New School PR & Thinking Like a Media Network

In a previous post I driveled on the idea that the PR services industry is entering a bit of a transition period and that old school agency business models need to evolve to keep in line with changing market conditions and a growing DIY business mentality.

Also, that the onus is ultimately on us, the industry pros, to adapt our thinking (and our skill sets) to bring new ideas and really, new value to the table for those clients we represent.

Great, so how do we do this?

I think a big part of the solution is shifting what were previously push-centric PR programs to pull-centric ones.  Bear with me on this, I realize this post is longer than my normal stuff.

PR 1.0 (old school PR) was all about pushing content out to get attention.  Press releases, case studies, white papers, VNRs, even media pitches (arguably), were all good examples of push PR content.  It was a one-way broadcast for sharing your message.  And for a while it worked, and to some extent it still does, but not nearly as well anymore.

Why?

Because there’s simply too much information available now and people (really, the media in this context) have more of a choice and certainly more control over what they pay attention to and, quite frankly, what they ignore.

PR 2.0 (new school PR) is all about pulling attention in using content (and herein rests a huge new opportunity for PR business).  Technologies like RSS are enabling PR programs in big new ways to pull attention in – the trick is making sure our clients have compelling enough content to hold it.

A corporate blog is a great example (certainly a popular one) of how to use content to pull and hold attention, but this is the part in the post where you nod agreeingly, roll your eyes, yawn, but then I tell you that blogs are just scratching the surface.

PR 2.0 programs need to think, act and look more like Big Media networks – with blogs just being a slice (a channel) of the corporate content that pulls audiences in and keeps their attention.  The good news here is that most companies are already sitting on piles of great content, they just don’t know it and those that do, just don’t know what to do with it.

John Furrier at PodTech gets this, probably better than anyone right now, and while he’s not a “PR guy” he recognizes the value of content that’s idly sitting behind corporate firewalls (in his case, smart people who don't normally have a voice via traditional PR channels), and so he’s using InfoTalk as a way to showcase these voices, pulling attention in via podcasting and growing a massive audience in the process.

This model can work for PR programs too, it just requires taking some 1.0 tactics and putting it in a 2.0 context and thinking like a media network – always keeping in mind that good content gets good attention and bad content gets ignored.

For example, case studies and white papers could have a second life (in this PR network model) in the form of dedicated podcast channels.  Likewise, glossy product one sheets could become screencasts, executive bylines could become videocasts, product support materials could become wikis, press materials could become syndicated blog posts, etc., etc., etc.

It’s about taking what's worked in the past, remixing it a bit and using new distribution models (and a variety of new technologies) to give people a choice of how they want to consume it and really where they want put their attention on your PR network.   

Update: Brendan Hodgson at H&K shares some insights that are in the same vein of this post (the future models of PR).  Also read David Phillips remarks.

Related Posts:
DIY PR in a ‘Cheap’ Economy
Online Programs, it's About the Push and the Pull

Also See:
Growing Use of RSS and why companies should use it
AttentionTrust.org

Comments

[Tac]

AMEN!!! The problem with traditional PR is its too passive, too reliant on archaic gatekeepers. Now information can be shared in a two way process, business can make news, not just pray for coverage.

[Dave Forstrom]

Excellent post Mike, spot on! And I think the transition--1.0 to 2.0--extends beyond just PR to the media and business. We're right in the middle of, and witnessing daily, this transformation. And I agree, the onus is on us--by us I mean a new transformed generation of professionals. Transformed by innovation and collective access to content. I posted on this at the Marcomblog.com and Robert French links our ideas at Auburnmedia.com.

[Mike Manuel]

Thanks David, I feel like this discussion has a long way to go, so I'm glad to hear (and read) that you're thinking about it too...

[David Phillips]

Can't we just skip to PR 3.0.

The idea of re-purposing valuable assets offers the opportunity to create added (new) wealth for the organisation and its publics.

Creating new wealth!

Yup! That is what PR 3.0 is all about.

[Mike Manuel]

We can't just skip to PR 3.0, that's crazy talk! We're still working out the 2.0 bugs, besides new thinking has to be backward compatible;^)

[Mike Bawden]

Mike,

Thanks for this post. I've been following your discussion of PR 2.0 and hope to stimulate some additional discussion.

I've added this post to today's (11/08) "Much Ado About Marketing" blog.

Thanks again,

Mike Bawden
Brand Central Station

[Mike Manuel]

Mike, I saw your post, thanks. It's good to see that in some small way, the kernel of the idea within this post (which is all that it really is at this point) resonates with folks.

[Brent Marcus]

I'm totally on board with the theory, but doesn't the pull methodology start to lose some of the personalization that makes for the most effective PR? It seems like the PR 2.0 you're suggesting avoids the gatekeepers, but in practice you'd really just be communicating with them in a slightly different and more removed way. I know it sounds trite, but the best, biggest results always seem to come from direct contact with these gatekeepers and providing them refined information that addresses their unique interests and needs. Trust me, I'm as much a cheerleader for all these new technologies and tactics as anyone, but how do you implement all these new strategies without losing the personalization aspects? If it all comes down to hours in a day, I'm still going to have to choose writing an email or making a call over putting (potentially wonderful) content out onto the Web and hope someone finds it and understands its value.

[kosovodad]

I'm with Brent. I'm not sure that the most effective use of PR 2.0 is by defining the primary direction in which information flows. Instead, I think more effective PR 2.0 capitalizes on relationship building and whether communication flows freely in BOTH directions. We're concentrating on building relationships with those individuals and organizations that can have an impact on our success and constantly scanning our environment to see when new players have entered our area of operations (yes, I'm a military public affairs officer).

Otherwise, great blog and I enjoy visiting!

Mike (aka kosovodad)