Author Archives: z5sydney

In the age of digital advertising and social media influencers, it’s easy to overlook one of the oldest and most effective forms of marketing – word of mouth. But make no mistake, word-of-mouth marketing (WOMM) remains a potent force in shaping consumer and business opinions and driving purchasing decisions.

What Is WOMM?

Let’s face it, people love to talk.

Word-of-mouth marketing is exactly what it sounds like: the act of people telling others in their social and business circles about a product, service, or brand that has left an impression on them, whether it be good or bad. It can take many forms, from casual conversations between friends to online reviews and recommendations on social media platforms. At its core, word-of-mouth marketing relies on the trust and credibility that comes from personal recommendations.

As Andy Sernovitz states, “Nobody talks about boring companies, boring products, or boring ads.” In fact, Sernovitz breaks down the four rules of WOMM as being:

• Rule #1: Be Interesting
• Rule #2: Make People Happy
• Rule #3: Earn Trust and Respect
• Rule #4: Make It Easy

The foundation of successful WOMM is delivering exceptional customer experiences. When customers are delighted with a product or service, they’re more likely to share their positive experiences with others. With the power of social media at our fingertips, companies are now easily able to identify their most loyal customers and turn them into brand advocates.

A single recommendation from a satisfied customer can reach a wide audience thanks to the power of social media and online communities. This recommendation can have a lasting impact on your brand’s reputation and credibility. And now, positive recommendations can continue to influence potential customers long after the initial conversation or social media post.

The Four Main Types of WOMM Are…

Buzz Marketing
The cream of the crop when it comes to WOMM is buzz marketing. This is the act of getting your current customers and prospective customers excited and talking about your product(s), services, or brand.

Toward the end of 2019, Tesla revealed the idea of the Cybertruck. For days following the big reveal, memes and opinions of the new futuristic vehicle were taking social media by storm.

While not everyone was a fan of the concept, Tesla ensured they came up with a product that generated the buzz they were looking for.

Content Marketing
Content can be the buffer to build the bridge between a brand and its prospective customers. The best way to get started is to create content that starts the conversation instead of hoping your customers create it.

Sharing as much information as possible by becoming the go-to resource for guides, tutorials, and other sought-after content is a great example of this. Hubspot excels at content marketing with its social media approach, blog strategy, and more. I mean, who else to lead the charge other than a CRM platform with all the resources you need to connect marketing, sales, content management, and customer service?

Referral Marketing
Sometimes it is tough to get the conversation going, and that’s where referral marketing can take a role. Everyone loves incentives. One of the best ways to get people to start talking and sharing a brand is by offering an incentivized referral program.

Uber is one company that excels at referral marketing. Uber offers both the referrer and the person they refer a $20 ride credit once the new user signs up.

Social Media Marketing
By 2025, 56.7% of the world’s population will be active on at least one social network. WOMM, through social media, comes in many shapes and sizes, including follower engagement, online reviews, sharable content, user-generated content, influencer marketing, and so much more.

Wendy’s thrives on Twitter and getting their customers to talk. Not only do they roast competitors, but they also have sassy comments back to their followers and generate content that is consistently shared with hundreds of thousands of their followers’ followers and talked about for years to come.

So, How Does This Tie Into the Digital Era?
WOMM continues to be one of the most effective forms of marketing, especially as social media continues to be on the rise as one of the fastest-growing ways to get a message out into the world. People trust what others have to say about a brand and its products or services, and the best way to get the message across is through the internet.

Communication is no longer just a face-to-face interaction. The WOMM map has grown from one person telling another to that person telling two more friends, and so on. Now, that person can go online and tell hundreds of people about their experience with a brand with one tweet, one Google review, or one viral TikTok video.

While information overload and distrust of traditional advertising is rampant throughout advertising channels, WOMM offers a refreshing alternative. However, for companies to be truly successful with WOMM in the digital era, they need to coherently combine their digital marketing strategy with social media, and PR.

Taking advantage of personal recommendations and social networks can help businesses build trust, credibility, and long-term relationships with their customers. So, don’t underestimate the power of word-of-mouth marketing—embrace it and watch your business thrive.

If you’re ready to take the next step in accelerating and expanding your online presence as a thought leader, 0to5 can help. Contact us today.

