As a PR professional, you already know the importance of managing your brand’s reputation. But with everything you're juggling day-to-day, it's easy to overlook the channel that can have the biggest impact on how people perceive your brand – your newsroom.
Your website is typically the first stop for people who want to learn more about your organization. So, there’s no better place than your own newsroom to share the story you want tell, the way you want to tell it. A strong corporate newsroom can play a major role in your PR strategy, so it’s worth investing a bit of time and energy to get it right.
We’ve gathered some of the best guidance for creating an online newsroom that will drive traffic and boost engagement, along with some great examples to inspire your efforts.
What Is an Online Newsroom?
Your online newsroom is your brand’s digital front door. It's often the first stop for journalists, investors, and curious customers wanting to know more about who you are and what you do. You want to make that first impression count.
Whether you call it a press room, media center, or news hub, online newsrooms often include essential company information like press releases, fact sheets, and PR contacts. But your newsroom should be more than just a document repository. It's your brand's story – where every piece of content works together to paint a picture of who you are and why you matter.
Today, brand newsrooms are invaluable platforms that serve multiple audiences:
- Journalists: Looking for quick facts, quotes, and resources for their stories
- Investors: Seeking financial information and company updates
- Customers: Wanting to learn more about your brand's values and initiatives
- Job Seekers: Researching your company culture and achievements
- Partners: Exploring potential collaboration opportunities
Online Newsroom Benefits You Can’t Ignore
Here’s why investing time and resources into your newsroom pays off:
- You Own the Narrative: In our world where misinformation is commonplace, your newsroom is the authoritative source of truth. It's where you get to tell your brand’s most authentic and compelling story, your way.
- SEO Gold: When journalists Google topics in your industry, wouldn't it be great if your brand popped up first? A newsroom that is search engine optimized (SEO) makes that happen. Every press release, fact sheet, and leader bio is an opportunity to rank for relevant keywords and establish your brand as an industry authority.
- Crisis Management Central: When things go sideways (and we know they sometimes do), your brand newsroom becomes the central spot for clear, consistent messaging. Having a pre-established platform for crisis communications means you can respond quickly and effectively when the clock is ticking.
- Brand Credibility: Nothing gives your brand more credibility than third-party acknowledgement. Your online press room is the perfect place to spotlight your recent media coverage and interviews.
- Media Accessibility: Make a reporter's job easier, and it will certainly be appreciated. A well-organized newsroom does exactly that by giving them exactly what they need, when they need it.
How to Organize an Online Newsroom
While newsroom needs vary by brand and industry, effective newsrooms typically include these key components:
- Press Releases: Keep them current and categorized. Think beyond just chronological order – use topic tags or filters to make searching by topic easy.
- Media Coverage: Include any recent media mentions, interviews, and press coverage. This coverage adds credibility and becomes the perfect portfolio to leverage when pitching your brand leaders as subject matter experts.
- Media Contacts: Include up-to-date contact information for your public relations team. If you have different contacts for various regions or brands, make sure that’s noted.
- Multimedia Assets: Provide high-quality, high-resolution logos, images, photos, and videos in various formats for downloading – just make sure to include your usage guidelines.
- Company Background/Fact Sheets: Provide general informational resources about your organization, like company overview, historical timeline, leadership bios, fact sheets, key stats, and product summaries for quick and easy reference.
- Awards and Accolades: Received any awards or recognitions? Great! Create a section to show off your brand’s achievements and industry leadership.
- Event Information: Share upcoming events and registration details in your newsroom, making it easy for anyone interested to add to their calendars.
- Thought Leadership: Expand on your brand’s story with white papers, blog posts, and success stories that highlight your organization’s expertise.
- Social Media Links: Be sure your social media accounts are front and center throughout your online press room so people can easily share your content and follow your brand.
- Media Kit: The media kit typically includes many of the elements listed above; however, many brands make it even easier for journalists and influencers with a downloadable PDF or shareable folder with everything they might need to cover a story.
