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Generative AI is everywhere now. You see it in content, campaigns, customer experiences, and even internal workflows. It promises speed, scale, and efficiency, but there’s a harder question sitting underneath all that progress; Do your audiences actually trust it?

Trust in the Age of AI: What Consumers Really Think About AI Generated Content

Today, PR teams aren’t just tracking media coverage and share of voice. They’re also measuring how their brand shows up in AI-generated answers, search summaries, and large language models (LLMs). This new LLM visibility layer is quickly becoming a critical part of PR performance.

15 Must-Have PR KPIs and How to Track Them

See how one platform can power every decision across PR, communications, and marketing.

The Meltwater Blog

Blog Topics: Generative Engine Optimization, Media Intelligence, Media Relations, Social Listening, Consumer Intelligence, Influencer Marketing

Find out how you can leverage Facebook to boost your brand's online presence and gain a competitive edge. Explore the Meltwater category page today!

Facebook Blog | Meltwater

Find out how you can leverage Instagram to boost your brand's visual appeal and gain a competitive edge. Explore our category page today!

Instagram Blog | Meltwater

Find out how you can leverage LinkedIN to grow your professional network and gain a competitive edge. Explore the Meltwater category page today!

LinkedIn Blog | Meltwater

Find out how you can leverage TikTok to elevate your brand with creative content and gain a competitive edge. Explore the Meltwater category page today!

TikTok Blog | Meltwater

Find out how you can leverage X / Twitter to engage your audience effectively and gain a competitive edge. Explore the Meltwater category page today!

X / Twitter Blog | Meltwater

Find out how you can leverage YouTube to create engaging video content and gain a competitive edge. Explore the Meltwater category page today!

YouTube Blog | Meltwater

Generative Engine Optimization (GEO) is transforming how brands show up in AI-powered search. Explore insights, strategies, and best practices to help your content rank and resonate across conversational engines like ChatGPT, Gemini, and Copilot.

Explore insights and strategies for Generative Engine Optimization (GEO) to help your brand stay visible and discoverable in AI-powered search.

Generative Engine Optimization (GEO) Blog Collection | Meltwater

Every day billions of conversations take place on social media: tweets, posts, comments, blogs, reviews, podcasts, and much more.
Learn how to use social listening to make sense of all of that data.

On our social listening category page, you find all our blogs covering topics around social listening and social media monitoring. Read more.

Social Listening Blogs | Category

Business Reputation Management: What does it take to add reputation management to your marketing strategy? More importantly, how do you keep your reputation sparkly and shiny? Here’s your all-access guide to online reputation management for the long term.

On our reputation management category page, you find all our blogs covering topics around business reputation management. Read more.

Reputation Management Blogs | Category

From your brand's logo to your website, your social media presence to your customer support—these elements combined are what constitutes a brand in the minds of customers. But, there are thousands of other businesses that have a logo, website, social media presence, and website. So, how can you position your business on the market and make it stand out from the competition?
The key to success is branding & brand management!

On our brand management category page, you find all our blogs covering topics around brand management. Build your strategy and reach your goals!

Brand Management Blogs | Category

Competitive intelligence and the act of collecting competitive data can be seen as growth drivers for a company. Our guide will help you understand the concept of competitive intelligence (CI) by answering questions such as: What is the definition of competitive intelligence? How is competitive intelligence useful to organizations? What is the goal of competitive intelligence? And more.

On our competitive intelligence category page, you find all our blogs covering topics around competitive intelligence. Learn how to stay ahead.

Competitive Intelligence Blogs | Category

Let’s dive into the customer journey framework and how to optimize the process by creating a customer journey map and using metrics that matter when analyzing the customer journey.

On our customer journey category page, you find all our blogs covering topics around mapping and understanding the customer journey.

Customer Journey Blogs | Category

What Is Data Analytics? [Beginner’s Guide 2023]
How can I grow my business? 
How do customers interact with my newly launched product?
How do I increase the productivity of my employees?
How do I know if my marketing efforts are working?
We have just two words for you...Data analytics!

On our data analytics category page, you find all our blogs covering topics around AI and data analytics. Technical and still easy to understand.

AI & Data Analytics Blogs | Category

Public relations and media relations can add impact to any marketing strategy. It’s an opportunity for brands to grow their reach beyond traditional sales messages. PR helps to shape the image you want people to have of your brand.
So, what is PR and how do you use it? This guide shows you everything you need to know to build a strong public relations foundation.

On our public relations (PR) category page, you find all our blogs covering public relations and communications topics. Step up your PR game.

Public Relations (PR) Blogs | Category

We all know exactly what the roles of sales or accounting are in a company, right? We might even have a slight idea of what the IT guys are doing.
But there is another business discipline, that plays a crucial role in organizations, even more so during the pandemic – internal communications!
But what exactly do we mean by that, what purpose does it serve and what steps can you take to ensure you and your employees will communicate effectively?

On our internal communications category page, you find all our blogs about internal comms topics. Learn about the intranet, internal newsletters, and more.

Internal Communications Blogs | Category

As the internet has taken root in more areas of our lives — everything from entertainment to shopping to paying bills and more — traditional marketing is becoming less impactful. As any marketer knows, you need to focus on where your audience is if you want to reach them. Since the average person spends about seven hours a day online, it’s no surprise that content has maintained its hold on marketers.

