If you have been in the world of PR for the past few years, you know how drastically it has changed. There are fewer journalist on the payroll and much of the writing is done by folks in content marketing and not those in public relations.
Clients are asking for more content writing and are expecting more results from PR and media efforts.
The explosion of the age of technology has made it critical for public relations specialist to have the desire and ability to incorporate the tools utilized online (think productivity trackers), content marketing, and social media into PR strategy. Not only are these new strategies working to advance sales, produce leads, and grow brands, they do so with trackable results! This is a breath of fresh air to the PR managers of the past who had trouble identifying where their ROI (return-on-investment) was coming from.
Become part of the media.
If you want the media to work for your branding efforts, you must become part of the media. Invest in high-quality content. Great content spreads like wildfire online. You draw the attention of clients, other companies, and huge publishers that want to share your content, therefore sharing your message. Hire professionals to write content for you.
Take advantage of Google tools to optimize SEO content to earn your placement online.
While PR projects may utilize offline publications and they certainly have their place, they must join efforts with marketing and ensure everyone is pursuing the same goal.
Publishers are marketing their work.
In recent years, publishers have taken to marketing their work.
Why is this? There are several reasons.
The competition for writers has gotten thick in the past few years. With more people freelancing and more professionals using their work, there is a surplus of good content. In order to get your content seen, you must market it. There are companies that specialize in providing content. There is no reason not to have good quality material.
How are public relations specialist integrating social media and content marketing?
As PR pros are reaching out to marketing, they have incorporated a lot of tools that are allowing them to merge public relations, social media, and content marketing. Here are a few examples:
- Growing networks on social media sites like Facebook, Twitter, Google+, Linkedin, and YouTube.
- Creating and participating in forums that help promote their brand and allow them to converse with their target base.
- Creating social ads. Ads on Social Media are big business. PR has a lot of control over where their social ads pop up. People spend a lot of time online. There are thousands of websites, willing to place your ad for you.
- Investing in social content and incorporating social listening. PR pros agree, in today’s market one must create content that grows their brand, get it to the right social sites to have it seen, and respond to customers who take their time to comment. If a customer praises your brand online, thank them, If a customer is having a problem, resolve it. Pay attention to social conversation and react as needed.
These are just a few tips for today’s integrated PR pros. Don’t hesitate to contact your marketing experts any time for more information!
Author Bio
Wendy Dessler
Title: Super-Connector at OutreachMama
Wendy is a super-connector with OutreachMama and Towering SEO who helps businesses find their audience online through outreach, partnerships, and networking. She frequently writes about the latest advancements in digital marketing and focuses her efforts on developing customized blogger outreach plans depending on the industry and competition. You can contact her on Twitter.