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...number First name and last name Details related to the nature/reason of your inquiry Your current company and job title Details about your company: {{PROGRESSIVE PROFILE FIELDS}} You may use...
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Thought Leadership is the New SEO Currency
...that a successful marketing communications program in the age of generative AI will revolve around the unique perspectives and expertise of a company’s thought leaders. Google’s New Search Features At...
Case Study
Building Credibility Through Research
...in 2000, Open Lending was ranked among Austin’s fastest growing privately-held companies for years, before going public in 2020. Challenge Over its first two decades in business, Open Lending built...
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What ChatGPT Means for the Future of Content Marketing
Within two months of its launch, Open AI’s ChatGPT-3.5 hit 100 million monthly active users — shattering the record for fastest-growing consumer application and becoming the talk of every classroom,...
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2024 Comms Outlook: AI + Social Media’s Impact
...become more than Google’s incorporation of AI-generated answers at the top of search results. This new feature, Search Generative Experience (SGE), reduces brands’ opportunity to answer their audience’s common questions and drive...
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Q&A: The Impact of AI on Media and Marketing, With Pete Pachal
...memberships, events, and commerce to survive. AI will help a bit now that OpenAI has begun paying larger publishers to license their content. Visibility in an AI-dominated Search Landscape In...
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Form vs. Function: Choosing the Right Content Format
...put out, but it shouldn’t necessarily dictate its format. For example, if you are a cutting-edge B2B tech company, you might think that all of your content needs to be...
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Are You Using Buzzwords in Your Marketing Communications?
...organization. Call on these peers to gut check your content and make sure it makes sense to those who don’t speak your company lingo. Test, Test, Test Again – This...
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Three Myths of Earned Media
...all types Social media mentions References to a company’s branded research or content Reviews and ratings Contributed articles Unpaid inclusion in analyst reports or other commentary Organic influencer mentions Participation...
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Defining Your B2B SEO Strategy Throughout the Funnel
...searches, which Semrush defines as searches where users are looking to investigate brands or services, is the best way to optimize during the knowledge stage. Examples of B2B commercial searches...
Service
Digital + Social
Amplify your values, message, and mission with control.
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Don’t Put Digital in a Corner. Integrate and Amplify.
...to reach key demographics in a cost-effective and measurable way. Additionally, experimental targeting, such as testing a campaign on Instagram Reels, A/B testing new brand imagery, or targeting competitors’ social...
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Why Marketing Communications Matters in a Downturn
...thing you can do is go dark. Silence often breeds misinformation and panic. Instead, maintain contact, and provide open, honest, and regular communication with your stakeholders. Implement your crisis comms...
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Gen Z: From Social Media App to Job App
...researching a company online before applying. According to CareerArc, 54% of active job seekers search for jobs on social media, and 33% apply to jobs they discovered on social media....
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B2B Digital Marketing Starter Pack
...digital marketing program is a non-negotiable part of a successful integrated communications plan for B2B tech companies. If you’re already running organic social, taking the next step and exploring paid...
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What You Need to Know When Hiring a Communications Agency
...salt has an online presence to demonstrate how it has been successful for similar companies before. You can also look to brands and companies that have faced and surmounted similar...
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5 Tips for Building Brand Credibility with Strategic Content
...research and statistics add credibility to your content and grab your readers’ attention. Leverage your own original data, or seek it out from reliable third parties like research organizations, industry...
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Clearing the Hurdles of Insurtech Marketing
...more and more challengers are competing for a share of the market already dominated by legacy vendors. Marketers have to be louder, bolder, and faster than competitors to get noticed...
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Is B2B Influencer Marketing Right for My Brand?
...Their knowledge may come from industry experience, formal education, or their own research. The more credibility they have, the more credibility your brand has in a partnership. Earned B2B influencers:...
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An Elite Top 100 Agency Looks at What’s Next in PR
...and more competitive job market. Then the pandemic hit, accelerating the impact of these shifts all at once. Smart brands are now investing in employer branding efforts to compete for...
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AI in Marketing: Three Ways AI Helps You Work Smarter, Not Harder
...that show content marketers how to comprehensively cover a topic. The goal is to help you create quality content that addresses searcher intent and rises to the top of search...
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PR Daily: How to Adapt Your SEO Strategy in the Age of AI
...Europol estimate that 90% of online content could be AI-generated by 2026. Big tech companies are making fundamental changes to their processes and offerings accordingly. In the second half of...
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Company Rebrand: Three Tips to Take Your Launch to the Next Level
...the rebrand story, they gave us a company-wide brand packaged for the test and measurement community as a whole. To help us better position NI as a subject matter expert...
