A shift from media-centric to customer-centric is happening. This should still fall under the description of public relations but falls outside the business perception of PR as mostly media-centric.

Customers create content, and customers influence others, a big part of our job is trying to help companies talk with their customers as opposed to at their customers.

One other issue, that I’ve touched on before is that since so much of what is being done now in our field involves content creation on the fly on behalf of clients, the traditional big agency model of a few senior people that create and junior people that distribute information can’t work for this new model. We’ve all seen what happens when people without sufficient background try and speak on behalf of a company. It doesn’t end well.

The good news is that the change is happening. The other good news is that there is still a need for the tried and true tactics.

We’ve got new tactics to use to help our clients, and some new strategies. But our end game is the same. Help companies sell more widgets/ideas etc.

Hayk: You are 100% spot on when you say young start-ups got for new means. The younger generation of entrepreneurs learned from their predecessors. They’re more aware that what builds business in the long run is customer loyalty, not a splash in the pan media relations purge. Which, by the way, if you’re a SV media darling is a slam dunk. Reporters complain about vaporware but they fall victim to it themselves, buying into pre-hype, mesmerized by impressive VC firms and marquee exec names. But I digress…

The problem with money-paying businesses sticking to the old model is that the client ends up frustrated with results because it’s not producing the traction they “think” it’s going to, and agencies (typically) end up equally frustrated since they knew it was going to turn out that way anyway but were likely vetoed on a more holistic approach. That’s why the need for a new level of tolerance and understanding during this category shift is beneficial.

Al: I think you and I are going to have a lot to bounce off each other. ?

Kevin: What do you recommend, per Andrew’s question? What’s it going to take?

Jackie: Thank you, as always. I plan to examine the dynamic between “marketing firms” like yours and what it means in the coming years for PR firms bottom lines.

Julie: You’re one of the best in the biz. I’d love to tackle this monster with you.

The one and only Chris Lynn: I <3 you too. And in respect of your no bullshit tone: blasting pitches is crap. It’s a filler for an activity sheet. Getting on the phone, offering substance, building relationships, that’s what adds value. Mark is dead on in the mashable post. We are connectors and master connectors (and strategists) at that.

There is definitely a need for new metrics. The social media category is rapidly innovation on this behalf but if your execs just can’t grok the big picture of all the moving parts it can still be frustrating to explain. I look forward to hearing more from you as you educate your clients on this topic. ?

Paul: You make a lot of good points and demonstrate quite clearly what I’m referring to. As someone who is not involved in the industry it’s hard to grasp the full value PR adds. That is the PR industry’s fault. We have not done a good job of communicating the many ways we help you.

You may be able to write your own press releases but let me ask you this: Do you know which wire service is most effective? Do you know what the optimal release time is? Do you know the process in which to release to bloggers (give them something extra and special no one else gets, btw,) when to release to which press? Do you know what “coverage” counts and what doesn’t and in what tone to follow-up with reporters to show them how your business is affecting the broader landscape? To you coordinate SEM practices and also push across all your distribution channels? I don’t mean to single you out with questions but most people don’t realize that behind PR is an immense amount of psychology and art, when done right.

It involves understanding human behavior, knowing the boundaries and being able to spot mutually beneficial (and altruistic) opportunities. At least it should be. I think we can get there. From the people I heard from today – all leaders in the PR field – we’ve got a good base to educate the current and train the new.

PR people often act as a reality check for their executives who are trapped in the box of their office, living and breathing their operating plan. Executives lose sight of what the big picture story is pretty quickly. Often what they think is going to be important (which it is in the sales cycle) is going to matter to press. But it often doesn’t. Press want the what’s next; The, what’s-changing-the-market or putting Google-out-of-business. Customers just want to know how you’re going to help them.

Everyone, thanks again for your input. I look forward to much more.

When I had an advertising and PR firm in the 1990s we had many of the same pressures that PR people face today. Clients wanted press releases and ink in the best publications. And, of course, lots of sales inquiries.

We explained to clients how the trust and relationship between a publication and its readers affects a reporter’s view of PR people.

Many reporters and editors rely on PR people who actually understand the industry that the publication covers. Why? The reputation of the publication and the reporters is on the line with everything they write, so they naturally rely more on PR people they know and trust. In other words, where there is an actual relationship.

Since I had been a reporter and columnist, I could use actual examples of how PR people had influenced articles I had written. Once they understood the value of the long-term relationship between a journalist and a PR person, clients were appreciative of what our PR team could do for them.

Sending press releases to a reporter or blogger who you don’t know has about the same chance of success as a telemarketer making cold calls.

And, of course, PR is much more than media relations. It’s up to PR people to educate executives on how the many aspects of PR actually helps a company build the relationships needed for success.

Traditional PR held some obvious value propositions whether it be providing “media relations” or simply representing the face of a company. But the advent of the internet, broadband ubiquity, social networking, and all these disruptive forces, have collectively disintermediated some of these traditional roles. For example, I recently found that I could write my own press releases if I knew of a suitable wire service. During the my dot-com bubble days in Silicon Valley, I would never have thought of that possibility. But this doesn’t mean PR is no longer necessary. Why? Because I can’t spend all my time writing press releases due to the millions of other responsibilities that already take up too much of my time. What it does mean, however, is that PR roles/images will change but the landing will likely be a soft one. Here’s some perspective: the industry possibly hardest hit by the recent wave of technology innovation/adoption is the music/record industry, which faces a far more lamentable future than any media profession. I think PR firms are in nowhere near as bad a shape as the record labels.

So what about a more comparable analogy? Try business development, which, today has taken the form of sales or strategic alliances/partnerships. I think PR will go through a similar marketing shuffle and will either recast itself as an extension of marketing or rebrand itself as an entirely new industry. Either way, it’s evolving into something else but I don’t think it will ever go the way extinction.
pk

Very well written piece. You hit on some of the themes that have been bubbling in my head for quite some time.

The lines between marketing, PR and media are blurring. No longer can we just blast out pitches and pray they get picked up. We have to go back to the heart of PR–public relations, not press relations.

What is the public? Well, in traditional PR, we often reach out to real-world assoications. Online, we should be participating in online communities, whether they are social networks, forums, blogs, twitter, etc. To become members of these communities, we have to dress, talk and walk like them–that means listen and create content that interests them. If that content gets picked up, gravy!

The problem is, so many people want to see direct return from their PR budget. When we move to social media, our goals have to change. Raising brand awareness, decreasing customer service calls, or even driving traffic to a site can be tracked for ROI. Counting number of blog hits as though they are news clippings is old school, and should be forgotten.

Best,

Chris

BTW, I <3 u!