I just read in PR Week that for most PR professionals, blogs are thought to be an important digital communication tool, but the majority (62%) have not yet adopted their communication strategy to include proactive outreach to blogs, message boards or other forms of social media. The research by Peppercom showed that more than eight out of ten UK and US PRPs admit that neither them, nor their clients have an official blogging policy, only a few are diving into social media and most are hesitant to start the process. I was really surprised when I read that, as I thought most PRPs had already adopted social media as part of their communication strategies.During the last decade there has been a major shift in communications. The Internet has become a primary information source and social media such as blogs, syndication, social networking and podcasting have given individuals a voice. Nearly every major news organisation now has blogs, affecting the way they cover stories. The impact of social media, particularly in the breaking of major news stories, is increasing significantly. For example did 9 % of blogs on Dell get mentioned by the news media last year – an indication of how ‘citizen journalists’ are gaining influence and credibility. Big corporations are incorporating blogs into their communications and marketing strategies, one in five 16 to 24 year olds have their own blog and even politicians are blogging!
“Who could have predicted that in 2006, one of the biggest PR stunts would be
Tory leader David Cameron addressing a video camera from his kitchen? With 160
000 viewings in its first few days, webcameron demonstrated the new power of
blogs in the world of communication”. PRWeek 2006
The online expansion of traditional media and the new Web 2.0 environment of social media, blogs, citizen journalism etc have created a challenge for the PR profession. In this new environment, PRPs must shape dialogues with both traditional and new media; they must communicate with new communities of influential consumers, commentators and analysts that can be more critical of your company or organisation than before, as the www is to a large extent uncontrolled. Much of the material that reaches the public no longer passes through traditional gatekeepers, such as for example newspaper editors. This can be a threat, but also an opportunity for PR practitioners. It is a threat because bloggers rarely play by the same rules as mainstream media. A blogger does not necessarily source their quotes or check their facts and is certainly not expected to be objective. It is almost impossible for the PR practitioner to control the flow of information to the public. On the other hand, new media offers new analysis possibilities. By examine the web pages and blogs, PRPs can learn what clients, stakeholders and various publics are saying. Web 2.0 provides immediate access to opinion makers, consumers and influences that PRPs need to cultivate.
So why have the majority of PR professionals yet to embrace social media techniques? Has the industry not discovered any business advantages of social media? Do PRPs know how to engage with bloggers yet? Is social media, in the eyes of PRPs, only a threat?
Log on to http://www.euroblog2007.org/ to see what impact weblogs and social software are having on PR and communication practice (Results of survey available in March 07).
4 comments:
Congratulations with an interesting blog!
To answer you question if the Web 2.0 is a threat to PRO’s, I think it’s more a challenge to them how they are going to approach this new phenomena. The way things used to be was that PRO’s had more control over the information whereas now it seems that the public gets the advantage.
Some PR agencies have started blogging, and are doing well. Some are holding back because they don’t know how to, or what to say, whilst some have failed to do it right. There are many examples of PRO’s that has published false information, and are now struggling with their reputation.
Because this is a new trend that still needs to be tried out, I think that the PRO’s that still isn’t surfing the trend, hopes that they can learn from others mistakes and success before they throw themselves into the wave.
The uptake of blogging and use of other new media has also been slow in politcial PR - especially among the politcians themselves. It seems the reason for this is that it is very difficult to work out how to react to so many different ideas and thoughts coming from so many different sources. If everyone telling you what they think all the time, how can you create a coherent policy? I think this issue affects everyone in PR - not just those in political communications. If you open up too much, you risk losing control of the message. Until the PR industry works out how to tackle this then I think we'll continue to see the same levels of use that you found in PR Week.
Hi Ida!
I think eventually PR practitioners will have to be web literate in order to be successful. I agree with Lise when she says it is more of a challenge than a threat. She is spot on when she says it exposes the public to a great deal more information. PRPs have less control over what information and have less control over what others say about their product/organisation.
On the other hand, I believe advocacy organisations have flourished with the emergence of the Internet. PRPs for these organisations have used it as a tool to reach a much larger audience then they ever could have before, and even sites such as myspace now have blogs and profiles set up for advocacy groups. The Internet makes it much easier for people to become involved in an organisation's cause and it helps spread their message in a variety of forms (e-mail, blogs, message board forums).
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