Resources:

• Word of Mouth Marketing: How Smart Companies Get People Talking by Andy Sernovitz
• https://blog.hubspot.com/agency/how-online-word-of-mouth-marketing-is-changing
• https://www.socialmediatoday.com/content/word-mouth-marketing-digital-age
• https://www.forbes.com/sites/kimberlywhitler/2014/07/17/why-word-of-mouth-marketing-is-the-most-important-social-media/?sh=4d89992854a8

Editorial calendars (ed cals for short) have been a staple of PR planning for years. Whether it be when a new year starts or when a new client is onboarded, they are a go-to place for PR folks to gather important information about upcoming editorial topics and deadlines, enabling them to offer valuable content and build meaningful relationships with the editors and reporters with whom they are interacting. Traditionally, media publications will issue ed cals for marketing purposes as a way to showcase advertising opportunities for the year. However, in today’s digital age where news is viral in a matter of minutes, and with the ongoing efforts to go green, many publications have cut down on print issues, thus getting rid of the need for traditional ed cals altogether.

However, not all is doom and gloom for ed cals; many still exist and can be extremely helpful. In some outlets, especially in niche, vertical trade publications, the editorial and advertising staff want to ensure they are keeping up with topics that will always be part of their industry’s discussions. For example, in cybersecurity, there will always be breaches or hacking advancements that a whole niche of outlets will cover. Ed cals in these particular outlets will always have subtopics that relate to these stories, such as “the state of cloud security” or “data breach prevention and response.” Having this information gives PR people the opportunity to discuss POVs with clients and meaningfully contribute to the stories we know that the publication is already planning on writing.

National media like WIRED or the Wall Street Journal will also write features or have entire issues on related topics. Our ability to seed our clients’ unique perspectives in the trades establishes authority, and opens doors to continue these conversations at a broader level.

Learn Your Ed Cals

No media list is complete without doing your due diligence on ed cals. Whether you are building from scratch or making updates to a dated list, rummaging through national, local, and trade publications – and understanding what they are covering – is crucial for finding the correct reporters and editors. When looking to see if the publication has an ed cal, a simple Google Search with the Boolean Operators, for example, “name of outlet + editorial calendars,” can find results for some outlets. However, most of the time the best way to find an ed cal is to go to the outlet’s advertising section on its website and look for a media kit. Sometimes you are able to download the kit directly and other times you may have to request it from a sales representative. Now, you’re probably wondering why would I go to the “paid” section when I work in earned media? These days, media kits tend to be where ed cals are housed because they can be related to how the publication works out its advertising. For example, if cloud security is a focus for a month, getting cloud security providers to advertise during that time is complementary to the content the publication is generating.

Once you have access to the calendars, the next step is to read through all of them, filter out the topics that are most relevant to your client and add them to a section within your media list that you can reference at any time. This should not only include the topics, but the relevant dates that you’ll need to plan for to meet the editorial deadlines for those topics.

Right Time and Right Pitch

Now that you’ve vetted your ed cals, you can start your outreach. In general, pitching ed cals can be done with less haste than your normal pitching practices. However, your planning should never be forgotten. If we go back to the cloud security example, let’s say the April issue of the publication is going to cover cloud security. You should plan to start seeding conversations with reporters in February and March – or maybe even earlier depending on the publication – to ensure you are considered for coverage in that issue. If editorial deadlines are not available, advertising deadlines can also give you a reasonable window of when is a good time to pitch your client for specific issues. Some – like the aforementioned WIRED security issue – have deadlines in May for issues that are planned to come out in January 2025 – so that’s seven months you could have already planned for in advance!

When pitching, you should have a range of topics that would be a good fit for a future issue. However, a major problem is that most, if not all, ed cals lack specifics for what they are looking to cover. For example, the topic of “artificial intelligence” is extremely broad. What is the publication looking to cover when they say AI? Are they looking for AI in consumer goods? AI in robotics? AI in driver safety? Or maybe something that covers a smattering of everything? There is no real way to know unless you ask. By reaching out to the editor, you can establish rapport in ensuring that you aren’t going to waste their time if your clients’ topic doesn’t align with the focus of the issue. Something as simple as, “Hey, I am reaching out to you to offer a conversation with my client that is using AI to change the way drivers behave, helping to reduce collisions. Let me know if this topic aligns with your coverage for the month and we can arrange a time for you to speak with them” goes a long way.

A good subject line to grab editors’ attention can be as easy as, “Per your ed cal in [publication name] on the [X] topic.” This will help them weed through the thousands of emails they get daily when looking for emails specifically related to their ed cals. It is sometimes hard to find the right editor who is working on a particular project from the calendar itself, so do your homework and use your best judgment for who might be aligned with the topic when reaching out. In some cases, emailing the managing editor or editor-in-chief could be your best bet, especially if the publication is small.