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INK’s 5 Things: Choosing the Right Client Partnerships
The idea that we don’t work with every company that comes calling is often a surprise to INKers and prospects alike. But true partnership with our clients is essential to...
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How to Pitch Media for COP26
...an interactive video platform designed to shed light on the challenges Nestlé and other global companies face in sourcing deforestation-free palm oil. “As Nestlé admits [sic], the company pledged in...
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Want To Stand Out in the Energy Transition? Develop a Point of View.
...in it is especially important for energy companies. The energy industry is becoming increasingly crowded, and a point of view will help you stand out from competitors and gain traction...
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Paid Analyst Relations: Optimizing Your ROI
Not all analyst relations is pay-to-play – in fact, you should always ensure you have a foundational organic program in place built on frequent communication, relationship building, and research participation...
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Selling the Value of Thought Leadership to SMEs
...your thought leaders are PR experts. If there’s been a lack of communication around the commitment needed for productive thought leadership and the value they can drive for the company,...
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Should B2B Brands Quit Facebook?
...already proactively searching for you, your services, and/or your competitors. Then we layer on tentpole campaigns that look like throughout the year while allocating spend on various channels. This might...
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B2B Brands’ Best Conversation Starters for 2019
...push, who you gonna call? Not the 15.4% of male influencers (no offense). Do some research: Search for keywords, hashtags, and followers of accounts that match who you want representing...
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Why Your Brand Needs a Content Style Guide – And How to Get Started
...change depending on the medium? What about when using numbers in dates and times? The Oxford Comma: Ultimately, this decision comes down to preference. Companies that decide to use the...
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How Might We Rethink the Agency Model?
...For others, it was the chance to be with their everyday companions with a different agenda. (Or, how about no agenda for a change?) For me, it was an opportunity...
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How To Tame the Devil’s Advocate in Marketing Brainstorms
...come. If our marketing brainstorm is a pond and the ideas are an army of tadpoles, the devil’s advocate is the 6-year-old boy who just stomped in and swooped up...
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How to Build an All-Star Thought Leadership Roster
...their message more effectively. When communicating, their vision should be clear, their ideas well thought out, and their call-to-action motivating for their audience. Luckily, thought leadership doesn’t come in only...
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What’s the Energy Story?
...the buyer make-up is complex. From the CEOs of the world’s largest companies to first-time homeowners, and everyone — and every company — in between, energy companies need to tell their...
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How to Communicate in an Evolving Energy Transition
...is just one example of how looking at all channels of communication, and using each thoughtfully to reach specific stakeholders, can have a positive impact on communicating your company’s role,...
Case Study
Making Media Waves with Annual Research
...thought leadership on consumer experience topics and trends, helping its retail audience stay competitive. For DFS, nurturing its connections with fueling and convenience trade media was a critical component of...
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Next-Generation Sustainability: Meet Project Boom
...Boom not only provides computers to schools and community centers, but also to other organizations such as homeless centers and to those transitioning back into the workforce. Recycling computers supports...
Case Study
Taking CES by Storm
INK began working with SiFive, a semiconductor company, during a time of tremendous growth. With increasing demand and competition, SiFive relied on INK to set the right tone with media,...
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Thought Leadership Dos and Don’ts
Between AI-powered search engines favoring thought leadership and growing distrust in brands’ intentions and messaging, the value of thought leadership is continuing to grow. Download our list of dos and...
Case Study
Owning the Clean Electrification Story
...the business units and differentiated the company from its competitors. This process unearthed the opportunity for Enel North America to take ownership of the clean electrification narrative and use it...
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The State of Journalism
...partnership.) Part of what might be standing in the way of communications professionals creating partnerships with journalists is that many still stick to outdated communication methods – i.e. mass sending...
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How a Research Report Can Fuel Your Entire B2B Marketing Program
...and market research, as both involve data collection and analysis. Market Research Versus Original Research as a Content Deliverable Market research is used by companies to learn more about their...
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Corporate Communications
Instill confidence and earn loyalty, internally and externally.
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How to Conduct Brand Messaging Research
...conversations that other industry players are either ignoring or are less suited to lead. Competitive Analysis Competitive research helps identify or confirm the unique value your company brings to stakeholders...
Case Study
Pivoting to New Markets
...audience technology and/or business A Commitment to Continuous Evolution and Leadership To maintain its leadership, Bluetooth has continuously evolved with new capabilities and value. Our communications program and strategy is...
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5 Ways Snapchat is Changing Social Media
If you don’t share your memories online, did they really happen? This phenomenon rings true for millions of people who compulsively share life moments on social media. But is particularly...
