Tag Archives: Infographics

#Infographic of the Week: Journalists LOVE Images & Videos

 

In 1911, Arthur Brisbane was quoted in an article on publicity and journalism saying that pictures speak a thousand words. Fast forward more than 100 years, and while this remains true and more pertinent than ever for PR and communications professionals, the simple truth is that not enough people are taking any notice.

As you can see from my #Infographic of the Week, the journalists of this world clearly love images and videos, but the reality for PR and communications folks is that they don’t see it. And, I see this reality every day, as only a small percentage of the press releases my team distributes contain images or videos.

In a world where journalists have clearly stated they LOVE images and videos, and in a world where social media and online PR are taking over, the need for images and videos is greater than ever. There are so many reasons why your press releases and other content would benefit from an image or a video, and with the growth of visual networks, visual engagement and visual content marketing also highlighting why you need to include images and videos in your content, I think this infographic from PRESSfeed is a sound choice.

And so, without further ado, here is my #Infographic of the Week:

#Infographic of the Week - PR Newswire

#Infographic of the Week: The Inbound Marketing Funnel

 

This week, I’ve decided to take a break from storytelling and content marketing and bring you something a little different: The Inbound Marketing Funnel. Created by First10 and Smart Insights, my #Infographic of the Week highlights the five steps of inbound marketing – plan, reach, act, convert and engage.

For those who don’t know much about inbound marketing, it’s essentially the opposite of outbound marketing. Outbound marketing is about cold calls and trying to get your foot in the door in the hope of making your target like you, while inbound marketing is about creating a warm and friendly environment that brings people into your sales funnel. Simply put, the two are in stark contrast to each other.

Inbound marketing is a product of the social world we now find ourselves in. It’s about two-way, interactive communications; it’s about letting customers find you, not dragging them kick and screaming; it’s about providing real value to your customers; and it’s about entertaining and educating.

Of course, inbound marketing starts with content, and to quote the infographic, “Content is the fuel that drives the inbound effect…content is the conversation starter and problem solver…and it’s the only way to develop a strong presence in search engines.

To put it another way, if you are not creating content, if you are not distributing content to places that people can find it, and if you’re not using that content to engage with your customers and other stakeholders, you’re really selling yourself short.

OK, so I’ve turned this back into a post on content marketing. Sorry about that, but if you haven’t noticed by now, content marketing is essential for your business, and, in my defence, I did say it would only be a “little different.”   :-D

With that in mind, and without further ado, here is my #Infographic of the Week:

Inbound Marketing Funnel - PR Newswire

#Infographic of the Week: 8 Tips for Telling Your Company’s Story

 

So my search for infographics continues, and while I’m taking a break from content marketing this week, I am visiting my old friend, storytelling. I love the whole concept of storytelling. Stories are what dreams are made of, and just like I remember sitting glued to the TV when Jackanory came on, you too can win over your audience if you know who they are and what they aspire to achieve.

With that in mind, my #Infographic of the Week is all about telling your company’s story, and how to get started. The eight points within the infographic offer simple, but effective tips on how you can become a corporate storyteller. By doing such, not only can you achieve your goals, but your stakeholders can also achieve theirs.

However, while all the points make sense, it was actually point six that stood out the most for me. I’ve been with PR Newswire now for nine years and nine months, and in that time PR Newswire has definitely changed. In fact, one of the most important stories we tell here at PR Newswire is about exactly how much we’ve changed and the reasons why. When I joined we were a newswire service that distributed press releases. There were a few other things, but as an editor, my job was simple. Over the years, this has changed; not because I’ve been promoted, but because PR Newswire is now so much more than a newswire service. I could talk for hours about these changes and how they’ve helped us become a bigger and better company, but I can honestly say that these changes have also helped our clients achieve their goals, which is just as much the point of it all. It’s been quite a ride, and as I look forward to my 10-year anniversary, I can look back with pride at what stories I have to tell, but I can also look forward with excitement about the stories that are still to be written.

So, without further ado, please enjoy my #Infographic of the Week.

