{"id":3546,"date":"2014-10-14T04:00:21","date_gmt":"2014-10-14T09:00:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rocksdigital.com\/?p=3546"},"modified":"2025-11-24T13:51:28","modified_gmt":"2025-11-24T19:51:28","slug":"newsjacking-done-right","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rocksdigital.com\/newsjacking-done-right\/","title":{"rendered":"Newsjacking Can Be Good for Your Brand if Done Right, or it can be tragic!"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Can<\/a><\/p>\n

The term Newsjacking, coined by David Meerman Scott refers to the act of leveraging a big news story or popular event to draw attention to your own content, product or brand<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Newsjacking Done Right<\/h2>\n

Oreo’s did it right with their Facebook post during the 2013 SuperBowl blackout<\/a>. Within minutes of the blackout, they posted a photo with the caption “Power Out? No Problem<\/em>\u2026<\/em>You Can Still Dunk in the Dark.<\/em>\u201d The post has received over 19,000 likes, over 700 comments, and over 6,000 shares.<\/p>\n

Events like the recent World Cup, the World Series and the Academy Awards are perfect opportunities for newsjacking.<\/p>\n

Ellen DeGeneres actually crashed Twitter with a celebrity packed selfie at the 2014 Academy Awards which has hit over 2.5 million retweets and 1.5 million favorites.<\/p>\n

These are just a few examples of successful newsjacking. But when it is done wrong, newsjacking can be disastrous.<\/p>\n

Newsjacking Done Wrong<\/h2>\n

Hurricane Sandy<\/strong> and Other Natural Disasters<\/strong><\/p>\n

Newsjacking during a tragedy is almost always a bad idea. Brands who tried to use Hurricane Sandy to promote themselves by capitalizing on a natural disaster was a disaster.<\/p>\n

The Gap, Barney\u2019s New York and InStyle Magazine posted updates on social media to promote everything from cosmetics to fashion. The Date Report, a dating website posted a blog titled \u201c18 of Our Favorite Hurricane Sandy Date Ideas followed by another post, 4 Important Survival Tips for You and Your Hurricane Boyfriend .<\/p>\n

Valentino at Phillip Seymour Hoffman’s Funeral<\/strong><\/p>\n

There is no shortage of opportunities to find a celebrity carrying a designer handbag. Even so, Valentino\u2019s marketing team released photos of actress, Amy Adams carrying one of the designer’s handbags with a press release stating: “We are pleased to announce Amy Adams carrying the Valentino Garavany Rockstar bag from Spring\/Summer 2014 collection on Feb. 6 in New York.<\/em>”<\/p>\n

This caused an uproar on the internet, accusing Valentino of poor taste, as well as a negative backlash from Amy Adams and the media.<\/p>\n

DiGiorno<\/strong>\u2019<\/strong>s Pizza<\/strong>\u2019<\/strong>s Hash<\/strong>tag Fail<\/strong><\/p>\n

Using hashtags is a common practice on social media. But you should be careful when you piggy back your brand on a popular hashtag. The #WhyIStayed<\/a> hashtag was created to show support for Janay Palmer, wife of Baltimore Raven other victims of domestic violence.<\/p>\n

DiGiorno Pizza committed a major \u2018hashtag fail\u2019 when they used the #WhyIStayed hashtag to promote their brand.<\/p>\n

Controversy Can Backfire<\/strong><\/p>\n

Political pundit, Anne Coulter<\/a> learned how hashtag hijacking can backfire. Her attempt to make fun of Michelle Obama\u2019s support of the #BringBackOurGirls Twitter campaign turned into an Internet meme with hundreds of negative comments.<\/p>\n

Before you tweet with a hashtag, make sure you understand what the hashtag means. Some controversy is good<\/a>, but you must do it the right way.<\/p>\n

How to Avoid Newsjacking Disasters<\/h2>\n

In his book, Newsjacking: How to Inject Your Ideas into a Breaking News Story,<\/em> Meerman Scott says \u201cYou need to balance the need to be quick and bold with the imperative to be in tune<\/em>.\u201d He also advices you follow a few simple rules when you are considering newsjacking a tragic news event, such a well publicized death, war or a natural disaster:<\/p>\n