The rumour of our demise has been greatly exaggerated …
We’re big fans of social media – it has put the power back into the hands of people, which is where it should be (in our opinion). However, this also surprisingly has created a bit of a rumour that social media will mean the death of public relations…
Just for the record …we don’t see it that way. Social media is definitely changing the way companies communicate to their stakeholders – and that’s a good thing. Blogs, podcasts, vodcasts…it all opens up a conversation that is interactive, engaging and truthful; all things that good PR should be.
A great blog can give a voice to your business – it showcases the human factor. And – remember this is coming from a PR person – a blog shouldn’t be written by your PR or marketing department. It has to come from a person, an individual…someone who is going to give your clients, customers and stakeholders a glimpse of real life at your organization. You know what I am talking about – hit a blog written by a marketer and you feel the sales pitch coming, no matter how well written or well-intended. Now, I’m not saying that a company doesn’t need to set up boundaries and a mandate for their blog – sometimes excited bloggers might give away trade secrets. And blogs aren’t the vehicle to air your grievances with your boss, talk about the guy that sits beside you and doesn’t believe in personal hygiene, or bad mouth the IT department who are just trying to do the best they can like everyone else. If you have a problem with those people, talk directly to them.
To me, a blog is about opinions, but not about personal attacks. Dislike a new product or service, think it wasn’t done right – tell the company. Find a discussion on a topic that you are informed, knowledgeable or passionate about and post to it…engage, interact, and communicate.
There is a great video (sometimes called a vodcast or video podcast) on YouTube – that talks about the value of Web 2.0 and what it give us.
And remember that your blog is important, but it’s not the only voice out there. Check out other people’s blogs, comment on what they are talking about, engage with others in the blogosphere – that’s where the magic comes from.
Some of the blogs we subscribe to or check out regularly are
Chrisflett.com
rocketboom.com
You can also check these out on our blog roll as well.
They aren’t all about PR, but they always inspire, engage and often amuse us. Check them out and let us know what blogs you like. If you have a question about how you can use a blog to help get the word out about your company – send us an email and ask us. We will do our best to answer it. (Just for the record, we don’t answer technical or design questions about your blog – that isn’t our thing, so please don’t email us with those queries.)
This blog is going to give you tips and information on blogging, public relations and other business-related topics. It will be a how to, how come and “WTF” about some things that happen in the world that you just can’t quite figure out. Come and visit us often, we’d love to connect with you and hear what you have to say.
So you see, the death of PR is just empty talk…PR 2.0 is just the beginning!!
