What Is Newsjacking? A Publicist’s Guide

David Meerman Scott coined the term ‘newsjacking’ in 2011 in his book: ‘Newsjacking: How to Inject Your Ideas Into A Breaking News Story and Generate Tons of Media Coverage.’ He describes the practice as “the art and science of injecting your ideas into a breaking news story to generate media coverage, get sales leads and grow one’s business.”

Newsjacking by nature is about leveraging a breaking news story by monitoring for opportunities to piggyback on topical discussions or events. Often described as ‘rapid response’ marketing, newsjacking involves quick reactions in real time and can be an effective PR strategy if executed efficiently. Both reactive and proactive, the ultimate goal is to own the second paragraph of a story. Contextualising and humanising a brand, it can make companies seem smarter, more relatable and relevant, leading to greater exposure, positive sentiment and thought-leadership.

A few good examples.

In April 2021, UK grocer Marks and Spencer took legal action against budget supermarket Aldi, arguing its Cuthbert the Caterpillar cake infringed on its own Colin the Caterpillar trademark. In response to the court case, consumer brands from Morrisons to Missguided, ASOS to Netflix took to Twitter to weigh in on the debate, posting tongue-in-cheek reactions to the battle.

Back in 2016, when news broke of Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie’s divorce, Norwegian airlines delivered a marketing campaign that went viral. The simple ad promoted low cost one way flights to Los Angeles, with the tagline ‘Brad is Single’. This was a great way for the brand to capitalise on the news in a light-hearted, effective way. IKEA and Boost Juice also picked up on the separation for some witty social media activity.

However, its relationship to the word ‘hijack’ may carry negative connotations, and for good reason. If done badly, newsjacking could be quite detrimental to a brand’s integrity and come across as insensitive, ill-judged or just plain uncomfortable. Fast turnaround creates margin for error, so PRs should proceed with caution. Brands need to have a keen eye for what’s trending and be aware of pop culture in order to ensure newsjacking is timed to perfection.

Urban Outfitters tweet during Hurricane Sandy in 2012 is still discussed as a poor example of newsjacking which sought to make light of and exploit a tragedy. Jumping on a hashtag, the fashion brand tweeted: ‘This storm blows (but free shipping doesn’t)! Today only…’ using the tags #frankenstorm and #ALLSOGGY. It must be said that other companies such as American Apparel and Gap also landed in hot water for attempting to harness the hurricane to their advantage in this way. Outside of being extremely insensitive, disrespectful and tone deaf, the commentary was not a relevant fit for the brand in any way. Brands must exercise empathy and steer clear of commercialising serious global events such as natural disasters, terrorist attacks or civil unrest. Being reckless will surely invite backlash or condemnation.

So how can PRs navigate newsjacking successfully?

Plan Ahead

Whilst much newsjacking activity is reactionary, there is an element of planning that can be put in place to ensure potential opportunities aren’t missed. Create a calendar in which upcoming events or announcements can be plotted. This way, PRs can make notes on which happenings may be worth escalating or implementing activity around. Whilst exact details shouldn’t be finalised until the announcement, workload will be managed more efficiently allowing for adequate time and resource when it breaks.

Set Up Alerts

Keep eyes peeled for the perfect opportunity. In order to newsjack efficiently, PRs need to keep on top of what is making headlines at any given moment. Google alerts and relevant newsletter subscriptions can help ensure nothing is missed, as well as monitoring relevant trending hashtags or personalities and topics on social media. Whilst this allows for reactive activity only, if executed in a timely manner within the attention window, brands can still ride the wave of publicity and even get out ahead of other brands.

Exercise Due Diligence

Although timing is everything when it comes to newsjacking. Publicists still need to ask themselves a few important questions before acting. Is the activity likely to cause offense or be taken in poor taste? Is there a connection between the story and your brand? Is the message in alignment with your identity? Who are you trying to speak to? Get a second opinion. Activity should be cleared by a few different people to ensure the appropriate sense and tone checks and balances have been carried out.

Be Creative

If a big story is making the rounds and brands have already started to weigh in, consider more creative angles of approaching the news. The best instances of newsjacking have been in great jest, either with a clever pun or play on words, a humorous image or comparison or smart solution to a topical problem. Especially if a hook is dry – such as a political angle – liven it up with some quippy copy. Joining the conversation will keep you relevant, but thinking outside the box will get you remembered, talked about and admired. 

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