media update’s Aisling McCarthy looks at some of the most prominent trends emerging in the PR industry.
1. A rise in PR spend
Great news for anyone who works in PR – looks like people are
finally starting to realise how valuable it is.
Going forward, businesses should start putting aside a little more for PR in their yearly budget.
Why is this? Well, the PR industry has greatly evolved over the past decade – and so has its importance for business.
Many aspects of modern PR align with aspects of business growth. For example, digital communications has never been more important for businesses than it is now, and lo and behold – PR is at its centre.
Social media is yet another important aspect of business growth, and you
cannot be in business today without some kind of social identity. So how does PR fit into this? It offers the strategy and content to amplify your business’s social media presence.
2. A growing reliance on niche firms
More and more niche industries are choosing to work with specialised PR firms. Why, you ask? Every industry has its own specialist terminology, practises and norms. And when your PR has in-depth knowledge of your industry, it makes all your PR efforts more valuable.
Many PR firms specialise in specific aspects of public relations – for example, launches or crisis management. If you have an issue in a specific area, you’ll want to make sure there is a skilled authority calling the shots.
Don’t be afraid to call in for extra help on occasion. Using experienced professionals at key moments can save you from a PR disaster.
3. A move towards digital
As with nearly every aspect of the world, PR is going (even more) digital. You can expect that big data, social media monitoring and digital storytelling will be big trends in the near future.
In order to keep your PR and marketing efforts aligned in this ever-changing world, you can use digital storytelling to engage your audience. Work on a social media strategy to find out exactly how to engage your audience.
Once you know what content people want, you can help outsiders understand the company culture and what the brand is all about. Share both passions and struggles to endear your brand to potential customers – and to keep them engaged.
As for the social media monitoring, find yourself a good tracking company and reap the rewards of having all your social information and insights laid out for you.
Social media monitoring services can help you be the first to see conversations about your brand, and be ready to address queries – or problems – before they get out of hand.
4. A new kind of measurement
While people often find comfort in seeing a certain number of ‘likes’, page views and AVE, how exactly do you gauge growth in brand trust or awareness? This is where PR professionals have to draw the line between quantitative and qualitative measurement.
While many ‘vanity metrics’ might be easier to track – and make you feel good about your progress – they might not exactly give you an accurate representation of the ROI of your PR efforts.
More and more, PR professionals are starting to look for alternatives to AVE, and many brand tracking companies,
such as Newsclip, are using their own metrics to rate ROI.
5. Social remains king
Social media will continue to play a pivotal role in PR, and any savvy PR pro should use a good social media tracking service,
like amaSocial, to keep an eye on social platforms.
Luckily, with the help of a social media tracking service, it’s pretty simple to keep track of social metrics. Well, certainly easier than monitoring text, email and chat applications!
Going forward, it is vital to create original content specifically for social platforms, and build up a library of valuable, unique content. This library is what will increase your audience’s engagement – and keep them coming back for more!
PR professionals rarely receive praise for the long hours and hard work they put in for each and every client. This is why media update put together a list of Five things every PR needs to hear today.