Digital Media Foundations Prior to Content Creation

 

Image from Pixabay

By Ethan Ijumba

As a writer, many types of writing styles work in conjunction in fields where utilizing different methods and models to promote and better a brand. One of the models that those in the public relations field follow is PESO.  To better understand the different outlets, PESO (Paid, Earned, Shared, Owned) is a form that helps differentiate the media types into separate categories to help reach a target audience. The PESO model assists in how organizations can utilize different types of media to market their businesses. 

 

To better understand the media types that fall under the PESO categories, it is best to review each category and exactly what marketing means to classify them into these groups. When reviewing strategies to help better understand how businesses can improve their marketing strategies, by effectively leveraging each part of the PESO model and implementing these strategies, brands can create an impactful marketing strategy that maximizes reach, engagement, and results.

 

Paid Media refers to any form of advertising or promotional content that a brand pays for, this also includes traditional methods such as print and broadcast advertisements. Earned Media is any publicity or coverage that a brand receives without paying for it. This includes media mentions in newspapers, magazines, and online publications, as well as social media influencers or celebrities promoting the brand. Shared Media refers to any content that is shared by individuals or organizations on social media platforms. This can include brand-related posts, user-generated content, or viral videos that gain widespread attention. Lastly, Owned Media refers to the channels and platforms that a brand or organization owns and controls. This includes websites, blogs, social media accounts, and email newsletters.

 

An example of an owned media outlet is gossip columnist, Perez Hilton because he owns and controls his own blog and social media accounts. He can publish his content, share his opinions and thoughts, and engage directly with his audience. By doing this, Hilton has built a brand that is not only personal but successful in capitalizing on his owned media channels, which has allowed him to establish himself as a major figure in promoting the entertainment industry. In his case, Hilton’s use of social media not only gave him successful ways of promoting his brand in terms of longevity, but it also helped platforms create new channels of media for him to use.

 

While owned media may have helped Perez Hilton establish himself as a brand to be recognized. What many organizations tend to utilize is the shared media method of sponsored posts. For example, rather than using media channels and traditional mediums such as TV, radio, and such. Companies tend to collaborate with social media influencers for sponsored ads and promotional content that reaches their followers directly as well as allow brands to organically reach a wider demographic with authenticity. 

 

Based on how PESO can impact a brand’s marketability, it is important for brands to research their audience to select what category of the PESO model may be best to target. If the target audience is better reached through traditional media channels, such as print or broadcast, then the brand may want to consider investing in paid media campaigns. On the other hand, if the target audience is highly engaged in social media and relies heavily on recommendations from peers, then shared or earned media may be more effective. 

From how the PESO model can be used to better a brand’s marketing with these tools, I would say I learned more about the different aspects that companies can use to better reach their target audience. With that being said, the PESO model helps utilize what a corporation should look for when weighing in the options available to them. Rather than focusing on a traditional method that works for a certain company, it’s better to overview the different types of media that can be better utilized so that way the goals of the organization are met successfully. With what I’ve learned about PESO, it’s important to consider the benefits of using different media outlets to help build a brand’s credibility and lead to conversions and business growth. Implementing these different strategies can help businesses increase their engagement and results. It is also important to remember that the PESO model works together and when combining paid, earned, shared, and owned media effectively, brands can create an approach that maximizes their potential.

 

Picture: Iphone Hand Screen – Free photo on Pixabay – Pixabay

Written By: Tania Randazzo

What is digital media writing? I can humbly say that before taking my COMM380 class titled Digital Media Writing, I had no idea what that was and what digital media writing encompasses. A part of this course deals with blog posts and what creating and managing your own blog looks like. Although I knew what a blog was, I thought it was much simpler than it truly is. Creating a blog is not simply typing something up and posting it on the internet, it is much more than that. Blogs require planning and thought. You have to know what audience you want to address, what your niche is, how often you are going to post, and on what medium you want to post on. It is about consistency and sticking to a schedule. If you decide you want to post on Tuesdays and Thursdays, then you need to be consistent for your audience who expects to read your posts on those days. Knowing who your audience is and knowing how to write to them is also incredibly important. You cannot expect your audience to be young adults and then write as if speaking to a much younger generation as you will not be able to keep their attention. You also have to know how to use your own voice.