Here's a closer look at what content marketing is and why it matters more than ever in our digital-first economy.

On our content marketing category page, you find blogs about content marketing topics. Learn about strategies, KPIs, tips, and more. Make your content king!

Content Marketing Blogs | Category

The rise of the influencer marketing space – today a $10 billion industry, growing 50% per year – is one of the clearest examples of how social media is transforming traditional marketing. These days having a business website, presence on social, PR coverage, and your own content isn’t enough to compete.
We'll dive into the intricacies of influencer marketing to help ensure that you're equipped with the insights needed to be successful in this space.

On our influencer marketing category page, you find blogs about influencer marketing topics. Build your strategy, find influencers, and measure results.

Influencer Marketing Blogs | Category

Have you just launched a new product or service that you want to get the word out about? Maybe you want to share with consumers why it is awesome and how it is so much better than the one your competitors offer.

Well, then, there is one thing you can't do without...Marketing!

On our marketing category page, you find blogs about marketing topics. Learn about all the different angles and types of marketing and improve your results.

Marketing Blogs | Category

In this guide, we want to give you a peek into the definition of social media management, the daily schedule of a social media manager, social media platforms to promote your business, and the do’s & don’ts of social media management.
Are you ready to begin the journey of becoming a social media superstar?

On our social media management category page, you find blogs about social media management topics. Build and manage your online community.

Social Media Management Blogs | Category

Building a following and using social media platforms to reach a wider audience requires a well-planned social media marketing strategy. In this guide, we’ll be looking at why social media marketing is so essential and how you can make it work for your business.

On our social media marketing category page, you find blogs about social media marketing topics. Learn how to get the highest paid social ROI!

Social Media Marketing Blogs | Category

In the fast-evolving realm of digital marketing and public relations, utilizing the right tools is crucial for success. Our interdisciplinary category showcases all the pertinent tools for digital marketing & PR. These tools help in enhancing your online presence and effectively reaching target groups, whether through reputation management, influencer marketing, or social media management.

On our digital marketing and PR tools category page, you find all our blogs covering topics around mapping and understanding the customer journey.

Digital Marketing & PR Tools Blogs | Category

Personality-based Marketing: Communicating with Customers as Individuals Through AI

You’ve no doubt seen ads and received emails for certain products and thought, “That’s useful, I actually really want that…”, or been similarly amazed when you’re genuinely interested in your suggested content on social media.  Far from feeling pushy or annoying, we’re usually happy when it seems like someone has taken the time to understand us and our needs.

But how often does this personality-based marketing actually happen?

Whilst marketers can get a rough idea of the content and products that will be most useful and engaging to individuals, this outline is built on basic demographics which are only surface deep.  Things like purchase history, digital footprint, age and gender might give us correlation, but not causation. They show us how the individual has arrived at their destination but give us absolutely no insight into how or why they actually got there.

This is a problem because it treats individual users like mere statistics, which are then analysed in a spreadsheet, giving no real thought to the individuality and personality behind the outcomes of their unique decisions.

So, is there a way to better understand what actually drives their decisions?

And if we did, could we improve their online experience further so that they receive communications personalised for them?

This is exactly what personality-based marketing does. Put simply, it delivers communications to a customer based on their personality. This results in content that the customer wants to see, rather than content they have to see. 

Most marketing messages – even if targeted based on certain demographics – are delivered in exactly the same way to various different people.  We would never do this in real life when speaking to people we know, so given the option… why would we continue to do this with our customers?

Our personalities underpin how we think, feel and, most importantly, act. By tailoring communications through personality-based marketing, we can increase engagement and therefore reduce the need to send multiple emails i.e. less spam. By using personalised images, words and colours that really resonate with the individual, and focusing on features they will care about, we can build a more engaging user experience for every unique customer.  Over the long-term, we can also build far better relationships by connecting with them on a more genuine level, meaning we continue to understand them more deeply and can provide them with better and more useful products.

However, to do this we need to know the personality of the user and how they prefer to be communicated with. Historically, this hasn’t been easy to do for even a handful of customers, let alone thousands or even millions. Fortunately, advances in AI have now made this possible at scale by utilising algorithms that can effectively model underlying personalities that drive a host of different decisions.

But before looking at the results this technology can give us, how exactly do we define a customer’s personality and more importantly, how can it help organisations?

Personality models are a scientific method used to segment customers in a way that enables us to effectively predict their behaviour. Through this method, we can leverage decades of impartial psychological research to build up a better picture of why people behave as they do.

Rather than simply dividing your client base into groups with similar demographics and behaviour – age, gender, buying history and so on – personality models can help you actually understand deeper motivations.

For example, figuring out what motivates urban-dwelling professional women in their 30s to purchase your products and services requires careful research. Whilst this might work well in certain cases, it doesn’t scale well (or fast) as you add new groups or new products.

This differs from a traditional approach in that different personalities respond to stimuli in unique ways. By studying these responses, we have been able to build up an understanding of how appealing different elements – words, images, colours, fonts, layouts – will be to each personality. This allows us to segment customers much more effectively, before tailoring content and marketing messages to their unique personality profile.

