We’re seeing a shift where companies are calling themselves ‘Communications’ instead of ‘PR’. For a long time, PR has been considered ‘fluffy’. Marketers or business owners can’t necessarily see the benefits of PR and how it makes an impact on businesses so it’s no wonder we as an industry are trying to improve our own reputation and prove our value as a discipline.
Certainly over the years businesses have recognised the need for free flowing communications – both internal and external. How we communicate ourselves, our companies, our messages all impacts our reputation. In my view creating and managing the reputation of our clients is at the core of what we do. This is the reason I ask clients to consider their PR as an in-house resource, integrated within the marketing team for free flowing communication so we can do our jobs more effectively in managing reputation.
Too often still, people view PR as a means announce their news and developments to the media, but it’s still seen as a reactive service. Through being aware of the full communications plan, we can assist on timing for a co-ordinated campaign and best advise if there are any potential conflicts. Even better, we can involve other disciplines to help strengthen the success and response of the company’s campaign.
The role of PR and its scope of how it works today blurs into the rest of the marketing sector – ultimately it’s about managing your external communication, which is why an integrated approach proves much more effective. The industry has realised, after too long, that we need to own the digital platforms as part of our activity. A tailor-made selection of online and offline communication tools can help strengthen the activity more effectively, shifting the traditional role of PR into a much more broader communications role.