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Visibility, Credibility, and Growth.

From media strategy to reputation management, we explore the trends shaping public perception and share the approaches that drive measurable results for growing brands.

Infographic: Tips for Writing Irresistible Headlines

As PR pros, we’ve all had writer’s block when it comes to developing an attention-grabbing headline. As content marketing efforts have increased dramatically, so has the importance of writing catchy, clickable headlines.

Whether it’s for an op-ed, blog post, email blast or press release, the title of your piece needs to grab the reader’s attention and entice them to continue reading (I’ll let you be the judge on whether I accomplished that feat today).

There are several aspects that make for an effective headline, including the four “u” rule by the American Writers and Artists Association. More than anything, you need an interesting story. Even the greatest headline writer in the world will fail with a boring or confusing story. That’s because the best headlines aren’t necessarily the ones that make people click — they’re the ones that promise great stories and then fulfill that promise. While challenging, the process of writing good headlines can make your story ideas better.

Which is why I was thrilled when I came across a recent PR Daily article titled, Infographic: How to write irresistible headlines, from A-Z, outlining a whole alphabet’s worth of headline-writing tips and tricks.

PR Daily’s editor, Robby Brumberg, highlights a handful of helpful takeaways from the extensive infographic of which I also believe are some of the most helpful ideas included in the infographic.

“Posing a question … remains one of the best ways to engage the reader.”

I find myself clicking headlines if they ask a question on a current topic and promise to answer it. It has always served as a teaser for me. But if this technique is used without providing answers, it can deter readers. It’s best practice to make sure this is only used if you are answering the question and providing some direction.

“What’s in it for your audience? What does she or he have to gain if they carry on reading? In the headline, tout a substantial benefit that a reader can pluck from your piece.”

My best advice is to keep it simple, clear and to the point. A good headline lets readers know the content has value and isn’t just clickbait (because it isn’t, right?). Headlines should convey that readers will either learn something new, glean impactful advice or be entertained and moved by the words coming next. Answer the question, “What’s in it for me?”

Nike’s campaign for its Black History Month collection is a prime example that utilizes just the word “EQUALITY.” The word means so much to people and piques interest for broad engagement.

“Decisions are based on emotions”

Brumberg suggests that you “hit your readers directly in their pain points. Use visceral language that stirs emotions and lets your passion for your subject shine through in the headline.” Consumers are inundated with headlines and advertisements on multiple platforms, so their attention span is increasingly limited. The New York Times’ behind-the-scenes experiment of testing which headlines resonated with readers found that the headlines with the most success are clear, powerful, and written in a conversational tone.

Brumberg’s article is a helpful one-stop shop full of resources and ideas to get the creative juices flowing when developing your next headline. It’s one bookmark every PR pro should have saved on their browser.

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BitTitan Empowers MSPs to Reach New Business Heights With Rollout of New Products

It’s been a busy summer for the folks at BitTitan.

The global leader in managed services automation launched two major and innovative products in the cloud services market, enabling MSPs and IT professionals to provide new cloud-migration services to customers and further grow their businesses.

On July 9, BitTitan unveiled Microsoft Teams migration capabilities to MigrationWiz, its industry-leading SaaS solution for mailbox, document and public-folder migrations. The new migration capabilities allow IT professionals to migrate instances of Teams as well as the individual components within that instance, including Teams, Channels, Conversations, Permissions and Files. These features are among the first of their kind, as a clear path for tenant-to-tenant Teams migration had not previously been established.

Media outlets took notice, as the news was published in more than a dozen trade publications. Two contributed articles about MigrationWiz Teams migrations also ran, which were authored by Mark Kirstein, BitTitan’s vice president of products.

BitTitan wasn’t done. On July 15, BitTitan debuted Voleer at Microsoft Inspire 2019 in Las Vegas. A new IT automation platform, Voleer centralizes and automates the day-to-day IT needs for engineers and administrators, helping them package and sell new services and grow revenue.

The Voleer announcement was covered by trade outlets and resulted in eight published articles.

Two significant product launches has certainly made for an exciting summer, but BitTitan has more to unveil with its innovative new products, as it continues to rollout updates and new features through the end of the year. At Communiqué PR, we couldn’t be more thrilled to partner with such a dynamic and forward-thinking company that continues to look ahead at delivering the next big solution to shake up the cloud-migration market.

Microsoft Teams

Voleer

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Snapshot of YTD Results for Schnitzer West: Real Estate Investment, Development and Property Management Leader

When thinking about Seattle or the Puget Sound region, what words come to mind? Thriving tech industry? Music hub? Craft beer and coffee capital? In addition to these vital descriptors, Seattle is home to a booming real-estate market.

While the residential market appears to be cooling, according to Zillow; it’s a different story with the commercial real estate market. Seattle is often referred to as a Renaissance city for commercial real estate investments with more than 6.4 million square feet of space slated to come to market in 2019, according to a study by commercial real estate blog Commercial Café. The upward investment in commercial real estate is a result of Seattle’s dynamic job market and an example of how the region’s growing workforce is impacting the economy.

