Public Relations Prospects: Media Outreach - Online, Part 1

By Erica Wenham, Wednesday 06 March 2013.

Public Relations Practice & Skillset (Week 21)

Online PR is practice which empowers an organisation’s internal and external publics to use the internet for optimum benefit to the organisation and targets the plugged-in bloggers, online news sites, micro-publications, public speakers, analysts and consultants that reach our targets. In recent years, web 2.0 has stepped up to actively encourage users to contribute and interact with organisations via user-generated comments. “This is the era of ‘infotainment’”. But what does online PR actually deliver?

·         Direct influence on publics

·         AND a powerful mediating influence on publics

·         OVERALL: a vast asset measured in search results

However, with any aspect of business, there are a few disadvantages or “challenges” that online PR faces;

·         No centre

·         No hierarchy

·         Minimal control

·         Only connections, only conversations

·         Social technology is causing a seismic shift in consumer behaviour

·         Engaging at multiple levels and

·         In many different ways...

How Online Creates An Audience

Online PR is much more than collaboration; the key term is ‘engagement’… It is about building and leveraging communities. It can also be referred to as 5^th engagement dimension (as reflected in the image below).

Social Media

Social Media has a number of advantages and characteristics including; Participation, Openness, Conversation, Community, Connected-ness and Micro-Blogging. Implementing successful social media channels for an organisation helps to achieve the following for businesses in a given industry or sector;

1.      Helps people online share:

·         Ideas

·         Content

·         Thoughts

·         Relationships

2.      Allows anyone anywhere to:

·         Create

·         Comment on

·         Add to social media

3.      Has many forms:

·         Audio

·         Text

·         Video

·         Images

·         Communities

The Digital Revolution

·         The true digital revolution is in the online PR process

·         Companies and PR teams can now integrate/own their own media

·         The new publishing model is about... Delivering content when and where needed and in the process branding your organisation as a leader.

The mainstream and trade media are still important components of a great public relations programme. BUT: the range of opportunities has metamorphosised. A massive part of an overall company’s value is now its online presence. For organisation’s to improve its consumer relationships and achieve greater success, online PR is a great strategy for this.

Humanity talks, connects and networks. Social media replaces mass communications with networked relationships and helps to create, maintain and cultivate valuable interactions. Advocacy is also greatly enhanced via online PR as it always the strongest form of recommendation (“I heard it from Joe…”, “Sid suggested…” etc.) Overall, it is a fundamental strategy to effective retention marketing which is now greatly augmented. The advantages don’t stop there. Customer service can also be greatly benefited by online PR as staff can talk to consumer directly, getting the word out there first hand and engaging with audiences and prospects in an effective manner.