Last week we discuss why you should be using data in your PR and gave you 5 examples of how you can utilise data in your PR campaigns.
Examples of utilising data in PR campaigns
PR and marketing can take many shapes, and while experience and a good grasp of market conditions can guide strategies that resonate with the target audience, data provides the confidence that your advice and plans will be impactful and truly authentic.
Here’s an idea of how data can be integrated into the various elements within the PR toolkit:
SEO and Backlink Strategies
- Data’s Role: SEO and backlink-building efforts rely heavily on data, such as keyword performance, search rankings, and domain authority. SEO tools provide insights into how well your content ranks for relevant search terms and how backlinks from media placements or partnerships improve your site’s visibility.
- Benefits: Data helps PR teams identify keywords to target in press releases, blog posts, and other content, ensuring higher search engine rankings. Additionally, tracking backlinks helps assess the quality and quantity of media coverage and its impact on SEO.
Crisis Management
- Data’s Role: During a PR crisis, real-time data from social media and news outlets is essential for assessing the scale of the issue and public sentiment. Tools like social listening platforms provide insight into how fast a crisis is spreading and which areas of the conversation need immediate attention.
- Benefits: By using data, PR teams can respond more effectively to negative publicity, address key concerns, and prevent the crisis from escalating. Monitoring sentiment in real-time ensures that responses are timely and on-target, helping to protect the brand’s reputation.
Event Planning and Promotion
- Data’s Role: Whether organising a product launch or hosting a corporate event, data helps ensure that the right audience is targeted and that the event is promoted effectively across various channels. Analytics can track registration rates, engagement with event announcements, and social media buzz leading up to the event.
- Benefits: Data helps fine-tune event logistics, from selecting the best location to determining the right time for promotions. It also provides insight into the channels that drive the most RSVPs or registrations, allowing for more strategic planning in future events.
Influencer Marketing
- Data’s Role: The success of influencer marketing is heavily dependent on data to determine which influencers have the right audience, engagement rates, and content alignment with your brand. Tools that analyse influencer performance, audience demographics, and reach are crucial in making informed decisions.
- Benefits: By using data to select influencers, you can ensure higher ROI on influencer campaigns. Data allows brands to match their messaging with the influencer’s audience, ensuring greater authenticity and engagement.
Thought Leadership and Opinion Pieces
- Data’s Role: Data can support thought leadership by providing evidence-backed insights that strengthen your brand’s position as an authority in the industry. Sharing proprietary research, survey results, or industry trends adds credibility to opinion pieces and thought leadership content.
- Benefits: Using data-driven insights in opinion articles and leadership columns can make your content more compelling and newsworthy. Journalists and audiences are more likely to engage with content that is supported by hard facts and statistics.
How to get data to leverage in your PR campaign
Understanding that you need data, and knowing how to use it is all very well and good, but how do you know what data is relevant, and where you access it from? Fortunately, it’s not as challenging as it might first appear;
- Internal Data: Your own business is often a treasure trove of data. Website analytics, CRM data, and customer surveys can reveal important patterns about who your audience is and how they engage with your brand. By assessing internal data, you can uncover trends and use them to inform your PR messaging.
- Social Listening Tools: Platforms like Brandwatch or Hootsuite allow PR professionals to track conversations about their brand or industry on social media. Social listening helps you understand how people are talking about your brand, what their concerns are, and which trends are gaining momentum. This information is crucial for developing a PR campaign that is in tune with current sentiments.
- Surveys and Polls: Conducting surveys can provide fresh, exclusive data that can be the foundation of your campaign. For example, if you’re promoting a new product, running a survey about consumer preferences can offer compelling insights that journalists will find valuable. Data from surveys can also be used to validate your PR message, making it more credible.
- Third-Party Research: Industry reports, market studies, and white papers offer a wealth of data that can support your PR campaign. Referencing credible third-party data can bolster your story by aligning it with broader trends or highlighting your company’s alignment with industry growth.
Incorporating data-driven insights into various PR and marketing activities enhances both strategy and execution. From media outreach and social media campaigns to content creation and influencer partnerships, data ensures that efforts are targeted, efficient, and measurable. By using data, PR and marketing teams can optimise their campaigns for greater engagement, credibility, and ultimately, better business results on behalf of their clients.