Our longstanding client Schnitzer West, a premier vertically integrated real estate investment firm, is a significant player in the commercial real estate market in the Seattle/Bellevue region as well as in Denver.

Since the company’s inception in 1997, Schnitzer West has developed more than 7.8 million square feet of property in Seattle, and Denver. The company also acquired and repositions developments and to date, manages nearly 4 million square feet of office, flex and industrial buildings in these markets.

This has been an exciting year for the 22 year-old-company with four notable sales and/or acquisitions: two in the Puget Sound region and two in Denver. Below is an overview of these announcements and the coverage we secured to build awareness of Schnitzer West’s expertise developing and repositioning office space to meet the unique needs of today’s workforce.

Swift Real Estate Partners Acquires Bellevue 520 Corridor from Schnitzer West and RMA

In August, Schnitzer West announced the sale of Bellevue 520 Corridor Office Portfolio (520 Portfolio) comprised of Bel Kirk 520 and Centra Office Park to Swift Real Estate Partners. Schnitzer West and RMA sold the 520 Portfolio for $59.3 million. Bellevue is a dynamic and growing submarket in the Puget Sound region, according to Bellevue’s Downtown Association, there was nearly 1.5 million square feet of office space developed in Downtown Bellevue from 2017 to 2018.

Vanbarton Group Purchases Seattle’s 901 Fifth Avenue Office Tower from Investcorp and Schnitzer West for $305 Million

Earlier this summer, Vanbarton Group a privately owned, vertically integrated real estate investment and advisory firm purchased 901 Fifth Avenue from Schnitzer West and Investcorp for $305 million. The 100 percent occupied office tower is a 541,190-square foot, 41-story Class-A building in Seattle’s central business district.

Schnitzer West Acquires New Mixed-use Property in Denver’s Flourishing Central Business District 

In April, Schnitzer West announced the purchase of a parcel of land located at 3615 Delgany St., in the River North Art District (RiNo) of the Central Business District (CBD) of Denver. The acquisition of the Delgany property is an example of the role Schnitzer West is playing to help build a business presence in RiNo district that will support those living and working in the district and greater region.

Schnitzer West Acquires Two Properties in Southeast Denver Area

In Q1 2019, Schnitzer West announced the purchase of two properties in the Denver area: Peakview Place in Centennial, Colorado and 115 Inverness in Englewood, Colorado. Both properties are ideally positioned in transit-oriented locations within Denver’s southeast suburban (SES) submarket, which is Denver’s largest office market. This purchase demonstrates another example of Schnitzer West’s commitment to bringing the Denver workforce office space that best supports their needs.

We are excited to continue partnering with Schnitzer West and raise awareness around the role they are playing in strengthening the Puget Sound and Denver business districts. As the job market in these regions continues to evolve, Schnitzer West will continue to innovate its development and design strategies to support the needs of businesses and exceed the workforce’s expectations. 

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Recommended Reading: Essentialism – The Disciplined Pursuit of Less

Earlier this month I was at a gathering talking with a long-time business colleague. He shared that when he recently agreed to join a company’s board of directors, he requested that everyone on that board read the book “Essentialism – The Disciplined Pursuit of Less.”

In a society that seems to be about doing more, FOMO (fear of missing out), and stating how busy we are as a badge of honor – the appeal of “pursuing less” is super attractive but seems incongruent to professional success and business growth. Yet author Greg McKeown makes the case in the first chapter that “[essentialism] is not about how to get more things done; it’s about how to get the right things done.”

McKeown shares a personal story, which led to his own discovery of the lesson that “if you don’t prioritize your life someone else will.”

And, by prioritizing energy and resources on the right things, while deliberately eliminating the non-essentials, we define a path where we can “enjoy the journey, not just the destination.” The idea is to focus on the one thing that provides the highest level of contribution and eliminates the noise and distractions in order to pursue success.

Identifying and focusing on one thing seems daunting; however, McKeown guides readers on how to “discern the trivial many from the vital few,” and then “how to cut out the trivial many.” The final section focuses on execution and the ways we can “make the vital few things almost effortless.”

If you find yourself stretched too thin, resentful of something you committed to do, or are feeling busy but not productive, I encourage you to read “Essentialism” and consider, as McKeown wisely offers, “the relentless pursuit of less but better.”

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Level up Home Launches With the Opening of Its First Home for At-Risk and Former Foster Care Youth

When Level Up Home reached out to Communiqué PR for some help with the launch of its organization, the answer was a resounding “Yes.” Working for an organization with such an important cause was easy to do.

Level Up Home is a new nonprofit organization whose mission is to support youth ages 18-24 who are at-risk or have aged out of the foster-care system and need housing to finish earning their high school diplomas. The nonprofit provides these young adults with consistent housing, meals and business partnerships that empower them to finish high school and implement a self-development plan around education, career and life skills. The organization has business partners who offer career and trade exploration opportunities such as mentorship programs, job shadowing, internships and full-time employment.