Keeping Ed Cals Alive

While the world of media is not ironclad and nothing is guaranteed, you may be surprised that paying attention to ed cals can help nab new opportunities and build relationships. The media needs good sources as much as PR professionals need reporters to include clients in stories. On many occasions, I have reached out to editors for ed cals that weren’t quite a fit at the time, but as soon as there was an opportunity that was spot on, the client was considered. Proactivity around ed cals is essential. They are not dead, and they could be the vehicle that lands you your next feature story.

If you’re ready to take the next step in accelerating and expanding your online presence as a thought leader, 0to5 can help. Contact us today.

In our blog series, Media Moments, the Zer0 to 5ive public relations team highlights a variety of media coverage secured by the team on behalf of our clients every month. Check back each month to get a glimpse at the team’s ongoing work.

An important aspect of a public relations professional’s role lies in understanding the dynamic nature of the news cycle. They must not only stay on top of current events relevant to their clients but also comprehend the journalistic landscape, including the themes and priorities driving their coverage.

The public relations team at Zer0 to 5ive is always analyzing the news cycle for every client, continuously seeking out relevant current events and potential angles for client integration. This involves actively monitoring live news broadcasts, reading dozens of articles and daily newsletters, monitoring social media channels, and building relationships with journalists.

Here are a few of the Zer0 to 5ive team’s placements from March that showcase the team’s work.

USA Today for SchoolStatus

The national media places immense value on data, and particularly data around education and parental viewpoints. Recognizing this, our team strategically leveraged both data and the media’s preference for exclusivity to pitch SchoolStatus’ new survey. To help ensure a robust, on-message story, the team offered the data exclusively to USA Today. The outlet agreed to the exclusive, conducted interviews, and incorporated the data into a story about the communication disconnect between schools and families. Read the article here.

FOX Business for Universal Technical Institute, Inc.

Often, journalists are seeking expert sources for stories they are already working on. Sharing information on available experts who are willing to be quoted can be a great way to generate national media coverage. For Universal Technical Institute, the team reached out to a journalist at FOX Business who covers careers to offer experts in this area. This outreach resulted in the client’s source being quoted throughout the article on the topic of job interviews. Read the article here.

The Hill for NWEA

In the education sector, the ESSER funding cliff is a key topic of discussion among industry media. Knowing which journalists would likely be covering this topic, the team reached out to The Hill on behalf of NWEA to offer an expert policy source on the topic. This resulted in the journalist leveraging the point of view from the organization’s policy expert in an article. Read the article here.

CSO for Onymos

In the hustle and bustle of the news cycle, important topics can sometimes get lost in the shuffle with so much going on at once. That’s why it’s crucial for public relations professionals to quickly grab hold of these sometimes unnoticed opportunities. With Onymos, the team leveraged an overlooked topic that had gained attention on social media – regarding data privacy and ownership in Software-as-a-Service – to pitch the company’s CEO. This resulted in CSO writing an entire article on the topic and Onymos’ CEO quoted as a source throughout. Read the article here.

To learn more about how Zer0 to 5ive can help drive visibility and industry leadership for your company drop us a line.

The term “thought leader” can be traced back to 1887, but it was brought to life in 1994 by Joel Kurtzman, the founding editor-in-chief of Strategy & Business magazine. Joel used the term to describe someone who had a deep understanding of a business marketplace and customers’ needs and had original and unique points of view and ideas.

Fast forward to today, being known as a thought leader is a coveted status across all industries, and unlike 20 years ago, there are many more ways for folks to share their points of view and insights. Perhaps the most prominent and accessible channel is LinkedIn. With over 1 billion members (yes billion with a “B”), it is the ideal platform for professionals to build their brand and reputation as thought leaders.

Outlined below are the steps to building LinkedIn thought leadership credibility.

Create a Professional Foundation
Before posting on LinkedIn, ensure your profile is optimized for the public eye. Your LinkedIn profile should highlight your professional experience, special skills, and notable achievements. Use a professional photo and header image, add a captivating headline, and update your summary to include keywords relevant to your industry.

Develop Compelling Content
Now that your profile looks legitimate, start sharing your unique perspective, industry insights, and professional advice. The LinkedIn algorithm tells us it prioritizes relevant, high-quality content, so your posts should be educational and informative, providing valuable insights to your audience. You can also share curated content like articles, blog posts, industry updates, and research findings with your own commentary.