Tips for Corporate Storytelling Infographic - PR Newswire

And…kudos to Ann Handley at Marketing Profs, and Veronica Maria Jarski, for putting this together.

 

#Infographic of the Week: Content Creation

 

As my ongoing quest for great infographics continues, it seems I am running into more and more about how to master content marketing. While content marketing has been at the forefront of many minds for the last few years, it’s clear that as Google continues to revamp its search algorithms, even more focus is being centred on how to make good, quality content that can be both found and shared. And, if you are one of the small number of  marketers that isn’t thinking about this…oops!

Created by Designbysoap, my #Infographic of the Week looks at the six all important components of successful content marketing: Research, Ideas, Placement, Creation, Publishing and Promotion. In doing so, it offers a simple but inclusive approach to producing the right content, as well as ideas on how to ensure it reaches the right audience, providing both structure to your content and useful tips.

So, without further ado, please enjoy my #Infographic of the Week:

Content Creation Infographic - Beyond PR

To learn more about the six components, read the In-depth Guide to Content Creation.

 

#Infographic of the Week: The Gold Standard of Content Marketing

Content Marketing 2012

In my ongoing quest for quality infographics, I love it when I come across one that simplifies a process many before have over complicated. Content marketing is a hot topic these days and with 3 in 5 content marketers spending more on content marketing in 2012, as highlighted by this infographic, it’s clear that if you want your content to get found, read and shared online, you need to be thinking about this stuff too.

As the team at NewsReach point out, “Content Marketing is about the most effective way to harness content’s ubiquity and power. Individual pieces of content work to attract and engage web users, but when the pieces are combined, the effect can be dramatic.

I also like this infographic because it relates to all content. For example, let’s look at this from the point of writing press releases:

Original, Insightful, Comprehensive and Interesting ­– Hopefully a bit of a no-brainer. If you are writing press releases, you need to make sure that they are interesting and original. You don’t want to be copying from others, and you want to try to avoid the stale corporate speak. Think about storytelling.

In-depth, Rich & Accurate – When writing a press release, you want to provide enough information to prove useful, but you don’t want to over do it. Think about 400 or so words, and make sure your content is truthful. Don’t exaggerate or lie. Readers aren’t stupid, and you’ll pay for it in the long run.

Edited Well & No Spelling Errors – Journalists definitely won’t be interested if your press releases are filled with spelling and grammar errors, and neither will the general consumer. My team has made thousands of grammar and spelling catches this year, which is a great kudos for my team, but a worrying sign for those producing the content initially.

Unique & Well Presented – While there is only so much you can do with a press release, you can still ensure that your announcement is both unique and well presented. A great way to do this is by adding multimedia content, which increases the chance of your press releases being shared. Ever wondered what a well presented release looks like? Check these sexy examples from adidas, Reebok and Johnnie Walker. I bet even though many of you don’t read Chinese, you’ll all agree that these are unique and definitely well presented. Needless to say, the content was very popular across a variety of social media platforms.

Track Consumption & How it was Shared – One of the great things we are doing at PR Newswire now is helping clients monitor and track how their press releases are being consumed and shared. ROI is a big part of what we do here now, and that’s because we understand it’s a very serious part of your job too. That said, irrelevant of whether or not you use PR Newswire, you need to be able to track and monitor across a number of platforms.

It’s for these reasons that the below is my #Infographic of the Week:

#Inforgraphic of the Week

 

#Infographic of the Week: Storytelling v Corporate Speak

 

I read a blog post today on emerging PR trends, and within a few hours of reading that post by Sarah Skerik I came across this infographic, which highlights one of the key trends Sarah raised in her post – “storytelling.”

The infographic was created by The Hoffman Agency, and as Lou Hoffman noted, it was designed to show the “gap between the content developed by the PR function and the type of content needed by journalists, bloggers and other influencers.”

As Sarah points out, “Stories are sticky, stories are relatable and stories are effective:  these are the reasons why stories are the cornerstone of the content marketing strategies and social media programs that are becoming meshed within public relations.” It’s a well-made point, and one that I wanted to emphasize here.

