Digital PR is a marketing strategy that involves creating intriguing content and pitching it to the media to land press coverage. This strategy can help improve your online presence and search rankings by winning you some high-quality links to your website. These links can help boost your SEO by making your website a credible source on the web.
If you've spent time creating digital PR assets, you want to ensure you get the most out of them. Luckily, there are several ways to maximize the impact of your assets and ensure that your efforts are well-spent. By taking a strategic approach, you can extract the most value from your digital PR assets and use them to drive traffic, generate leads, and build your brand.
Start With Strategic Content Creation
Digital PR is a link building tactic that leverages content-based assets to earn links from online publications, journalist placements, blogs, and content websites. Digital PR is typically data-driven through relevant research, studies, polls, and gathered online data to create a compelling narrative around a broad topic with the inclusion of graphical element(s).
You should also keep track of how your digital PR is performing. This means monitoring traffic to the asset and backlinks earned, how much engagement you're getting on social media, and how much media coverage you're getting. You can use tools like Buzzstream to track new link leads and help pivot your strategy when needed.
Finally, you must stay updated with what's happening in your industry. If a new, relevant topic comes up, you need to be ready to respond quickly and provide relevant content. This will help you stay ahead of the competition and show that your brand is an authority in your industry.
1. Manual Outreach
To truly leverage your digital PR assets, you’ll have to engage in a manual outreach strategy often used in link building strategies to request backlinks from other websites. In digital PR, manual outreach can help build relationships with journalists, bloggers, or influencers in your industry.
Manual outreach is actively reaching out to individuals or organizations through personalized communication — typically email. Here are some tips on how to conduct outreach for your digital PR campaign:
Research Your Targets:
Identify journalists, bloggers, and influencers who cover topics relevant to your industry or niche. Understand their writing style, interests, and the stories they typically cover.
Craft Personalized Pitches:
Tailor your outreach messages to each individual, mentioning specific articles or projects they've worked on. Explain why your story or pitch is relevant to their audience and how it aligns with their interests.
Offer Value:
Provide exclusive insights, data, or content that adds value to their audience. Demonstrate how your story or pitch can contribute to their content and provide a unique angle.
Follow Up Strategically:
Send polite and concise follow-up emails if you are still waiting for a response after your initial outreach. Be persistent but not pushy, and consider adjusting your approach based on any feedback received.
Leverage Your Network:
Utilize existing relationships within your network for introductions or recommendations. Mention any mutual connections or collaborations to establish credibility.
Be Timely and Relevant:
Ensure your pitches are timely and aligned with current events or trends in your industry. Demonstrate how your story is relevant to the current media landscape. It’s important to note that digital PR assets typically have a short expiration date. Once the asset ages, it can lose appeal and be replaced by a newer asset.
Respect Their Time:
Keep your emails concise and focused on the key points. Clearly state the benefits of covering your story and why it matters.
Measure and Learn:
Track the success of your outreach efforts by monitoring media coverage and engagement. Analyze what works and what doesn't to refine your approach continually.
By approaching manual outreach with a thoughtful and personalized strategy, you can increase the likelihood of building positive relationships with media professionals and securing valuable coverage for your brand.
2. Social Media & Forums
To get the most out of your digital PR assets, you need to reach as many people as possible to get your message across. One of the best ways to do this is through social media, where you can connect with people interested in your brand or message.
85% of Gen Z says social media impacts their purchase decisions. Using social media, you can create a community around your brand by engaging with your followers. Share your coverage, content, community news, and events with your followers to build trust, credibility, and relevance with them. But don’t stop there. You should also respond to comments and ask your community questions to keep them engaged and coming back for more.
You can also identify and build relationships with influencers in your industry to amplify your message and reach a wider audience. Influencers can provide social proof and credibility, enhancing the impact of your digital PR efforts — especially influencers who align with your brand values and objectives.
Lastly, you can use social media to improve your digital PR campaign by understanding what content works best for different channels. Social listening tools allow you to get detailed information on what your community is talking about and what content is most shared on specific platforms.
