So…what exactly is a Social Media News Release? My guess was that it is some new way of distributing news to various publics through programs such as Twitter or Facebook; any social networking site.
A social media news release is a press release created specifically for the blog community. These types of releases are not formatted as a traditional press release. Instead, it offers a variety of multimedia content in a customized blog platform and can easily be shared on blog sites, Web sites and social networking sites, including MySpace and Facebook.
The content of the social media news releases, such as the core facts, quotes, contact details, and boilerplate information are separated into a user-friendly layout to allow individual exploration, unlike the information in a traditional press release.
Other content includes images, audio and video that is popular to many social media users.
Social media news releases are helpful for marketers and public relations practitioners because of the steady increase in today’s use of social media. The social media news releases provide “bloggers” with links to helpful resources that aid in research and the format is created so that information, quotes, citing references, etc. are easy to use.
This new tool also makes it possible to distribute news smoother and encourages news sharing through social bookmarks, tags, images and video, and subscription to RSS feeds which direct consumers or information seekers to additional useful data to fulfill our needs.
There are a variety of products which has received media attention via social media news releases such as Ford Motor Company’s promotion of the new Ford Focus, Gatorade’s sweat test and hydration analysis with Stanley Cup winner JS Giguire and Nutrisystem’s SMNR site discussing its product arrival to Canada.
In order to stay competitive within the industry various producers must be
· Findable
· Credible
· Believable
· Able to prove value
The first social media news release template was presented in May 2006 by SHIFT Communications, a mid-sized independent PR agency located in San Francisco and Boston.
What isn’t a SMNR?
Although the two main reasons for the use of social media news releases are to change the needs of the consumer and to increase the ease of use for the media, SMNRs are not:
· An alternative news distributor for untimely news
· An independent media tool to be used without conventional PR methods
· The quick-fix tool to change negative PR practices
· A tool to control the message through deception or persuasion
WHY this works???
The social media news releases seem to be more effective for a variety of reasons. They offer structured headlines, anecdotal content and persuasive blogging. In addition, consumers are able to view attractive text formatting on a non-traditional press release that gets straight to the point…no words are wasted.
It allows writing for regular readers, search engines, and socially driven sites, which in turn has an effect on its media usage.
By: Brittney Watson
2 comments:
I really enjoy the bulleted format for the SMNR. I think that it not only helps bloggers, but also journalists to sift through information and pick and choose what they want to use... instead of writing it for them.
In this day of age, Social Media News Releases are important as a new, savvy means of reaching people. Sometimes it seems that one day, everything will be electronic, and paper and pencil will be passé.
I wonder in this technologically advanced age, if journalists or other professionals ever miss the "old-fashioned" methods of new releases? Are professionals, perhaps, losing sight of the personal relationships that the PR industry is based so much on? I agree that SMNR are essential for the ever changing industry, but it is worth considering that some targets still enjoy the tangibility of holding a news release in their hand.
-Brittany Raines
Post a Comment