An important note to keep in mind when creating and sharing content is maintaining authenticity and credibility. Sharing marketing materials or branded content can dilute your voice and insights, potentially alienating your audience. While occasional posts sharing your company’s recent news or achievements are great, remember that your audience is looking for you to provide unique commentary on your industry and beyond.

Engage and Collaborate
After your posts are published and start garnering attention, ensure you’re actively engaging with your network by interacting with your commenters and commenting on others’ posts. This helps build relationships, demonstrate expertise, and increase visibility within your industry. You can also grow your network by joining LinkedIn groups and communities related to your industry and experience, where you can participate in discussions with the group members.

You can also contribute to LinkedIn’s Collaborative Articles. These are articles on a professional topic or skill, written with AI’s help but completed with experts’ contributions. Regular contributions can land you in the top 5% of contributors and earn you a gold Community Top Voice badge. As your reputation grows, you may receive an invitation-only blue LinkedIn Top Voice badge featuring senior-level experts and leaders.

Be Consistent
Becoming a notable thought leader on LinkedIn doesn’t happen overnight. The steps and activities listed above take time and commitment, but consistent efforts will have positive results. By regularly sharing your POV and industry insights and engaging with your community, you can establish yourself as a thought leader on LinkedIn and build a strong professional brand in your industry.

If you’re looking for more resources on thought leadership, check out our blog, Why Startups Should Consider a Thought Leadership Strategy.

If you’re ready to take the next step in accelerating and expanding your online presence as a thought leader, 0to5 can help. Contact us today.

The expectations of both clients and journalists are high, and balancing them is key. Clients want coverage maximized and with top-tier outlets, and the media wants stories about topics and trends that their readers care about and will engage with.

At 0to5, we’ve embraced a number of strategies to secure valuable media coverage for our clients. Here are some of our most tried and true:

1. Craft a Compelling Narrative: At the heart of every great story lies a compelling narrative. Whether it’s about the company’s journey, an impressive milestone, a groundbreaking product, or an inspiring team member, it’s important to hone your story to resonate with the intended audience. Ask yourself, “Why should they care?” Using relevant industry topics and personalization, a PR pro can create stories that are not only relatable and memorable, but also pique the interest of the intended journalist.
2. Offer Unique and Valuable Insights: In a sea of perspectives, standing out requires unique insights and valuable expertise. It’s important for subject matter experts (SMEs) to actively participate in industry discussions, whether at a conference, in a byline, or through expert commentary, and offer data-driven insights. By providing information that adds value, PR professionals position their clients as a go-to source for industry-related topics.
3. Capitalize on Your Client’s High-Profile Collaborations and Partnerships: Clients often align themselves with complementary, industry-relevant organizations or influencers that have their own brand and traction. Leveraging these high-profile collaborations and partnerships can help your story and attract the attention of media who have covered the partner in the past.
4. Build Authentic Media Relationships: Building strong relationships with journalists, influencers, and industry experts is invaluable when you’re looking to garner strong media coverage for your clients. Investing time in understanding unique preferences, specific interests, and varying writing styles gives the pitcher an upper hand in knowing exactly what stories they’ll be most likely to cover. It’s important to engage with the media authentically, offer valuable insights, and be a reliable resource that cultivates trust.
5. Leverage Social Media and Digital Platforms: Media coverage doesn’t stop once the interview concludes and the story is published. Social media has proven to be a powerful tool for bringing additional attention to your story. By consistently sharing valuable content and engaging with audiences, companies can create a digital footprint that captures the attention of journalists and influencers alike. Moreover, the strategic use of hashtags and tagging relevant entities further amplifies potential reach.

Garnering great media coverage is an effort that requires a strategic approach and persistence. By focusing on compelling stories that offer valuable insights or uniquely interesting storylines, nurturing reporter relationships, and leveraging digital platforms, you will find success in your media relations efforts.

To learn more about how Zer0 to 5ive can help drive visibility and industry leadership for your company drop us a line.

In our blog series, Media Moments, the Zer0 to 5ive public relations team highlights a variety of media coverage secured by the team on behalf of our clients every month. Check back each month to get a glimpse at the team’s ongoing work.

In today’s dynamic public relations and journalism landscape, many factors impact the efficacy of media relations. These include everything from the fast-changing news cycle, to journalist bandwidth, and so much more. Understanding these complexities, public relations professionals must always be strategic, creative, agile, and thoughtful in order to navigate the landscape effectively and garner results for clients.