Going viral is not as easy at it may seem. Going viral is when a post gains a lot of traction from viewers and readers and suddenly many people have read or seen your content and are very aware of you as a content creator. In this day and age, with technology, it may seem that there is a simple method in order to make your content go viral. Unfortunately, it is not that simple. There is no simple way to get your content to go viral. It is completely out of your control. I think this is a very important concept for all new digital media content creators to be aware of as this was something I personally was not aware of before either. Just because your post does not immediately go viral, does not necessarily mean you are doing something wrong. Getting a post to go viral is something out of your control. However, there are thing you could be doing in order to increase the likelihood of your content going viral. A few ways to help the likelihood of your content going viral and to increase overall viewer and readership of your content is though interacting with your readers and digital dashboards.   

Blogs are not the correct medium for jargon instead, it is a way for your readers to feel as though you are having a conversation with them. Which leads to another important part of a blog that I never thought of, is the importance of being active on the blog. Meaning, responding to comments, urging your readers to share your blog, and responding to readers who message you individually about your blog. This is the key to having more readers and more viewers. By talking the time to personally address your readers and create a connection, this will increase the overall engagement in your blog leading it to be successful. These was all knowledge I had no idea about before taking this course in college. Engagement on your website can also be tracked using digital dashboards. Digital dashboards are another concept that I had never heard prior to taking this course. 

Digital dashboards are designed to track, analyze, and report on KPIs. KPIs are key performance indicators. These indicators are what allow content creators to know what on their website or content medium of choice is working and which is not. It shows you which content your readers engage with the most in order to help you put out the most appropriate content that your readers are interested in. It can be difficult as a first time novice at digital media content creation when you feel as though you don’t know what your audience is looking for. Digital dashboards allow for an easy and accessible way to know and see what on your digital content creation platform is attracting the most traffic. This allows for you to be more aware and more confident of the content that you should be putting out.

Combining all this knowledge and these different concepts is the most effective way to get the most out of your content creation. As a digital media content creation novice, it can seem like a lot of information and concepts thrown at you all at once. The most important part is to put out content that you are proud of and that represents you well, being consistent, engaging with your audience, and keeping track of the data coming from your content. As a student myself, I am still learning about all the different concepts that goes into content creation but even a month in this class, I have already learned so much and you can too. Who knows, maybe one day it will be your content that goes viral and suddenly everyone knows your name and wants to hear what you have to say.

Sources:

https://www.amazon.com/Content-Rules-Podcasts-Webinars-Customers/dp/1118232607.

https://www.geckoboard.com/dashboard-examples/executive/digital-dashboard/

Students Engulfed by Digital Media

Scott Westfield

Tues Oct 3, 2023

As a student, delving into the world of digital media writing can be both exciting and confusing. The vast landscape of digital media encompasses a multitude of platforms, formats, and techniques that can be overwhelming for someone that is new to the field. Throughout my journey, I encountered several aspects of digital media writing that I initially didn’t understand or found challenging to grasp. In this comparison and contrast blog post, I will explore these aspects from my perspective as a student, highlighting the evolution of my understanding and the strategies I chose to overcome these challenges.

One of the first hurdles I faced in digital media writing was defining what media is in terms of the types and different outlets. For example, there is multimedia which is a combination of text, graphics, audio, video, and animation. There is also legacy media, emerging media, and new media (which contains the 5 principles; numerical, structural, automation, variability, and cultural transcoding). Additionally, I learned five types of media which helped shape a foundation of digital media. These five include audio, video, social media, advertising, and news.

Understanding the importance of SEO (Search Engine Optimization) and content optimization was also a struggle. Initially, the concept seemed like a mysterious code that only experts could crack. I was confused by the idea that writing for search engines was as essential. In traditional writing, the focus is primarily on the content itself, with little consideration for keywords, metadata, or ranking on search engines. However, in digital media writing, SEO is a crucial element. It involves researching and strategically incorporating keywords into the content to improve its visibility on search engine results pages. Both traditional and digital media writing require effective communication and engaging content to capture the audience’s attention. In both forms of writing, grammar, spelling, and coherence remain essential for conveying the message effectively.

