Public relations used to be all about the big lunches, faxed press releases, actual press conferences and schmoozy lunches, consisting of mostly one-way flows of information. These days public relations is entirely transformed.
As social media has become central to the information and communications landscape, it is now more important than ever to be active in the social media space. The reality is you are now more likely to find your market on LinkedIn, Twitter or another social media platform than via the channels of yore.
Though social media can be seen as a double-edged sword, with anyone being able to publish a negative or position opinion about your business, it’s ineffective for a business to put their head in the sand and avoid the social media space when it comes to reputation management.
Businesses that are not active on social media either are suffering, or will suffer the consequences of becoming invisible, especially when compared to already active competitors. This is what has become known as COI, the cost of inaction.
Even when we move past the need for reputation management, the need for social media is apparent. Where else can you build an audience, create brand awareness and recognition, connect with your audience, and offer a contact point for online queries and more from prospects and clients effectively?
The answer is nowhere.
Social media is also the ideal distribution channel for public relations. The ability to reach customers within an instant is invaluable for PR as it enables you to better manage your company’s reputation or respond to any bad publicity that may be circulating. It can also be used to announce market news, retirements, new team members, address any unfounded rumours and much more.
At Chris Hocking Strategies we view social media one of the three pillars of digital campaigning. If you’d like to discuss how our approach can help get your business noticed, contact us for a free no-obligation chat.
Chris Hocking
Mobile: 0418 603 694
Email: chris@chstrategies.com.au