The public relations team at Zer0 to 5ive demonstrates a thoughtful approach to engaging journalists by leveraging client events, significant news, or unique perspectives, prioritizing strategic and creative thinking in every pitch. Moreover, their agility shines in their ability to tailor pitches and story ideas to match the timely and relevant interests of each individual journalist.

Here are a few of the Zer0 to 5ive team’s placements from January and February that showcase the team’s work.

US News & World Report for YouScience

With deep knowledge of U.S. News & World Report’s education coverage and the focus of its reporters, the Zer0 to 5ive team highlighted critical research from YouScience to secure coverage with the outlet on the topic of student readiness post-high school. The article not only included the research, but also incorporated commentary from YouScience’s CEO Edson Barton. Read the article here.

Fortune for Sony Innovation Fund

Fortune is a high profile outlet that covers a wide range of topics. One of the topics that the outlet is most well known for is venture capital. In order to secure coverage in Fortune’s Term Sheet, you must have a unique point of view on the state of venture capital or technology or significant funding, M&A or leadership news. The team worked with Sony Innovation Fund to secure coverage of its new CEO and Chairman. Read the article here.

IEEE Spectrum for Sony AI

Conferences and events can be great drivers of media opportunities for clients. There are often key national or trade media in attendance to gather information on the latest trends or insights, and to connect with top subject matter experts. On behalf of Sony AI, the team leveraged its attendance at NeurIPS 2023 in December to secure a meeting with IEEE Spectrum for the organization’s Lead Research Scientist for AI Ethics, Alice Xiang. The meeting resulted in an in-depth Q&A with Alice on her work, ethical data collection, and more. Read the article here.

Nation’s Restaurant News for Chatmeter

In some cases, public relations professionals have to employ an embargo strategy to garner coverage around a key piece of news. For client Chatmeter, the team conducted embargo outreach to technology and trade reporters ahead of the company’s launch of its new Pulse AI: Signals feature. This targeted outreach resulted in an inclusion in Nation’s Restaurant News’ Tech Tracker for January. Read the article here.

Paul’s Security Weekly from SC Media for Qmulos

Podcasts are becoming an increasingly popular venue for public relations professionals to pitch on behalf of their clients. This surge in popularity has caused podcast hosts and producers to be inundated with guest recommendations, resulting in long queues for potential guests that stretch from a few weeks to a few months. To secure an interview for clients, public relations professionals have to remain diligent and thoughtful when checking in with the host or producers, gently reminding them that they have a great source in the wings ready to provide a new perspective. On behalf of Qmulos, the team maintained regular contact with the producer of SC Media’s Paul’s Security Weekly podcast and eventually secured an interview for the company’s CEO Matt Coose. Listen or watch the podcast episode here.

PYMNTS.com for GrazeCart

News on mergers and acquisitions is typically very attractive to the media. When POS Nation announced the acquisition of GrazeCart, the team was able to secure interest from PYMNTS.com in speaking with both organizations on how the acquisition would enable GrazeCart to expand its reach to farm-to-fork food suppliers who are looking to take their direct-to-consumer marketing and sales to the next level. You can watch the video interview here.

TEACH Magazine for NWEA and SchoolStatus

The ability to offer distinctive and thought-provoking commentary can greatly expand media opportunities for clients as journalists are constantly seeking fresh perspectives that enable them to tell the best and most informational story possible. The Zer0 to 5ive team recently worked with NWEA and SchoolStatus to provide interesting viewpoints on classroom management. The team shared commentary from the organizations’ education experts with TEACH Magazine, resulting in coverage for both clients. Read the article here.

To learn more about how Zer0 to 5ive can help drive visibility and industry leadership for your company drop us a line.

The right media coverage can significantly impact your brand’s visibility and reputation. Knowing how to effectively leverage your coverage is essential to reaching the widest possible audience and achieving your marketing and PR goals. The following strategies and tactics can help your business maximize its media coverage and drive brand awareness.

The All-Mighty Press Release

Press releases are vital for sharing news, enabling businesses and organizations to communicate significant developments and events to the media and the public. They generate media coverage, enhance visibility, and provide a structured, professional way to convey information. Press releases help share achievements, product launches, financial reports, and more. They also serve double duty as a valuable reference point for journalists and contribute towards a positive public image while maintaining transparency for your business.

Once your team drafts and approves your press release, the best way for quick and widespread distribution is to share it through a distribution service like PR Newswire or BusinessWire, then follow up by emailing the release to key reporters and publications in your field.