To mark the official launch of Level Up Home, the organization opened its first home in Edmonds, Wash., for this underserved and vulnerable young adult population. To celebrate, Edmonds’ mayor and the Edmonds Chamber of commerce hosted a ribbon-cutting ceremony on Friday, July 26, 2019, at the home in Edmonds.

Frank Shankwitz, one of the supporters of Level Up Home and the creator and a founder of the Make-A-Wish Foundation, was a guest of honor at this event. After his success with Make-A-Wish, Shankwitz turned his attention to two other causes he cares deeply about: foster youth and U.S. veterans. He is chairman of Cause Equity, an organization that buys housing and leases it at below-market rates to nonprofit organizations such as Level Up Seattle and U.S. Vets.

Level Up Home is currently receiving referrals for youth who can potentially benefit from the nonprofit’s services, a process that began on Aug. 15. The organization is working with the Department of Children and Young Families  (formerly DSHS), YouthNet, Friends of Youth, Tree House, various school district liaisons and high school athletics coaches to help facilitate connections with young adults who need stable housing. Initially, the home will be occupied by 10 young adults and the organization’s program director.

Communiqué PR had the opportunity to work with the Edmonds Beacon to secure media coverage of the launch. You can read the full article here: Seattle nonprofit opens home for youth locally.

We are thrilled to have supported this impressive nonprofit organization as it opened its doors to youth in need. We look forward to watching Level Up Home thrive!

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Innovative PR Campaigns and Steps to Creating Your Own

Coming up with a brand-new campaign idea can be tough. It might seem like all the creative ideas have been taken, or that your idea is too far-fetched for the target audience’s acceptance. While it’s impossible to foresee how a public relations campaign will be analyzed by the outside eye, it’s important to note that there is no clear-cut method or technique for an outstanding campaign’s design/execution and that the success of a campaign depends on various factors including current trends and the brand’s significance, among others.

 Fortunately, there are plenty of innovational PR campaigns to help spark creative thought processes. This HubSpot blog dives into a few creative campaigns, ranging from the automotive industry to the travel & leisure industry that may help shape your own original ideas.

  • AirBnB and BBC Earth Leverages Blue Planet II: The show, “Blue Planet II” garnered a whopping 14 million viewers who watched its first episode and is considered the greatest nature series of all time. Realizing the significance of the show to its viewers, BBC Earth partnered with AirBnB to offer members the chance to explore the Atlantic Ocean in a submarine with the show’s filmmakers.
  • Lyft Riders Experience Stranger Things: Within a day of “Stranger Things 2” being released, over 360,000 people had watched the show on Netflix. Lyft played a large role in building up the show’s release by creating “Strange Mode,” a campaign that made Lyft riders feel as if they were in a similar environment as that of Hawkins, Ind., the show’s location.
  • Old Spice’s Paper Blazers: Oftentimes, magazines are flooded with fragrance samples. Old Spice steered away from the traditional style of samples, combining fragrance with fashion. Their disposable paper blazers allowed men to show off their style, as well as attract attention with their smell.
  • SpaceX Sending a Tesla to Space: It’s always incredible to see the work being done in space, especially when it comes to launching a car to Mars. In 2018, SpaceX launched Falcon Heavy into space and soon after deployed a red Tesla into orbit, being deemed as the “greatest automotive PR stunt in history.”    

The innovative approaches of these campaigns prove that the success of a campaign is often dependent upon its creativity and uniqueness. However, it is important to keep in mind the intended target audience and the need to craft applicable content for that audience.

This Entrepreneur article dives into three essentials for creating an effective PR campaign:

  1. Establish clear goals. One of the first steps of campaign planning is to outline media goals and from there begin strategizing the best route to fulfill those goals. There are multiple factors why companies engage with the media, including building customer awareness and improving the brand’s image. After defining media goals, it’s critical to then decide the target audience. This part should be fairly simple, as the campaign’s announcement should grant a huge clue as to who would be interested in the news.
  2. Choose the type of content. Defining media goals will help define the type of content to include in a campaign. High-tier publications usually only cover stories with significant newsworthiness. If your campaign does not have a compelling announcement, it may be better suited for a blog post or contributed content. If there is an interesting product or company backstory, this may be best suited for a proactive pitch to journalists. To reach existing customers or clients, it’s a best practice to continually develop blog posts and engage on social media.
  3. Choose your media channel. Now that you’ve established the type of content to share, it’s time to choose the type of channel to share the campaign. Depending on this content and the intent of the campaign, the channel could be leading publications, industry publications, social media, networking sites, blogs, and even podcasts. For example, if your campaign centered around crowdfunding, it may not be the best fit for a high-tier publication and may be better suited for a blog or podcast. Similarly, high-tier publications often do not cover “inward- facing” company news; if this is part of your campaign, consider sharing this news on social media or through a blog post.

Campaign planning is often time-consuming and full of complex decision-making. However, if a campaign is prepared well and the target audience sees the purpose, the payoff can be indescribable.

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