It’s clear people have given up on corporate speak, and, for the most part, so should you. It’s just not very interesting. People want to be engaged by the content that you produce; they want to be entertained and captivated. People want to hear actual stories about your customers and how their lives have improved because they use your product or service.

It’s for these reasons that the below is my #Infographic of the Week:

#Infographic of the Week: Storytelling v Corporate Speak

#Infographic of the Week: Creating Valuable Content

 

I’ve seen even more infographics than usual over the last week, but I’ve chosen this somewhat older one based on a few things: 1. We all know the importance of content and despite numerous blog posts and infographics about content, this is one of the simplest and more informative graphics I’ve seen; 2. It’s 100% accurate; and 3. When thinking about what we do here at PR Newswire, I couldn’t help but give a smile when I first saw this, as our team of content specialists works tirelessly to help our clients with each and every step mentioned here. Let me explain:

Findable – All of your content distributed over PR Newswire is in XHTML format. Rather than bore you with the details, what this means is that your press releases are distributed with hl1 and hl2 tags and other key metadata.

Readable – Our team of content specialists are exactly that. If we think your content could be improved, we’ll let you know. My team’s job is no longer just about finding grammar mistakes; it’s about helping you produce content that readers will be able to understand and enjoy.

Understandable – Ditto. This is even more obvious here in Asia, as we look to offer support for clients who may be writing in a non-native language. We’re also making recommendations on a daily basis about when to use photos and videos to add greater meaning and clarity to content.

Actionable – All press releases distributed via PR Newswire need appropriate contact information so interested parties can take action and follow-up. Our site also has links to previous announcements from the source company, and we always encourage clients to include anchor text and their company’s website address. After all, driving traffic back to your company’s website is undoubtedly one of your goals.

Shareable – PR Newswire’s websites include numerous social media buttons to allow people to share content they find interesting. Our multimedia (Tudou, Youku, PPLive, etc.) and social media (Twitter, Facebook, Weibo, etc.) distributions also ensure maximum potential for your content to be shared online. All you need to do, as the client, is have an interesting story to tell. We’ll help do the rest.

It’s for these excellent reasons that the below is my #Infographic of the Week:

Create Valuable Content

#Infographic of the Week: Six Principles of the Social-Powered Enterprise

 

The latest #Infographic of the Week comes from the clever folks at Salesforce.com. The message here is pretty clear, and it’s one that companies need to hear if they intend to have a successful online communications strategy. You can no longer rely purely on the old method of doing things. Press releases still rock, of course, but communicators also need to see the light and look for new ways to communicate, listen, measure and engage, as they look to build stronger relationships with customers.

If you haven’t already, start thinking about these six principles and engage with us here at PR Newswire if you need to learn more about some of the measurement and engagement platforms that are available to you. You know; we do a lot more than just send out press releases :-D

 

#Infographic of the Week @ PR Newswire

#Infographic of the Week: Content Marketing Explosion

 

Content Marketing

Content is all about creating value for your audience. Content marketing is about creating original and shareable content that helps deliver results, and with an ever-increasing number of tools and platforms available to marketers, content marketing has found a new lease of life over the last 12 months.

Organizations of all sizes are realizing the power of content marketing as a way to build brand awareness, acquire new customers and leads and retain customers, and this is achieved by getting good-quality content out into the digital space.

The below infographic from BlueGlass really highlights the impact of content marketing and how it is being used by organizations today, and if you take one thing away from this, it’s that you need to do more than simply create content. You need to create content that is both exceptional and unique, and only then will you have truly worthwhile content.

Content Marketing Explosion

#Infographic of the Week: Press Release Optimization in 7 Easy Steps

The below infographic provides seven easy steps for effectively optimizing your press release, and was created by our very own Jamie Heckler. The reason I chose this as our first-ever #Infographic of the Week is because it highlights how issuing a press release doesn’t need to be a gamble. Carefully created content and accurate targeting is good SEO that will help ensure your message is heard by the people that it was intended for.

Read the associated post, in all its glory, at our global Beyond PR blog.

Press Release Optimization Infographic