What is Zhihu and why are students engaging with its content? Our Chinese Social Media Specialist explains why this community question-answering site is so popular in China.

What do we mean by “content strategy”? Rachel explores the evolution of the term while sharing our own developed definition of content strategy.

In his latest post, our Head of Content, John Hill, explains why less is more in storytelling and how to plant the seed of a great story for your audience.

Robert Perry, our Head of Research, spoke at ContentEd 2018 about influence mapping on social media, and how this can become part of your content strategy. So we thought we’d create an map of online influence just for the two day conference.

Carewords appeal to the emotional side of audience decision-making, as well as to their factual and literal information needs that they are looking for on your website. Our Senior Content Strategist shares how to develop carewords for your university.

Our CEO, Tracy Playle, participated in a panel discussion at the Campus Management conference in May – and came back with a few unanswered questions about the impact of technology on higher education.

It’s essential that key stakeholders are onboard with your project from the very start – and designing personas can help you to think about engaging your stakeholders.

With the recent negativity towards social media platforms in the news, our Head of Research reflects on how we can optimise our social media channels, rather than to delete them.

Our Chinese Social Media Specialist, Altman Peng, uncovers a new trend in Chinese social media, and the potential for universities to reach prospective Chinese audiences on this video platform.

What do students want to see from university emails? We asked some current students what would encourage them to open – and read – emails from their university.

Podcasting is becoming a popular medium for universities to experiment with. Our Head of Content, John Hill, shares how to adapt copy for different audio platforms, and use it to its full potential.

What makes a great story? Our Senior Content Strategist, Rachel Smith, shares three steps to creating effective and emotive university storytelling.

Our Head of Research, Robert Perry, headed to #CASEsmc 2018 last week to present a session on measuring and mapping social media influence. So we thought we’d create an map of online influence just for the two day conference.

With Clearing just around the corner, Pickle Jar Communications’ CEO and Chief Content Strategist, Tracy Playle, provides you with two ingredients for a successful content marketing strategy for the big event.

Studies show that public trust in technical and academic experts has actually risen. Our Head of Research reflects on the benefits of involving academics in university communications.

Our Senior Content Strategist, Rachel Smith, shares her three top tips for producing effective content aimed at teachers, an audience often forgotten by marketing teams.

What do graduates actually want to see from alumni communications? Our Research Analyst, Louise Shaw, shares key findings from fellow graduates and thoughts from her own experiences.

Our CEO, Tracy Playle, shares her thoughts on why schools should re-evaluate the term “prospective parents” in order to more effectively design user-centred content for their audiences.

Our Head of Research, Robert Perry, looks at the benefits and drawbacks of competitor research and benchmarking.

Our CEO and Chief Content Strategist, Tracy Playle, shares a few places of inspiration to help with writing your next blog post.