Maintaining PR Momentum: What to Focus on During Down Time
September 25, 2024
By Jackie Kelvington
You and your team have been on a roll. You’ve successfully announced a new product or service for your company or client, scored a spokesperson on a morning show to further amplify your message, deployed a quarterly stakeholder newsletter and introduced a new executive to the community. Whew!
Cheers to you and your work over the past several months. So, what’s next?
As PR pros, we often find the busiest times the most straightforward. You know what’s on your plate and what needs to get done to accomplish your company’s goals. But what if the weeks ahead aren’t looking as busy as the last? When things slow down, you may find yourself asking how you’ll keep the momentum going and what type of work you can do to continue adding value.
Here are five strategic ways to maintain momentum during slower periods:
Conduct a competitive analysis of your industry.
Take time to review what your competitors, peers and other “like” organizations are up to – locally and nationally. It’s important to keep up to date on what’s going on in your industry and what others are doing, launching, undertaking and saying. A strategic competitive analysis will shed invaluable insight on your own planning, strategies, marketing and more. We suggest regularly reviewing competitor social media channels and websites, setting up news alerts to keep you informed and monitoring trade publications and industry bloggers to start. Capitalize on findings to inspire your own planning, outreach and content.
Create, produce, plan and repurpose content.
We know firsthand, as content creators, you’re the go-tos for clients and companies when it comes to ideating and producing creative and engaging stories that influence perceptions and motivate action. When you don’t have big news and/or announcements to share, take time to plan out compelling content that resonates and engages with your audiences. For example, you could:
- Leverage national observances that connect to your relevancy and will offer you an edge from a content perspective;
- Produce more short-form videos to post, boost and share – we’ve seen phenomenal increases in engagement from video series we’ve produced and boosted for our clients;
- Transform a news release into a blog, infographic or an “ICYMI” stakeholder email – maximize mileage from your content; and,
- Develop a long-term social media content calendar to get ahead with your content.
Communicate more with your stakeholders.
Speaking of stakeholders, down time is the ideal time to reflect on your stakeholder communication plans, content and frequency. Consider having some one-on-one conversations to gain insights into the type of content and frequency that your stakeholders enjoy and appreciate. You may also uncover other important findings. For example, your donors or key supporters may want to have more in-person events or more frequent updates on specific topics. In addition, carve out some time to thank sponsors, board members and other supporters. Extra touchpoints go a long way.
Create and/or refresh new and existing collaterals.
We’ve all been there. The marketing team wants to create new digital brochures, a new organizational video, new trade show materials and also update the website. But other priorities always seem to get in the way. Well, when you foresee some quiet weeks or months ahead, that is the perfect time to work on these critical but often pushed-back projects. Take some time to research the latest tools, trends and designs when it comes to brochures, backdrops, giveaway items, videos and more. Schedule your time project-by-project to get through your checklist efficiently.
Connect with the community.
While this is an ongoing initiative for most organizations, the best time to coordinate community engagement is often when you have the most time. Consider rallying a volunteer group to do community service projects (a timely opportunity with the holidays approaching). Kick start your speaker’s bureau and secure presentations with local business, professional and community groups. Also, look for upcoming conferences, webinars and events where you can offer up your expertise. Talk to your leadership team about nominations for business or community board of director positions and think about new partnerships for your client or company. Remember that these activities can translate into long-term content for your organization.
When communications and marketing professionals engage in strategic and focused work during quiet periods, it’s often the time we outperform expectations the most. Using down time to engage in high-level research, strategy, creativity, content creation and connection produces a win-win for both you and your company or client.
Just like a well-oiled machine, your PR efforts need regular maintenance. Even in the quietest moments, there’s always an opportunity to sow the seeds of future success.