After the press release has been distributed on a wire service and delivered to reporters’ inboxes, a few more strategies can help you reach a broader and more engaged audience. The first is to share the press release on your company’s website. Posting on your website can significantly enhance your search engine optimization (SEO) efforts.

Leveraging social media is another effective way to optimize your press release’s reach. Share it across social media channels, and consider pinning it to the top of your business’s page or profile. Make your content more engaging by creating graphics with pull quotes and relevant images to accompany the post.

How to Share Great Media Coverage

Now that your press release has gone out on a wire service and been pitched to reporters, you hopefully have some great media coverage! While many folks will find your article in print or directly on the publication’s website, you can employ additional strategies to maximize your brand’s reach and visibility.

Sharing media coverage on your company’s website is a fundamental step that archives and showcases your news and increases organic search traffic. Consider prominently featuring news on your home page to ensure that visitors to your site immediately see and recognize your company’s success and momentum.

Leveraging your social media presence is also crucial for sharing media coverage effectively. Be sure to include a link to the article and consider tagging the reporters and media outlets responsible; this helps you engage with journalists and enables them to easily repost to their audiences. Additionally, you could update your LinkedIn profile or, in the case of platforms like X (Twitter), your bio with a mention such as “As seen on CNBC” to bolster your credibility.

Another approach is to draft and share posts about the media coverage on behalf of key figures within your organization, such as executives, featured spokespeople, and partners or clients mentioned in the article. Consider turning the placement into an advertisement to reach a targeted audience directly.

Similar to sharing press releases, including your media coverage in email marketing efforts is a valuable tactic to ensure your key stakeholders and supporters can access the latest news and are well-informed about significant developments. This approach broadens your reach and ensures that individuals with a vested interest in your company’s achievements are kept in the loop.

Beyond email marketing, there are additional avenues for disseminating your media coverage effectively. One such approach is incorporating media mentions into investor decks and sales presentations, bolstering your credibility and showcasing your company’s recognition to potential investors and clients. Another is to share your media coverage with industry and networking groups to engage a targeted audience and position your company as a thought leader and an active participant in relevant communities.

The power of media coverage in shaping a company’s reputation and bolstering its visibility cannot be overstated. Press releases, distributed through wire services, serve as a structured and professional means to communicate significant news and updates. Amplifying the impact involves strategically sharing the release and its corresponding media coverage on company websites, social media platforms, and email marketing. By combining these methods, businesses can effectively maximize the impact of their media coverage across diverse channels, ultimately influencing perceptions and driving success.

To learn more about how Zer0 to 5ive can help drive visibility and industry leadership for your company drop us a line.

By Colleen Martin

One of my favorite parts of my job as a PR professional is cultivating a strong rapport and relationship with various reporters, where there is mutual respect and trust between us. They aren’t just a person on the other end of a transaction (pitch) to “win” coverage for my clients, but human beings with families, stresses, pressures, deadlines, and, no doubt, unique and interesting backgrounds that helped them get to where they are today.

However, if you ever read the “Bad Pitch Blog,” which puts PR folks on blast on X (Twitter) for often almost comically poor behavior, it can often seem like PR and journalists are like frenemies with dissonant interests. But dig a little deeper and you will find that the best PR professionals know how to build trust with journalists, deliver them incredible sources and stories worthy of their time and energy, and understand what the key ingredients are to help journalists do what they do best: tell a great story, with speed.

I recently had the honor of interviewing Elizabeth Heubeck, a staff writer for Education Week, one of America’s most trusted resources for K-12 education news and information. Elizabeth, who covers education angles and intersections in significant news events, cultural phenomena, and high-demand topics and issues, and I recently collaborated on a few stories, which were truly great pieces.

A big thank you to Elizabeth for taking the time to conduct this interview with me! You can find her latest stories in Education Week here: https://www.edweek.org/by/elizabeth-heubeck. 

Can you briefly introduce yourself and your background as a K-12 education reporter?

My career has been a mix of marketing and journalist writing. I wrote about education and children for most of my career; I had a stint writing for a parenting outlet and wrote a lot about children’s health issues earlier in my career. I joined EducationWeek four years ago and have only been a full-time employee for the last year. I am considered an enterprise reporter, which means I can write about whatever I want.

What motivated you to focus on writing about education? 

As a parent and spouse of a lifelong educator, I have always had an interest in education. I thought early on I would become a tutor to help kids with reading but I ended up writing about education instead.