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8 Tips To Help You Kick Off Work with a New Agency
...key assets and information to provide include: Brand positioning and guidelines Competitive analysis Audience research Previous program KPIs and reports Corporate strategy presentations Recent marketing materials Sales presentations Organizational structure...
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Want to Increase Your Marketing ROI? Update Your Content Strategy
...catchall phrases, it comes with caveats. While experimentation with new strategies is valuable and necessary for your marketing communications program, content development and how it impacts your business shouldn’t be...
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4 Tips to Reach Clean Energy Investors
...opportunity for energy and climate-tech companies is immense and competitive. Anywhere there is growth and competition, marketing and communications play a major role in demonstrating a company’s potential and unique...
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Why B2B Companies Shouldn’t Neglect Their Organic Social Media Strategy
...the time, when writing a story on your company Live at the top of your search engine results Show that your company has a pulse, while the rest of your...
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What is Thought Leadership?
...marketing channels. Or, by combining your company’s unique data with expert analysis, you can publish original research tailored to your target audience. Think reports, infographics on social media, or the...
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Renewable Energy Communications Programs: How to Create Yours
...communities. Communications programs should always include a transparent strategy that taps into the local mindset to underscore the value you promise to bring, via community participation (events, schools, meetings) as...
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Pitching Media Post-Pandemic: What Ed Tech PR Pros Need to Know
...research that your numbers could help speak to. A great example is the Consortium of School Networking, or CoSN, which issues a yearly research report on the State of Ed...
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It’s Prime Time to Embrace Sponsored Content
...Time (And Money) According to the Cision 2020 Comms Report, companies had relatively equal budgets allocated to paid and owned strategies in 2019 and 2020 (31% paid, 30% owned in...
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Navigating Difficult Times on Social Media
...to tell and resources to offer, too. Keep Social Media in Perspective When it comes to social media, the most important thing for companies to remember in times of distress...
Case Study
Rethinking CSR for Social and Company Good
...spend on a typical year-end holiday party and instead funds a day-long giving spree all over the company’s hometown of Austin, Texas. In this pay-it-forward initiative called Community Connect, teams...
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How 2020 Changed Media Relations
...serve your company’s or client’s interest. For example, Rosalie Chan is a senior reporter at Business Insider covering enterprise tech. But if you follow her outside of her regular coverage,...
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Roundtable: Navigating B2B Marketing in an Election Year
...most complex issues. I sat down with three of INK’s brand communications experts to explore all the nuances of running B2B communications programs during an election year. Should you stay...
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Want Stronger Agency Partnerships? Make 6 Changes to Your RFP.
...include the following in your RFP: 1. Your ‘About Us’ We Can’t Find Online Agencies should do their own research on your company ahead of your introductory call, so use...
Case Study
Pitching at the Speed of COVID-19
Yonder, an AI software company, helps top brands navigate an increasingly complex internet landscape by uncovering the origin, context, and authenticity of online narratives. As COVID-19 became a global crisis...
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Make the Most of Trade Events for Media Relations
...and an openness to adjust your plans as conversations evolve. Here’s what you can do to put your best, preferably comfortable-shoed, foot forward. Focus on Your Relationship With Journalists It’s...
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Speaker Tips to Engage Your Audience and Stand Out
...help you build a connection with the audience. Try to draw some examples from outside your own company to show broader industry awareness. Use data to back up your key...
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How to Earn Coverage with Data-Driven PR
...to your pitch who can provide authoritative commentary on the impact of your data. GoBankingRates coverage of Open Lending They make it easy. Journalists are already strapped, covering multiple beats...
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The Secret to Asking Good Questions
...what is on the other person’s mind. Closed questions are most effective in competitive (negative) situations so as to not let the competitive person’s agenda run the show. For example:...
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Careers
...OPEN POSITIONS (Austin and Denver) Designer Associate, Communications Senior Manager, Program Management General Inquiry Benefits Top-notch benefits aren’t only a perk of the job – they’re essential to our mission. And...
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You’re Always On the Record (Unless You’re Not)
...in advance. Off the record or on background are the exception, not the rule. But, that seems to have flip-flopped recently. More and more tech companies and their communications advisors...
Case Study
A Brand Built on Insights
...turned to research. Writing Our Own Story INK began by conducting audience research and analyzing CSID’s data from the dark web. We then supplemented these findings with custom survey research....
Case Study
Elevating the Story to the C-Suite
...like ASCM’s purpose. We developed a media strategy and storylines to compel top-tier journalists to listen to the organization’s news and perspective. https://twitter.com/Forbes/status/1090353894771879936 Reaching the C-Suite INK set out to...
