Get out your party hats, today is Digital Marketing Day! How am I going to celebrate? By spending hours on tasks related to digital marketing, of course! Well, that's actually every day...
So what are a few ways YOU can celebrate this dubious holiday by getting your feet wet with a few new digital strategies or tasks? For many - senior pros and newbies alike - you may have barely dipped your toe in the waters of digital PR. Try one or two of these ideas to get the ball rolling:
- Take your first stab at keyword research, then write a trends press release or byline based on something interesting you find. Make sure you put that keyword (or phrase) in the headline AND the first sentence, then repeat it in the body of the release where it makes sense without harming readability.
- Launch a podcast "radio" station for your client using simple tools like Audacity and Podbean - I tried this for the first time this week, launching Rock The Status Quo Radio, and had a blast. I can't wait to see what happens with it. Every blog post and press release can be recorded, plus you can have fun interviewing key employees on topics that fit their expertise. Be sure to post each recording on iTunes, YouTube and Pinterest, if that is part of your client strategy.
- Participate in your first Twitter chat. Tweetchat.com makes it easy, so you don't have to remember adding the chat hashtag, and #PRStudChat is a great one to start with. For more, head over to this article: http://higher-and-higher.com/2010/12/07/13-twitter-chats-for-pr-pros/.
- Create your first Twitter list. Pick one client, and build a private Twitter list that follows your top reporters for that client. Remember to keep the list private; you don't have to be followed by the reporter to add them to a list. Spend a few minutes every day reviewing the feed from your list, in hopes of seeing a pitch opportunity or source request.
- Think outside the byline, and write your first "How to" article for a client. If your client is in the pet industry, for example, Google "Top Pet Blogs" to see where there are opportunities for a guest post. Find a home for that article, write it to fit their audience/tone, then get it placed.
Hope you find these ideas helpful, or they inspire thoughts that are even MORE creative. As you expand your skills, always focus on how to integrate the newest inbound marketing tactics into your public relations - SEO, social media, content marketing - they are all critical to learn and incorporate daily.
Again - Happy Digital Marketing Day! <clink> Have fun with it.