WordPop Public Relations Firm

San Diego | Ventura | Los Angeles

Take WordPop’s “Are You Ready For PR?” Survey

Are you interested in working with WordPop Public Relations? Our team has nearly 20 years of combined PR and marketing experience and has been helping champions of happy, healthy and smart living to build and execute social media and PR plans since the firm opened in 2011.

WordPop PR has worked with several organizations in the home building, design, startup and professional services sectors, helping them gain exposure through digital, TV and print placements, as well as blogs, social media channels and email newsletters. 

Before diving into a campaign, WordPop spends time digging into an organization’s brand personality and ultimate goals to make sure the tactics and strategy line up with a desired end result. Take the survey and get started on your PR journey!

On the Subject of Subject Lines

Ready to add pizzazz to your email subject lines? WordPop recently attended a webinar led by friend of WordPop, Tracy of Tracy Petrucci Marketing and we’re sharing some of her tips and tricks with you!

First, some general e-mail marketing tips:

  • Identify the purpose of your email. Do you want readers to read your blog post? Download a PDF? Buy a ticket?
  • 12/22. Minimum of 12pt font for the body of the email and 22pt minimum for headers and calls to action.
  • Timing is everything. Pick a send time that’s convenient to your readers.

Subject line guidelines:

  • Ideal subject line length: 4-7 words
  • Draft at least three versions of your subject line. You can use A/B testing which sends each subject line to a small percentage of your email list and afterward sends the best performing subject line to the rest of your list.
  • Get them to read it NOW. It’s now, later or never – but you probably know from experience that “later” turns into “never”.
  • 2-2-2 Rule: you have 2 seconds for the reader to be drawn in by the first 2 words of your subject line. Hopefully this prompts them to read the email 2-day.

Tricks to stir the creative juices:

  • Develop a sense of urgency
  • Educate
  • Ask a question
  • Incorporate the word “you”
  • Offer something exclusive to email subscribers
  • Add an air of mystery
  • Chunking: (i.e. Lamps, tables and beds, oh my!)
  • Odd Numbers: (i.e. 5 reasons why, 3 top tips, 7 things to avoid)
  • Make use of literary devices: Onomonopia, allusion, and alliteration are a few good ones. Here’s a comprehensive list.

If you’re getting stuck on headline writing, or any other part of your e-mail campaign management, WordPop welcomes your questions.

Search Results Help Client/Friend Secure Dream Job

I just received a call from a woman I regularly quote in stories about volunteer work and education in San Diego. She said she just got a “dream job” because her new employer Googled her and was extremely impressed by all of the articles she’s in. Pretty awesome, I think! Just goes to show the power of search for people and brands.

Are you/is your brand gaining search results in Google, Yahoo and Bing? It may be time to take a look.

~April

Facebook Allows Page Contests Without Third Party App

Great news! You can now run contests on your Facebook Page without a third party app. According to the official Facebook announcement, businesses can now:

  • Collect entries by having users post on the Page or comment/like a Page post
  • Collect entries by having users message the Page
  • Utilize likes as a voting mechanism

Facebook also announced that Pages are prohibited from tagging or asking people to tag themselves in content that they are not depicted in. For instance, if you release a new product, you can’t ask people tag themselves in exchange for a chance to win a prize.

Click here to read Facebook’s official announcement. 

Click here to read Facebook’s Promotion Guidelines.

Pop Talk: #Wth are hashtags and how do I use them?

These days, you’re probably seeing hashtags (#) all over the internet. Developed as a tracking tool, these little fellas are being used by companies and individual Twitter and Instagram users every day. If used correctly, they allow you to easily track a trending conversation online… and be part of it!

In this post, you’ll learn 1) what a hashtag is, 2) how to use hashtags when posting content online, and 3) the benefits.

1) What is a hashtag?

A hashtag is the “#” symbol used before a word or phrase (without spaces) on Twitter or Instagram. Here are a few recent and/or ongoing examples: #PopeFrancis #Oscars2013 #nofilter #tbt

By adding the “#” symbol before a word or phrase in your Tweet or Instagram post, you are categorizing it. Now your post is grouped with others using the same hashtag. 

2) How to use a hashtag

Simply add the “#” symbol before the word or phrase you want to categorize. It can be as simple as #sunrise or #puppylove. When adding a hashtag to a phrase, be sure to keep the phrase together. For example, if you want to be part of the conversation #puppylove, you’d tag the entire phrase as opposed to #puppy #love. By separating the words, you’re now part of two different conversations– one about puppy and one about love. See the difference?

Another option is to use a popular hashtag developed by an organization or public figure. For example, the popular singing show American Idol developed hashtag #idolresults, which it posts during its weekly results show.

 

 

 

Fans of the show may incorporate #idolresults into their own posts. For instance, you could say “Hoping Chris gets the 9th spot! #idolresults” or “Watching #idolresults… fingers crossed!”

In the end, your post will pop up in Twitter or Instagram’s search engine, grouped with others who also used the hashtag #idolresults.

When using hashtags, don’t spam! According to the Twitter Help Center, no more than two hashtags per tweet is best.

3) The benefits

Hashtags enable you to be relevant, which presents a great opportunity for companies.

If you’re coming out with a new collection, hosting an event, giving something away, celebrating an anniversary, etc., encourage your fans to use your hashtag tied to that occasion. For instance, if WordPop were a clothing company with a highly anticipated summer collection, #wordpopsummer13 would be relevant as clothing stores fill racks with summer wear. After a few hours (or even minutes) of publishing a hashtag, WordPop could search the hashtag to see who is talking about the brand, and specifically, who is talking about the summer collection.

Companies can also search their brand name to see what users are saying. For example, a Kobe Bryant fan recently started the hastag #Vino, comparing Kobe to wine…keeps getting better with age. #Vino started trending, and Kobe Bryant himself started using the hashtag. He’s making himself part of a conversation that’s happening right now. Even better, he’s joining a conversation started by his fans.

 

 

 

What’s ahead?

Facebook is looking to add the hashtag tool to its platform. Until then, hashtags on Facebook are not grouped or categorized in search, thus unnecessary.

Ready to tag?

Click here to see what’s trending right now on Twitter.

Click here to see what’s trending right now on Instagram.

Happy tagging!