“Times change. In the 1990’s, trade magazines were almost the only route from manufacturer to potential customer, but the rise of the web finished that. Today, it sometimes seems as though companies are looking to reach customers by any route other than B2B magazines. And the press briefing is an increasingly rare event.” Graham Pitcher, Group Editor, New Electronics
PR tasks are no longer executed using the same methods or media. Because of the Internet, PR professionals employ tactics that are as much about the medium delivering the message as they are about the readers receiving the message on other end. PR in it’s traditional form has become so unrecognizable, that even the methods used to measure it’s success sound more like internet marketing terms than they do public relations terms. Why?
Because the Internet has inexorably changed PR.
But surely the trifecta of all PR tactics remains unchanged, correct? I mean, all you have to do is 1.) tell a good story, 2.) engage in a moderate media buy, and 3.) have personal relationships with the editors—and that’s it, right? Well, two out of three ain’t bad…
Yes! Your Message Still Needs To Be “NEWSWORTHY”
Not just good—newsworthy. There’s a difference. When discussing traditional PR channels, such as trade publications, editors must consider whether or not the content that is received offers intrinsic value to their readership. This is as true for product or press releases as it is for article inclusion.
Trade publications have been decreasing in number, since the recession of 2008, due to a variety of factors, the leading of which is increasing publishing costs and diminishing ad revenues. Many pubs have gone away completely, some have tried abandoning print and offering digital-only versions (most of which have failed), while a few others have been taken over by larger publishers. Whatever the reasons, the opportunities for traditional PR placement are becoming fewer and fewer.
The same holds true for all other forms of print publishing as well. Newsweek recently ceased the newsstand version of their publication and is now offering digital-only subscriptions. Brick & mortar bookstores are seeing the handwriting on the wall. Many of these have closed or on the verge of closing. Amazon now sells more e-books than hard copy books. With consumer acceptance of iPads and other digital tablets, the print world (in all forms) is declining in popularity and struggling for it’s continued existence, trade or otherwise.
Fewer traditional publications mean fewer editors, and fewer editorial opportunities for free publicity. Editors have tightened-up considerably the type of PR releases that will be accepted or published. They are under more and more pressure to consider the “newsworthiness” of every release, or article opportunity.
So, when you have items that are deemed to be newsworthy and relevant, PR firms have a better chance of getting “hits” in traditional pubs.
Yes! You Still Need To Be A Large Advertiser
Or, at minimum, are you perceived to be a potential advertiser by the editor or publication?
There was a day when sales and editorial decisions had very little effect on one another. That has really become more and more prevalent, primarily due to the conditions of the marketplace as described earlier. Advertisers (especially large ones), are now able to wield more and more influence on editorial content, and they use it. Not only as a carrot to promote their brand, but also as a stick to punish if the publication that promotes the competition too vigorously.
No! Editor Relationships Don’t Mean What They Used To
Naturally, good relationships with industry publications are great for calling in the occasional ‘favor’. However, if your story is weak and you’re not a large advertiser, the ‘favors’ will likely be few and far between—no matter how consistently you call to wish the editor a happy birthday each year.
Additionally, calling in favors is a short term fix and shouldn’t be the basis for a PR campaign.
So that’s it then—an endless stream of media buys, new plant openings and P.T. Barnum-esque PR stunts to keep the message ‘newsworthy’, right? Well, you could try that, as that might be what it takes to yield substantive results from traditional PR tactics in today’s media-rich environment. Or, you could embrace that ‘immovable’ object for the immeasurable benefits it brings.
Respond By Changing Your Approach To Media
Even if you operate among a highly traditional and conservative industry, media and communication haven’t necessarily waited for you to catch up, nor has it gotten beyond your reach. Media, considered as the primary means of mass communication has evolved in the B2B world. At the moment, B2B public relations is most easily discussed in light of four primary media categories.
1. Earned Media
The traditional coverage earned by PR, in mass media owned / controlled by third parties. You pitch a story to the media, they run it. You send a news release, the publication prints your news.
2. Paid Media
Print and digital advertising, webinars, events, etc. Designed to get a big message out quickly and clearly to a specific target audience. In the B2B world often highly specific markets designated within third party publications. Easy to target, easy to purchase, difficult to measure. Custom publications can fall in this category when they’re done by third parties.
3. Owned Media
Companies have their own web sites, newsletters, e-news, micro sites, white papers. Custom publications also share this category when they’re done in house. Much of what happens here can be measured. There is great opportunity for control of messaging and content. This is part of your brand.
4. Shared Media
Social media, blogs forums, anywhere where there is community and immediate feedback. Today this is Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest. It is industry forums. It is blogs where you leave room for open or moderated response.
Depending on your marketing priorities, the media you choose for focusing your efforts will depend on your communication capabilities, your audience of choice, and your budget.
Public Relations in 2014 is a moving target. It’s not what it used to be. Traditional public relations functioned in the arena of earned media coverage. The media used to be where everyone got their information. The media controlled the information. PR practitioners pitched stories to the media, and worked to get the media to run the story. In the B2B world, the goal was for your information to become part of what they presented to their audience. This dynamic still exists today but it has been relegated to a less prominent position of priority and importance.
In the traditional way, the audience came to the media. In the new way, the audience gets to make demands. We still create valuable content that attracts them, but now the media has to go to the audience. We have to take the message to where the audience is, and they now have more choices than just the trade media.
Today PR is changing as quickly as the media is changing.
"Editors of a certain vintage will remember the ‘good old days’ of the printed press release. Every day, we’d see – and open – hundreds of press releases... the press release was our life blood. In the days when product books and product pages swayed the placement of advertising revenue, we needed them." Graham Pitcher, Group Editor, New Electronics
PR has always been about brand building, trust building and sharing information and it continues to be today. However, all these things should take place in a media where the audience can be found for optimum results.
You not only have to be able to move as trends change, but to be able to tell your story in every category of media. This requires an understanding of both content creation and distribution but also a firm understanding of applications and technologies through which the content will be served.
It’s true, the Internet has inexorably changed PR—but for the better. And
Think Agency isn’t a lone voice in this charge. It can be heard in the voices of the entire PR community. And they’re not just saying it—they’re screaming it.
