It may not be business as usual in this COVID-19 era, but organizations need to continue to move forward, and may be wondering how to go about launching their products during this time of uncertainty. This fall has proven to be a busy one for industry professionals and journalists alike because many companies postponed events and announcements scheduled earlier in the year until now. While journalists are overwhelmed, we’re sharing some ways to spotlight your organization’s upcoming launch. You need to be aware of the current media landscape so you have the right tools and communications vehicles to set your launch apart from everything else.
The current media landscape
One shift we’ve seen since the start of the pandemic is the speed of coverage surrounding a launch. Instead of articles appearing like lightning on launch day, we’re seeing more publications publish coverage a few weeks later. This can keep the story alive longer, providing a steady drum beat of the news.
Business press continue to be more interested in highlighting the overarching trends of a story as opposed to focusing the conversation on the product alone. If your technology is under the hood, think of ways to focus the conversation on how your technology will benefit consumers and innovations in the industry that your product brings. Is it low-power? Is it revolutionizing memory storage or processing power for next-generation devices? Even if you score the coveted briefing with a major business press such as WSJ and they don’t write around your launch, it’s still a great thing. Quite often the press hold on to information from these briefings until they are ready to write a larger trend story on your industry – and that’s when they will write about you. These meetings are also very important because once the relationship is made, they may outreach to you in the future when working on an article related to your industry. If that happens, they will likely quote you or mention your company in that article as well.
Publications are still interested in finding great stories, it’s just that this year the delivery of those stories has transformed. Inboxes of reporters might be a bit busier, but the tried and true tactics remain the same: stand out by identifying with their readership and highlighting why their audience would care about your story.
Digital transformation
As we are all aware, digital transformation continues to be hot topic this year because of the pandemic. Video content has skyrocketed as a way for organizations to communicate their key storylines to customers and stakeholders. With the cancellation of in-person events, brands are finding innovative ways to generate awareness (which leads them to agencies like Tanis Communications!).
With more events turning virtual, a polished and succinct video is a necessity to communicate with your audiences. We’ve been working on digital solutions such as webinars to help our clients deliver their messages and generate leads. Video conferencing has also taken center stage, with many keynotes delivered via Zoom meetings.
We’ve also observed that the cancellation of in-person events has given clients more room in their budgets, therefore opening the door to do more with digital marketing. At Tanis, we have all the tools needed to help companies launch successful campaigns during this time through our experience in platforms like LinkedIn Sponsored Content, Google Ads and Netline.
Now is the time to invest in digital advertising and make your story heard! Follow us on LinkedIn and Twitter and contact us today.
By Rachael Paul, Account Coordinator
