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Wake Forest University Wins 2016 Newsroom of the Year Award

Toronto, October 6, 2016

SaaS Software Platform Helps WFU Media Relations Focus on Faculty Experts to win coveted prize

The bar for online newsrooms just got higher as Wake Forest University launched is new online newsroom. The North Carolina university was just named “Best Online Newsroom of the Year” in the 2016 Bulldog Digital/Social PR Awards program for its newly redesigned and highly functional news.wfu.edu.

“We are proud to have played a key role with our SaaS software platform in helping power the new Wake Forest newsroom site. The industry recognition they are getting is well deserved,” said Peter Evans, Co-Founder and CEO of ExpertFile. The primary goal of redesigning our online newsroom has been to help journalists covering Wake Forest do their jobs quicker, easier and better.” – Katie Neal, Executive Director, News and Communications
In late 2015, the Communications & External Relations group at Wake Forest University embarked on an ambitious goal: “Tell Wake Forest stories and create a positive experience for news media by providing them as much content, access and support as possible.” Being in the midst of a $1 billion capital campaign, Wake Forest realized that the newsroom was a pivotal tool for helping shape the perception of the university to key audiences. Facing the challenge of dealing with an old newsroom, packaged in a way which made it frustrating for journalists to access the information they needed, the news team was tasked with creating a new and improved visually-compelling, mobile responsive and easy-to-navigate online newsroom.

A key ingredient in developing the new site was the focus on faculty experts. This coupled with a proactive approach to providing content, pitching stories and showcasing the school’s expertise and faculty has made Wake Forest a leader in digital media centers. The new site is easy to navigate and provides a more engaging view of the talented Wake Forest faculty experts. The WFU media relations team also has ensured they provide the simplest path for broadcast and print media seeking expert sources and on-air guests

The news team was guided by a few goals to address their primary audiences: Give journalists a better way to find the information they need to do their jobs easily and quickly; and 2) make it easy for anyone to share Wake Forest news. To achieve these goals, they implemented their strategy which focused on four areas of emphasis:
Offer a useful combination of newsworthy content, facts and resources.
Showcase visual storytelling capabilities with multimedia options and a flexible web design.
Establish a best-in-class expert guide. Prominently feature experts on trending topics and breaking news.
Provide easy ways to share news stories, expert pitches, photos and videos to increase visibility on social media while reinforcing the brand.

Since the launch of the newsroom Wake Forest has achieved notable success. They have seen a significant increase in media coverage stemming from their expert pitch efforts, they’ve had a positive social impact in their local community, and they’ve noticed an increase in content consumption.

Just last month, Wake Forest was recognized for these efforts by winning the bronze Bulldog Award from the Bulldog Reporter for “Best Online Newsroom of the Year.” The panel of judges was comprised of working and award-winning journalists, including a Pulitzer Prize winner, and represented a number of different media outlets including The Washington Post, USA Today, Forbes and The Oregonian.

  • Offer a useful combination of newsworthy content, facts and resources.
  • Showcase visual storytelling capabilities with multimedia options and a flexible web design.
  • Establish a best-in-class expert guide. Prominently feature experts on trending topics and breaking news.
  • Provide easy ways to share news stories, expert pitches, photos and videos to increase visibility on social media while reinforcing the brand.

Since the launch of the newsroom Wake Forest has achieved notable success. They have seen a significant increase in media coverage stemming from their expert pitch efforts, they’ve had a positive social impact in their local community, and they’ve noticed an increase in content consumption.

Just last month, Wake Forest was recognized for these efforts by winning the bronze Bulldog Award from the Bulldog Reporter for “Best Online Newsroom of the Year.” The panel of judges was comprised of working and award-winning journalists, including a Pulitzer Prize winner, and represented a number of different media outlets including The Washington Post, USA Today, Forbes and The Oregonian.

To learn more about how Wake Forest University designed its newsroom to stand out above the rest click here

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ExpertFile is the world’s first expert marketing platform built for organizations. Our publishing, search optimization (SEO), lead generation and analytics features, coupled with our global network, helps experts connect to business prospects, media and conferences. Our clients include market leaders such as University of Texas, ADP, IDC Canada, University of North Carolina Chapel Hill, Pearson Education, University Health Network, Waterloo University and National Angel Capital Organization.

Visit us at www.expertfile.com

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Media Contact

Deanne Taenzer dtaenzer@expertfile.com 1-800-693-9126