Internal threat data: your key to cybersecurity media success
By Sanjana Rao, Account Executive
In a densely saturated market for media attention, it can seem an uphill struggle for cybersecurity sellers to carve out a name for themselves. A company news drought can be frustrating, especially in those periods when you have no new funding rounds, high profile hires, or marquee client partnerships to announce. But cybersecurity companies are treasure troves of internal threat data which can form the glue between your company and journalists writing their next story.
Banking on your data
Many companies in the cybersecurity space have access to vast repositories of data, which can be enhanced to tell new and compelling stories about current trends in the market in which you operate.
In other words, what are the current patterns your product is experiencing, and what can this tell us about the broader cybersecurity landscape? What modes of cyberattacks are most prevalent for your users? What security tools are most in demand from customers and prospects? What kinds of companies need your product and services? Internal data could reveal interesting data security trends in whatever verticals you serve.
Suddenly, an array of internal performance data becomes an insightful take on the wider industry and reinforces why businesses should invest in cybersecurity, and your product in particular.
Data-driven journalism
Journalists love data. Data offers hard evidentiary proof points in an inherently opinion-driven media world. When creating and pitching stories to journalists, you need to consider why it’s important to readers and what value you can add. A great way of doing this is by providing data, since this grants credibility to stories and gives real-world context. Media pitches backed up by data in the form of numbers, charts, graphs, tables, or interactive infographics offer a clear story map that makes a journalist’s life easier. Nowhere is this more important than the cybersecurity trade media like Beta News, Security Boulevard, and ZDNet – in the evolving landscape of cybersecurity threats, readers are concerned about the measurable risk that current and future trends pose to themselves and their businesses.
Thankfully, with new technologies at the hands of cyber criminals, no subsector is too niche for journalists, whether it be hardware security, Kubernetes, identity and access management, and many others. This presents an opportunity for you to become an industry data leader by offering market research that can’t be sourced from anywhere else.
Become a market research go-to source
The goal is to ultimately become the go-to data bank for journalists when they are writing their next stories. For instance, this could be commissioned yearly as an annual report, meaning over time, you can become known for something. For example, longtime Aspectus client and award-winning anti-malware solution provider Malwarebytes produces an annual and quarterly Ransomware Report, detailing ransomware attack trends. Cybersecurity trade outlets including InfoSecurity Magazine published articles on Malwarebytes’ 2023 spring report, noting that the UK’s education sector was the most targeted industry in 2022-23.
However, a conglomeration of internal data and a cutting-edge market report are two very different things. Getting there requires knowing exactly what your end goal is and how this can be rolled out to maximise your return on investment.
Data-driven PR builds credibility and good media relations
Survey research reports present robust opportunities for PR and marketing campaigns and content. Cybersecurity companies that conduct periodic surveys of industry participants or target audiences can generate data-driven storylines that not only can attract media attention but also can be repurposed into valuable content for blog posts, LinkedIn campaigns, white papers, and conference presentations. This can elevate a company’s voice of authority in its space, positioning executives as credible thought leaders and attracting new business. For some tips on conducting PR survey campaigns, see this earlier post.
As communications professionals, we have our fingers on the pulse of the cybersecurity news cycle. We also have longstanding and very personal relationships with the journalists who would be interested in your products. Moreover, our cybersecurity sector expertise means not only that we grasp the technical details of the industry, but we also are keyed in to the latest trends and news in the cybersecurity mediascape. We can therefore connect the dots between your business and their next article, which results in building media relations that pays dividends again and again.
Most importantly, we can work with you to create a creative, but relevant report topic that customers, prospects, and media can look forward to.
There is a lot to digest starting out in this process, so if you want to know how to make the most of your internal data, get in touch.
