The Independent, A UK newspaper, recently highlighted the PR trend of publishing content. Instead of relying on the media to tell their stories, as they have for the last 100 years, companies are beginning to act like the media.
Public relations is flexing its media muscles like never before and strong-arming its way into areas once considered the exclusive domains of advertising agencies, broadcasters and publishers.
Companies and PR agencies are becoming more comfortable with producing content and videos for online PR. Savvy Communication schools, like USC Annenberg, are ahead of this curve: they offer electives with classes in Photoshop, video production and other tools needed for today’s digital PR world.
Edelman has taken the lead in the move towards digital content creation with the hiring of Richard Sambrook, the former head of BBC News and the influential business journalist Stefan Stern, a marquee name on the Financial Times. SHIFT is another agency that has is moving in this direction. Their website states:
Forward-looking companies are starting to think like publishers themselves – sharing ideas, spurring conversations, engaging in industry trends and developing valuable digital marketing content that helps propel their brands.
Perhaps this is an area more suited to PR than the ad agencies – the Old Spice videos that caused such a stir may have earned the agency an award, entertained millions on Twitter and YouTube and landed the actor a contract, but the jury is still out on how much benefit the company got out of the campaign.
So where is the ROI in this kind of PR?
Telling stories that raise brand awareness and reach niche markets with value-add content that actually connects with people and moves them to a desired action – that gives ROI.
Brian Solis points out that it’s not just about the ads or the creative, it’s about that ‘last mile’ – the connecting of that content to the right individuals and then to the people they are connected with.
It’s time to move on from how to do social media to the future of social media and PR and how to deliver ROI
If you are attending the PRSA National in DC come to our session on Branded Content on Sunday October 17th. We’re looking at these controversial ideas, how to use analytics to drive effective content and how to deliver that last mile of ROI.
Image Credit: Beck Tench, Flickr