Collaboration With PR Professionals

Can you share examples of successful collaborations or interactions you’ve had with PR reps?

I have been fortunate to have many successful interactions with PR people, who respond quickly, understand whom I need to talk to, and quickly connect me to the right people. Everyone is on a deadline, and we typically only have a few days to submit each story. It can be a catch-22 though, some days, we only have a 1-2 day turnaround, and if you want to make the story compelling, it usually requires talking to an actual person rather than regurgitating data over email. Sometimes, there isn’t enough time to make that happen. That’s when a PR person can be immensely helpful. They have their finger on the pulse and can connect us to folks fast.

What are some common misconceptions reporters have about PR people?

What I hear the most from my colleagues is that PR folks are like annoying salespeople. The woman who shares a space with me told me that one day, she walked away from her desk for two hours, and returned to 900 emails, mostly from PR people. That’s not an exaggeration.

When you are on deadline and under the gun, it can be easy to overgeneralize that ALL PR people hound you. Often, we just hit the ‘delete’ button – probably 60-70% of emails get trashed. Many of them aren’t targeting the right person. I keep getting emails about the U.S. Coast Guard. News flash – I don’t write about the Coast Guard!

Effective Communication

What communication strategies do you find most effective when working with PR professionals, such as pitches (length), press releases, research, etc.?

Phone calls have gone by the wayside. I have actually never received an unsolicited phone call from a PR person. What is effective, beyond a tight, well-written, short  (couple of paragraphs) pitch that is targeted to what I write about, is getting ahead of trends; now that’s a godsend. Sometimes I will receive a pitch on a topic, immediately after I wrote about the same thing, what your industry calls “rapid response,” but if you aren’t sending me a unique angle or saying something different, then why would I write about it again? Take our partnership to the next level by helping me get ahead of a trend. If you have a relationship with a reporter, the occasional phone call is okay – but cold calling is usually a waste of time. 

Advice for PR Professionals

How can PR professionals best tailor their communications to meet the needs of education reporters?

At the bare minimum, know what we cover. I would also invite PR people to reach out and say, “hey, what are you covering in the next few months?”

How far in advance are you planning stories? 

I will put story ideas in buckets based on timing and typically work 1-2 months ahead. I might have something planned for this month, and have other ideas that I will file away for a future month.

Are there any specific elements or information that you consider essential to a story?

If you have background information on a topic that is super easily digestible about a product/service/curriculum, so that we can easily refer back to it – that is phenomenal. We need strong sources, especially educators that can vouch for something working well.

What advice do you have for PR professionals looking to build positive relationships and trust with reporters?

Keep your communication targeted and avoid bombarding reporters with constant pitches. Less is more! If you are in a stage where you are supporting a reporter with a specific story, identify strong sources at the onset and make introductions in a timely manner.

Is there anything else you’d like to share with our readers about the dynamics of working with PR professionals?

Know that timing is incredibly important for us – we are almost always under a time crunch. Put yourself in the position of a journalist, “What would I want to get out of it?” If you do those things, it can be a really phenomenal synergistic relationship between us, or really annoying. It is critical to be super responsive. Journalists who have flipped to PR really get it.

In our blog series, Media Moments, the Zer0 to 5ive public relations team highlights a variety of media coverage secured by the team on behalf of our clients every month. Check back each month to get a glimpse at the team’s ongoing work.

At the end of each year, journalists seek insights from experts spanning diverse sectors to anticipate trends that will appear in the coming year. This presents an ideal opportunity for companies to share distinctive and insightful perspectives that resonate with significant national or industry trends. By offering these bold opinions, they can continue to establish their position as a key thought leader on a specific topic or sector — which also contributes to overall brand awareness. 

The Zer0 to 5ive public relations team collaborates with our clients annually to craft compelling predictions that not only address overarching trends but also express bold opinions that align seamlessly with the client’s industry or offerings.

Here are a few of the Zer0 to 5ive team’s predictions for placements from December.

Forbes for Onymos

Shiva Nathan, Founder and CEO of Onymos – developer of the world’s first Features-as-a-Service platform – was quoted by Forbes offering his prediction for the continued journey to passwordless in 2024. Read the article here.

SiliconANGLE for Digital.ai

Greg Ellis, General Manager of Digital.ai – the leading provider of enterprise-grade software development and delivery solutions – was featured as an expert by SiliconANGLE on how the continued industrialization of cyber tools will impact the threat landscape for organizations in the coming year. Read the article here. 

