Before a major epidemic, how should companies select topics for their new media operations?

The moment the hot topic came, it seemed that everyone’s life was filled with the epidemic.

However, as a new media operator for an enterprise, I think that you who are reading this article may just be a new media operator in a certain vertical industry. You may also think that "my industry has nothing to do with this, and there is nothing I can do with it."

However, looking at the new media in other industries, it seems that they can always combine the epidemic situation to produce some articles with good exposure.

So, is the hot topic of "new pneumonia" a hot topic that everyone can take advantage of? If so, how should different types of accounts create corresponding hot content?

This article divides new media accounts into four main types, and attempts to provide you with some new topic ideas and operational inspiration by analyzing the hot topics of different accounts during the epidemic.

1. National news accounts should be rolled out to do this.

National news accounts are public accounts opened by major news media, such as the Beijing News, Southern Weekly, and CCTV News, which are all national news accounts.

So, how should national news accounts select topics based on this hot topic? It is mainly divided into several directions:

1. Updates: Release the latest news related to the epidemic. This is not an in-depth report, but more about timely updates.

For example, CCTV News published "Starting from 10 a.m. today, all buses, subways, etc. in Wuhan will stop operating, and the channels from the airport and railway station to Wuhan will be closed"; for example, in the middle of the epidemic, the Beijing News published "5 million people left Wuhan, the National Health Commission responded."

2. Popular Science: Release popular science information related to the epidemic.

For example, regarding the origin of the epidemic, the "Shangguan News" official account published "Latest: The virus may have originated from wild animals and there is a possibility of mutation | The State Council Information Office will hold a daily epidemic press conference"; for example, regarding the prevention of the epidemic, "Southern Metropolis Daily" published "Zhong Nanshan: The new pneumonia is definitely transmitted from person to person, and wearing a mask is useful."

3. Stories: Different stories of different groups of people are published during the epidemic, which can be stories of doctors, patients, police officers, and ordinary people in Wuhan.

For example, "Ice Point Weekly" published "The Epidemic Prevention Story of a Hubei Village: Village Doctor Wears Raincoat as Protective Clothing", and "Southern Weekend" published "Wuhan's "Unforgettable Tonight": A New Year's Eve with Mixed Flavors of the New Year".

4. Debunk rumors: When the epidemic broke out, many marketing accounts tried to take advantage of the popularity and many rumors appeared on the Internet. As news organizations, national news accounts need to debunk rumors in a timely manner.

For example, the "Beijing News" published an article titled "Will Bai Yansong connect with Zhong Nanshan again on CCTV program?" Reporters confirmed it was fake news.

2. Local accounts find local entry points from news accounts.

What is a local number? These accounts are those that focus on food, drink, and entertainment in a certain area. For example, Wuhan Hotspot, Guiqifeng, etc. are all local accounts.

How to make a local number a hotspot? In fact, the idea is similar to that of national news accounts, but it focuses more on the local area.

We can find content from local news accounts, reporting on topics such as protection knowledge that is closely related to people around us, the latest local epidemic cases, how to prevent infection, and convenient information during the epidemic.

Let me give you some examples.

1. For example, the content direction of the national media is the number of people affected by the epidemic nationwide, while the local accounts should focus on the number of people in the local area.

For example, the "Important Notice: Yuhang will implement "Ten Strict" Control Measures from now on" released by "Watching Yuhang Everyday" is based on the local perspective of Yuhang.

2. For example, the national media focuses on the stories of people in a certain region, while local accounts focus on the stories of people in that region.

For example, the Xiamen local account "Xiaoyu.com" published "Fujian's first confirmed patient with new coronavirus pneumonia was cured and discharged from the hospital, 36-year-old Mr. Wu from Putian! 》

3. Interpretation of topic-related numbers from a professional perspective.

What are the topic-related numbers? Here we refer to accounts that are directly related to hot topics, such as medical public accounts and health public accounts related to the epidemic, or entertainment accounts related to entertainment gossip.

What should topic-related accounts do? It’s very simple. Based on your own content positioning, publish insights, opinions, and practical information from a professional perspective (this is somewhat similar to news accounts, but the content of topic-related accounts is more professional and in-depth).

1. For example, the "Medical World" industry account's "Frontline doctors call for CT to replace nucleic acid testing as soon as possible as the standard for diagnosing new pneumonia" provides some professional insights into the diagnosis of pneumonia.

2. There is also "Dingxiang Doctor"'s "Why shouldn't Shuanghuanglian be used to prevent the new coronavirus? 》provided a professional refutation of the popular rumors about Shuanghuanglian.

3. Of course, there is also the epidemic map that Ding Xiang Yuan quickly launched at the beginning of the epidemic. After it went viral on WeChat Moments, it was followed up and imitated by major media and websites.

4. Other accounts take advantage of the hot topics and talk about related content.

What are the other numbers? These are all the remaining numbers that are not directly related to the hotspot. For example, the accounts of training institutions, entrepreneurial media, etc.

So how can other accounts take advantage of the popularity? The principle is: if you can rub it, rub it; if you can't rub it, don't force it.

1. For example, for marketing training institutions, they can combine hot topics to teach marketing knowledge.

For example, for "Banpie Private School", we combined the epidemic and the hot topics of job hunting after the New Year and published "How to find a job during the epidemic? An article titled "Prepare for the post-New Year recruitment boom with these 5 job-hunting tips."

2. For accounts in the insurance industry, it can be interpreted whether the insurance policy covers this disease, or how to purchase insurance in the future to deal with risks.

For example, the "Insurance One-Stop" corporate account posted an article titled "The number of confirmed cases has exceeded 14,000, with 304 deaths! With the epidemic so severe, would you consider buying insurance? 》.

3. For example, if it is an entrepreneurial information account, you can share major public health events and how companies deal with cash flow risks.

For example, the "Restaurant Boss Insider" public account's "Restaurant people who have experienced three major epidemics tell you how to maintain cash flow at critical moments! 》.

4. For example, for tool numbers, you can talk about guidelines for remote collaboration, or how to use tools for better office work.

For example, the article "New Media Remote Work Operation Guide" from Xinbang.

In short, whether it is your news account, local account, topic-related account, or other account, in most cases, you can always find topics to start with from hot topics, which is why new media operations always have to work overtime.

Author: Banpie Private School

Source: Banpie Private School