The Internet is changing the face of public relations.
You feel the changes in the air, but you can’t quite put your finger on what they are and what you should do. You know getting media coverage is important, but you’re unsure how to in this new world. Your traditional PR agency continues to bill at sky high rates, but the results don’t seem to match their bills.
The PR world is changing at a rapid pace. Here are six ways you can succeed.
1. Traditional media is shrinking…
Magazines that were once fat with full page glossy ads are either shrunken or non-existent. Newspapers with a century of history have closed shop due to dramatically declining revenue. Traditional media, in particular print media, is crumbling faced with the twin destructive forces of a major technology shift and a recession. As customers become more accustomed to reading news online, subscription rates for print media continue to plummet.
Television isn’t exempt either. A new generation of youth is spending more time online and less time watching TV. Satellite radio and iPods have diminished the audience of AM/FM radio.
Takeaway: The old way of doing PR is rapidly changing…
2. …while online media is growing
As traditional media has declined, “new” media has sprung up to take its place. The defining characteristic of new media is a greater diffusion of outlets. No longer do only a small handful of elites control media; with the Internet, the channel to disseminate news is available to everyone. The new news moguls include Matt Drudge of the Drudge Report, Arianna Huffington of the Huffington Post, Andrew Breitbart and others.
Portals such as Yahoo and Google aggregate news from traditional various sources such as the Associated Press and Reuters, but blogs have taken a much more influential role as well. For example, in the tech industry blogs such as Engadget, Gizmodo and the Gadgeteer have become dominant voices. This is true in every vertical industry.
Video sites such as YouTube have allowed anyone with a camcorder or even video capture on their cell phones to record and post news as it occurs anywhere in the world. Twitter instantly updates everyone on nuances at a level previously unheard of. Facebook, My Space, LinkedIn and other social networking sites keep communities updated to relevant news for them. Content sites such as Hubpages and Squidoo provide valuable information to searchers. Websites such as Yahoo Answers gives users immediate resolution to questions.
The challenge will be not only adapting traditional approaches in PR to this new media, but continually monitoring the rapid shift in technology and adjusting accordingly. Any PR strategy ignores these new venues at their own peril.
Takeaway: In new media, the only constant truly is change.
3. SEO and PR are intertwined
As traditional media sources continue to decline, search engines such as Google grow in importance both as the first webpage most surfers visit as well as a primary source for searching and viewing news.
This means that Search Engine Optimization—the art of increasing your website’s ranking on search engines for particular “keywords”—is more important than ever. It also means that traditional PR cannot ignore SEO any longer. They are not separate but rather intertwined functions that overlap more than ever.
From a practical execution standpoint, press releases and stories need to have as many relevant keywords as possible integrated in the copy so they show up high on search engine rankings.
Choosing the right keywords for press releases is a science unto itself. The right balance needs to be struck between keywords that are specific enough to be relevant yet popular enough with a sufficient search volume. After all, optimizing your press release for a keyword that only has 5 people searching for it every month is pointless.
Takeaway: Find a PR firm who has extensive SEO experience as well. Your website will thank you.
4. Ease of blasting out press releases means you shouldn’t blast out press releases
Most companies mistakenly equate putting a press release on the wire service as “PR”. While it is better than nothing, it’s not better by much. The ease of access and affordability of wire services means every company and their dog can spam press releases on a regular basis, mistakenly thinking this will generate press for them.
In fact, the opposite is now true. As the number of editors and reporters shrinks, the number of spammed press releases increases. This leads to a severe diminishing impact of the press release on its own. The average editor/reporter gets bombarded by hundreds of emails a day, most of them press releases which have nothing to do with the core focus of the editor/reporter.
The biggest mistake you could make is randomly spamming press releases to editors and reporters, hoping that the shotgun approach will get you coverage. More likely this will lead to your email address being labeled “spam” by the recipient.
What is needed is a clear fit between the story you’re pitching and the needs of the editor and reporter. Never before has it been more important that you position yourself as someone who understands the interests of the media. Not just looking to promote yourself, but to be a valued and trusted resource to the media.
Takeaway: Don’t spam press releases; take the time to come up with an interesting and relevant PR plan.
5. Brand yourself
In “Differentiate or Die” by Jack Trout, the author pointed out the exponential choices consumers now have for everything. As those choices increase, so does confusion. The only way to break through this clutter is to pick a differentiating factor and repeat it so you drive a stake in the mind of the prospect.
As it is in marketing, so it is in public relations. Whatever differentiates your company from others, repeat that message in your press outreach. If you think there is nothing to differentiate yourself, you’ve likely not spent the time to really consider it thoroughly. In fact, any company can find a differentiation point. It can be a feature, an aspect of your service or even just a marketing slogan.
Willing to be a bit more risque? Remember the old adage, there’s no such thing as bad PR. While not entirely true, the heart of the message is that it’s better for people to be talking about your company than not…even if it’s something controversial.
-Have a spokesperson in the company who has a unique personality and is willing to be front and center?
-Is there a unique ingredient in your product?
-Does your company have an interesting beginning?
-Do you contribute to a worthy cause?
-Do you provide a service in a way that’s different from others?
Takeaway: Find your brand positions and drive it home.
6. Virtual PR is the way to go
As the barriers to start a business come down, budding entrepreneurs have found a way to run entire companies virtually. Through the elimination of high fixed costs such as lease or rent, virtual firms are able to provide services or products at a reduced rate by passing on their savings directly to the customer.
Companies most suited to virtual operations are those in the service business where location is irrelevant, such as public relations agencies.
Every means to generate PR—email, phone, fax, direct mail---can all be done remotely without the need of a brick and mortar office. More and more executives see the wisdom in not having to pay for the expensive mahogany boardrooms or fancy lobby of traditional public relations agencies. After all, they’re paying for results and not for appearances.
Takeaway: Virtual service companies will continue to pressure existing traditional PR agencies by providing equivalent results and a significantly reduced fee.
While aspects of PR are changing, the core nature isn’t. At its essence, public relations will always be about trying to get your company positive media coverage. The tools and outlets may change, so your PR firm needs to stay on top of the shifting landscape.
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