The term newsjacking arises from the fusion of the English words news with the verb hijack which would be something like the appropriation or kidnapping of something to be used for other purposes.
The concept was popularized in 2011 in the book “Newsjacking: How to Inject Your Ideas into a Breaking News Story and Generate Tons of Media Coverage” by David Meerman Scott, who defined it as a technique to create brand content based on news or breaking events to achieve audience and reach from media coverage.
According to Scott, the idea of newsjacking It is taking advantage of the interest caused by a piece of news or event so that all the people who are following it see the brand associated with what is happening.
In the image we can see the process. The practice begins with active listening in order to discover the events that will allow us to generate the messages and then moves on to a second instance, the creation of relevant content. Here it is important that it be creative and ingenious in order to capture the public and, of course, be consistent with the brand. In the third step of the process we are already in the stage of viralization, the echo in the media. That is, when through the practice of newsjacking the content itself has become news and is being followed in real time.
For a good strategy newsjackingScott in his book “The New Rules of Marketing & PR”, proposes to take into account certain key characteristics that we could summarize as follows:
-Choose the right news: The goal is to generate impact and differentiate ourselves. The event per se is already news, therefore you have to stand out and know how to link the event with the brand to provide users/consumers with added value.
-Speed: We must be permanently informed of all the events that happen and that may be of interest to our public. Once found, the strategy must be implemented in real time, after verifying that it is relevant to the brand and its consuming public.
-Thinking critically: A strategy of newsjacking it can go from being an opportunity to becoming a reputation crisis, especially in social networks. Therefore, what should never be done when applying this technique is to assume an opportunistic or insensitive position. There are news that, despite their media impact, are not functional to this practice and can generate rejection in the public.
On some occasions, brands intentionally jump on an existing wave or one that they know is coming and can take advantage of. As an example of this, I share with you some cases of newsjacking digital that surely remember!
HERE ARE THREE IMAGES
as we saw the newsjacking It involves taking advantage of high-impact, real-time news that connects and is aligned with the brand because only in this way does it become a useful tool to gain visibility and generate conversation.
Have you already put it into practice?