However, the effectiveness of this method depends on the model of personality you use. At DataSine, we rely on the widely accepted Big Five, which has been statistically validated using a technique called factor analysis, rather than being based on the opinions of a handful of people and placed into a theoretical model.

The first step towards rolling out a personality-based marketing strategy is looking at data that demonstrates decision-making, such as:

Engagement with marketing campaigns, on social media, etc.

These decisions can then be used to inform an algorithm which associates them with personality traits. To give a very simple example, through our extensive research we know that people who spend more money on restaurants and bars are more likely to be extroverts, while people that spend more money in bookshops are more likely to be introverts.

We have also built an accurate understanding of content appeal into this algorithm – for instance, that extroverts are more likely to prefer bright images containing lots of people. This is done by asking different individuals to rate the appeal of a variety of content (words, images, colours etc.) and linking this appeal to their personality.

Using this algorithm, we can analyse transactional and behavioural data, score each customer against the Big Five dimensions and predict in advance exactly how appealing content will be to them. It is this ability to predict that gives personality-based marketing an advantage over tools such as A/B and multivariate testing. While these are great for optimisation, they can’t predict the future behaviour of users.

Personality-based Marketing in Practice: DataBank case study

With retail banking clients, the information used to build personality profiles is typically about where customers choose to spend their money. In this example with DataBank (name changed for privacy purposes), we used one years’ worth of debit card and credit card spending data for 500k customers.

Once the personality profiles of every customer had been determined, the customer base was segmented according to their strongest traits. In the case of DataBank, we focused on six personality segments:

You may have noticed six traits above when we mentioned that we used the Big Five earlier. This is because the Big Five traits each exist along a continuum, so on the “extraverted” trait, we also have “introverts”; “competitive” is on the same continuum as “agreeable” and the same with “open-minded” and “traditional”.

Using this deeper understanding of DataBank’s customers, we tailored content to deliver a personalised user experience to each of them. Many types and elements of content can be customised according to customer personality, including:

In this instance, we were focused on personalising images and copy in marketing emails.

Create variations based on target personality segments

As we were using six different personality segments in this campaign, we needed to create six new variations of this the desired email campaign.

The header image of the original email is analysed and tagged. In this case, with things like ‘travel’, ‘airplane’, and ‘airport’. Similar images that would offer greater appeal to a particular chosen personality segment are offered.

Text can be personalised at the level of the individual words (e.g. changing ‘wonderful’ to ‘enticing’) and sentences (e.g. focusing on the scarcity of the product rather than the quality), again according to what appeals most to each identified personality segment.

In the case of DataBank the main KPIs were click rates and conversion rates (i.e. the percentage of customers that completed the credit card sign up form after clicking through to the landing page).

Using personalised messaging tailored to the personality segments, we were able to increase click-through rates by 59% and conversion rates by 22%. And, because our algorithms use AI, these numbers are likely to increase with time as the algorithms become more and more adept at understanding the drivers of individual personalities.

These results are not so surprising when you consider that currently, the typical marketing email conveys the same message to very different people.

Whilst we do not need to change the overall strategic message of a campaign, or the tone of a brand to suit everyone, we can present these things to our individual customers far more effectively using personality-based marketing.

Using a hybrid approach that utilises AI while retaining the strategic and creative capabilities of marketers, we get the best of both worlds and can treat every customer as an individual and see the increases in engagement and sales to match.

Personality-Based Marketing

Starting a new business is always a gamble, but there are brands approaching this seemingly monumental task by flipping the traditional business model on its head. These social-first brands are making strides by experimenting with content, corporate social responsibility, delivery models, customer service, and good ol’ fashion PR comms. Let’s see what we can learn from these pioneers.

It’s now taken for granted that some businesses are so entwined with a social channel experience that you can’t imagine them functioning without social media. We call them social entrepreneurs.

Consider Warby Parker with their 2010 launch that sent try-on packs of eyeglass frames to interested consumers, who would often then take photos or make videos of themselves. Absent a retail associate, they would ask their social media followers to weigh-in. 

And because they had an initial business model that didn’t require a storefront, the employees would create Youtube videos to answer customer questions.

Warby Parker | Eyeglass Adjustment and Fitting

While they were creating a new way to do customer service and delivery for the optometry industry, the brand managed to build, by 2018, a 1.75 billion business with a social innovation arm. And though they are now invested in a brick-and-mortar strategy, their brand’s success has inspired other companies to reconsider the traditional approach to launching a business.

In one way or another, social media has reinvented go-to-market strategy, marketing, comms, and even human resources. And while we won’t necessarily deem it a trend, we’ve noticed that consumer brands are using social media to build not just their brand but their business strategy. They’re the first generation of businesses that didn’t have to shoe-horn social into their comms program, they’re social-first companies.

In these examples, if social media didn’t exist, these companies wouldn’t be what they are today. And interestingly, we found that the social entrepreneurs that had the most success with this strategy were with consumer products that in a previous generation could find a similar model in the subscription or mail order/catalog model.

