Fundamentals of Brand Journalism

The idea was staring me in the eye when I did research for my recent book – Making News in the Digital Era – because all the corporate IT and communications people I interviewed confirmed that their traditional online newsrooms – graveyards for press releases – got little to no attention or traffic.

The challenge we face – in a world where there is so much competitive clutter – is how to get our voice heard.

Competitive Clutter

Let me share some thoughts about the concept of using online “brand journalism” to create TRUST and DIFFERENTIATION for an organization’s brand. I put those two words in all CAPS because they are current CEO buzz words.

The model we have developed at The News Group Net is based on the old saw that he/she who manages and is the keeper of essential information has the power and influence. It’s a very basic notion in society, anywhere in the world.

For example, I take the notes in a meeting where no one else keeps a record, and I have the definitive last word on what happened at that meeting. I achieve a respected level of knowledge, balance and credibility.

When an organization can credibly and openly put out its own news – written in a journalistic style and supported by news photos/video – while, at the same time, manage the news of its business sector, it becomes the go-to authority … because no one else has done so.

The organization therefore becomes the center of its universe and substantially boosts awareness and attention.

The ages-old paradigm of marketing, selling and promoting – or pushing – information and advertising is far less effective in today’s digital era where audiences made up of individuals want to make up their own minds. Remember that today’s audiences only listen to determine what the value of a product or service is to them; they could care less to hear an organization talk about itself.

Therefore, when an organization is able to shed its fear of any news being less than perfect, it can start building a level of trust and differentiation with audiences never before achieved, and that leads to attention, increased eyeballs on a brand journalism site, interaction with customers and consumers, enhanced favorable awareness and desired results.

Lastly, let me state without reservation that using this approach, we can substantially enhance an organizations brand awareness online – its “Googleability” – and favorable reputation overall within about three to four months. That makes it the most EFFICIENT (another CEO buzz word) brand enhancement tool I’m aware of.

Related posts:

1. The Evolving Preference for Brand Journalism
2. It’s About Brand Leadership, Not Marketing
3. Defining Corporate Journalism
4. How to Salvage Toyota’s Brand Reputation
5. Online Newsroom vs. Online Cemetery

Tags: Brand Journalism

Category: Brand Journalism, Featured