Telling Your Company Story Through Brand Journalism

You have a great idea for a story. It meets a key business goal for your company or your client. It’s newsworthy. It’s visual. You can provide access and interviews. You have the perfect media target. So you pick up the phone to make your pitch to a reporter.

Voicemail. 

You follow up with an email. 

And wait for a response.

Reach out to another source. Voicemail, followed by email.

It can be frustrating when your pitch hits a dead end. But it’s also challenging for the reporters and editors on the receiving end of those pitches. They receive an average of 36 pitches every day. In fact, for every news reporter, there are more than six public relations people trying to pitch stories. According to data from the U.S. Census Bureau, PR people outnumber reporters by a ratio of more than 6-to-1, up from less than 2-to-1 just 20 years ago. 

A big part of the problem – newsrooms across the country are shrinking. A Pew Research Center analysis of Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment Statistics survey data shows that newsroom employment dropped by 25 percent from 2008-2018. Newspapers have been hit hardest, as print circulations and advertising revenues continue to decline. At the same time, studies show more and more consumers are turning to the internet and social media to get their news. The Pew Research Center found 43% of adults most often turn to news websites or social media. This change gives organizations a new opportunity to tell their stories on their own schedule.

Brand journalism takes your story beyond a press release and creates a compelling narrative that has real news value to your target audiences. This strategic storytelling raises awareness and provides context, by showcasing your industry expertise, thought leadership and enhancing your reputation. 

Treat your online newsroom as a journalism-style publishing platform. This gives you greater control of your narrative. Covering your own organization and sharing those stories in an online newsroom makes it easier to show reporters your topic is worth covering. Applying journalism techniques to an online newsroom will result in better stories that can be delivered across multiple social and digital channels.

So Many Stories, So Little Time

As a television news producer, I had a limited amount of time in my newscast to fill every day. There were so many great stories beyond the news of the day to be told. With fewer reporters in newsrooms today, there’s a limit to how many stories can be told. Brand journalism enables you to tell your own stories on your own timetable with no limits. 

Compelling stories can be found in every company and organization. People are 22 times more likely to remember a fact when it has been wrapped in a story. Stories make your brand relatable and show audiences why something is important versus telling them. Stories humanize your brand and make it memorable. 

First Impressions are Everything

Once you have these strong stories, you’ll want to organize them and make sure they are easily accessible to multiple audiences. Reporters often start their research on a company’s website or social media channels. When consumers or clients want to find out more about a company or organization, they also turn to websites and social media. Sharing stories and key information across those channels builds brand awareness, shapes public perception and builds your reputation. 

Getting Started

So how do you get started? Audit your online newsroom. Evaluate your storytelling capabilities and writing talent. Determine if your social and digital strategies reflect your brand and are aligned with your organization’s business goals.

When it comes to building a brand journalism practice, you want experienced storytellers who can identify and craft the stories that inspire emotion and advance key business goals. I am excited to tap into my journalistic roots in launching Kane’s Brand Journalism practice. We have a team of award-winning former journalists at our firm with a combined 60 years of experience. I look forward to tapping into their talent as we help our clients tell their stories.

We will share more about what brand journalism is (and isn’t) and how it can solve your business problems and help you achieve your goals.

Are you ready to take the leap into a different kind of storytelling? Kane Communications Group is ready to write your story.