Here at BTCWire, we love a good press release. But we also know that press releases are often one part of a larger PR effort. This means they are not published in a vacuum but must work as part of an ongoing publicity effort, which typically includes social media content.
To get the full benefit of press releases, you’ll need to sync their publication with social media content from both your end and other stakeholders’. Not getting this balance right could lead to wasted effort, a lack of cohesion, and a poor reputation. In this article, we’ll touch on a few ways to ensure that your press releases work hand in hand with your social media content.
Planning Press Releases Alongside Other PR Efforts
One of the biggest mistakes you can make when putting out press releases is planning them as though they are separate from all other parts of your business. Having a press release set in motion and only then considering how social media comes into play means that you’ll be scrambling to catch up.
Instead, press releases and social media content should be planned simultaneously.
Say your business plans to launch a product on the first of October. Typically, your social media calendar would have been designed months in advance. You also likely determine the dates when press releases need to go out, which publications they need to be sent to, and much more. Always make sure that these are designed by the same team or, at least, that the teams collaborate regularly.
Rather than having your social media team have one collaborative platform and your PR team have another, make sure they use a shared platform. So, when one team member adds a piece of content to the calendar for the first of September, those on the PR side will see when it is coming out and can immediately determine how it affects their own activities.
Also, ensure that there are periodic meetings between the two teams and that every piece of PR content has an accompanying social media post. A press release announcing the product launch, due by October 1st, should include a corresponding social media post that goes out on the same day. By planning this well in advance, you reduce the chance of friction.
Manage Timelines and Deadlines
It’s not enough to plan social media content and press releases alongside each other; you have to hold every member of the team to timelines and deadlines.
Press Releases: Depending on the platform you want to publish on, your press release might need to be submitted several days in advance. Here at BTCWire, we offer under-24-hour publication for certain platforms, but it is still worth planning in advance for when the press releases need to be written, submitted, and ultimately published.
Social Media: While you have much more control over when social media content goes up, there are some limitations. If it is your own social media platforms, you need to determine how soon the content should be created, how long it will take for internal approval, and then scheduling.
There are other social media platforms besides your own, such as partner companies or even the publications you are submitting to; confirmation needs to be made days, if not weeks, in advance.
A good idea would be to use these productivity tools to have the deadlines and timelines for social media content and press releases clearly visible. That way, each team knows how much time they have to submit and get their assets approved, and everything can go through at the same time. There should be a strict deadline for when each piece of content should be published, and, as much as possible, these should be synced.
Content Similarity
Besides making sure that press releases and social media content are created and submitted around the same time, you should aim for some cohesion in the content itself.
We’ve explained in the past that press releases can be turned into social media content and vice versa. If similar wording, fonts, images, and so on are used in both the press releases and the social media content, cohesive branding can be achieved.
Once again, this justifies why press release and social media teams should work side by side and have some visibility of each other’s work. If the social media team is creating posts while able to view the press releases, they can ensure that one mirrors the other.
Troubleshooting
While all this collaboration and syncing is taking place, there are a few pitfalls that all involved should be aware of.
Embargoes: Many press releases are issued with embargoes, meaning the information within them must not be revealed to the public until a specific date and time.
The social media team should be briefed on this and made aware that certain content cannot go live until the press release is published. Likewise, every sample press release sent to the social media team for reference should have the word “embargo” at the very front in red lettering.
Platform Rules: Both social media content and press releases published on various websites are subject to certain content and platform rules. Depending on the publication, you must meet certain formatting requirements to avoid rejection and delay.
On social media platforms, there are various rules to prevent posts from being taken down, accounts from being banned, and more. Make sure each team is aware of this and that the content they are creating adheres to all rules.
Conclusion
If press releases are synced with social media, the public can be informed of important developments in real time, brand identity can be reinforced, and all teams working behind the scenes can enjoy greater cohesion. But there has to be some intentional planning to achieve this.
As we’ve outlined in this article, all content was developed in sync from the beginning; timelines and deadlines must be met, as must platform rules. To get your press releases to the best publications within your desired timeline, check out our packages page or reach out to us directly here at BTCWire.