In 2016, after selling vintage clothing for 15 years, Alia Meagan saw a missing link between the vintage market and current tastes. Fast forward to 2018: Meagan now designs an in-house line, producing pieces in California, with a vintage aesthetic that she sells via the brand’s Instagram feed as well as via its website and storefront in Los Angeles. What aided Courtyard La, (as well as Glossier, also on this list) is that Meaghan had a clear aesthetic and a sizable Instagram following interested in her point of view. Without having intended to, she built a fanbase and community, primed to buy new clothing with vintage appeal. Social media enabled her to veer from one-of-a-kind purchases to a viable mass-market business strategy, what you might call transforming from show-and-tell to show-and-sell.

Just in! 🍬 Some cute fall coats now listed on site. Link in bio.

GLOSSIER is the brainchild of Emily Weiss, 31, who launched her influential beauty blog, Into the Gloss, in 2010. Weiss made an impact with creative content that included makeup reviews and went into the closets of celebs such as Selena Gomez. Weiss felt like there was a gap in the beauty market and she sought to fill that hole by launching Glossier on Instagram in 2014 with only four SKUs. “Our products and thesis was like a dossier,” Weiss says of the name. “It’s like building into the additions of different things and different times of a woman’s life, her journey.”

“We operate solely through social channels,” she says. “You are allowed to get, by leveraging technology, a better brand with immediate results. We know our customer, what she’s purchased, and put her on her journey. If she likes Haloscope, maybe she’s a makeup girl and will like lipsticks.” Her deliberation with the brand matches her business strategy: “You can be profitable if you go wholesale and narrow down to 5 people tomorrow. But we’re creating an ecosystem. We are digitizing beauty.”

They work better when they get to work together. 📷 by @_andreathe #glossier

Girlfriend Collective is a sportswear company, launched in 2016 with an eco bent, which also aims to fill a gap, here in the direct-to-consumer activewear space. Based in Seattle, the founders, Quang and Ellie Dinh, felt that they could craft a brand, that from the start, was transparent and aligned with their values. And what are those values? Environmentalism, fair labor practices, and a clean design aesthetic for a few well-made garments. Manufactured from recycled water bottles and fishing nets, the brand designs and makes leggings, sports bras, and tees. Launched on social media, primarily on Facebook and Instagram, Girlfriend Collective uses specials (like “Buy leggings, Get a free bra”) to get potential consumers to engage.

“We know for us, if we can get a few users to click through and fall in love with the brand, they’ll share,” Dinh says. He explains, “You see the content, you see what we’re doing, you see the campaign and you read our ‘about’ page—that’s what we want consumers to do, not just redeem a free pair of leggings. We want them to be fans and fanatics, and show their friends.”

With Girlfriend Collective rolling out seasonal colors and staying true to their eco roots, backed up by product copy that tells you exactly how many water bottles go into your leggings, it seems the brand is on an upward trajectory. And, other more well-known brands are taking notice, with Everlane making an announcement that they too would use recycled water bottles for their ReNew outwear collection.

VinylMe, Please was conceived by two roommates that bonded over a record player they shared in their small apartment. To feed their love of vinyl, they began collecting and soon began placing ads to sell some of their finds on Facebook in 2012. With a chutzpah indicative of founders, the duo declared themselves the best record club looking for members to sign up. The thing is, they didn’t have a record club until those first members signed up. The first vinyl they shipped as a record club came much later than the ads in January of 2013.

On the surface, Vinyl Me, Please is a throwback to a retail model that flourished in the late 20th century. For those of us who grew up pre-Internet in the 1970s and 80s with vinyl LPs, tapes, and CDs, joining a record club was one of the best ways to get indie music that wasn’t on commercial radio. And, with Columbia Record Club in the game since the 1950s, it was also a cheap way for the masses to purchase music via the postal service.

Where Vinyl Me, Please differed was in their approach to marketing, with an eye on influencer and social media marketing, the team used micro-influencers (before that was a term comms folks used) to make playlists and push their monthly subscription model. Being music lovers themselves, the founders capitalized on an age-old social phenom that exists amongst that ilk, the need to share and discuss music.

The founders of Vinyl Me, Please understood both social media marketing and influencer marketing (before it was a widespread practice) and used both to grow their subscriber base. They’re still growing their base by entering relationships with record labels and brands for special edition pressings and reissues, and of course, advertising on social media.

Announcing our August ROTMs

Essentials: Mitski ‘Be The Cowboy’ 
Rap & Hip Hop: Queen Latifah ‘All Hail The Queen’ 
Classics: James Booker ‘The Lost Paramount Tapes’

Dollar Shave Club launched in 2012 with a Youtube ad that went viral. The ad, surprisingly, still holds up. And the ad world and internet agreed, awarding the spot with “Best Out-of-Nowhere Video Campaign” at the 2012 AdAge Viral Video Awards and with two Webbys in 2013.

It seemed the time was right for a razor subscription model. And while the Youtube video was enough to get people interested, well-placed ads on Facebook sealed the deal. By 2013, Dollar Shave Club was a household name. By proving there was a working subscription model for razor blades, the team behind Dollar Shave Club introduced a new niche that was suddenly very attractive to traditional market players. By 2015 they were big enough players in the razor industry that traditional players like Gilette felt compelled to sue them, on the premise that they were producing counterfeit blades. 2016 brought the biggest change with Unilever purchasing the brand for a reported $1 billion. Since it is impossible to buy virality, one wonders where Dollar Shave Club would be without Youtube and a charismatic founder, adept at storytelling?

