The long-awaited U.S. presidential debates have begun! Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump have finally faced off in their first presidential debate with the candidates focusing on several issues, including the economy, foreign affairs, and public safety.
The purpose of the debates has always been to provide pertinent information to voters, shaping many Americans’ opinions — especially those who are undecided.
With this election, though, it’s not just about what’s happening on the stage. Compelling content before, during and following the debates has played an important role in expanding the candidates’ reach.
Social media posts, live streaming events, influencer interviews, and interactive online tools are just a few of the engagement tactics candidates are using to connect with voters – all tactics that your organization should also be using to jump into the election news cycle.
As our previous election tips articles have explored, the right story idea and content distribution channel can help your election news get noticed by the media and prospective customers. However, if you want audiences to take the next step with your content, you need to do more.
Here are five tips to help boost engagement for your election content.
1. Focus on one or two key issues. It’s easy to get lost in all the different topics and issues of the election. Your goal should be to focus on what’s important to your target audience.
- Learn more: Start a conversation to find out what matters most to your audience. Here are 15 questions you can ask to uncover their needs.
2. Include a call to action. The call to action is your opportunity to connect to your audience. It should guide the reader and drive engagement as soon as possible. Your call to action should make your readers want to do more.
The best place for your call to action is after the first or second paragraph in your release. Your press release should start with the “why” and should be followed by a way to take the next step.
- Learn more: Check out our top 10 ways to create calls to action that convert.
3. Add multimedia. In our digitally driven world, we are inundated with content. With so much to choose from, audiences are more likely to select content with images and videos over text-only content.
Does your election content have a lot of stats in it? Combine your data in an infographic so that it’s easier to consume. Looking to captivate audiences with an added personal touch? Film a video that puts a face to your message.
Visuals should work hand in hand with your other content by tapping into your audience’s emotions while your text explains the message.
- Learn more: If you don’t have original images, there are several photo sharing sites to choose from. Learn how to pick a stock image with an authentic story with these tips from Shutterstock curator and photo editor Robyn Lange.
4. Include quotes. Quotes don’t need to come from the candidates themselves. You can also include quotes from voters, community members, and/or political experts.
Identifying your quote’s purpose and whom in your audience you’re targeting with it will help you decide who would be the best person to deliver that message.
- Learn more: Make a statement with your quotes with our quotes quick guide.
5. Incorporate social media. 2008 was the Facebook election. 2016 is the Twitter election. According to Twitter Counter, Hillary Clinton’s daily average is 22 tweets a day and Donald Trump’s daily average is 9 tweets a day.
Because social media plays such a significant role, your content should include social sharing tools like links to your social networks and “tweetable” quotes. Furthermore, make sure to share your content where people are posting. Popular hashtags include: #election2016, #debates2016, #election.
- Learn more: Get more tips that will help you build a strong, relatable presence on social media by downloading Engage in Social Conversations Around Your Brand. This free guide outlines how to participate on key networks without wasting resources or missing opportunities.
This election season offers many opportunities to engage with your audience. Follow the above tips and deliver a customer win come November.
Anne Thomas is a manager of customer content services and is a product champion for the PR Newswire Election 2016 product suite. She enjoys consulting with organizations about their content. In her spare time, she reads (a lot). Follow her on Twitter @anniepallam or connect on LinkedIn.
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