From my last blog, there were a couple of questions about using earned media during the coronavirus pandemic and other situations involving a national or global situation. Questions about timing, subject matter, and how earned media is executed. Before answering these questions, I wanted to review what earned media is and then dive into ways of earning media for your organization.  

What is Earned Media?

First, let’s define what earned media is. Earned media are mentions you and/or your business get from others. This can come from your SEO (earning traffic), social media (shares and mentions by others), referrals (any platform), press (mentions, reviews, source), and anything else coming from a 3rd party. 

Earned media is influential as it opens up the opportunity for others to learn about you from what they consider a reliable and trustful source. A HubSpot research study found 57% trust the opinion of their family and friends about a new product whereas 30% trust Google. Regardless of the source, the opportunity to impress and wow someone is always available. What this comes down to is for you to position yourself to be a trustful resource to earn this type of media.

Ways to Earn Media:

Here are some quick ways to get the earned media you need to be successful: 

• Be a resource in your industry and profession. Post content on your blog, website, LinkedIn article section and share it.

• Share it on your social media and distribute content, driving people back to your website and business profiles. Your message and brand being shared are key.

• Consistently and frequently post content on every online. Consistency drives you to be a resource.

• Collaborate with other experts in your network to increase distribution. Share experiences and thought leadership.

• Call your friends and family to share what you just posted. Not a shameful ask, this will increase distribution, sharing, and the needed clicks and visits to your website or profile.

• Integrate with your paid media efforts and drive traffic to your profiles. This helps accelerate the distribution of your content. Think of boosting posts on Facebook and Instagram.

Is the timing right?

As I’ve said before, there should be no hesitation in being more active with digital marketing. Many experts say to cut marketing when facing a situation. But unless it’s a dire situation, that is far from what you should be doing. Cutting back means taking your business, brand, your momentum offline and sending a signal you’re closed. If you completely cut digital marketing or marketing as a whole, it will take months to recover and in some cases over a year to get back.