Marketing Communications & PR Flashcards

A brand's PR agency proposes using 'newsjacking' as a tactic. This means:

Answer: Inserting the brand into a trending news story to gain media attention

Newsjacking involves capitalizing on breaking news or trending topics by quickly inserting the brand's relevant perspective to gain earned media coverage.

In B2B marketing communications, 'thought leadership content' is primarily designed to:

Answer: Build credibility and trust by demonstrating expertise within an industry

Thought leadership positions the brand or its executives as authoritative experts, building trust with prospects over longer B2B sales cycles.

When a PR professional says a story has 'legs,' they mean:

Answer: The story has enough substance and angles to generate ongoing media coverage over time

'Legs' in PR jargon means a story has multiple angles, evolving developments, or broad relevance that sustains media interest beyond a single news cycle.

A brand runs a cause marketing campaign where 5% of sales are donated to an environmental charity. The PRIMARY marketing communications risk of this approach is:

Answer: Greenwashing accusations if the cause connection is perceived as superficial or insincere

When cause marketing lacks genuine commitment or the contribution is seen as token, brands face accusations of greenwashing or cause-washing, damaging credibility.

Which of the following BEST defines 'content marketing' as distinct from traditional advertising?

Answer: Content marketing provides valuable information to attract and retain audiences rather than directly promoting a product

Content marketing builds audience relationships by delivering genuinely useful or entertaining content, earning attention rather than interrupting with overt promotional messages.

A communications team conducts a 'message pull-through' audit. What are they assessing?

Answer: Whether key brand messages actually appear in earned media coverage and stakeholder communications

A message pull-through audit checks whether the messages the brand intended to communicate are actually being reflected in resulting media coverage and stakeholder perception.

In the context of marketing communications, 'reach' and 'frequency' represent a fundamental trade-off because:

Answer: With a fixed budget, increasing the number of unique people reached typically means fewer exposures per person

With a fixed media budget, reaching more unique individuals leaves less budget to expose each person multiple times, requiring strategic balance between breadth and repetition.