3. SEO
Digital PR activities contribute to building online authority and visibility, which directly aligns with SEO goals. Simultaneously, effective SEO practices enhance the discoverability and reach of digital PR assets, creating a loop of mutual reinforcement that can significantly boost a brand's online presence and performance. Here's a breakdown of how SEO and digital PR have direct effects on each other:
Backlinks and Authority
- Digital PR Impact: Public Relations efforts often involve securing media coverage, mentions, or collaborations with influencers. When reputable websites link to your content, it signals to search engines that your site is a reliable and authoritative source.
- SEO Benefit: Quality backlinks are a fundamental aspect of SEO. Search engines, like Google, view backlinks as "votes of confidence." The more high-quality backlinks your website has, the higher its authority, leading to improved search rankings.
Keyword Optimization
- Digital PR Impact: Crafting content that includes relevant keywords naturally is a part of a robust PR strategy. This ensures that your brand's messaging aligns with what your audience is searching for online.
- SEO Benefit: Keyword optimization is a foundational SEO practice. Integrating relevant keywords into your digital PR assets increases the likelihood of your content appearing in search engine results when users are looking for information related to those keywords.
Content Freshness and Updates
- Digital PR Impact: PR often involves sharing timely news, updates, and stories. Regularly creating fresh and relevant content is inherent in successful PR strategies.
- SEO Benefit: Search engines prefer regularly updated content. Freshness is a ranking factor, and periodically updating your digital PR assets signals to search engines that your content is current and valuable, potentially leading to improved search rankings.
Brand Visibility and Recognition
- Digital PR Impact: PR activities build brand visibility, recognition, and positive sentiment. PR enhances brand presence through media mentions, influencer collaborations, or social media exposure.
- SEO Benefit: Brand visibility is a crucial aspect of SEO, especially for branded search queries. When users actively search for your brand or related terms, a robust online presence established through PR efforts can increase organic traffic and improve search rankings.
Social Signals
- Digital PR Impact: PR often involves a strong social media presence and engagement. Shares, likes, and comments on PR content contribute to social signals that indicate the content's popularity and relevance.
- SEO Benefit: While the direct impact of social signals on SEO rankings is debated, there is a correlation between social engagement and increased visibility. Popular content on social media can attract more backlinks and organic traffic, positively influencing SEO.
User Experience Metrics
- Digital PR Impact: Engaging and user-friendly content is a hallmark of successful PR. Creating content that resonates with the audience and encourages interaction contributes to positive user experiences.
- SEO Benefit: Search engines increasingly consider user experience metrics, such as bounce rate, time on page, and click-through rate. Well-crafted PR content that keeps users engaged can positively impact these metrics, potentially leading to higher search rankings.
4. Paid Advertising
Integrating digital PR assets into your paid advertising strategy can significantly amplify your brand's reach and impact. Paid advertising provides a targeted and controlled avenue to showcase your digital PR efforts to a broader audience. Here's how you can seamlessly merge your digital PR assets with paid advertising:
Promoting Media Mentions: If your brand has received positive media coverage, use snippets, quotes, or visuals from these features in your paid advertising campaigns. This builds credibility and reinforces your brand message through the lens of trusted third-party sources.
Highlighting Success Stories: Incorporate success stories and case studies into your paid advertising materials. Whether in video testimonials, written narratives, or compelling visuals, showcasing real-world examples of your brand's achievements adds authenticity and persuasiveness to your paid campaigns.
Utilizing Influencer Collaborations: If you've partnered with influencers as part of your digital PR strategy, leverage the content created during these collaborations in your paid advertising. You can repurpose influencer-generated ad content to reach a wider audience and tap into the influencers' existing follower base.
Creating Engaging Video Content: Video content is a powerful tool in digital PR. Develop engaging videos that highlight key messages, tell your brand story, or showcase the impact of your products or services. Use these videos in paid advertising campaigns across platforms like YouTube, Instagram, and Facebook.