ITOps Times for Qmulos

Igor Volovich, Vice President of Compliance Strategy at Qmulos – a next-generation compliance, security, and risk management automation provider – was included in an article from ITOps Times for his prediction on how organizations will increasingly take a more proactive posture in terms of security, risk, and compliance. Read the article here. 

QSR Magazine for Chatmeter

Cynthia Sener – President, Go To Market, at Chatmeter – a leader in reputation management and multi-location intelligence – was quoted by QSR Magazine on how restaurants will continue to innovate in the area of customer experience and service. Read the article here. 

Convenience Store News for C-Store POS

Kevin Patel, Vice President of C-Store POS – an all-in-one, cloud-based retail software built to meet the needs of modern convenience store owners – had his insights published by Convenience Store News on how small convenience stores will continue to use data analytics to revolutionize their operations in 2024. Read the article here. 

District Administration for NWEA and YouScience

District Administration published a few stories on what trends to expect in 2024, leveraging perspectives from both NWEA – a K-12 assessment and research organization – and YouScience – the leading technology provider dedicated to solving the skills gap crisis for students and employers. 

• NWEA’s Lindsay Dworkin (Senior Vice President of Policy and Government Affairs), Ayesha Hashim (Research Scientist), Laura Hansen (Director of Academic Services), Fenesha Hubbard (Lead Professional Learning Designer), Chase Nordgren (Principal Research Lead, Effective Instructional Strategies), and Scott Peters (Senior Research Scientist) were all quoted on topics related to student progress and effective interventions, the investment in data through remaining ESSER funding, and the importance of academic identities of educators. Read the article here. 
• YouScience’s Jeri Larsen (Chief Operating Officer) and Hans Meeder (Senior Fellow for Education and Workforce Education) were quoted on the topic of college and career preparation, including career and technical education (CTE). Read the article here. 

eSchool News for School Status

Russ Davis, Founder and CEO, SchoolStatus – a leader in K-12 communication and attendance solutions – was included as a thought leader in a 2023 trends round-up from eSchool News, sharing how data on the student, classroom, and school will be critical to supporting academic recovery efforts. Read the article here. 

To learn more about how Zer0 to 5ive can help drive visibility and industry leadership for your company drop us a line.  

The world of marketing is always changing, but content remains king. As we step into 2024, brands must rethink their content strategies to stand out, captivate audiences, and drive meaningful engagement with current and potential customers. Here are our top 4 recommendations for brands to effectively utilize content in the coming year.

#1 Embrace Interactive Content Experiences

Interactive experiences are taking center stage in 2024. From consumer quizzes and polls to augmented reality (AR) applications, brands are easily able to create content that actively involves the audience. Interactive content boosts engagement and provides valuable insights into consumer preferences and behaviors. Consider incorporating interactive storytelling to enhance consumer participation.

#2 Prioritize Video Content Across Platforms

Video creation continues to dominate the content landscape, and its prevalence is only expected to grow. Brands should prioritize creating diverse video content tailored for different platforms that cater to their target audiences. Content can include short-form videos for platforms like TikTok and Instagram Reels, longer-form content for YouTube, or live videos for real-time engagement. A strategic approach to video content can help ensure your brand remains relevant and resonates with your target audiences.

#3 Utilize User-Generated Content (UGC)

Remaining authentic is a driving force in content marketing. Encourage your audience to generate content by running contests, campaigns, or simply asking for their input. User-generated content can add authenticity to your brand while simultaneously creating a sense of community among your customers. Share UGC on your social media channels, website, or even incorporate it into your advertising campaigns to build trust and credibility.

#4 Optimize for Voice Search and AI-Driven Content

The rise of voice search and AI technologies presents new opportunities for content optimization for businesses. Brands should adapt their content strategies to accommodate voice-activated devices and AI-driven platforms. Focusing on creating conversational and natural language content that aligns with the way people speak can help you achieve this. Consider optimizing for featured snippets to capture voice search queries and stay ahead in the agile landscape of search engine algorithms.

In 2024, the key to effective content utilization lies in embracing innovation, personalization, and authenticity. By incorporating interactive experiences, prioritizing video content, encouraging user-generated content, and optimizing for voice search, brands can create a content strategy that not only stands out, but also builds lasting connections with their audience. When building your content strategy this year, think beyond your core topics (keep SEO in mind!) to include the reader’s experience and desire to truly engage with your brand.

To learn more about how Zer0 to 5ive can help drive visibility and industry leadership for your company drop us a line.