Another challenge I encountered was understanding the acronyms in digital media so far. To note a few, there is “NPR” (National Public Radio) followed by the NPR Strategy “COPE” which stands for create, once, publish, everywhere. Next, there is “AMO” which is slightly different from what Public Relations has drilled into my memory “AMC.” In Public Relations, we have “AMC” which stands for audience, message, channel, but in Digital Media we have “AMO” which stands for audience, message, objective. Additionally, we have “PESO” which stands for paid, earned, shared, owned. This is also in Public Relations, however in Digital Media, we focus on paid, earned, and owned and leave out shared.

The integration of visual and multimedia elements in digital media writing was another area that initially confounded me. In traditional writing, the primary mode of communication is text, with occasional inclusion of images or illustrations. In digital media writing, however, visual and multimedia components play a more significant role in conveying information and enhancing the reader’s experience.

Traditional writing relies primarily on text to convey information, with visual elements playing a supplementary role. Digital media writing often incorporates visual elements such as images, videos, infographics, and interactive graphics to complement and enhance the textual content. Both traditional and digital media writing aim to convey information effectively, but digital media writing leverages a wider range of multimedia tools to achieve this goal. In both forms of writing, the choice of visuals and multimedia elements should align with the content’s purpose and message. To overcome my initial hesitation regarding visuals and multimedia, I started exploring graphic design tools and basic video editing software. I learned to create eye-catching images, infographics, and short videos that not only enriched my content but also appealed to a broader audience. I discovered that incorporating visual and multimedia elements not only made my content more engaging but also improved its share-ability on social media platforms.

Understanding the metrics and analytics associated with digital media writing was another challenge I encountered. Traditional writing rarely provides quantifiable data on reader engagement and performance. In contrast, digital media platforms offer a plethora of metrics, including page views, click-through rates, bounce rates, and social media shares. Traditional writing typically lacks detailed metrics and analytics, making it challenging to gauge the audience’s response. Digital media writing provides access to a wealth of data and analytics, allowing writers to measure the success of their content and make informed decisions. Until I had to complete an assignment analyzing dashboards, I did not understand the concept and importance of metrics; neither did I take note that many businesses use these and organize these in order to maintain success.

At first, I found the world of metrics and analytics overwhelming. I was unsure which metrics were most important or how to interpret them. However, as I delved deeper into the world of digital media writing, I discovered that these metrics could provide valuable insights into audience behavior and content performance. I started using tools like Google Analytics, social media analytics dashboards, and email marketing analytics to track and analyze the performance of my content. This data-driven approach allowed me to make data-backed decisions and refine my writing strategies over time.

In conclusion, my journey into the realm of digital media writing has been a transformative experience, marked by challenges that ultimately led to growth and understanding. Throughout this semester, I initially grappled with defining digital media, from its various forms and outlets to the crucial role of SEO and content optimization. The plethora of acronyms in the field added another layer of complexity, but I gradually deciphered their meanings and applications. Integrating visual and multimedia elements was initially perplexing, but I soon realized their power in enhancing content and engaging audiences. Metrics and analytics, once a daunting aspect, became invaluable tools for assessing content performance and refining my approach. Throughout this journey, one thing remained constant: the core principles of effective communication, content strategy cycles, and coherence transcended both traditional and digital media writing.

https://pixabay.com/illustrations/internet-social-media-network-blog-4463031/

Writing for any online platform can be super difficult to get right. If you are a fellow content perfectionist in training, there is a literal ocean of resources out there for you to use in order to spice up your writing. Although before you post, there are several key concepts to understand before you hit that publish button. It’s important to get just a little bit into the nitty gritty, but creation can be an exciting experience once you know what you’re doing! Here are just a few super easy lessons I learned that helped me instantly become a better content creator.

One of the best teaching tools I used to gather my knowledge on DGM is the book titled: “Content Rules: How to Create Killer Blogs, Podcasts, Videos, Ebooks, Webinars (and More) that Engage Customers and Ignite Your Business” . This amazing resource taught me the majority of what I know in regards to how to approach creating content. Give it a read if you have a burning desire to write killer content!

A primary lesson that I learned from this book was how to distinguish the term Social Media from Digital Media. On the surface they may both appear similar, but you’ll find that they’re actually very different in context! While social media refers to websites and applications which deal with networking, the realm of Digital Media is much broader. Digital Media itself refers to any medium where information is broadcast through a screen or speaker. By defining these terms, I started to understand that digital writing skills are not limited to social media. One of the biggest distinctions lies in the fact that social media is primarily tailored towards content usually generated by only one user. On the other hand Digital Media can encompass professionally produced content from media organizations. Above all, it’s important to consider the difference between writing for yourself vs. writing for an organization that you represent.