DollarShaveClub.com - Our Blades Are F***ing Great

PR Takeaways on Social Entrepreneurship and Brand Building

(1) Have a Good, Differentiated Product or Origin Story

The thing these brands have in common is that they offered an alternate approach, a different point of view than others in their industry. So, maybe the idea of razors isn’t new, nor is brightly colored activewear, but mix in some magic like a subscription service or the feeling that you’re doing good for the environment by buying workout clothes? Well, you then have a story behind the brand a social media fanbase can get behind. And with the “why” in place, you’ve done the preliminary work of laying a foundation for a strong brand story. And, as we know, stories lead to interest, loyalty, and sales. 

(2) Have a Plan B and C that Shows off Your Content

Social entrepreneurs are tied to their channels of choice. Or are they? The pitfall of interacting with your community and customers on a third-party platform is that the platform can change its algorithm or change its interface in a way that is unfriendly to businesses. In extreme cases, the platform can unexpectedly shutter. So, even if most of your engagement and referrals come through a platform like Instagram, make sure you have a business website or an account on a retail platform like Etsy.

Think of social as a mirror of reality. Assume your audience conducts their entire life on social platforms. Social media isn’t just a place to pass time, it’s where everything happens. Social-first businesses know their audience is immersed and that social media use has woven itself into the everyday. You can use a social listening tool to better understand your audience and keep up on trends in your community and product area. Take it a step further by finding influencers to amplify your story. It’s easier to plan what to offer when you absolutely know there is a ready buyer.

While this might be the hardest to-do on this list, it’s one of the most important things you can do for a brand on social media. The good news that if you have #1-4 in place, a rabid community is likely to follow. Nothing beats superfans as brand ambassadors to promote products that they use only a daily basis and believe are best in class. Word of mouth marketing and its progeny, influencer marketing are exploding because they align with how consumers ask for opinions and advice from humans. On this list, women who live in urban centers know of Glossier’s Boy Brow, even if the brand isn’t sold in Sephora because you can bet one of their friends or coworkers have used the product before.

If you find these examples inspiring and want to break new ground by launching brands in the age of social media, a good place to start would be by identifying business and industry trends to find your niche and opportunity!

Social Entrepreneurs: 5 Consumer Brands that Started on Social

The changing media landscape will continue to shift. As technology increases the speed of communications (you can’t really get any faster than real time without mind reading…), the way brands interact with the media also changes. While some of us prefer to hold a paper copy of our favorite magazine or daily newspaper in our hands, like it or not, the world has gone digital and many traditional media outlets are feeling the squeeze. Print publications are shutting down operations and media outlets are pushing resources into building digital versions of the news to not only keep up with consumer behavior, but also to keep up with the news cycle.

Enter social media. We don’t wait to hear breaking news on a news broadcast at a specific time, or in the newspaper the next morning when the “big story” breaks. Instead, stories are breaking on social media as they happen and reporters and editors are scrambling to be a part of the news rather than falling behind.

Media outlets consisted of traditional TV, radio, and print, but now it has expanded to include many more digital channels where influencers are the mouthpiece rather than well-known reporters and reputable news names.

The age of social media has allowed a new era of media where creators and influencers have achieved online celebrity status by amassing a network of followers who trust what they have to say. This network tunes in to watch videos and read blogs on a regular basis to get the latest news on a variety of topics whether lifestyle-related, business-related, etc. It’s a new world of heavily opinionated and sometimes owned content in a world where your target audience has instant access to information.

Change can be difficult, but in this case, it’s a huge opportunity for brands. Here are five ways brands can benefit from the shift in the media landscape.

New digital channels mean that brands themselves can become influencers within their industry and target audience. A business owner can become a thought leader by developing a great blog, or a brand can have a viral social media profile, it just takes a littler work. There are great opportunities to publish branded content (both paid and non-paid), so the focus can be put on a targeted content strategy rather than hoping that a media outlet will pick up the story – fingers crossed the messaging is clear when it’s published!

Alternatively, brands can partner directly with influencers on a one-on-one basis to develop unique exclusives that will resonate with their target audience. There is a more involved creative process when putting together a successful influencer strategy. This also allows for highly targeted individual pitches to media and influencers. The emphasis is on quality, not quantity.

Brands can either connect directly with audiences through their own branded channels or through influencers with an already-established reach. Building trust through direct relationships is important when it comes to establishing a brand following. If you can work with an influencer who has already built that trust through authentic communication, then you can leverage that.

Whenever I work with clients on media strategies, television is always the ultimate goal. However, the reality is EVERYONE is looking for coverage on the news and daytime lifestyle shows. The way the media landscape is configured now, brands have the opportunity to connect through video both through their own branded channels as well as via influencers. Having a visual library to pull from also attracts attention from producers in certain media circles. Remember that you should develop a content strategy that includes both written and visual content. Print media, even in digital form isn’t going anywhere just yet.

Social media is constantly evolving, and the accessibility of live streaming options like Facebook Live, Instagram Live, YouTube Live, and many more means that brands and influencers can connect with their audiences in real time. You don’t have to be on all channels, but you should consider channels that make sense for your brand. And if you’re not at the very least Tweeting live from your events, you should really get on that…

As more information goes out on social media, the media pulls story ideas from there. 80% of journalists research their stories on social media. If you can manage to build a bit of buzz on your social channels about your brand, then they may pick up the story. You are creating your own valuable public relations opportunities.

