It's a familiar scenario. There's a trending story that impacts your market or is in some way relevant for your readers (sometimes at a stretch). Jumping on board this bandwagon can be an easy win.

Here are my three tips for successfully highjacking the narrative.

1. Be quick - today's news is tomorrow's chip wrapper, after all, a late news jack is no good to anyone.

2. Be relevant - it can be tempting to overreach and focus too much on a trending idea, be sure to link it to your audience and their needs.

3. Be yourself - newsjacking wins because it's above all interesting. Showing a little personality and humour only reinforces that.

My favourite example of a newsjack comes from Nigel Walsh. Here is his response to the release of the iPhone X and its impact on the insurance market. He's quick to the point, relates the news to his insurance readers and he writes from personal experiences - showcasing his personality. 

Some examples of Newsjacking from the Passle team

Jenna Peaty - What salespeople can learn from Love Island - Part 1Love it or hate it, you can't escape Love Island 2018. I said I wouldn't watch it this year at all. I don't really have the time and I feel like I lose a few brain cells each time. That lasted about 4 days. 4 episodes later and I'm completely... Read more

Tom Elgar - Mr Southgate and leadershipLots has been written about England football manager Gareth Southgate and his leadership style: caring about people, unflappable, self-effacing and all round good lad. And I find myself being just delighted that these people exist and doing really... Read more

Freddy Dobinson - It's not coming home. A lesson in scenario planning.The morning alarm goes off and for the first time in the last few weeks, I hear my deafening alarm tone blare out. No Three Lions. No Baddiel, Skinner and The Lightning Seeds. The realisation sinks in and the dream is well and truly over. ... Read more

Freddy Dobinson - Hosting the perfect event: What to learn from The World CupThe opening game of the 21st World Cup kicked off yesterday with hosts Russia taking on The Green Falcons, Saudi Arabia.  Despite the negative press and poor form the host nation took into their first game (the lowest ranked of all 32 teams),... Read more

Ben Hammersley - Facebook receive GDPR complaint on day 125th May 2018 has finally rolled around and it would appear that FB already have numerous complaints out against them regarding their consent policy. Long-time Facebook privacy critic Max Schrems has argued that the social networking giant is... Read more

Jenna Peaty - Royal photographer was found on Instagram!I've been thinking all weekend of how I can keep finding excuses to talk about the royal wedding in the office... And during this morning's browse of EVERYTHING Harry and Meghan related, I read that they found their photographer on social media. A... Read more