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💡Smart Strategy, Social Listening, & Brand Storytelling
Tools, Strategy & Stories That Stick
PR Girl Manifesto
October 29, 2024
In partnership with
Welcome to Edition 003 of The PRGM Post! Can you believe we’ve been popping up in your inbox for almost a month?! We're super excited about this week's edition as we partner with HubSpot to bring you game-changing insights on working smarter, not harder.
This week we're diving into the power of social listening, exploring AI task delegation for communications pros, and breaking down a mascot marketing strategy that's redefining community engagement.
AFFIRMATION OF THE WEEK:
My dream clients and opportunities are finding me everyday
LESSON OF THE WEEK:
The best listeners don't just hear the conversation—they understand the story behind it.
THIS WEEK’S MOOD BOARD
mood: having fun with life
Use AI as Your Personal Assistant
Ready to embrace a new era of task delegation?
HubSpot’s highly anticipated AI Task Delegation Playbook is your key to supercharging your productivity and saving precious time.
Learn how to integrate AI technology into your processes, allowing you to optimize resource allocation and maximize output with precision and ease.
Need thought starters? Here's how PR pros can put AI to work:
The PR Pro's AI Assistant Checklist:
Monitoring Made Easy Use AI to track brand mentions across platforms Set up smart alerts for industry trends Generate sentiment analysis reports | Content Creation Support Draft initial versions of press releases Generate social media copy variations Create customizable pitch templates | Data & Analytics Transform campaign data into digestible reports Track coverage metrics automatically Generate performance insights |
Ready to implement these strategies? HubSpot's AI Task Delegation Playbook will help you get started. [Download the Playbook]
In today's media landscape, social listening isn't just about tracking mentions—it's about uncovering the stories behind the data. Here's your comprehensive guide to making social listening work harder for your PR strategy.
What Is Social Listening (Really)? Beyond just monitoring mentions, social listening is about understanding the conversations happening around:
Your brand/clients
Your industry
Your competitors
Your target audience's pain points
Beyond basic monitoring, effective social listening helps you:
Predict and prevent potential crises
Identify emerging storytelling opportunities
Understand sentiment around your brand/clients
Spot trending conversations before they peak
Find perfect timing for your announcements
The Four Pillars of Strategic Social Listening
Conversation Mapping
Think of conversation mapping as your digital ethnography. Start by monitoring direct brand mentions, but don't stop there. The real insights often lie in adjacent conversations—industry discussions, competitor mentions, and broader cultural moments. Create boolean search strings that capture variations of important terms while filtering out noise. Your goal is to build a comprehensive picture of your brand's ecosystem.
Sentiment Analysis
Understanding what people are saying is only half the battle—you need to know how they feel. Modern sentiment analysis goes beyond positive and negative reactions. Look for emotional undertones, track sentiment changes over time, and pay attention to regional differences. When you notice sudden shifts in sentiment, that's your signal to dig deeper—these moments often present either emerging crises or golden opportunities.
Competitive Intelligence
Your brand doesn't exist in a vacuum. Effective social listening helps you understand your share of voice in the industry and identify gaps in the market. Pay attention to how competitors handle customer service, launch campaigns, and engage with their audience. These insights can inform your strategy and help you capitalize on untapped opportunities.
Story Mining
Some of your best content will come from conversations already happening in your community. Listen for customer success stories, identify natural brand advocates, and watch for organic user-generated content. These authentic narratives often resonate more deeply than traditional PR & marketing messages.
Making Data Actionable
The key to successful social listening lies in your response framework. Establish a daily listening routine—even 15-30 minutes can yield valuable insights. Create custom dashboards for different stakeholders, and develop clear protocols for acting on different types of mentions. Remember to document your findings systematically; these insights will prove invaluable for future campaign planning.