Interactive Ad Formats: Experiment with interactive ad formats that allow users to engage directly with your digital PR content. For example, use interactive elements like polls, quizzes, or clickable hotspots in your ads. This captures attention and provides a unique and memorable user experience.
Social Proof in Ad Copy: Incorporate social proof elements from your digital PR efforts into your ad copy. This could include customer testimonials, ratings, or awards. Social proof is a persuasive technique that builds trust and credibility among potential customers.
A/B Testing: Employ A/B testing methodologies to optimize your paid advertising campaigns. Test different variations of ad creatives, headlines, and calls to action to identify the most effective combinations. Use the insights from A/B testing to refine your approach and improve campaign performance.
By seamlessly integrating your digital PR assets into paid advertising efforts, you can create a cohesive and compelling narrative that resonates with your target audience. This synergy enhances brand visibility and ensures that your paid advertising reflects the authenticity and positive reputation established through digital PR initiatives.
5. Newsletters
Incorporating digital PR assets into your newsletters is a powerful way to maintain a direct and engaged relationship with your audience. Newsletters provide a curated space to showcase your digital PR efforts and connect with your subscribers. Here's how to make the most out of newsletters:
Feature Highlights: Include snippets or highlights of your recent digital PR successes in your newsletters. Whether it's a media mention, a successful campaign, or a compelling story, showcasing these moments helps keep your audience informed and engaged.
Exclusive Content: Provide exclusive content in your newsletters that is unavailable through other channels. This could be behind-the-scenes looks, in-depth interviews, or early access to upcoming announcements. This exclusivity encourages subscribers to stay subscribed and engaged.
Calls-to-Action (CTAs): Use your newsletters to drive specific actions. Whether it's inviting subscribers to share your recent PR content on social media, participate in a survey, or attend a virtual event, including clear CTAs encourages interaction and further amplifies your digital PR efforts.
Segmentation: Tailor your newsletter content to different segments of your audience. Use subscriber data to create targeted content that resonates with specific demographics or interests. Personalized newsletters demonstrate that you understand your audience and can significantly enhance engagement.
Leveraging newsletters as part of your digital PR strategy reinforces your brand messaging and provides a direct and personal connection with your audience. By strategically incorporating digital PR assets into your newsletters, you can amplify the impact of your efforts and foster a stronger relationship with your subscribers.
6. Virtual Events & Webinars
Virtual events and webinars provide an excellent platform to bring your digital PR assets to life and engage with your audience dynamically and interactively. Here's how you can effectively leverage your digital PR content in these settings:
Case Studies and Success Stories:
Highlight specific case studies or success stories from your digital PR efforts during the virtual event. Share concrete examples of how your brand has overcome challenges, achieved milestones, or made a positive impact. Real-world success stories add credibility and resonate with the audience.
Thought Leadership Discussions:
Host thought-provoking discussions or panels about insights from your digital PR initiatives. Invite industry experts, influencers, or internal thought leaders to share their perspectives on relevant topics. This positions your brand as an authority in the field and fosters engaging conversations.
Interactive Q&A Sessions:
Incorporate interactive Q&A sessions where attendees can ask questions related to your digital PR content. This allows you to address specific queries and provides valuable real-time feedback and insights into the audience's interests and concerns.
Networking Opportunities:
Facilitate networking opportunities within the virtual event platform. Encourage attendees to connect with representatives from your brand. Networking lets you directly discuss your digital PR initiatives, answer queries, and build relationships with your audience.
Live Demos and Behind-the-Scenes:
Conduct live demonstrations or behind-the-scenes glimpses related to your digital PR activities. This could include showcasing how a successful campaign was executed, giving a tour of your office, or providing a sneak peek into upcoming initiatives. Live elements add authenticity and transparency to your brand.
In the dynamic world of digital PR, maximizing your assets requires a strategic and multifaceted approach. By creating compelling content, diversifying distribution channels, optimizing for search engines, engaging with influencers, incorporating multimedia, monitoring performance, staying adaptable, and building a community, you can ensure that your digital PR efforts are not only effective but also contribute to the long-term success and positive perception of your brand.