Change doesn’t have to be scary. Media relations has changed significantly in the past decade because of the changing media landscape and it will continue to change as the world goes even further down the digital rabbit hole. It’s best to embrace it rather than fight it.

This was originally posted to this site on May 22, 2016. We repost articles that our readers may have missed the first time around. It was written by Candace Huntly for the SongBird Marketing Blog and Business2Community and was legally licensed through the NewsCred publisher network.

PR and Marketing Trends: Navigating Changing Media Landscapes

We’ve updated our list of top PR blogs. We, once again, included Twitter chats and a forum so you can consume your PR news and insights in whichever form you prefer. And if you’re wondering what stellar podcasts we’re listening to, what blogs help us write articles, or why measuring your programs will make you better at PR, we’ve got you’ve covered there too.

As busy as PR pros are, they’ve got to stay current on the latest pr trends, tools, and best practices for the comms industry. Since everyone’s to-do list is a mile long, we’ve put together the top PR blogs to help keep your reading on point—with smart insights, do’s and don’ts, and examples of the best and worst PR campaigns in the industry. From big media properties like AdWeek to small niche agency blogs like Talking Points Blog and live Twitter Chats like #ContentChat, it’s everything a PR pro could want—and what we read on the regular.

Ragan’s PR Daily bills itself as a “one-stop shop for news on PR, marketing, social media & more.” The site serves as an industry hub with content that runs the gamut of how-tos, videos, ebooks, career development, and think pieces. Recent posts include: How to use chatbots to expand your Facebook following and a study about PR pros optimism about the future. Carlin Twedt, who runs comms for Ragan, also hosts a weekly Twitter chat on Tuesday at #RaganChat on hot topics in PR.

PRSA, the largest PR organization in the US, publishes PRSay, subtitled “The Voice of Public Relations.” The blog’s goal provides professional development for those looking to succeed in the field. We like PRSA so much, we never miss their annual international conference.

Influence and Co. have bridged the gulf that often exists between PR and content marketing. Known for their PR work, they’ve shifted gears are now a Content Marketing agency that also does PR. Their posts reflect this new strategy and now focus on SEO, content for the sales team, and Content Marketing ROI. Since their strategic reframing (from PR-focused to Content Marketing), we think this may be a harbinger of the shifting public relations industry to come. If you’re interested in how the canary in the coal mine is doing, keep updated by reading what they’re writing on a near-daily basis.

This international award-winning agency shares their experience steering the world’s top brands to communications glory. They invest considerable resources to uncover the trends shaping the industry. For instance, the recent 2018 Edelman Earned Brand report shows that the market is being transformed by the rise of the “belief-driven buyer” and provides pointers on how to leverage this trend in future campaigns. They also offer great insights on building a comms career plus behind-the-scenes observations on what it takes to run a global agency.

Gartner L2 Digital IQ Index covers PR by highlighting news on specific brands and their PR campaigns. Punchy titles like Snap and Tesla Are Losers and Luxury Goes to the Street Side tee up PR lessons we can all learn from. Content particularly shines when the editors compare consumer campaigns and assess the success and failure with verifiable data. The biting tone and well-researched posts make this an essential read for comms pros hoping to up their game.

The PR Week blog covers breaking news, crises, memes, and their take on the success of current PR and marketing campaigns. Since they’re two decades old, they have a long tail vision of the PR industry and a good eye for the developments you’ve got to stay on top of. They recently covered the crisis timeline of the Elon Musk tweet: “Social media outbursts from Tesla CEO Elon Musk have cost the company in terms of fines, market value, and executive Twitter privileges.” To read PR Week is to understand the comms ecosystem.

Social Pro Daily covers the ins-and-outs of social media. Since the editors are on top of feature announcements, keeping an eye on their updates might be all you need to do. They post 3 new articles per day and cover practical topics such as Instagram: Instagram Rolled Out Nametag: Customizable, Scannable Codes That Lead to Users’ Profiles, Twitter’s Data Saver Feature Was Added to Its iOS, Android Apps, and WhatsApp: Here’s How to Delete a Message. After all these years, they’ve proven to still be the best coverage of the social media channels we use every day.

Ben Thompson pedigree includes Apple, Microsoft, and Automattic. Not too shabby as brand names go. He now writes Stratechery, offering jam-packed analytical posts and daily updates (delivered via emails) that will make you the smartest person both at the water cooler AND happy hour. Check out his recent post about Instagram’s founders, the evolution of the platform, and how they beat Snapchat with Facebook’s backing. He explains: “Probably the pinnacle of Systrom and Zuckerberg’s collaboration — extraordinary product leader and ruthless CEO — was Instagram Stories. Systrom freely admitted that the concept was copied from Snapchat; as I noted at the time, that would certainly be good enough given Instagram’s larger network.”

PR Couture aims to be a resource for fashion and lifestyle communicators, no matter where they are in their career trajectory. The site reports daily on news, PR strategies, career opportunities, and noteworthy community members. In their own words: “PR Couture is the industry-leading platform and sourcebook for fashion and lifestyle communication professionals.” Recent posts include “10 Pitch Angles and Social Media Content for October” and “Solo Publicist Tips for Success.”

