The more things change, the more they stay the same. Er . . . what I meant to say was, “Wow, the world of PR is completely different than when I started in this business.”
So, am I talking out of both sides of my mouth when I tell you that both of the above statements are absolutely true when it comes to my profession and the role it plays in the world around us? Perhaps, but hear me out.
First, the way we operate in public relations is completely different than when I was a young whippersnapper starting out at Ruder Finn more than a few years ago. With content now in the hands of the public as much as, if not more than, in the hands of traditional media, the rules of the game are changed forever.
We don’t talk so much about media outreach anymore as we do influencer outreach. Our communication strategies are guided by an ever-expanding universe of individuals, associations, social media applications, policymakers and, yes, journalists who have the power to change the course of a discussion and impact outcomes in powerful ways. Transparency has forced better, more consistent and more dynamic communications. It also has given public relations and public affairs experts a seat at the C-level table, as captains of industry have realized that leadership is as much about communication as it is about knowledge of their business.
The world has become flat through technology; however, communicating to a host of important audiences via a myriad of distribution channels is extraordinarily complicated. And, frankly, this makes the role of a public relations practitioner more important and relevant than ever before. Public relations counselors must understand the nuances of a situation and be able to dig at a granular level, as well as offer views from above the storm clouds. This is what good PR people have been trained to do: address individual niche audiences and develop communications techniques for specifically addressing their needs.
This is where I started, literally, in this business. Public relations is and always has been about developing means for communicating in meaningful ways targeted to make a difference in outcomes. Of course, what is meaningful today is different than it was 5, 10, 15 years ago. Typewriters and liquid paper may have gone the way of the dinosaur, but surveys, sampling events, grassroots promotions and brokering meetings with people who can help your cause are all still effective PR cornerstones. The means for reaching people via these techniques has evolved, but what tugs at the human heart for a change in perception or a purchasing decision comes from an old-fashioned understanding of what’s important to whom. And communicating effectively, whether it’s via Twitter, the editorial page or on stage at a trade show, is all about the audience, not the sender of the message. Some things never change.
No comments:
Post a Comment