken lightly. Below are some tips and examples that can help companies put forward their best effort whether making an important announcement or implementing tactics to raise their profile.
- Announcements: When announcing product launches, company updates and industry recognitions or awards, create unique, catchy headlines to grab the user’s attention. One strategy for writing compelling social media headlines is making them urgent, useful, unique and ultra-specific, as outlined in this Forbes article. They can also pique curiosity like this tweet for LightStream, an online lender that recently built a forest in Times Square to celebrate its national tree planting program – a tree for every loan.
- Post visual content: Incorporating captivating photos can help clients increase reach and presence. Currently there are more than 350,000 tweets per minute, highlighting the importance of posting content that pops. When posting to Twitter, adding an eye-catching image – like this one from Mercedes-Benz USA – helps information stand out in a cluttered feed.
- Repost content: Amplifying earned media and blogs on social channels helps reach audiences where they are and allows readers to digest news at their own pace. Sharing news more than once across multiple networks also helps increase clicks and views for any given story or blog. One company doing this well is L.L. Bean, who gives their earned media an additional push by posting links to LinkedIn and Twitter.
- Tag reporters and media outlets on social posts: By tagging reporters, we give our clients a greater opportunity to be seen by that individual’s Twitter followers. Additionally, it helps build relationships with reporters who often ask us to tag them on social media because it increases their audience and click throughs.
Research this year from Pew indicates more than two-thirds (67 percent) of U.S. adults report getting at least some of their news on social media, while 20 percent say they rely on it for a larger portion of the information they consume. Expect these numbers to continue on an upward trajectory.
As design director at Cookerly, Tim serves as the creative lead in the development of branding campaigns, print collateral and digital media for clients across a broad range of industries, including consumer, professional services, healthcare and technology.
As a senior vice president at Cookerly, Mike Rieman is a strategic communications leader specializing in media relations and reputation management. With a proven track record of securing high-profile placements in top-tier outlets such as The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, CNN and USA Today, he excels at crafting compelling narratives that resonate across print, broadcast and digital platforms.
Mike Touhill is vice president at Cookerly Public Relations, where he helps lead traditional, social and digital media programs for B2B and B2C clients in packaging, telecommunications and technology, among other industries. As a communication leader, he develops and executes public relations strategy, provides proactive and reactive counsel to C-level executives and secures earned media coverage for client initiatives and product.
Andrew Agan is a vice president at Cookerly Public Relations, overseeing the agency’s internship program and leading media relations, content strategy and social media initiatives. He provides counsel and executes campaigns for clients across various sectors, including finance, healthcare, hospitality, technology, automotive and many others. Andrew excels at crafting compelling stories and building media relationships, resulting in clients being featured in notable outlets such as CNBC, Associated Press, Business Insider, Fox Business, HBO, Inc. Magazine, Sirius XM, The Wall Street Journal and USA Today, among others.
As vice president of Cookerly, Sheryl Sellaway uses her extensive corporate communications background to lead consumer PR efforts, deliver strategy for marketing programs and share expertise about community initiatives.