🏆 4 Ways To Create Stories For Your Brand
Elevate your comms plan beyond media coverage.
As we head into the new year, now is a great time to examine your communications plans. While corporate developments like new hires, product launches, acquisitions or funding are always great opportunities to make a splash, a well rounded communications plan makes the most of downtime in between news announcements. In order to maximize engagement, leverage a variety of platforms to create always-on storytelling opportunities for your brand to a variety of audiences.
TL;DR:
Communications is more than just media coverage. Sure, it’s always great to get press pickup, but a holistic communications strategy doesn’t rely solely on earned media. A well rounded communications plan creates consistent opportunities to share your brand message across multiple platforms.
The details:
The “rule of seven” may be an overused trope, but there is truth to it - the more frequently people see, hear and read about your brand, the more they will remember it. Consider exploring the following four tactics to help get your brand out there across multiple avenues:
Be Strategic About Partnerships
Aligning yourself with like-minded brands is an effective way to reinforce your brand message and get in front of a new audience. Whether it is something as simple as an email exchange, a social giveaway, a panel, a promotional event, or a large-scale industry initiative, there is power in partnership. Even though a prospective partner may not operate in the exact same industry as yours, there is still power in aligning with companies that have a similar ethos, culture, and corporate goals. What’s more, partnerships will typically extend across a variety of areas within your company, from marketing to social media to press coverage. As you develop a new partnership and contract, make sure you put some thought behind how the elements of the partnership can be leveraged for marketing, social media and press. Is your company already engaged in active partnerships? Ensure you’re getting the most return on your efforts by examining your partnership and seeing if there are opportunities that will help extend reach and drive more awareness of your initiative.
Leverage Your Grassroots Supporters
Influencer marketing often gets a bad rap - we’ve all seen the sponcon and “copy paste” jobs on Instagram. However, influencers can take many different forms and figures. There’s certainly a place for celebrity influencer work but many times, it might make more sense to consider building a grassroots ambassador network of people who are passionate about your space. While they may not have massive social media followings, you will be able to leverage an organic network of representatives who can help share your message, speak about your brand to their friends and even be beta testers for products. Start by working with your existing audience to see who would be interested in supporting your brand. As you continue to grow, you’ll develop a scalable network of passionate fans who are excited to speak and share on behalf of your organization.
Create and Share Content
Think about ways that you can create or share content with thought leaders in your field. Can you host a podcast with another leader in your industry? What about an Instagram live? Do a blog post exchange? Aligning with others operating within your space in a different capacity than your company not only enhances your brand and credibility, but it also allows you to reach new audiences and create new connections. It is a win-win for both parties.
Empower Your Employees With Messaging Tools
Providing your employees with the tools to clearly articulate your messaging should absolutely be a part of your overall communications strategy. If you have recently undergone a rebrand, updated narrative, launched a new marketing campaign, or entered into a new partnership, it’s a great opportunity to share refreshed messaging with your team (and to update your existing talking points and materials to ensure they aren’t stale). Share an internal company note that briefs all your employees on the initiative and why it’s key to your mission. Your employees are your best representatives and empowering them with messaging to speak on behalf of the company, whether on the job to customers or prospective clients, or off the clock with friends and family will only help to enhance your brand.
🤝Let’s work together. If you would like to learn more about Robin, or want to talk about your brand’s marketing, communications, and product development initiatives, contact us at hello@androbin.co.
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