3 online newsroom snafus—and how to fix them

Online newsrooms can attract journalists, casual readers and search engine spiders alike.

Yet these PR-controlled content hubs often fail to generate adequate visibility for news and updates, because they fall victim to easily avoidable mistakes. Here are three of the most common blunders:

1. Putting tech before people. The first mistake is becoming obsessed with the channel’s tech features, says Sarah Hogeboom, head of brand journalism for global packaging company MWV and editor of the MWV Newsroom. She advises focusing instead on storytelling—and putting your people front and center.

Visitors are looking for your story, she explains: “Let the storytellers do the telling. Buddy up with scientists, engineers or employees at your company. Film them. Post their articles. Use this ‘story corps’ to put a face on your company.”

MWV’s story corps (shown below) includes contributors ranging from sustainability directors to managers in the company’s customer insights division.