The State of the Media Has a Lot to Teach Us About Strategic Marketing & Communications

We’re only through the first quarter of 2016 but it has already been an exciting year in the world of communications, technology, and media. The rapid evolution of everything from social media to mobile usage is changing at the speed of light, so you’ll want to make sure that your communication strategy follows suit. 
 
Cision, a local software company in the DC area, is the “leading global provider of PR software and services” and their most recent report is a great indicator of their authority. The state of media in 2016 is a free, insightful report that boasts an outstanding 300+ person survey of industry experts. This report gives marketers and businesses powerful insight into today’s most popular media trends, from Periscope’s live reporting takeover to the backslide of native advertising.

So what did we learn, exactly? Here’s a quick breakdown from Cision’s report. Warning: some of these findings and trends are surprising! 
 
1. Twitter has lost customers and revenue over the past year…but 40% of survey respondents still view it as the most valuable social media platform. Die-hard users and the company’s willingness to innovate and expand mean marketers aren’t going to give up on this platform any time soon. In fact, 22% said they predict that Twitter will experience growth this year.
 
2. People still feel unsure about trusting social platforms for news and information. Slightly more than 50% of the survey’s respondents relayed confidence in social media as a trustworthy information source, while just under 50% reported a high level of skepticism. Some journalists expressed concern that the urgent nature of social media encourages others in their field to break stories first and check the facts later.

3. The opinion on native advertising is also split. It’s falling out of favor for journalists but those in digital media still feel strongly about native ads. Native advertising remains a crucial revenue source for online media outlets. Buzzfeed, anyone?
 
4. Press releases are still held as the single most valuable public relations resource for journalists and bloggers. Though spammy releases are ever on the rise, journalists value the press release as an important way to receive information. A good release makes it infinitely easier to cover an important story accurately and effectively.
 
5. Mobile compatibility and multimedia really matter. A lot. So it’s time to crank up those GIFs, videos and mobile-friendly websites. Gone are the days when an excellent article featured one picture and paragraphs of text. Todays’ best content takes a multimedia approach with multiple images, videos, GIFs, and analysis to give users an immersive experience.

 
 To refine your company’s communications strategy, send us an email. We can work with you to determine how to apply these critical facts to your next marketing or PR campaign.