Looking for ways to follow up on your reader analytics?
Start by clicking to watch this tip from Lorraine Sullivan, Marketing Director at New York-based Farrell Fritz.
In the 30-second video, Lorraine focuses on how to turn recent media readership into relationships. At the heart of it: follow up. See who is engaging with your firm's thought leadership and act upon it.
A mix of takeaways I've extracted from Lorraine's great advice, above, and pointers from our PR & Communications Tip Sheet (available to all clients, just ask!), here is a list of easy but powerful ways to turn readership into results:
- Regularly look to your analytics for reporters and industry bloggers who have read, followed, or referenced your firm's thought leadership (we surface notable engagement in your dashboard and the regular analytics email alerts so it is easy to spot)
- Look through multiple analytics reports for media leads, including: your readers; media members who have tweeted your content; others who have followed individual authors or the firm to receive new content as it is published; and news sites and industry blogs that link to your content (referrals).
- Do as Lorraine does: research media readers to see what else they've written recently. (You're looking for a meaningful connection to their beat, to their primary interest as reporters/bloggers. Start by seeing their latest writings.)
- Most media members are on Twitter and LinkedIn (to converse, share their own work, and find new sources for insights). Connect with them on whichever social platform they choose to be present. Start by simply thanking them for noticing your firm's insights.
- Consider writing additional posts on the topic at hand (aka: repeat your successes!), using the reporter's recent writing as a jumping off point. ("Thanks for the mention, we've also written another piece with a legal take...")
- If your content was referenced on a niche news site or blog, look through that outlet for additional opportunities. (For example: does the organization also produce webinars and events in which an attorney might serve as a subject matter expert.) Get in touch and suggest that!
- Other follow-up possibilities: pitch to write a guest post (with attorney byline and BIO) directly for the news outlet. Offer to conduct Q&A with an attorney for new, focused insights around an ongoing news story. Make your attorney available as background source to help the writer more deeply understand the legal aspects of their story (and quote your attorney in next articles.)
- Take measure of your firm's most popular content around the topic at hand. Use this as a conversation starter; your data can help a reporter or editor understand what other readers (yours!) care about around the larger issue. ("Thanks for your coverage. In our data, we also see that readers want to know about...")
The scope of your outreach is limited only by your creativity. The key point, again, captured so easily by Lorraine in her video above: act on your leads.
Often that requires nuance and a delicate touch - but journalists are constantly looking for meaningful connections that they can rely upon to deliver the reporting they've been tasked to deliver. Jump on your chances to connect.
Fill in the contact form to your right of this page if you'd like a copy of JD Supra's Tip Sheet for PR & Communications folks!
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Paul Ryplewski is VP of Client Services at JD Supra