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Practical PIO

John Collins

Are you a firefighter, medic, police officer, or emergency manager who got “voluntold” into the PIO role? Get weekly breakdowns of real emergency services social media posts: what’s working, what could be better, and practical tips you can use immediately. Written by a fellow first responder.

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Screenshot of a social media post with text and the department patch. Full text of the social media post follows in the newsletter.
Featured Post

A fire alarm at 3:55 a.m.—and there was actually a fire

Issue 10 A fire alarm at 3:55 a.m.—and there was actually a fire Practical PIO analyzes real social media posts to help you improve your communications. All identifying details are blurred or removed because our goal is growth, not criticism. You responded to a fire alarm at 4 a.m. and found an actual fire. The sprinkler system worked exactly as designed. Everyone stayed safe, and the damage was minimal. That’s a great story—but it’s buried under layers of technical detail that will lose most...

1 day ago • 4 min read
Screenshot of a social media post with text and photos of the incident scene. Full text of the social media post follows in the newsletter.

Issue 9 Great safety stats. But what should your neighbors DO about it? Practical PIO analyzes real social media posts to help you improve your communications. All identifying details are blurred or removed because our goal is growth, not criticism. You’ve got a preventable fire, a clear cause, and powerful safety statistics. You’ve done exactly what good PIOs do—use an incident to educate your community. This post was this close to nailing it. It just needed to take one more step: telling...

9 days ago • 4 min read
Screenshot of a social media post with text and photos of the incident scene. Full text of the social media post follows in the newsletter.

Issue 8 Big fire. No injuries reported. So why is it in paragraph 4? Practical PIO analyzes real social media posts to help you improve your communications. All identifying details are blurred or removed because our goal is growth, not criticism. You’re writing about a challenging fire response, and you want your community to understand what your crews faced. This release does a solid job explaining the operational challenges—but there’s an opportunity to make it even stronger by focusing on...

16 days ago • 3 min read
Screenshot of a social media post with text and photos of a meeting with the senator. Full text of the social media post follows in the newsletter.

Issue 7 When recognition tells a story — and leaves one untold Practical PIO analyzes real social media posts to help you improve your communications. All identifying details are blurred or removed because our goal is growth, not criticism. Public recognition posts aren’t incident updates. They’re reputation builders. They show the community who the department values, what kinds of actions it celebrates and how teamwork looks under pressure. This post recognizes a firefighter for public...

23 days ago • 3 min read
Screenshot of a social media post with text and photos of the incident scene. Full text of the social media post follows in the newsletter.

Issue 6 One fire post that does a lot right Practical PIO analyzes real social media posts to help you improve your communications. All identifying details are blurred or removed because our goal is growth, not criticism. Volunteer fire departments need support from their communities in the form of funding and person-hours. If they are a respected community institution, their task of raising support is much easier. Here’s a department that informs the public about an incident, gives a safety...

30 days ago • 3 min read
Screenshot of a social media post saying: Thank you to all the other departments that came in to help with an image of a printed news release. Full text of the social media post follows in the newsletter.

Issue 5 Nine people treated. An office evacuated. But... what happened? Practical PIO analyzes real social media posts to help you improve your communications. All identifying details are blurred or removed because our goal is growth, not criticism. Nine people needed medical attention. An office building was evacuated. A hazmat team and lots of mutual aid was called. So... what actually happened? This release has extensive operational detail but never answers the most basic question your...

about 1 month ago • 5 min read
Screenshot of a social media post with text and photos of the incident scene. Full text of the social media post follows in the newsletter.

Issue 4 When a car crashes into a building (and you need to explain why it’s complex) Practical PIO analyzes real social media posts to help you improve your communications. All identifying details are blurred or removed because our goal is growth, not criticism. You’ve had a fairly complex incident, and now you want to create a social media post about it. Here’s a good example of succinctly communicating the complexity without going into too much detail. This one gets a lot right. Let’s look...

about 1 month ago • 4 min read
Screenshot of a social media post with text and a video of a firefighter at the base of a ladder truck ladder adjacent to flames. Full text of the social media post follows in the newsletter.

Issue 3 Your division chief didn’t speak in hashtag Practical PIO analyzes real social media posts to help you improve your communications. All identifying details are blurred or removed because our goal is growth, not criticism. You’re about to post about an incident, and quotations can be a powerful tool for connecting with your audience. Make the quotations count! Full text Here’s the full text so you can follow along (or in case the image doesn’t load): 1657 11/7 2025 1000 block [Street...

about 2 months ago • 4 min read
creenshot of a social media post with text and three images of a collision between a pickup truck and school bus. Full text follows in the newsletter.

Issue 2 Are the kids OK? (Answer that question first.) Practical PIO analyzes real social media posts to help you improve your communications. All identifying details are blurred or removed because our goal is growth, not criticism. You’re writing about a school bus collision, involving a fire. You have all the times and details. But don’t give in to the temptation to work chronologically. Your neighbors scrolling Facebook don’t need a timeline. They need to know if the kids are safe! Full...

about 2 months ago • 3 min read
Screenshot of a social media post with the text Press Release - Fatality Traffic Collision <redacted> and a screenshot of press release. Full text follows in the newsletter.

Issue 1 Reports are for lawyers. Releases are for neighbors. Practical PIO analyzes real social media posts to help you improve your communications. All identifying details are blurred or removed because our goal is growth, not criticism. You’re writing a release about a fatal crash. The report is sitting in front of you, full of details. It’s tempting to just... use that language. But here’s the thing: reports are for lawyers. Releases are for neighbors. Full text Here’s the full text so you...

2 months ago • 4 min read