It all sounds very gangsta, doesn’t it?
In reality, it’s anything but… and it’s something every coach (and every ‘solopreneur’) should be doing.
Back in the days when Asha and I were both journalists (which feels like about a million years before we became coaches!), finding the news, finding an angle and creating a good story was second nature.
It still comes easily to us now, and it’s one of the reasons our social media posts are so punchy, and that people actually read, trust and share them.
Creating awesome online content is vital for reach, audience building and client creation.
Back to newsjacking, then…
What is newsjacking and why does it matter?
Put simply, it’s a way of tying your content into news and current affairs – tapping into the topicality of the moment.
My clients are at it all over the place now – and it reaps rewards. In fact, one of them emailed me with a newsjacking prompt a few days ago.
Katie Allen is all about courageous conversations. She’s an executive coach who specialises in diversity, equity and inclusion and works with individuals and leaders to help them create allyship in their organisations.
I first met Katie when she applied to join the launch cohort of my exclusive mentoring programme for coaches – Project Artemis – and we’ve been working together ever since.
Katie had spotted a news story about NASA struggling to get their own Artemis programme off the ground.
Attaching a screenshot from The Independent, here’s what Katie said: “I saw this and thought of you – Nasa might not be able to get Artemis off the ground, but you HAVE! I thought it might be a fun newsjack for you, what with your group definitely having all their engines fired up!”
She was spot on and, had I not been on an ‘active rest’ week, I would have been all over it.
We’re now on the third fully-booked semester of Project Artemis, and there are no failures, technical or otherwise! My coaches on the programme are all preparing for lift off as we speak!
Sometimes, newsjacking makes for a great social post that’ll pop up in all the online searches and news alerts around that topic, and sometimes it’s a way to generate media coverage for you and your business.
How? Well, there’s the therapist Asha worked with, who ended up with a half page newspaper dedicated to her business, when she spoke out about Brexit arguments splitting families, or the national newspaper coverage I won when I spoke up for small businesses during the pandemic.
Sometimes, newsjacking works when we’re not even thinking about it!
I once created a tongue-in-cheek graphic about the series finale of one of my favourite TV shows, only to find it picked up by an Australian entertainment news portal as well as a global tech site!
So, there you have it. Newsjacking. You need to be doing it as well.
No matter what they tell you, reach IS an important part of growing your brand, building your audience and increasing demand.
Remember, people can’t buy into you if they don’t know you exist!
Until next time, keep your eye on the ball and enjoy your newsjacking exploits. Let’s get you famous!
#UnleashYourAwesome
Taz
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