Case Study
A Legacy-Building Product Launch
...a far cry from its original one-to-one device connections. Along the way, INK’s challenge shifted from growing awareness around an unfamiliar technology to convincing commercial audiences that Bluetooth was capable...
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PR + Marketing KPI Cheat Sheet
...results over time. Download our KPI cheat sheet to begin assembling your measurement plan. With this tool, you will discover the measurements for each marketing communications tactic at every funnel...
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The BTB: May Insurtech Media Trends Analysis
...can message their value — and make sure the right people hear them. For a complete look at April insurtech conversations, download the PDF above. Terms We’re Watching by Topic...
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The BTB: July Energy Media Trends Analysis
Welcome to the Energy BTB – your view into what’s driving the conversation in the energy industry. This proprietary look at traditional and social media landscapes comprises data from a...
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The BTB: July Insurtech Media Trends Analysis
...be above average has already proven correct. June 2024’s combination of natural disasters and ransomware incidents presented an opportunity for Insurtechs to be a forward-looking voice amid ominous headlines. Download...
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The BTB: August Insurtech Media Trends Analysis
Welcome to the Insurtech BTB — your view into what’s driving the conversation in the insurtech industry. This proprietary look at traditional and social media landscapes comprises data from a...
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The BTB: August Energy Media Trends Analysis
Welcome to the Energy BTB – your view into what’s driving the conversation in the energy industry. This proprietary look at traditional and social media landscapes comprises data from a...
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The BTB: September Energy Media Trends Analysis
Welcome to the Energy BTB – your view into what’s driving the conversation in the energy industry. This proprietary look at traditional and social media landscapes comprises data from a...
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Three Reasons Your Messaging Isn’t Pulling Through
...not just a product benefit, is easier done from the outside looking in (and best done after some solid research) – that’s where we come in. Give us a shout if...
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Instagram Marketing in a Like-less World
...in-depth look at the conversations happening in the comments sections of your own posts and those of your branded influencer content. Instead of reporting on a total comments metric, keep...
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How to Get Your Contributed Articles Published
...it comes to pitching and executing contributed content, remember this: Be bold and move fast. That is to say, determine your position on key industry topics. Make sure your commentary...
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6 Energy Content Marketing Tips to Power Your Comms
...help focus your communications, differentiate you from competitors, and elevate your reputation. Here are six tips for leveraging content as a power source for your communications program. 1. Anchor Campaigns...
Case Study
Driving U.S. Carbon Farming Adoption
...their land-based businesses. When the company initially formed, it had healthy backing from 115-year-old global soil company Yara International but was nonetheless a startup in need of brand awareness and...
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Don’t Get Lost in the Energy Transition Herd
...announcements, energy communicators must keep media opportunities coming through different outreach strategies. To combat a lull in your efforts, tweak your strategies from “Let’s talk about growth and what’s coming”...
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Top COP28 Media Themes + How to Use Them
...starting to feel the impacts of the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), the largest climate investment in U.S. history. This has resulted in an influx of companies striving to share their...
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Curbing Your Content Pollution in an Attention Economy
The backbone of any good B2B communications program these days is owned content. And while once upon a time, it was enough for companies to produce copious amounts of content...
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How to Recycle + Amplify Premium Content
In an age of AI-generated noise, publishing a huge volume of content will never be your stand-out factor. Google Search is now prioritizing high-quality content featuring unique human insight and...
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Content Marketing
Fill your funnel and satisfy your sales team.
Case Study
Maximizing the Momentum of a Refreshed Brand Identity
...year. INK elevated the story of NI’s new company identity to mainstream audiences while staying true to our company’s mission and goals. Brandi Martina Director of Global Communications, NI...
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Analyst Firms: Who You Need to Know
...few examples: ABI Research: IoT specialists Celent: FinTech specialists Hurwitz & Associates: Emerging technologies specialists Linley Group: Semiconductor specialists Structure Research: Infrastructure specialists See Them As: In-depth experts What to...
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PR + Marketing Agency RFP Template
...any strong agency relationship and marketing communications program. Out of all the RFPs we’ve reviewed as an agency, the best ones are direct and transparent about where the company is...
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How to Prepare Spokespeople for Video Conferencing
...from them. Make sure your computer camera is at eye level. Then, pull your computer toward you until your face and upper torso fills up the center of the screen....
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How to Scale Strategy and Stay on Track
...With this strategy element, we analyze current market trends and glean insights from our clients’ competitive landscapes to identify top opportunities, threats, and differentiators. You can use this research and...
