Public Relations & Social Marketing Insight

Five arguments for going digital when doing business-to-business PR by Phil Szomszor, head of business and digital at PR agency Firefly..

When I think of PR social media gurus, I imagine Siobhan Sharpe from the BBC comedy Twenty Twelve delivering her web strategy for the Games. In her view, Myspace was the best channel because it has the fewest number of people using it, and therefore is the fastest growing and most exciting. She also highlighted that social media during the Games wasn’t all about the sport, but public opinion about athletes and “all aspects of them”..

It’s not surprising that the PR industry was lambasted in this way – there are a hell of a lot of people making claims about social media that just can’t be supported and I’ve heard more than the occasional “perfect curve” quote from so-called gurus.

It’s in the world of B2B PR that this anti-social media attitude is most prevalent. And while I agree that there’s a lot of smoke and mirrors with social media, that doesn’t mean to say that it should be dismissed altogether – in fact, I’d argue the future of B2B PR is digital....

[Here's a good argument for why digital PR is the future for PR ~ Jeff]

The day you started in communications was the day you became a member of the ethics committee and you joined the brand police force. In public relations, it’s your job to uphold the integrity of the brand and ensure the messaging is consistent and remains intact across all communications channels. Now, with social media, your messages go further and you cast a wider net; your company is automatically in the center of public conversations and in the critical eye of the consumer.

In my book, Social Media and Public Relations: Eight New Practices for the PR Professional, PR Practice #7 focuses on how PR professionals must concentrate more on reputation by building a human face, daily monitoring and more brand education for themselves and their peers.

Today’s post is a part of the “edited” or “cut” chart series, which includes the Reputation Task Force Member’s Chart of Responsibilities. Even though you’ve always had the reputation of your brand front and center, social media increases your need to take a proactive approach on many fronts. Whether you realized it or not, being in the PR or communications means you an important part of an organically growing task force....

Do people quoted in newspapers review the stories before they run? Can advertisers legally lie? Are PR people the biggest liars of all? How much does it cost to get a story into The Globe and Mail or the Toronto Star?

Just a few questions that show people do not understand public relations.