Hybrid Approach to PR – Social Media vs. The Wall Street Journal

In the age of Twitter, does a mention in The Wall Street Journal, or a similarly respected business publication, carry the same weight anymore? Perhaps. Everyone wants to be able to say, "We got in to the Journal." For many, this holds more of an allure than, "We're up to 253 followers on Twitter!" Can your public relations efforts really be effective in a 140-character context? Yes they can! But traditional media mentions can be just as effective provided you maximize their effectiveness by: 1. Posting the article to your website. Post an abstract, with a link to the article, or obtain permission to post the article in its entirely on your public website. 2. Circulating the clip internally. As with the posting of the article to your external website, your internal audience is still important for brand awareness. 3. Tweeting about the article on Twitter, providing a link. Write something that draws attention to the article and then add the shortened URL. For maximum promotion, ask colleagues, coworkers, vendors and others you work with to re-tweet your posting. 4. Joining LinkedIN Groups and Sending News. LinkedIN has thousands of groups made up of your target audience. Join these groups and then you can add a link to the press mention within the Group News section. Monitor your posting for feedback and comments. 4. Asking the sales team to forward to clients and prospects. Having a mention in a top-level business or trade publication helps communicate your company's value proposition to your prospects and clients. Forwarding a media clip via email is a great way of sending a heads up, a way to check in, and also a way to tacitly inform their audience that, "Hey, we know what we're doing—we even speak to reporters at The Wall Street Journal."