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How PR Measurement Should Guide Your Annual Planning
Measurement, though it might feel like a bad word in communications sometimes, is a necessity. It not only proves the value of your communications but, if done correctly, it also...
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An Introduction to Industry Analyst Relations
...your customers, and how you differentiate from competitors. You can also have analysts sign an NDA to give your spokespeople more freedom to discuss the company. Speaking of spokespeople – the...
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Proving Value With Your Marketing Reporting
...objectives. How to Report With Context There are three steps to providing company-wide context and better communicate the value of your marketing efforts. This is largely based on the Objective...
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The (L)INK Program
Communications projects designed to link your communications needs today to your integrated program of the future.
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How Marketers Drive Growth: Customer Data + Creativity
Drive new growth for the company, beat out the competition, and explain why you need budget to do this. Does this sound familiar? The CMO Survey from February reported that driving...
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Create Messaging that Matters
...With that in mind, here are INK’s seven tips for creating compelling messaging. Messaging Research Do you want to know why your product or company resonates with your stakeholders? Ask...
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Research + Discovery
Make stronger decisions with data.
Case Study
Shifting Brand Perception to Drive Growth
...counsel, and our team worked across the company with business unit leaders to develop a comprehensive strategy that would reshape Rackspace’s image from an outdated company to an agile and...
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The BTB: June Insurtech Media Trends Analysis
...example, are under pressure to help policyholders navigate an increasingly turbulent market and secure competitive rates. Avoid overhyping the technology or painting hyper-futuristic models for risk-averse insurers. Instead, focus on...
Case Study
Showcasing an Industry Pioneer’s History
...leadership in an increasingly competitive industry. Challenge Over the last several years, multiple competitive startups have entered the furniture rental space. In response, media has shifted its focus to these...
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Keeping Your Energy Brand Messaging Fresh Throughout the Transition
The energy transition is in full swing, and nearly every energy company faces a common challenge: communicating their unique place in a massive and complex transformation. Through the long haul...
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INK Named Inc. Magazine Power Partner
...commitment, reliability, trust, creativity, supportiveness, and other virtues that offer value to clients. Inc. also conducted surveys to gather client testimonials as part of the process and partnered with leading...
Case Study
Unifying an Employer Brand to Support Workforce Growth
...three phases. Phase 1: Research the Problem. We spoke with employees from all parts of the business, assessed the company’s online presence, and reviewed key internal metrics (such as annual...
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Getting the Most Value Out of Virtual Events
...sales pipeline? Are you trying to redefine how analysts position your company externally? As you prepare, define what you really want to achieve and then build your communications plan around...
Service
Creative + Design
Bring your brand to life with thoughtful creative.
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Why We Changed Our Name
...a company, organization or person) audiences.” It seemed simple enough. So much so that she thought to herself, “I can help companies communicate with their audiences!” and so she did....
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Words Matter: How to Adopt More Inclusive Language into Your Communications
...status quo. Companies from Silicon Valley to Wall Street to Main Street have come out in support of marginalized groups, upping their diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives to combat stigma...
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Uncovering Your ESG Story
...net-zero goals with customers and other stakeholders. Company newsletters for employees effectively communicate your DE&I and talent development initiatives and other internal communications channels. Well-aligned and Ready to Act Companies...
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ESG Communications
Clear, consistent ESG positioning speaks volumes.
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What Marketers Need to Know About Independent Journalism
...it isn’t about your company or what your company sells – it’s about them and the story they’re trying to tell. To build strong media relationships in this space, companies...
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Energy Communications Landscape: Insights to Close the Year Strong
...successful commercialization needs an unprecedented level of transparency to build the trust we need to reach net zero goals. Open communication: Being transparent about operations, challenges, and initiatives is no...
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Using Twitter as a Media Relations Resource
...out to reporters who will likely be covering the story to provide commentary. Twitter is one of the fastest ways to source news, so you’ll be able to act more...
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We Will Do Better
...prioritize opportunity for Black people in our company and industry, but also how we can fight against racism in our larger communities. Talking is an important first step, but we’ve...
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Humanizing Your Employee Communications
...critical moments and milestones that will impact your communications strategy. Segment + Tailor Your Communications. Marketers have been segmenting their communications to their target audiences to drive better engagement for...
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Help Your Agency Help You: 6 Tips to Get More Out of Your Media Relations
...mantra your CEO is championing 2. Incorporate research Work with your agency to develop original research that tells a story no one else can. For example, conduct a survey of...
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Team Training: Social Photography 101
...and perfectly exposed. Know the Basics Whether you’re using a DSLR or not, it’s important to understand the two basic components of photography – exposure and composition. Aperture – The easiest...