Why newsjacking needs to form part of your PR strategy

Timing is pivotal in PR, and even the best stories will struggle to land without the right timing and relevance in the news cycle.

Newsjacking, also known as reactive PR, allows brands to raise their brand awareness and authority by positioning themselves in relevant, trending conversations – capitalising on spikes in public interest and securing coverage by being part of the conversation.

Planned, ‘proactive’ campaigns will always be essential to position a brand in the media long-term with thoughtful outreach to relevant journalists and publications, but Reactive PR cannot be overlooked as part of a PR strategy.

Proactive campaigns offer the opportunity to control the narrative of the brand completely, and offer scope to reach a wider range of journalists by reangling campaigns, while reactive PR offers the opportunity to respond quickly to breaking news, trending topics, unexpected spikes in public interest to secure media coverage and boost visibility.

There’s pros and cons to each, but utilising both avenues offers more scope for clients to maximise their visibility in top publications.

Here are the 7 key reasons newsjacking should be an integral part of your PR strategy:

1. Conversations already have momentum

Newsjacking or reactive PR allows brands to tap into conversations that are already circulating and trending. Hot topics already have momentum, so while proactive PR often tries to generate interest from scratch – like from a dataset or an extensive topic – reactive PR allows clients to join conversations that journalists are already writing about.

When something already has traction it significantly increases the likelihood that content will be read and noticed, therefore picked up by the media. It’s basically already newsworthy, and in digital PR, relevance and timing is especially important – reactive PR automatically delivers both.

2. Opportunity for instant results in top-tier publications

With proactive PR, there’s multiple stages in the process which all take time – from ideation stage to outreach. Once it’s in the inbox of a journalist, there’s still no guarantee that it’s totally their beat, or they simply don’t have plans to write about your brand’s topic. Coverage can take time and multiple pivots and re-positionings before it becomes relevant to journalists and aligns with the news cycle.

Reactive PR is in-tune with the news cycle already, and breaking news and trending topics demands journalists’ immediate attention. Usually reactive pieces go live within days to ensure the piece doesn’t become yesterday’s news. Journalists are therefore looking for quick responses from experts – expert commentary, data from the client to support the piece, or industry insights. Brands that respond quickly and accurately with information that adds to the piece are far more likely to secure coverage.

3. Reactive PR can add one piece of the puzzle

High-authority publications like broadsheets can require multiple components like in-depth data, studies, expert commentary and in-depth, intellectual thought-leadership. Broadsheets often need the full, connected puzzle which can be difficult for clients on a smaller budget to provide, and even when they do, it’s not bound to land with journalists if they haven’t got the topic planned in.

High-authority publications can therefore be difficult to pitch to traditionally, but reactive PR allows you to fill any gaps journalists may have in their existing plans. A timely comment or data point that adds to their existing agenda opens doors to those top publications on national or industry level within hours or at most days.

4. It still builds brand authority

Many people – even in the PR space – think brand authority is solely built through large, proactive campaigns and positioning over time. While brand authority in PR is definitely earned, it doesn’t happen overnight, consistent contribution through reactive PR (so long as it’s highly relevant and aligns with the brand) reinforces reputation as a trusted source.

Newsjacking develops authority through ongoing participation in relevant discussions – making your brand an active and knowledgeable voice in your industry or area.

5. Maximum impact with limited resources

Some proactive PR campaigns require a large budget and or months of preparation, while reactive PR often requires speed and expertise rather than extensive strategy and planning.

Reactive PR can be a very efficient way to generate high-quality coverage without the cost or time associated with large-scale campaigns.

6. Driving high-quality backlinks and SEO value

Digital PR is pivotal to SEO, and newsjacking can add significant value from an SEO perspective. Media coverage generated through reactive PR – especially if your brand is responding to journalist enquiries that they can selectively respond to – often comes from websites with a high-domain-authority which can strengthen a clients’ backlink profile and improve search visibility.

Breaking news attracts high readership and engagement, so links earned tend to carry weight.

7. It’s more flexible than you think

There’s a misconception that reactive PR only comes from journalists enquiring and reaching out to the brand requesting the comments or data, but reactive PR can take other forms.

Reactive PR can still be outreached proactively. Newsjacking boils down to reacting to current events or conversations, and PRs can spot these trends independently – such as by monitoring surging search volumes or trends, or anticipating traffic by staying ahead-of-the-curve with upcoming product launches or TV or events.

PRs can use reactive PR proactively – even though it sounds paradoxical – being ready to respond with a press release ahead of events.

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