Another great lesson I learned  is to find your audience and work with it! Writing is all well and good, but without knowing who you’re writing to you’re practically asking to be overlooked by the uncaring masses. The word “Niche” is what is used to describe your ideal place in the market. Chapter 3 of Content Rules has a section dedicated to the idea that you want to find people who care about what you’re creating. In this case it’s important that you figure out first and foremost who your content is for. You may find that if your content is tailored for everybody, there there’s a good chance that it’s actually for nobody. If you find your niche and appease their craving for content then you will be rewarded with loyal and engaged readership.

Something else that I wish I knew beforehand was how important it is to vary your content. When producing, it’s essential to begin with determining your audiences and setting a schedule. However mixing up your style of content is one of the best ways to keep your audience coming back for more! If you plan on creating an entertainment blog for example, you can start out small. One day you could post a product review on your blog site while on another day you might decide to create a Top 10 list. There are nearly limitless amounts of directions you could take this among all sorts of Digital Media platforms. One thing is for certain: if you commit yourself to varied content, your readership is sure to thank you for it.

If there’s one thing I learned, it’s that we should always keep an eye on what is working and what is not. In this case, digital dashboard should quickly become your best friend in all things content. One of my class assignments brought several incredible websites to my attention such as Klipfolio, Jira, Funnel, and monday.com which all help to show you the raw data surrounding your creations. With it you can keep an eye on things like how many people have seen a post, your general viewership, and even figure out trends that could help influence your next move. Keeping an eye on a dashboard or two can completely remodel the way you or any company approaches content production. Just remember to set aside some time each week to analyze the data and adjust your strategy accordingly.

As we move forward through the class content, I find myself becoming more eager to learn about how to truly master the digital writing arts. If you or anybody you know are thinking about becoming a digital media writer, just know that it doesn’t have to be difficult. It can be daunting at times, but if you follow these tips then you’ll find yourself producing bangers in no time!

Happy writing!

By: Raysa Kelly

In the world of digital media writing, there are a lot of different elements, considerations, tools, and other key components out there. While I am very green when it comes to digital media writing and content creation there are a few things that I have picked along the way. Most of these are things that would have never even crossed my mind before hand. Before we get into all that let’s first back it up and break down the then and now of media.

Starting with the then, legacy media. Legacy media is basically forms of media if you take your phone and computer out of the equation. For example, newspapers, TV, radio, magazines, books, etc. It’s multiple forms of mass communication that we mainly relied on when we were younger or I did anyway. Now I am not saying that these forms of media are obsolete or that no one uses them. It is just that the world is evolving and the way we communicate is evolving with it. Enter the now.

Digital media is exactly what it sounds like, anyway form of communication that uses electronic machines to spread information. A good example is this blog you are reading. One of the many benefits of digital media writing is how far it can reach it can reach people. When I was younger every Friday I would go to my grandmother’s house and spend the night. My Mem always had the local paper and she’s a noisy person so she always reads it. Since it was the only paper delivered to her she only saw what was going on in our small town. With an online newspaper, she could not only read about our little town but the little town to the left of ours or one in Wisconsin if she wanted. Now that we got the general idea of media out of the way let’s get back to the part where I share my rookie experiences.

The first one is voice and tone. Now I know what you’re thinking “We learned that in seventh grade.” Which is true yes but, I am referring to understanding that in the context of digital media writing. The main takeaway is that your voice needs to be consistent but your tone needs to change depending on your subject. If we focus on voice in particular it should be an authoritative and calm while also making sure you don’t sound condescending. On the NHS website in their section about voice and tone, they give this example, “empower by saying things like “talk to your doctor about…” rather than “your doctor will tell you about…”.

Now tone is more flexible depending on context, I am writing this blog with a light, educational, and hopefully humorous tone since I am writing about what I have learned. If I was writing a blog about me wanting you to adopt animals at your local SPCA I would be writing in a more serious and encouraging tone. This is a topic that I had some idea about but never fully understood how this can help reach your audience most effectively. The next topic I had almost no knowledge about except that they existed, digital dashboards.