💻 Comms Case Study: How the NY Liberty Turned Ellie The Elephant Into a Cultural Icon
Photo Credit: New York Liberty
When the New York Liberty moved to Brooklyn's Barclays Center in 2021, they faced a familiar challenge: how to connect with a new community while maintaining their existing fanbase. Their solution? Ellie The Elephant, a mascot that would transcend traditional sports marketing to become a masterclass in modern brand storytelling.
The Power of Strategic Character Development
Ellie's success begins with thoughtful character development. Named after Ellis Island, her identity weaves together New York's rich history with Brooklyn's vibrant present. Every aspect of her character—from her design to her personality—reflects a deep understanding of the community she represents. This authentic connection transforms her from a simple mascot into a beloved community figure.
A Platform-Perfect Approach
The Liberty's digital team understands that each social platform requires its own approach. On TikTok, Ellie delivers perfectly choreographed dances and trend participation. Instagram showcases behind-the-scenes moments and community interactions. This platform-native content strategy ensures her presence feels natural and engaging across all channels.
Community Integration
Ellie's influence extends far beyond game day entertainment. She appears at local events, participates in youth programs, and engages in community service initiatives. These activities aren't just photo opportunities—they're meaningful interactions that build genuine connections with the Brooklyn community. Through these engagements, Ellie has become a true ambassador for both the team and the borough.
Merchandising with Meaning
The Liberty transformed Ellie's popularity into tangible brand extensions through strategic merchandising. Each product line tells a story, connecting fans to both the team and the broader Brooklyn community. This approach turns merchandise from simple souvenirs into symbols of community pride.
The Bottom Line
Ellie's success shows that mascot marketing isn't just for sports teams. The principles behind her rise – authentic storytelling, community integration, and platform-perfect content – can be applied to any brand looking to deepen their connection with their audience.
💬 Send To The GroupChat
🎉 Celebrate: October 30 is National Publicist Day!
October 30th is our day to celebrate the pitch-perfecting, story-crafting, relationship-building magic you bring to the industry. Take a moment to treat yourself (maybe with that coffee order you usually skip?), shout out a PR pro who's inspired you, or mentor someone who's just starting their journey. Whether you're drafting releases at midnight or managing your third crisis this week – you're making moves that matter. Share your PR wins and love using #NationalPublicistDay and tag us in your celebrations! ✨
Fun Fact: The term "publicist" was coined by Francis Lieber in the late 19th century, Lieber used the term to describe the engagement of internationalists with the public.
Do:
🎯 Set up one new social listening dashboard this week using our guide
🤖 Identify three repetitive PR tasks you could delegate to AI
Tell A Friend To Tell A Friend:
As a subscriber of #theprgmpost, you're getting the inside scoop first: Our capsule collection is dropping THIS WEEK!
Pass this tea to your PR besties – subscribers get an exclusive discount code dropping in their inbox this Friday. Trust us, they'll want to be on the list for this one!
💼 Who’s Hiring
Featured Job Opportunity
Small Girls PR | Director of Multicultural PR
New York City | Hybrid (2 days in office)
Small Girls PR is seeking a PR powerhouse to lead multicultural initiatives for a major global beauty brand!
The Role: Shape creative PR strategies and inclusive national campaigns with a focus on multicultural marketing. Lead DEI initiatives, build diverse media relationships, and mentor rising PR stars.
YOU HAVE:
| THE PERKS:
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Ready to make your mark? [Apply Here →]
Additional Job Openings
Currently, hiring? Looking for your next gig? Head to our career center to apply to our partner listings or post your job opening!
That's a wrap for this week! We’d love to be the first to wish you a Happy National Publicist Day, we know we’re 24 hours early, but we love ya’ll that much.
See you on Friday as we unveil our full collection of #PREssentials 😉
Kindly Circling Back Forever,
The PR Girl Manifesto Team
P.S. Got a PR win you want to share? A burning question for our experts? Or maybe you just want to say hi? Hit reply to this email or drop us a line via [email protected] – we read every message!
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