By Brittany Bearden, Published October 30, 2014
ABC’s new show, Selfie, is about a self-obsessed social media addict, Eliza, played by Karen Gillan, who enlists her company’s marketing expert to market her to her coworkers, the same way that he marketed their pharmaceutical company’s nasal spray that “causes satanic hallucinations” successfully to the public. Within the frothy and fun sitcom is both a commentary on the Gen X/ Gen Y divide, as well as some important lessons that are applicable to any PR and marketing situation.
- Good marketing and PR is not about you and selfies, literal or figurative. One of the first lessons that John Cho’s character, Henry, teaches Eliza is that, instead of taking endless selfies and talking about herself all the time, she needs to take an interest in other people. The same is true of marketing, PR, and social media efforts.
Too often, marketing and PR efforts are, essentially, selfies, focused on promoting one’s business, instead of offering valuable information to readers. One major area where companies struggle with their guest posting efforts is resisting the urge to include a call to action, highlight sales features, or pushing editors to link back to their website, instead of letting their expertise shine. Similarly, companies that put out press releases about sales that they are running are unlikely to make it into the news.
In social media and newsletters, this is also true. Constantly posting about yourself and urging followers to buy what you are selling, rather than focusing on thought leadership can be a major turn-off. Newsletters that do not provide their readers with any value are a surefire formula for getting recipients to hit the “unsubscribe” button.
2. Sound bites are important. John Cho’s character, Henry, sits in office for hours, working on marketing slogans. The process that he goes through to craft his slogans is similar to the process that PR pros go through when formulating sound bites. Before any interview, it is important to work on sound bites that get your message across, because, chances are, when choosing a single quote for a story or clip for the news, a good sound bite is what will make the cut.
- The new ways aren’t the only way. Henry, whose job is marketing, is not even on social media until the second episode, yet he is still considered successful. While social media and other forms of new media are important, it is important to remember that the old ways, like traditional PR, do still have their place and their value. Although most people could agree that a company would be remiss to not have social media and SEO strategies, it’s important to bear in mind that there are all types of ways to reach audiences, because not all audiences are the same. Some people still prefer to get their information from trusted news sources than they do from blogs.
- Go to where your audience is engaging, instead of expecting them to come to you. In one episode, Henry assigns Eliza the task of getting coworker Joan to like her. Eliza immediately starts doing some reconnaissance work by going to her favorite social media sites. She pronounces that Joan is “Facebook-free”, a “Twitter quitter”, and “Insta-invisible”, until the receptions tips her off that Joan is a Yelp addict. It is on Yelp that Eliza is able to glean valuable information about Joan.
Whether you’re formulating a social media strategy or a public relations strategy, it is important to bear in mind where your particular audience is likely to get their information. For example, a brick-and-mortar B2C business may want to focus their efforts on engaging with the Yelp community through activities like Yelp nights; whereas, a B2B business may want to focus on thought leadership in the publications that businesspeople read. Before you start any marketing or PR efforts, it is important to define your niche and their habits. If, for example, your target audience is female entrepreneurs, it is important to look at publications that specialize in female entrepreneurship and engage on social media platforms where women are statistically more interested in getting their information.
While, for the average viewer, Selfie is just a half hour of laughs, marketers, social media pros, and public relations professionals watch Eliza’s allegorical effort to market herself to her coworkers and see many important lessons at play.
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