Dashboards can be an incredibly helpful tool for your company and they give you a visual representation of a multitude of metrics. The Geckoborad website gives examples of over 70 different types of dashboards. One main takeaway from those websites is that they can help you get the most out of your quantitative data. Quantitative data is data that can be measured by numbers such as revenue. Qualitative data is data that can not be measured with numbers such as getting data from a questionnaire. By using dashboards it can streamline all the information you are getting into a simple and easy-to-understand format.

For example, let’s say I just started a small business and I need to see how much revenue vs. profit I am making. By linking a dashboard to my database it will put all that information into a clean and easily understandable way.

Over my short time in digital media writing, I have had many questions. Now I have some answers based on what I thought vs. how I should be thinking on a professional level. Some of the big ones were:

Where do I even start?

Rookie answer: Get a general idea of what you want to write after understanding your content. Then write what you know to the best of your ability and have a friend read it to make sure it gets the point across.                                                                                                              Experienced answer: After thoroughly reading and annotating your material consider your audience, message, and channel. From there create an outline of how you can use your strategy to reach your goal and how to use your content in the most effectively. Only after that do you start writing.

How do I give my customers the best experience?

Rookie answer: Answer every question you can, leave it all there for them to see. It is important to let them know all I can offer and how they can reach these services. Make sure it’s easily assessable. Experienced answer: Start by thinking as a customer yourself and not as a digital media writer. Find the most important and frequently asked questions and add those to your page. Open a service line where they can call or a chatbot for further questions. Don’t flood them with information so that the important things don’t get lost.

Overall, I have learned a lot so far but I am not anywhere near an expert. This is something that takes time and patience, and it’s okay not to know everything right now. I’ll find my specialty and then keep trying and pushing until I’m good at it. In the meantime, I’m a rookie who’s picked up some good tricks along the way.

 

 

Written by: Aaliyah Reksid

Digital media writing may not be what you think it is because it sure wasn’t when I first got introduced to it. There is so much that goes into digital media writing it is hard to find a place to start. This is where I come in. I am here to provide things to consider before you begin to write your digital media content. To start off we need to understand what it is you are writing.

What is digital media? Digital media is transmitted as digital data, which at its simplest involves digital cables or satellites sending binary signals (0s and 1s) to devices that translate them into audio, video, graphics, text, and more. In plain English, it takes all of the data and produces what you see on the screen in front of you. There are many subgroups of digital media like audio, video, social media, advertising, news, literature, etc… Before digital media, there was legacy media. Within legacy media, there is legacy print media (books, newspapers, magazines) and legacy time-based media (sound recording, movies, radio, and television). It is very important to notice the difference in writing styles between the two. One is something you may have to go and buy or turn on the TV or radio to find information the other is right there in your hand. Digital media is way more accessible to your audience as times have changed with technology.

As technology advances there is much you need to learn on how to operate it for your success as there are a good amount of expectations that follow.  This includes keyboard key functions (character, modifier, and function key), keyboard shortcuts, file size and storage capacity, operation system software (OS), application software, files and folders, digital storage solutions, and cloud storage providers. I know I just threw a lot of technical expectations at you, but bear with me these skills will help you in the long run.

So now that you are figuring out the ins and outs of technology let’s put that to use and begin learning how to write for digital media.

One important thing as you start putting words down on the screen you need to make sure you are using the correct diction. This is where style guides become your best friend. An example of this would be the “Content Style Guide” posted by the NHS. Within this A-Z style guide, it shows the correct diction to be used within your writing like style, grammar, and spelling. Coming from that there are laws that you need to make sure you are abiding by. One thing that I never knew until looking further into each of these legal considerations is that by following these laws it is not only you or your agency that you are protecting, but also your readers.

