One of the things that makes our jobs as PR pros enjoyable, interesting and occasionally daunting is that we work in an industry that is morphing with the social media landscape.
While those working in other fields, like law and medicine, may use Facebook or Twitter to share some of their news or experiences, we use these avenues to serve our clients on a day-to-day basis. And these two social media 'cool kids' aren't enough.
We must also know about Foursquare, Pitch Engine, HootSuite, Argyle Social and Muck Rack. And don't forget about TLists.
These are some of the top tools at the moment, but what's to say that they won't be replaced by something else more innovative and efficient in the next couple of months?
We certainly won't use every social media tool for our clients (we don't have enough time in the day for that), but we should know them by name and constantly assess whether they could be of some benefit to our client base.
So what does this mean for us? It means that we must be in learning mode at all times. We can't simply attend one annual professional development workshop a year and think that we're set to succeed.
It's best to sign up for webinars, routinely read a variety of PR blogs and not be afraid to ask co-workers about the new tools at our fingertips.
Just this week, our team sat down and reviewed a HubSpot Ebook about leveraging social media for PR success. We found some strategies that we'd immediately integrate into our work and found others that we've agreed to research and discuss in the future.
As PR pros, we not only have a responsibility to plan and execute publicity strategies for our clients, but also to stay up on the latest trends and tools, both for our clients and ourselves.
If you're holding tight to conventional PR practices and unwilling to play around with a few new ones, this could be an unsettling and unsuccessful time. But if you're willing to step out, take a ride around the new social media landscape and pick out a few “flowers” of your own, it can be fun and quite rewarding.
It's up to you.
Monday, February 28, 2011
Friday, February 18, 2011
Communication Breakdown?
As PR pros, we're responsible for keeping a steady stream of communication going. Traditional media. Online reporters. Bloggers. Clients. Facebook fans. Colleagues.
Information is our currency.
In today's rapid-fire high-technology world, information flows through multiple channels all throughout the day and night. What happens when a channel gets clogged? Or, worse yet, if a client's unresponsiveness torpedoes the opportunity to dispense information through those channels?
There's not a lot you can do if your client is conditioned to operate this way. But you can take some steps (1) to target your information requests better and (2) to condition the client to begin to respond more promptly.
Let's start with the clients. Clients, it would help us out a lot if you simply gave us the answers we need quickly or sent a short “will get to it later.” That way, we at least know that you are aware of our need for your help and have seen our emails.
PR pros, here's a strategy to consider:
If the client acknowledges your email but responds “will get back to it later,” respond with a simple “Thanks. We know you're slammed” and back off for the day. Show empathy and both your stress levels will remain in the manageable zone.
If you don't get the answer you need as the deadline creeps up on you, send an email with the subject line “Reminder about XYZ. Deadline near.”
Be smart about how you send your email request. Make it brief. Tell the client what you need right up front. Get to the point of your request – fast. Put deep background where it belongs – deep down in the email. After the background, restate what you need from the client. Give the client a deadline.
We're all facing a brave new world of seemingly constant phone calls, emails and texts. For our clients, we need to recognize that we are not as high up on their priority lists as their CEO or a sick child.
Clients, we need you to realize that we are under the same constant demands that you are and that we would not be bothering you if we did not need your help so that we can get the best results for you.
Let's communicate.
Information is our currency.
In today's rapid-fire high-technology world, information flows through multiple channels all throughout the day and night. What happens when a channel gets clogged? Or, worse yet, if a client's unresponsiveness torpedoes the opportunity to dispense information through those channels?
There's not a lot you can do if your client is conditioned to operate this way. But you can take some steps (1) to target your information requests better and (2) to condition the client to begin to respond more promptly.
Let's start with the clients. Clients, it would help us out a lot if you simply gave us the answers we need quickly or sent a short “will get to it later.” That way, we at least know that you are aware of our need for your help and have seen our emails.
PR pros, here's a strategy to consider:
If the client acknowledges your email but responds “will get back to it later,” respond with a simple “Thanks. We know you're slammed” and back off for the day. Show empathy and both your stress levels will remain in the manageable zone.
If you don't get the answer you need as the deadline creeps up on you, send an email with the subject line “Reminder about XYZ. Deadline near.”
Be smart about how you send your email request. Make it brief. Tell the client what you need right up front. Get to the point of your request – fast. Put deep background where it belongs – deep down in the email. After the background, restate what you need from the client. Give the client a deadline.
We're all facing a brave new world of seemingly constant phone calls, emails and texts. For our clients, we need to recognize that we are not as high up on their priority lists as their CEO or a sick child.
Clients, we need you to realize that we are under the same constant demands that you are and that we would not be bothering you if we did not need your help so that we can get the best results for you.
Let's communicate.
Wednesday, February 9, 2011
AOL Buys Huffington Post
Did an online news "aggregator" find success mostly by gaming the search engines and using linking strategies? Are content farms flooding the Web with low quality content? Are summaries and photos more appealing to many people than longer articles or commentary?
Here's an interesting article from Slate on AOL buying The Huffington Post.
This commentary on HuffPo's road to success (and AOL purchase) has an interesting subtext: the nature and packaging of content, the mechanisms for delivery, and the evolution of news dissemination.
It's something for PR professionals and journalists to ponder.
How can we get the public to pay attention (and actually absorb and process) the news we're communicating? Do people today care about the quality of the writing or is the packaging more important to them? Do people prefer entertaining summaries and videos or do they want news articles they can sink their teeth into? Will there continue to be room for both or will snippets and visuals be preferred by all but the most curious among us?
What is "good enough" reporting to engage your audiences? Maybe "good enough" is not your style, but will you be forced to adjust your standards to continue to be effective?
Overloaded with information that comes at them from every direction (and multiple channels), do today's audiences absorb content or just breeze on through it?
It's a brave new world of information dissemination. And we have a lot to think about.
Here's an interesting article from Slate on AOL buying The Huffington Post.
This commentary on HuffPo's road to success (and AOL purchase) has an interesting subtext: the nature and packaging of content, the mechanisms for delivery, and the evolution of news dissemination.
It's something for PR professionals and journalists to ponder.
How can we get the public to pay attention (and actually absorb and process) the news we're communicating? Do people today care about the quality of the writing or is the packaging more important to them? Do people prefer entertaining summaries and videos or do they want news articles they can sink their teeth into? Will there continue to be room for both or will snippets and visuals be preferred by all but the most curious among us?
What is "good enough" reporting to engage your audiences? Maybe "good enough" is not your style, but will you be forced to adjust your standards to continue to be effective?
Overloaded with information that comes at them from every direction (and multiple channels), do today's audiences absorb content or just breeze on through it?
It's a brave new world of information dissemination. And we have a lot to think about.
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