Formally know at The Holmes Report, PRovoke features long-form articles, interviews, podcasts, videos, and reports, such as The Global Communications Report with “…unique research into the trends, opportunities, and challenges that define the global PR industry.” Their Agency Playbook is the PR industry’s most comprehensive listing of firms from every region and speciality; it’s an invaluable guide for keeping up on partnerships and researching PR verticals.

SpinSucks is for an audience of both PR students and professionals. The majority of posts are penned by Gini Dietrich, founder, and CEO of Arment Dietrich, an integrated marketing communications firm. There are also posts from guest bloggers, who share perspectives on topics such as using hashtags, social media, or competition within the PR space. Spin Sucks wins awards due to fun sections like Gin and Topics with the weekly meme-able videos from around the Internet; and the Spin Sucks Inquisition, which interviews marketing and PR professionals from across the industry.

Arik Hanson of ACH Communications writes this engaging and frequently updated blog about PR-related current events, adding his own brand of secret spice to the takeaways. For example, he recently pondered how comms teams are trying brand-humanizing tactics that aren’t scalable and seem a bit off. “I’ve long felt that ‘surprise and delight’ tactics have been vastly overblown. The majority of brands purely do them to drum up the hype machine…” Since he posts at a fast clip, there is always something new to read. If you’re looking for a hot take on a recent social or PR-phenom, you’ll be able to find it here.

Sure, it’s a magazine you remember from Airport lounges, but have you taken a peek at the digital version? Well-written articles showcase how brands can increase their impact on the modern business landscape. Given that it’s written for the C-Suite, takeaways are meant to be high-level and immediately actionable. Recent articles include Nike Made $6 Billion from That Colin Kaepernick Ad. Here’s What All Brands Can Learn and Nothing to See Here? Social Media Marketing for Businesses That Aren’t Photogenic. Beyond the written word, you’ll find videos, podcasts, and for those looking for deeper insights, books on entrepreneurship.

This subreddit is dedicated to questions about the PR industry. Submissions consist of software recommendations and shifting best practices to questions about breaking into the industry or connecting with practitioners. While there’s a no self-promotion rule, it’s a solid resource for solo pros or those starting out in their careers. This public forum is the best crowdsourced PR advice from an online community. Recent topics include: Student looking for a Public Relations Practitioner to Answer a Few Questions About the Business, Tools to Evaluate Influencers and Is Pitching Contributed Content Still Relevant in 2018?

Erika Heald, former Head of Content at Anaplan and Highwire PR, holds her weekly Twitter #ContentChat On Mondays at 12noon PT.  Recent topics have included: overcoming the perils of ghostwriting and ways to organize and share curated content. Heald stacks the decks by having PR and marketing industry insiders on hand to take part in the conversation. You might recognize names such as Jason Schemmel at @JasonSchemmel and Michelle Garrett at @PRisUS. Heald is herself an award-winning content marketer, community builder, and Gluten Free social media influencer.

Being a modern PR pro means keeping up with current technology for the industry and tracking KPIs that matter to your team and colleagues. If you’re looking for an all-inclusive PR platform to address the needs of the modern comms pro, we can help. Simply check out our Media Monitoring capabilities or fill out the form below to get a free consultation.

12 PR Blogs Your Competitors Are Reading

As PR and marketing reporting becomes essential in the modern comms department and folks move towards quantifying their efforts, wading through different aspects of reporting can get confusing fast. This uncertainty can particularly be true for those building a data-centric foundation for their PR and marketing departments. Becoming data-centric now will streamline the future reporting process. We understand the complexity surrounding data gathering and the decisions that need to be made to implement a rigorous reporting strategy; that’s why we’ve laid out what you need to get started in this handy infographic.

Infographic: PR and Marketing Reporting—Keys to Capturing KPIs

In this day and age, it’s hard to remember a time when the fashion world didn’t use social media. 

From live broadcasts of the runway shows at New York Fashion Week on Instagram, to critics savagely dissecting Met Gala looks on Twitter, social media gives brands and consumers an opportunity to weigh in on what’s hot (and what’s not.) 

Tip: Learn more about Consumer Insights for Fashion and take a look at our media intelligence analysis: What Marketers Can Learn from Paris Fashion Week 2024.

The rise of the influencer is one of the biggest shifts in high fashion, as well as how (and when) you are able to purchase pieces. Influencers with large, dedicated followings can see returns from both partnered campaigns with the brand and affiliate marketing per each sale. Fashion bloggers can link their outfits, allowing a consumer to see something they like and immediately purchase it. Apps like “LIKEtoKNOWit” or clickable links through Pinterest allow you to shop directly from social media, and have pieces delivered directly to your door. There is less need for fashion editors when you’re only a scroll away from curated outfits and new designs.

We’ve decided to dive into social media strategy of designers to highlight what works and why it works and, importantly, how to duplicate their success.

Tip: Are you looking for fashion influencers? Here's our list of the top global fashion influencers and the top South African fashion influencers.

