Tweeting Your Way to Media Coverage

I’ve been working in PR for over two decades and, even to this day, nothing makes me happier than when I land a great piece of media coverage for a client. To me, this joyful moment happens when three elements come together in unison: a great pitch, a solid relationship with a reporter, and the right timing.

Once upon a time, great media relationships were built over lunches, press conferences, phone calls and in-person media tours. But times have changed and so has PR. Today, while phone calls still matter a great deal, in-person meetings are rare. The good news is that we now have Twitter and it’s a huge and, I think, untapped, asset for building relationships with reporters.

Social media tips for your company from a 140-year-old museum. Really.

In PR, case studies are like gold. People love reading about companies or people that did something cool or interesting that they can borrow and do for themselves.

This is the story of an unexpected case study: a 140-year-old museum focused on fishing and art in a coastal Massachusetts town. It’s not a huge, well-funded museum like the Met in New York or the MFA in Boston. It’s the Cape Ann Museum in Gloucester, Mass.

Founded in 1873 as the Cape Ann Scientific and Literary Association (catchy name, right?), the Cape Ann Museum has lots of works about the history of Gloucester, the nation’s oldest fishing port, but also an art collection by the surprisingly large number of artists who’ve lived on or been inspired by Cape Ann.

Marketing Real Estate to Millennials: 10 Things to Know

The numbers are astounding: Approximately 4,400 apartment and condominium units are under construction in Boston, Cambridge, and Somerville, according to my friend Paul McMorrow, who did the math. But that number is only half of what is in the pipeline in the same geography. From Jackson Square, to Downtown Crossing, the Seaport to Northpoint and Assembly Square, that’s a lot of housing – and it’s a lot to hit the market within a relatively short time period, making the competition for consumer mind-share fierce among developers.

But first, who’s going to live there? Since all of these units are urban, and quite a few will be super-small “micro units,” it’s clear that developers are targeting Millennials, also known as Echo Boomers. There are about 80 million of this cohort in the U.S. Born between 1980 and 1995, they’re the largest population group since the Baby Boomers.

Welcome to Wonderland: The Social Media Edition

In the digital age, the landscape of every industry can change with the click of a few keys and the push of a button. Business moves faster than it ever has before. We are all constantly looking for ways to keep up and stay on top.

Social media is no different. Right now, it’s a lot like falling down Alice’s rabbit hole and looking for the right treat to eat so you can unlock the door and, hopefully, not get lost in what is clearly a topsy-turvy world.

Consider me your social media Mad Hatter, guiding you through the strange changes of digital Wonderland’s top social media platforms.

Twitter is the new Instagram?

So, LinkedIn Says You’re Not a Thought Leader?

With hundreds of definitions swarming around the phrase “thought leader” it can be hard to define for some. Thought leader is typically defined as a person (or business) who is an authority or expert in a specific field. This individual can be seen as the “go-to” person for opinions, expert commentary, future predictions, etc. Though if you ask some PR people, they may define thought leader as any of their clients. With that said, the title of thought leader can be pretty easily thrown around in our industry, especially when everyone wants their client to be forward-thinking or, excuse my language, “groundbreaking.” Unfortunately, last month, LinkedIn gave most of us a wake-up call by releasing a new thought leader feature. The verdict? You’re probably not one.

How to Create a Viral Video

Anyone with a cat (or a kid still under the influence of laughing gas from the dentist) can make a video and receive a lot of hits on YouTube. But there are also a lot of bad videos out there – that might get some hits – but will make you look ridiculous. Not in a good way.

So if you are a business or a mission-focused organization, here are four keys to making a successful viral video.

Four Simple Rules for Posting Comments

Content is king – you’ve heard that before. Granted, there should be a healthy focus on content creation in today’s marketing mix, but one of the core beliefs at InkHouse is that content by itself – even great content – falls short. Content needs to be shared, it needs to grow and it needs to engage in order for your thought leadership foothold to increase. This is where a strong seeding program (i.e. InkHouse’s Content Bureau) can set your content apart.

One of the most effective ways to seed your content is to interact with existing content – articles, blog posts, even tweets. For the sake of this post, let’s focus on blog posts and articles. Almost all writers like a comment on their article or blog post – journalists have told InkHousers that they appreciate a article comments much more than a “rapid response” email – so it’s a great place to engage with influencers and drive them to your content.