Have you heard the story about the people stranded in Britain’s highest pub?
While that may feel like a dream scenario for many of us as we battle through January, six staff and four guests were actually stuck at the Tan Hill Inn, in the Yorkshire Dales.
And the story provided a brilliant example of newsjacking.
The pub is 1,732 ft above sea level and has a history of ‘snow-inns’.
The most recent example saw heavy snowfall leave guests and staff stuck at the pub.
Some got out after a few days when a farmer ploughed a trail through the snow.
But 10 opted to say and not take the risk – I would have been in the ‘best not to risk it’ camp and happily remained in the snowy siege.
Amid growing media coverage, it emerged that while there was enough food at the pub to last 40 days, breakfast items and red wine were running low.
That is until Aldi stepped in.
The budget supermarket commandeered a farmer’s snowplough to deliver a ‘care package’, consisting of Malbec wine, sausages, toilet rolls and dog treats, together with board games to help pass the time.
The pub thanked the supermarket on social media.
And brilliant coverage followed:
People still snowed in at Britain's highest pub receive booze delivery from Aldi snowplough Mirror
Aldi sends tractor to deliver booze and sausages to punters snowed into pub Joe
Tan Hill Inn: Snowed-in guests get 'emergency' from Aldi The Northern Echo
The emergency food delivery from the budget supermarket was also covered in stories on BBC News and The Standard.
In the Mirror story, an Aldi spokesperson said: “When we saw the guests had run out of key supplies and faced further days trapped by the snow, our store team at Catterick sprang into action. They commandeered a farmer’s snow plough and set off to deliver a care package”.
Pub manager Nicole Hayes added: “Everybody needs a good pork sausage – and when we realised Aldi had come to the rescue, we were absolutely chuffed.
“It definitely livened up our lock in.”
And guest Angus Leslie said: “Thanks to Aldi, we can now stay for longer. Bring on the snow!”
That’s the spirit – even if it might cause you to question how stranded in the pub they were.
Regardless, it’s a story that has grabbed attention and provided a great example of newsjacking – something we often discuss during our media training courses.
What is newsjacking?
Newsjacking is a bit of a weird phrase.
But it is essentially about using trending topics and news stories to gain coverage, exposure, credibility and visibility for your organisation, and place it at the centre of the conversation.
It offers cost-effective PR quick wins to improve your brand image and potentially gain a competitive advantage. Aldi’s coverage has effectively cost some wine and a few sausages.
So, how do you do it?
Reactive newsjacking
Well, it starts with curiosity.
You need to keep a close eye on what is being covered in the news and trending on social media and able to react and respond rapidly if you feel you can weave your organisation into it, add insight and opinion, move a relevant story forward or spark debate.
The TRUTH acronym we use during our media training courses is a valuable guide for exploring what newsjacking activity could work:
Topical – It needs to be about something people are talking about. Or that is trending.
Relevant – Is it relevant to the journalist and your audience?
Unusual – You need to offer something different – a new take, opinion or case study. Offering an agreement or repeating what is already known will not work. Go against the grain.
Trouble – Journalists like to sniff out trouble and controversy. It means your spokespeople could face tough questions. How could you answer them?
Human – Tell us a human story. We are hardwired to love stories.
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Proactive newsjacking
Newsjacking can also be proactive.
Major events, upcoming dates, and anniversaries offer potential opportunities to gain coverage.
And because we know when they happen, content and plans can be created in advance.
The budget, for example, always offers opportunities for brands to put themselves in the media spotlight.
January, ironically for a media training blog based on people stuck in a pub, is Dry January, when people are encouraged to have an alcohol-free month.
March features International Women’s Day, Red Nose Day and World Book Day.
In April, you can find Earth Day and National Tea Day.
You get the gist.
Risk
As much as we love newsjacking and see it as a great way to remain in the news cycle, it is not without risk.
Long sign-off processes can kill the opportunity to newsjacking quickly.
The news moves quickly and becomes old fast.
The window of opportunity is small, and you must remove red tape and indecision from the equation to avoid wasted efforts.
But despite the pace, newsjacking must be strategic and done with sensitivity and taste.
Piggybacking off upsetting stories, controversies, climate disasters and tragedies will feel exploitative, and should always be avoided. Similarly, if the narrative surrounding a story is sombre, take extra care before jumping in.
Newsjacking is also about quantity over quality. When you see the coverage generated by Aldi, there can be a temptation to newsjack every story. That approach will quickly become tired and reduce your impact.
Finally, if you want to add humour, make sure it is funny.
There have been plenty of examples of humour backfiring and offending, particularly in social media.
Get it wrong, and your newsjacking efforts could quickly turn into a reputation management battle.
And then you really will wish you were stranded in a pub receiving care packages.
Media First are media and communications training specialists with nearly 40 years of experience. We have a team of trainers, each with decades of experience working as journalists, presenters, communications coaches and media trainers.
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