Platforms: Facebook, Instagram (4 accounts: Dior Official, Dior Makeup, Dior Parfums, Dior Beauty Lovers), Twitter, Pinterest

Dior is known for gorgeous, sweeping campaigns with well-known models and actors. Partnering with celebrities like Natalie Portman, Jennifer Lawrence, Charlize Theron, and Bella Hadid, Dior has prioritized movie-like video content to tell a distinct story around their products. Dior’s bread and butter are their various perfumes, these fragrances—along with their brand’s famous ambassadors—make up the majority of their social content. The brand recognition of these stars-as-influencers helps both Dior’s credibility and awareness.

Miss Dior - A Miss in Paris Episode 3

Dior’s campaigns are difficult to replicate for most brands, as their budget for both on-screen talent/ambassadors and high production value videos are substantial. However, Dior’s success lies in the narrative they craft around products. They showcase the lifestyle of someone who might wear Dior and tell their story in a visceral, appetizing way. 

Natalie Portman’s Love campaign, for instance, follows a woman through the beautiful and messy aspects of loving deeply and living greatly, showing her jubilantly jumping into the sea off a high dock and chasing after her partner in a gorgeous ball gown – a few seconds at the ad’s conclusion is the only time the viewer sees the actual product. We see the type of woman who would wear Dior’s perfume—her values, her way of life, her attributes—and we find ourselves relating to her.

Platforms: Facebook, Instagram (2 accounts: Chanel Official, Chanel Beauty), Twitter

The classic Chanel name carries enormous weight in the world of fashion. Chanel’s use of image grouping on Instagram is effective, eye-catching and memorable. Instead of a scattering of various images—say, a catwalk, followed by a product photo, then a portrait—they post multiple themed photos in succession. This technique leads to a defined, consistent aesthetic.

The average person needs to encounter a product at least seven times before they’ll buy. Copy Chanel’s use of content to get to seven faster. Instead of a one-off post on Instagram or Facebook highlighting a perfume or collection, they use multiple images to create a consistent, themed campaign.

Chanel is also great at cross-campaign promotion, without duplicating the post. An ad for their new perfume, Gabrielle, can be seen as a nine-video collage on Instagram. The image is frozen on each model to show 9 distinct faces, spelling out “Gabrielle.” However, each still plays the same video, which is shown in its entirety on Chanel’s Facebook. 

By utilizing the distinct characteristics of a certain social media platform—Instagram’s grid—they are able to take a unique approach to posting content that will also be seen on other platforms.

GABRIELLE is a floral fragrance with a rebel heart. Watch 9 women define themselves through its spirit. One letter at a time. #GabrielleChanel @carolinedemaigret @valebelle @mettenarrative @phoebejtonkin @kilokish @nanaouyang @adesuwa @dianapozharskaya @clairelaffut

Much like Chanel, Gucci’s Instagram showcases various campaign photos posted in succession. But they also utilize separate Instagram Story highlights to tell stories about their collections, podcast, or decor. Using Instagram Story highlights allows Gucci to present a packaged, curated story that visitors can view any time.

Gucci’s use of celebrity red carpet photos across social media platforms is unique. Showcasing everyone from Cate Blanchett to Spike Lee, Gucci is able to highlight the diversity of celebrities who wear their clothes.

By posting high-quality photos taken by red carpet photographers, Gucci is able to use content that they themselves did not spend time or energy creating. Use this technique to obtain user-generated content, or consider outsourcing some of your content production to save your own team’s time.

Active Platforms: Facebook (2 accounts: Givenchy, Givenchy Fragrances and Beauty), Instagram (2 accounts: Givenchy Original, Givenchy Beauty), Twitter (2 accounts: Givenchy, Parfums Givenchy)

French brand Givenchy uses a dark aesthetic in their social media, notably their Instagram and Twitter. With muted cranberries and black leather, their feed stands out on a platform that usually favors bright colors and white space.

Don’t be afraid to use platforms in a different way that serves your brand or your audience. Most social media sites are overrun with lighter, vibrant images. By not following the pack, Givenchy stands out as a brand for going against this mold. In an over-saturated market, find ways to turn social media’s expectations on their head to gain traction and distinguish your content from the rest.

Active Platforms: Facebook, Instagram, Twitter (multiple platforms, including Corporate and country-specific), Pinterest

The infamous Burberry checkered pattern is a social media manager’s dream. It’s on everything from their Facebook cover photo, to a ginormous blown-up bear in China, to Beyonce at Coachella. The timeless design makes Burberry’s aesthetic direct, clear and easily recognizable, solving the common conundrum of most brands: how do we create something distinct that immediately registers?

Burberry is also distinct from the other brands on this list in the way they use Twitter. In addition to their front-facing account, they have a corporate handle as well as accounts for every country with a storefront. Customers can engage directly with their local store and receive store-specific updates in real time.

Before you start creating content, decide on a style guide that includes a color scheme, font, voice, and logo. Inspired by Burberry’s logo, create designs with your aesthetic in mind. Using this style guide for every piece of content you post will create consistency, brand recognition, and trust.

If you find the way these fashion brands use social media inspiring, you can wade into the reeds with our ebook on how to build a social media program, at any company size.

How 5 Fashion Brands Use Social Media

Have you ever wondered why some content on social media goes viral? Or why seemingly strange social media trends catch fire and others fall flat?

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