The Growth and Evolution of the PR Industry in the Past Few Years
In honor of us and PR, our lifeblood, let's surf through the trends and headways in the past few years that have changed the PR industry for the better!
Until a decade ago, public relations was primarily carried out via phone calls with the media, with a press release being the sole means to reach the outside world. Fast forward to today, the PR landscape has changed radically.
Public Relations agencies now focus on the integrated marketing communications approach, which incorporates public relations, advertising, and social media to interweave the brand message across several media channels.
Traditional vs. Contemporary PR
PR is no longer about publishing press releases and articles and keeping track of the media. Today's PR organizations do more than just media relations; they create and design content and deliver integrated marketing and communication strategies. The adoption of the digital medium has led to a paradigm shift in the scenario.
Gone are the days when PR practitioners mass disseminated emails to journos. To walk pace with today's time, they need to research their media targets (journalists) before sending out a pitch to them.
PR professionals must incorporate information and insights in every pitch to make journalists' work more accessible, foster trust, and nurture mutually beneficial relationships.
Today, mass dissemination of press releases might elicit a response but could displease the paparazzi. Aloof emails can garner quality coverage for the world of Tatas and Ambanis. However, an engagement-focused strategy is better suited for startups and mid-sized brands.
Digital PR
Digital PR was a topic of debate five years ago. However, today, digital PR encircles marketing and content strategies that democratize the popularity of social media. New-age consumers are influenced by digital media, which makes content marketing more potent than ever.
Digital storytelling is among the most effective methods to emotionally engage with your audience. Online marketing strategies are tailored to increase brand awareness and positioning. The aim is to achieve tremendous targeted traffic conversion, revenue through search engine optimization (SEO), and higher rankings on search engine results pages (SERPs).
Whether brand positioning or crisis management, PR has come a long way from run-time to real-time.
Crisis Management
A PR crisis happens unexpectedly and spreads like fire through news and social media. The key is to understand how to respond when such a catastrophe occurs.
Every crisis needs a unique approach and response. Therefore, the first step for a PR crisis response team should be damage assessment and management. PR professionals help brands collaborate with the right influencers to share the right message through the correct/proper channels.
The next step is to evaluate the response to the PR statements and frequent media monitoring through analytics tools. Assessing PR crisis management can provide you with crucial insights into the scenario.
Key Takeaways
The public relations industry has seen tremendous advancements in recent years. As it is said, "change is the only constant in this world" being consistent in PR, and adapting to changing episodes, is essential to succeed. Modern PR efforts bear fruits as they get strategically incorporated into brand stories. It combines traditional PR and emerging digital PR techniques. Social and marketing blueprints enhance digital PR by leveraging technical developments to help your brand stand out and rise above the crowd.
We'd love to hear about the PR trends that have been most useful for you over the last few years. Please share your comments below.