Back to Reality

James Warren, Director, Web Relations

Whether you like it or not, the world of public relations has changed forever.  The days of spin, of deliberate obfuscation and withholding information are behind us.  In a world where somebody, somewhere, knows more than you do, humility, honesty and participation are the new watchwords of PR.

This isn’t as great a shift as it perhaps at first seems.  The notion that public relations ever really controlled the media was as much spin as it was reality.  But there exists a perception among the public at large that PR is something of a dark art, a shameful and slightly shady profession – all long lunches, gin and tonics and collaborative back-scratching.  Great as that sounds, I’m pleased to say the world of PR has moved on and evolved with the changing communications environment.

It has been well documented that the media landscape is being disrupted.  Consumers are turning away from the mainstream media to embrace the interactivity, immediacy and informality of new media.  Television, although still the most popular medium in the UK, is declining in influence, partly due to the huge number of new channels all competing for eyeballs, but also due to the upsurge in ‘leisure surfing’.  Digital channels are proliferating – whether it’s mobile internet or broadband TV, it is true to say that there has never been more British interacting online – and that their uptake and use is increasingly for purposes of leisure, pleasure and socialising.

Whether its shopping, catching up with friends over IM, downloading music, reading breaking news, watching videos of drunk teenagers falling off skateboards on YouTube or even – heaven forbid – checking out profiles on MySpace, the British public is spending more and more time online.  This fragmentation of the media and shift in leisure behaviour has brought about some significant opportunities for PR – but also some threats.

One of the biggest challenges is keeping up with the rate of change and the adoption of new communications channels.  What is the next YouTube or MySpace?  How do we factor its potential into our communications strategic planning?  And do we understand what does and doesn’t work in the social media environment?

The greatest misconception I come across (on an almost daily basis) is that blogging and social media are ideal platforms for technology clients, or whacky, out-there youth-oriented consumer brands, but that their suitability for corporate, business to business or other communications is unproven…  This is simply not true.  Although it is true to say the adoption of blogging as a communications tool did move rapidly from its tech heartland to be adopted (with varying degrees of success) by consumer brands, it is fast becoming a mainstream communications device, used by politicians, activists and corporations alike.

Indeed, in areas such as pharmacy and public affairs, we are seeing blog activity increase exponentially.  Nowhere is this more evident than in the world of UK politics.  Bloggers like Iain Dale and Guido Fawkes – not to mention Weber Shandwick’s very own Luke Akehurst – are building up significant readerships, influencing debate, breaking news and – crucially – making the leap into mainstream media punditry.  Ironically, in certain circles their influence rivals that of the established media, for in the often fast-moving world of politics their independence, speed of response and agility means they are able to out-manoeuvre their more illustrious print cousins.

The same can be said of corporate and business to business communications.  The application of social media to engage directly and with passion about niche subjects to niche audiences is already proving to be a hugely effective communications device.  Indeed, in the future smart PR campaigns will rely less and less on the currently accepted means of gaining influence – rather they will go direct to audiences with carefully tailored content.  The role of the PR agency is to identify, build and nurture online advocates who will provide a credible and authentic perspective on the product, company or issue being promoted.  Our understanding of individual audiences and how they are influenced will shape the content we create and the channels in which we make it available.  The key to success is knowing what will appeal to your target audience and then providing it in a format and forum in which they can discover it for themselves.  So PR success will be determined by how our clients’ messages are adopted, repurposed and replayed – and by whom – rather than some of the more archaic metrics that often exist today.

And this is as true for the business to business or corporate communications space as it is the consumer and technology markets.  We are seeing a widespread adoption of social media technologies and approaches across the board, as savvy communicators recognise the power of word of mouse.