To no surprise, short-form video content has taken the world by storm. In short order, it has been redefining the way brands build awareness and increase user engagement. Today, PR and marketing professionals are growing more committed to expanding their short-form video strategies, and can you blame them? The facts are undeniable: 66% of marketers reported that short-form video is the highest ROI format Customers find short-form video to be 2.5x more engaging Short-form video ranks number 1 for lead...
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Running a social media marketing strategy is no small feat. A single post could have five layers behind the scenes before the “Publish” button is even tapped. One tool marketers can use is a social media editorial calendar to help keep teams on the same page as the social media beast gets fed. Using an editorial calendar not only keeps everyone on the same page, but it also creates efficiencies, establishes accountability and helps keep an overall balance of content,...
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Whew! You’ve finally walked across the stage, secured your diploma and landed your very first job in PR. Now it’s time to live happily ever after… right? Admittedly, that was my mindset as a new graduate. Don’t get me wrong, landing a position in my field of study has been a wonderful kickstart to my career. However, what professors and parents rarely tell you is what to do once you actually get your dream job. Breaking into the professional world...
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Adrienne Band stays busy. When she’s not sampling international cuisine at Blue Atlas or sending a new route on the face of Peak Experience’s bouldering walls, you’ll find our newest Hodger right where she belongs – with us! Adrienne was hired to be our account executive for the Virginia Spirits team. Before joining our team, she was a freelance creative consultant helping small businesses and nonprofits develop a range of brand identities and marketing collateral. She’s a Roanoke native and...
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I’m 100% sold on the concept of working smarter, not harder. And in an industry that constantly pulls you in different directions, optimizing your workflow is crucial to staying afloat (and creating meaningful, lasting content while you’re at it). When it comes to developing your content marketing strategy, you’re likely producing a lot of content to fill your various channels. Scheduling interviews and dedicating full days to content gathering to fill those social media editorial calendars can be a lot,...
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The pandemic completely changed the way we live, play and work. And while COVID-19 brought countless negatives, the virus also encouraged the world to rethink, revamp and revitalize age-old systems – like putting on real pants and going into an office five days a week. As the growing number of remote internships and career opportunities increase, it’s important to learn how to communicate effectively with members of your team in a new way. Here are five tips I’ve learned for...
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Influencer marketing is and will continue to be a very important part of a brand’s growth. Whether a brand is looking to partner with content creators to promote an event, seeking out someone to shoot images for a brand’s use or simply leveraging ways to enhance its image, it’s essential to know the most effective ways to work with influencers. As someone who has worked with influencers for over five years, I’ve put together six tips for working with them...
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As public relations professionals, we wear a variety of different hats for our clients. On a normal day, we can assume anywhere from five to six brand identities and write social posts for multiple industries – all while maintaining a consistent posting rhythm and prioritizing innovative content generation. While there is not one secret ingredient to boosting engagement metrics, there are helpful practices to implement and social media gurus to learn from. Speaking of social media gurus – Erica Schneider...
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Jack Gorman is no stranger to change. In fact, you might even say he thrives on it. Originally from South Lake Tahoe, California, Jack has spent his life moving from coast to coast. After receiving a degree in political science with a public service emphasis from the University of California, Davis, Jack began his professional career as a federal lobbyist in Washington, D.C., where he spent five years before moving to Seattle, Washington. Following this, Jack moved between California and...
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I was talking the other day to a longtime journalist who, about a year ago, came over to the “dark side.” He took a position doing public relations for a nonprofit organization. His role as head of communications is not atypical – media relations, writing content, organizing webinars and a dash of community relations thrown in. Like many journalists, he has made the transition seamlessly, and the skills that he had as a reporter have translated well to PR. He’s...
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I spent the first half of my career – if my math is right, about 22 years – on the client side, toiling in our profession in the government, at corporations and with startups. Most of that time, our communications resources were pretty self-contained – that is, we did what we could with the staffs and budgets that we had. There were occasions, however, when we looked beyond our walls for some added assistance. And there were three primary reasons...
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According to Statista, there were four billion email users across the world by 2020 and 99% of them check their email at least once per day. That's why if you aren't leveraging email marketing as a client offering, you're doing yourself a disservice. Email marketing may not be one of the first things you think of under the rubric of public relations, but it can be an important tool to increase brand awareness, re-engage audiences and repurpose and share original...
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