When it comes to the media that you are writing there are a few types yours can fall into. Paid media, Earned media, and Owned media are also known as PESO (except without the S which stands for shared media, but no need to worry about that. Paid media is when you have to pay for it, obviously. It can contain branding, sponsored articles, press releases, banner ads, etc… Earned media is free, trusted by your readers, and comes without payment. Owned media consists of control of your content, immediate impact, social media profiles, blogs, etc…

So what are you writing about and for who? This question is extremely important. It will steer you in the direction of your purpose and goals you’d like to achieve and with whom. You need to understand your audience like the back of your hand. Say you are writing about college life and you’re goal is to help prepare incoming freshmen who have no idea what to expect other than what they see in movies. You have to put yourself in their shoes what is interesting to them, what they want to know, how you speak in their language, how you get the information to them as fast as possible and keep their attention, etc…

In the book “Content Rules: How to Create Killer Blogs, Podcasts, Videos, Ebooks, Webinars (and More) that Engage Customers and Ignite Your Business” they talk about the “Content Rules”. When writing for your audience you don’t want to sound plain, speak like a human, and throw your personality in there. Cause interest in the reader’s mind and build momentum within your writing. They speak further more on each topic so if I were you I’d check it out.

After you have finished your writing it is time to post. But your work doesn’t stop there. Is your post actually working for you or against you? this is a very important question and there are many tools you can use to find the answers. One tool is using dashboards. Now no it is not the thing behind your steering wheel in your car it is an analysis tool that allows business users to monitor and analyze their most important data sources in real-time.  You can set up your most important data on one screen and view how your audience is reacting to your post. Some of the things you may find on your dashboard would be key performance indicators (KPIs), real-world stats, and data analysis. One tool to help you get started on your dashboard is geckoboard.com This way you can learn if you need to change anything or keep doing what you are doing!

This may sound like this is a lot of information to take in and I hate to say it, but this is just a sliver. Everything I have listed will help you go from a novice to a professional. Now go start your path down digital media writing!

 

 

Are you considering writing a blog of your own? Has it always been a dream of yours to share your knowledge with others in a formatted and fun way on the Internet? Do you have absolutely no idea how to even get started? Well look no further, here are some behind-the-scenes things you should know before you start your own blog.

Before taking a college course designated to learning about digital media writing, blogs, and online content creation, I had limited knowledge and experience with creating written content. My experience in the field of digital content creation has consisted of creating podcasts and radio segments, editing videos for packages and news stories, and graphic designing logos and infographics for various organizations. All of which is a source of digital media, however, I never had much of a writing role in my projects.

Realizing that the process of writing successful segments and content was something that has stuck with me the most on my journey to becoming a professional blogger. You cannot just write up a couple paragraphs and post it, and consider it a success. A successful writer needs to plan time to research, write, edit, rewrite, and proof to create content that people will want to read and be able to understand. If you do not create readable blog posts, then readers will simply not come back and will not recommend your blog to anyone.

Another element of successful writing and blog-creating I’ve come to understand is writing for a specific niche. When I first started as a beginning, my writing was about too general of a topic. For example, I had been writing about sustainability and recycling. Which at first glance, already sounds pretty specific of a topic. However, I learned that you need to be excessively specific when deciding what to write about. The general topics can go all over the place, it can get vague, and leave the reader with a lot of follow-up questions or thoughts. You need to find a topic inside of that original topic. For the example provided about sustainability and recycling, I ended up honing in specifically on sustainable energy and how companies and consumers can benefit from switching to it.

Figuring out how to spread the word about your blog is an important key to its success. If people don’t know about your blog and its existence, then they have no chance of reading it and interacting with you. One way you can connect with other bloggers and those potentially interested in what you are writing about is through social media platforms. It is easy to get on Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, etc. and promote your blog. Simply create a profile that accurately and appropriately represents your content, share posts about updates or how to find your content, and interact with others in the community by following them and joining discussion boards.

A second way you can make sure your content is findable and shareable is by creating accurate long-tail keyword searches. I had no idea what a long-tail keyword search was when I first started. Chances are, you do not either. But, here is where you learn. When a consumer goes into a search engine and types in various strands of words, they are trying to find content that matches what they search. In order for your blog content to show up in their recommended search results, you need to include words that are specific to only your blog. Include commonly used keywords in your writing, the name of your blog, names of topics, and even the date if it is that specific. Often that is the first way consumers come into contact with information, so making sure your content is findable from search engines is a sure way to rope in readers.

In general, blog writing and creating is overlooked because it can seem like such a simple and streamlined task or project. But when you really get into it, it takes time, effort, and patience. You can create a successful blog as a beginning, but using this advice and tips about the writing process, specifying topics, and how to connect with consumers will help you immensely, ideally as it did for me.