We’ve all heard of public relations, but what does that term actually mean? Simply put, public relations is the professional maintenance of an organization or company’s public image. Public relations is a must for any business looking to increase their brand awareness and can include content marketing from article placements to mentions in big name publications.
Publicity is not the same as advertising. In fact, the two are dramatically different. Publicity generally reaches a wider audience than advertising and there’s greater credibility attached to publicity. For example, a national publication is more likely to pick up an article featuring your business than feature an advertisement on Facebook. As your business grows, it’s important to remember to include a public relations strategy into your marketing needs to increase awareness online.
Traditional public relations might be a feature in the print version of the Chicago Tribune, but as our world becomes increasingly digital we see the emergence of digital PR. Instead of using newspapers and TV to drive customers to your business, marketers are turning to social media platforms and online blogs to increase website traffic. Digital PR is largely dependent on placements in various digital publications (think Inc. or Forbes) and creating valuable content that is worth sharing.
Our lives are entirely attached to the digital world. We live on our mobile devices and obsess over our Instagram and Facebook feeds almost every minute. Brands need to build their digital presence if they want to succeed in today’s marketing world, but there’s more to digital PR than writing excellent blog. In the Internet world, a strong digital PR strategy can boost your website’s SEO rankings and help your company land on the first page of the Google search results. The lines between public relations and SEO strategy are blurring but one thing is for certain: online content marketing is closely correlated to the success of both SEO and public relations.
It begins with understanding your consumer market. Where are they on the Internet? What social platforms are they using? What are they reading about? What are the biggest trends for every target demographic online? Take time to identify the publications your target market is reading and what digital device they’re using to check their social media profiles. As a brand, the content you put online has to add value to your consumer, otherwise they’ll simply pass over your website. No one likes to have ads thrown in their face online; online consumers are looking for engaging content that adds value to their lives.
As individuals, we are only going to become more digital as technology advances so it’s up to brands to be cognizant of their brand presence online. 97% of millennials are online, so instead of posting billboards on highways and placing print ads in nation-wide publications go after your consumers using social platforms and blogs. It’s the difference between marketing for the sake of marketing and creating a strategic plan that is both cost effective and efficient. Digital public relations is the result of research, quality content and audience engagement that work towards boosting brand image and SEO rank. It’s a lot of work, but the end payoff is more rewarding than traditional PR tactics.
