Making the Most of the Content News Cycle

With that in mind, how can brands determine the width of their own news cycles, so they can generate content throughout each cycle and see real results? The answers to these two questions may help.

How often is there news in the industry?

With the advent of online news outlets, traditional news breaks all day long; this is why traditional news now has a 24-hour news cycle. But in digital marketing, the news cycles for brands are determined in part by the frequency with which news breaks in the industry. So, for example: The tech industry has breaking news every couple of days, and those stories can be commented on for several days in between. To that end, it could be said that the tech industry has roughly a 48-hour news cycle before a new story breaks.

When there is Less Industry News

An industry that has less breaking news – say, a new development occurs every couple of months – has a much longer news cycle. That means its brands are forced to comment on the same industry news for months at a time, which puts them at a disadvantage when it comes to generating industry-related content. Because those brands cannot rely on industry news cycles as heavily, they need to create their own news – news specific to the brand, rather than the industry. That leads to the next question these brands must ask themselves.

How often is there news for the brand?

If there is less news in the industry, there needs to be more news for the brand so that the news cycle can be narrowed and the content can stay fresh. Examples of eventful brand news may include new locations, expansions, mergers and acquisitions. If those things aren’t happening at the moment, brands can create their own smaller news stories by having sales, promotions, contests and events. Anything that is happening at the business is newsworthy to the brand, and can be turned into content to refresh the news cycle more frequently.

What about Newsjacking?

Brands can also make the most of their content news cycles by “newsjacking.” While this should be a lower priority than industry news and brand news, newsjacking is a practical way for brands to capitalize on current events for the sake of their own marketing campaigns. Essentially, newsjacking amounts to using a current news topic as an angle for a blog post or social media update. There does not necessarily need to be a connection between the news event and the industry or brand; the point of newsjacking is to leverage an event that is capturing the public interest. However, brands must proceed with caution. We have identified three cardinal rules of newsjacking that can be read here.

After determining the content news cycle, brands and their marketing teams should get to work on refreshing the news cycle as often as possible. This holds consumer interest in the brands, helps SEO and gives the brands more influence on social media, all because of the frequently generated content. Optimally, the result is an increase in conversion rates. To learn more about this content marketing strategy, contact Crest Media Internet Marketing.