Social Media Release Crux: When Time Prohibits Proper Approach

The crux of wading into the estuary between social media and public relations is that you want to play nice, but may not be perceived that way. At an advertising agency, the speed of business is more aptly described as business on speed. Still, clients want to connect with social media influencers.

You can’t put the cart before the horse.

Anyone wise to the methodology of social media outreach will tell you it’s about the dialog and relationship. But what happens when Monday morning brings you a new client who needs outreach done immediately to a market segment you haven’t yet had the opportunity to dialog with?

We must touch the influencers with our client’s information, but at the risk of being perceived as disingenuous PR hacks trying to schlep corporatespeak and propaganda. Sure, a hat-in-hand approach can be effective, but the majority of the bloggers I will approach this week will likely discard what I send because they don’t know me.

Is a well-thought social media release and perhaps a comment or two on the person’s blog ahead of time enough to at least put the reason for your email in front of them for consideration? I don’t know, but am about to find out.

Are there other methods of outreach, keeping in mind the immediacy of the issue and the lack of front-end relationship building, you have found effective?

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IMAGE: From sparktography on Flickr.