Jul 25

Future of Public Relations

Last week, Jason Falls sparked a debate about the future of Public Relations in his post Social Media is the Responsibility of Public Relations.

Falls points out, many companies don’t have the resources to employ Social Media specialists and must rely on internal resources to create and maintain consumer and business relationships online. He suggests that social networking must become a function of Public Relations.

In my mind, social media is essentially public relations in the online world. Divide the category up by component — blogs, social networks, microblogging, podcasts/Web TV, wikis/collaborative software — they each ladder in some way to a component of public relations — writing, corporate communications, community relations, media relations, event management.

I agree.  As people demand more from brands and service providers, Social Media is enabling us to connect with our prospects and customers in very meaningful ways. Blogs, forums and social networking are changing the way companies interact with customers. Our communications are becoming more targeted and personal. We can expand out market coverage and create the opportunity to interact directly with the people who purchase our products. Moreover, companies that make the effort to adopt current technologies will gain an advantage over their competitors.

Solutions for Small Business

So what is the solution for the small business that does not have a Public Relations, Marketing or Social Media department?

Companies incapable of meeting the ever-increasing demands of Public Relations will need to outsource most of their Social Networking functions. In the future, Social Media Specialists will be in high demand as more companies realize the importance of these activities. For those of us willing to learn new technologies and participate, we have the ability to create manageable internal social networking strategies. If we want them to be effective, we will need to acquire the appropriate skills and dedicate ourselves to the ongoing process.

As media outlets become smaller, we need to find new ways to gain publicity and get people talking about our companies. We can’t always rely on media contacts to relay our positive image. We need to create continuous strategies we can monitor and alter depending on our observed results. Through direct contact, we have an opportunity to discover what our customer wants, gather relevant ideas and present a solution to their immediate problems.  If we create valuable connections, and refrain from using Social Media as another medium for our sales pitch, we have the opportunity to use these interactions to create a positive public image and develop desirable product.

Falls predicts:

Social Media will evolve into components of a sophisticated public relations effort.

Businesses that have clearly developed Social Media strategies, and use both Marketing and Public Relations resources, will be further ahead than companies that ignore online networking, or misuse it as a form of advertising and promotion. The main purpose of social networking is to create ongoing conversations. Companies that do not participate in the conversation, or use it solely as a means to push products in the faces of potential buyers will fail.

As more and more of our potential customers are using social networks to evaluate businesses and brands, we need to learn how to start conversations, build relationships and grow communities.

What do you think?

P

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Jul 1

PRLesson

One of the sponsors for this year’s Relay for Life was a small local courier company. I say small because although he has a client base of 3000, his competitors are more than likely Fed-Ex, UPS, and (if you live in Canada) Purolator. These larger companies can be stiff competition. They spend millions on their advertising and marketing campaigns and their worldwide coverage makes it hard for smaller courier companies to break into the market with speedy delivery and affordable rates.

As a person who used to work for an established international distribution company, I know that there are a ton of small local courier companies out there who fight to match services and prices with these big names. I’ve used both big and small with mixed results, but the bad days stand out the most in my memory.

More than Just a Sponsor

More to the point, this is the only event that I have attended where I was shocked by the level of commitment from a sponsor. Not only did his company sponsor the new Caregiver Lap at our event, but he also sponsored the Survivor and Caregiver Laps at 6 other locations. On top of that, he sponsored the tribute Luminaries as well.

When I say sponsor, I don’t just mean that he donated money, candles and sand. I mean he collected and walked these luminaries to their designated spots around the track.

For an entire 1 1/2 before the luminary ceremony, he brought the candles down to the track and organized them in the appropriate order. At first he looked lost and frazzled, but eventually he started to find his groove. As the ceremony grew closer, he picked up his pace and started jogging back and forth between the walkers and the Luminary Kiosk.

Dedication to the Cause

On every lap, we watched him tirelessly supported all of the participants by helping them find the right place to stand and light their tributes while bag pipes played their haunting hymn.

As one of the participants, I’ve seen first hand the dedication and commitment this business owner has to his community and the people in it. I’ve seen him labour tirelessly for the benefit of others. This was more than a sponsorship to him. That was obvious.

I’ve seen him walk the track as one of us. As someone who has more than likely lost a friend or family member to the disease we can’t seem to obliterate.

Finding a New Courier Service

Like many people there, and at the 6 other events, I’m a business owner. As much as I like the “guaranteed” service of the big three (who’ve all had their share of putting me in a tough spot with a lost package), I now have a new company to consider in my business decisions.

I had never met him before this event, but because of his simple charitable act, I feel like I already know him and the values of his company. Before I send my next important package, I’ll call his company for a quote because I want him to be able to support the cause again next year.

We all will. He’s one of us now. Someone who was lost at first, but then gathered strength through the support of those around us.

P

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