Social Media and Public Relations: Eight New Practices for the PR Professional

Citation

Kirk Hazlett APR, Fellow PRSA (2013), "Social Media and Public Relations: Eight New Practices for the PR Professional", Journal of Consumer Marketing, Vol. 30 No. 1, pp. 88-89. https://doi.org/10.1108/07363761311290867

Deirdre Breakenridge, CEO of Pure Performance Communications, calls on her 20-plus years of communication experience to create an easy-to-read-and-understand explanation of how social media impacts today ' s public relations profession and, in particular, the public relations professional. In the process, she provides “how-to” and “why” information that will benefit anyone involved in an organization ' s communication initiatives.

In his Foreword written for Social Media and Public Relations, Edelman Executive Vice President David Armano says: “Recent history is filled with scores of examples of how ‘social’ has dramatically affected brands and even business functions beyond reputation […]” (p. viii).

Disagreement arises, however, in internal discussions of who “owns” responsibility for social media in an organization ' s communication efforts. This conflict comes from the fact that both marketing and public relations see social media as belonging in their respective areas when it comes to brand management.

Social Media and Public Relations makes a strong case for social media ' s residence in the public relations department because of the PR professional ' s focus on the complete communication process. The PR pro ' s “[…] sense of ethics, critical thinking, keen negotiating skills, unique ability to liaise and build relationships, passion for information and research, and […] love of written and verbal communication” make for a formidable arsenal of tools (p. 6).

Chapter 1, “The PR Policymaker,” discusses the role and responsibilities of the PR professional in developing and implementing guidelines for employees ' use of social media channels. While not all organizations have been proactive in bringing social media into their communication mix, many now recognize that this new “phenomenon” not only is here; it is everywhere. “Companies realized not only did their customers want to talk about them in their social media communities, but their employees were also talking” (p. 8).

What this means, says the author, is that the organization must also be proactive in establishing guidelines […] a social media policy […] for its employees. While this isn ' t universally practiced, more and more companies are doing so. “In October 2011, 65 percent of US companies had a social media policy in place, governing the employee use of social networking sites […]” (p. 8). Once again, proactive steps are called for. “Don ' t wait for a legal issue or a social media crisis to occur before you begin your social media policy development,” cautions Breakenridge (p. 16).

Chapter 2, “The Internal Collaboration Generator,” addresses the PR pro ' s role in internal communication of the organization ' s social media initiatives. The key take-away is the (sometimes) overlooked need to inform and educate employees first. If employees understand and accept the concepts and guidelines, they will more readily embrace the initiative.

The key to effective implementation of a social media policy is identification and recruitment of “employee evangelists to be willing participants and to be that unified voice or army of champions who support and add value to the brand ' s social presence” (p. 18).

Social Media and Public Relations […] page 2.

“Better communication on the inside results in far better communications on the outside. Having a good process in place that facilitates increased learning and the sharing of information leads to more productivity and communications impact” (p. 23).

The important thing to remember, though, is that “[…] it ' s always the people that make the sharing and innovation a successful part of a company ' s communication process.” (p. 32) Social media is a relatively new and rapidly-evolving area, and uncertainty prevailed in the early years as to who should manage the function. “Many in PR thought technology was someone else ' s job” (p. 37).

Chapter 3, “The PR Technology Tester,” discusses the role of public relations […] and the responsibilities. “The more you immerse yourself within different platforms, applications, and tools, you realize technology provides an incredibly targeted approach to building relationships by reaching particular groups directly, creating interesting stories and content, and measuring your progress with more accuracy.” (p. 39) The relationship-building and story-telling aspects clearly mark social media management as a public relations responsibility.

Chapter 4, “The Communications (COMMS) Organizer,” explores message development with an emphasis on cohesive, consistent messaging that promotes and strengthens the brand in today ' s multi-dimensional environment. “Older methods of communications are focused on the one-to-many, a broadcast approach […] [which] doesn ' t take into consideration how consumers want to communicate directly with the people or the humans behind the moniker.” (p. 54) Achieving this consistency requires careful integration of all levels within the organization to ensure that the same message is being communicated regardless of the department or the individual. “Operating in a silo or a vacuum doesn ' t work. On the contrary, you need to share with those experts or employees who are qualified to answer appropriately” (p. 59).

With any communication initiative, the chance of misunderstanding, miscommunication, or simple disagreement exists, and social media communication increases the odds exponentially. Chapter 5, “The Pre-Crisis Doctor,” addresses these changes in the communication landscape and the responsibilities of the public relations professional. “In social media, the conversations are in the public view and through technology are easy to find and address […] Unfortunately, the public ' s mainstream use of social media can become rapidfire, turning the slightly negative molehill of a situation into a full-blown mountain of catastrophe for your company” (p. 71).

What this means for the PR professional is implementation of 24/7 monitoring of the environment to identify potential trouble spots and address them before they blossom into a “mountain of catastrophe.” “Companies are learning to listen more closely to the dialog of their customers, the media, bloggers, and so on, whether it ' s positive praise, product questions, service issues, organizational concerns, or outright anger” (p. 76).

Public relations, in its purest form, is about developing and nurturing relationships with key audiences, including the media. Chapter 6, “The Relationship Analyzer,” stresses the importance of PR in these interactions. Audiences have broadened, though, says the author, with the advent of social media […]“today ' s media encompasses more than simply journalists. You must consider bloggers, which come in varying levels of influence, and your customers, who can also publish their own media” (p. 87).

Social Media and Public Relations […] page 3.

With these expanded audiences comes a greater need to protect the “image,” or reputation of your organization, and Chapter 7, “The Reputation Talk Force Member,” emphasizes that all members of the organization should be aware of the importance of speaking with one voice. “Every employee who partakes in social media technically becomes a part of customer service and may come across issues, concerns, reputation damage, and so on during the course of a normal day […] It ' s important that your own internal front line knows what the brand stands for an how the voice should resonate with different audiences” (p. 112).

At this point, Breakenridge notes, you should be asking how one determines the effectiveness of social media communication. Chapter 8, “The Master of Metrics,” makes it clear that “one of the greatest challenges is to reveal the ‘tangibles’ of PR” (p. 118). The issue is how to quantify social media activity. “Most of the growth areas of interest to executives can be measured through social media analytics, but you also need to integrate other forms of measurement for a clearer picture of your company ' s communication growth over time (including surveys, opinion polls, one-on-one interviews, brand audits, SEO metrics, website analytics, and so on)” (p. 122).

The author stresses throughout the book that the public relations professional must be strategic in his or her thinking and action. Chapter 9, “Using Your New PR Practices to Become an Influencer and Change Agent,” re-emphasizes the fact that “big picture” conceptualization is paramount. “Being strategic in communications, especially social media communications, involves having the end goals in mind; the focus should be on the shared experiences with the people you want to engage and the strong relationship you want to create as a result” (p. 134).

After this in-depth examination of the impact of social media on the public relations function […] on the entire corporate communication program […] the final chapter, “The Future of PR and Social Media,” looks ahead to where social media will go and how public relations will adapt and adopt. “Social media and new PR practices, and the union of communications and technology, open up a world of education, collaboration, and innovation. The results are advocacy, loyalty, good will, and public confidence, and ultimately greater relationships from the local and regional level to national and global alliances” (p. 156).

“Social Media and Public Relations” offers a fascinating and informative look at social media ' s effect on the corporate public relations function. And it is a clear reminder of the value that a public relations professional who understands and embraces social media as part of the overall communication mix can bring to the company and to the brand.