10 ways in which social media is impacting on PR: ditz talks
By Craig on May 20, 2010 in Digital communication, Public relations, Social media, Strategic communication | View Comments
Whilst I don’t pretend to have any great insights on this matter, I was recently interviewed by British uni student Hayley McDonald (@HAYCMAC) on how social media is impacting on the practice of PR and how it is changing the way PR pros work, with the critical upshot being that making the right strategic decision, on a variety of levels, is more important (and, yes, more challenging) than ever.
Having more tactical choices (i.e. opportunities) at our disposal means more potential mistakes occurring, which means the basics of using evidence-based market research to underpin communication strategy, identifying and leveraging thought leadership insights, setting objectives and measuring (and exploring) the impact of communication remains crucially important.
So in that sense, the more things change, the more important the strategic fundamentals have become.
I have divided up my responses to Hayley’s questions into two posts. This first post talks about the impact social media has had on PR and, in a more granular sense, how it has changed the way PR pros work. The following post talks about social media tools I use and ‘rate’, how PR pros should deal with social media and the role I think PR will play in the 21st century.
The impact social media has had (and is having) on PR
1. It has accelerated and intensified the public relations and two-way symmetrical communication process.
2. It has made the notion and conceptual underpinnings of two-way symmetrical communication clearer to PR and non-PR professionals even if they don’t’ recognise the term itself.
3. It has made life harder for PR professionals because it is requires a diverse and ever-expanding collection of skills and tactical proficiency. Ironically, perhaps, I actually think social media is easier to comprehend on a strategic level than a tactical level. This is partly because social media is so reflective of the essential tenets of two-way symmetrical communication.
4. This increased knowledge that social media has forced PR pros to acquire is not stopping anytime soon. This means if professionals haven’t been educating themselves on the field then they had better get a move on. In turn, this means more of our time needs to be spent on self-education, putting more pressure on us.
5. We have to start managing our time and prioritising more effectively due to the burden of needing to be knowledgeable about an increased array of communication tools. This is the case even if a professional decides to stay tactical (and not operate at an overarching/strategic/leadership level) and focus on a limited array of communication mechanisms.
6. With the huge importance social media plays in the tactical communication mix, not to mention SEO, it may well mean that knowledge in areas such as traditional media relations is not focused on so much.
Changing the way PR pros work
Hayley postulated that, “the impact of social media upon corporate communications is changing the role of the public relations practitioner.” She then asked me what changes has social media made to the way I work as a PR practitioner compared to the old methods of PR?
1. The whole area of website content strategy, SEO and social media optimisation is really forcing us as a profession to reprioritise and reconfigure our approach. People in western countries (and many others) use the internet as the Bible, Encyclopaedia Britannica and the Idiot’s Guide to Everything. This is where influence is occurring, both through the (partially) mechanical means of directing web searches to certain sites, to who is influencing who from a thought leadership perspective on the web, to what media outlets are lifting their game to compete in this dimension.
Further to this, check out this very useful, very relevant and just posted Slideshare deck by Rick Allen:
2.Interestingly, the emergence of social media is giving young practitioners (and I mean straight out of uni in many cases) an opportunity to become more influential and advance their careers faster than ever before. This is because (and I have seen this occur on many occasions) the older PR bosses are deferring to their younger counterparts due to their facility and experience in, and passion for, social media.
3. The increasing amount of social media avenues is underpinned by an increasing desire for content, thought leadership and perspectives that facilitate POD and competition cut-through occurring. Thought leadership we are familiar with, but the increasing demand for quality content, and its close cousin SEO, mean we have to write more (especially keyword-rich content) than ever, placing more pressure on what continues to be the most important skill of a PR pro: writing. And don’t forget, online writing demands a different approach to hard copy writing.
4. Social media obviously presents another topic to talk to clients and/or in-house management about. This is an opportunity to grab their attention with ways to help achieve organisational objectives, but it is also a challenge because generally you are talking another language to senior, and often battle weary, soldiers of contemporary business (including PR bosses). At the end of the day, the quickest route to approval is illustrating impact on the business and ROI. How do you achieve that? Measurement. Evaluation. Old school tools…
What impact do you think social media is having on PR? How is it changing the way you work, whether you are a PR pro or not, and in both your professional and personal lives? Do you think, to be a true PR leader, you need to be familiar with the strategic and tactical elements of many social media options – or can you do without this knowledge? What is your rationale for your position on this?
PS: I’d welcome you joining networks with me through my LinkedIn profile. Send me an invite!
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