Pro Tips for Your Online Newsroom
The best newsrooms are user-focused, making it easy for visitors to find the information they’re looking for. Here are some best practices to consider as you build or update your corporate newsroom:
User-Friendly
Clearly label different sections within the newsroom, with the most important news and resources highlighted on the landing page. Create separate sections or tag content to help different audiences – journalists, investors, potential employees, the public – find what they need quickly.
Updated Content
Regular updates are non-negotiable. Set a schedule to review and update the content within your newsroom. If your newsroom has been active for a while, consider creating an archive for older content, so the most recent updates take center stage.
Optimized for Search
Use SEO-friendly headlines with keywords that journalists or the public might search for. The more keyword-rich and relevant your content, the more potential eyes you'll attract to your updates. Don't forget to include internal links to blog posts, product pages, or related press releases to keep visitors engaged longer.
Subscribe Options
Make it effortless for stakeholders to stay connected with you by including a simple “subscribe” form throughout your brand newsroom. Just be transparent about the email frequency and type of content they should expect to receive if they sign up (and always offer a way to opt out of any comms you send out).
Collaborative Management
While many departments within your organization may contribute to its newsroom, the PR team should take the lead to ensure accuracy, consistency, and alignment with the overall comms strategy. For example, you may want to collaborate with legal for content review, marketing for multimedia assets, or the web team to ensure optimal site functionality.
Trackability
Track key metrics to measure and optimize performance: page views, downloads, time on page, search terms, social shares, traffic sources, etc. This data is critical for understanding how your newsroom is engaging visitors and determining your strategy for future content.
Inspiring Brand Newsrooms That Nailed It
Let's look at some great examples that bring these best practices to life. Each of the brands below has created a newsroom that serves their unique audience while nailing the fundamentals.
Chobani
Chobani's newsroom perfectly aligns the content with their brand mission of making better food accessible to more people. The user-friendly layout prioritizes sustainability initiatives, community programs, and latest company news. Their comprehensive media kit shows their dedication to media accessibility, featuring high-resolution product photography and a well-designed brand story PDF that journalists can easily download and reference.
Glassdoor
Glassdoor's newsroom emphasizes their authority on workplace trends and job market insights through strategically organized content. Their clean layout and intuitive navigation help different users quickly find relevant information. They excel at SEO-optimized content, with data-driven research reports and workplace insights that make it easy for media to source authoritative content on trending topics.
IBM
IBM demonstrates how to handle complex content for the ideal user experience. Their dropdown navigation breaks down their vast content library into digestible sections covering research, innovation, and corporate responsibility. They also help their media partners by providing topic and region-specific contacts alongside a robust multimedia library, with assets clearly organized and downloadable in various formats.
Life Time
Life Time strategically tells the story of their current growth by placing expansion plans and the company’s timeline front and center. Their quick facts section makes key information instantly accessible. The clear sections for press releases, media coverage, and an extensive media library help journalists easily find and use their content for their stories.
MillerKnoll
MillerKnoll's newsroom is a prime example of brand storytelling in action. They've created clear pathways to brand-specific updates, industry insights, and environmental impact initiatives. Their organized approach to media relations is evident in their brand-specific contacts, while their regular content updates on design innovations and research keep their newsroom dynamic.
Pinterest's newsroom mirrors their brand identity with a visually engaging, user-friendly layout. Their SEO-optimized content strategy shines through their platform updates, trend reports, and user research. The well-organized multimedia resources section, complete with brand guidelines and high-quality assets, makes it a valuable resource for media covering social media trends.
Workday
Workday's newsroom masterfully balances technical depth with accessibility. Their streamlined design prioritizes fresh content while maintaining easy navigation to deeper resources. Their comprehensive media center exemplifies best practices with a complete package of company information, leadership profiles, and downloadable assets, all organized to help journalists tell their story.
Final Thought
By investing time and resources in creating a user-friendly, comprehensive online newsroom, you're not just storing information – you're creating a valuable resource for your stakeholders and a powerful asset for your brand.
Speaking of powerful assets for your brand...Cision is trusted by 84% of the Fortune 500. Talk to our team to see what our all-in-one PR platform, CisionOne, can do for you.
