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Get ready or go home: the 4 most dangerous trends facing public relations

By Lisa Goldsberry

Like most industries, the field of public relations keeps evolving, so it’s critical to be aware of trends happening now which will have an effect on PR in the future.

The thing is, trends can be tricky. If you’re too far ahead, you’ll lose everyone. If you’re too far behind, no one will care anymore. Below are some of the most dangerous trends facing the field of public relations. Keep up so you don’t get left behind.

The changing face of news

Most public relations practitioners are aware of what used to be the regular news cycle: You had the morning broadcasts, another round in the afternoon and the one most people watched after work around 6 p.m. Then, of course, there was the 10 or 11 p.m. late news to wrap everything up before bedtime. Some industries also had trade reports or specialty publications, but these also operated on a steady schedule.

Now, the Internet has turned everything on its head. In addition to the traditional news, today’s public relations teams must monitor and answer to everyone with a computer and an opinion. Almost anyone can call himself a journalist and demand answers from your company. Your response, right or wrong, can go viral almost instantly so that millions worldwide can see and hear it.

Advertisers go where the reader/viewership is, and the companies that don’t adapt fast enough to this new media-driven world will lose money and disappear.

In-your-face messaging

Companies and brands now look to public relations practitioners for more than crafting news/press releases and handling media relations. They’re searching for more ways to get their messages directly in front of the audience; hoping people will see something on television or read about it somewhere is not good enough anymore.

We must now hyper target – leverage multimedia communication and develop innovative campaigns designed to be seen by the right people. Now that it’s possible to measure and examine the effectiveness of communication strategies, the challenge to create more direct messaging is greater than ever. Companies that are unwilling or unable to figure out how to do this will quickly die out.

Increased need for creativity, resourcefulness and inspiration

The market is calling for public relations campaigns that make the mold, break it, then top themselves. With tools such as augmented reality and custom-designed technology, companies are looking to public relations to find the next big thing and figure out how to manipulate it for inventive communication tactics and brand marketing.

It is crucial to learn quickly about new technology and understand how it can be adapted to serve the industry. If you don’t, someone else will, making you look unproductive and ill-prepared.

The available pool of exceptional talent won’t be able to meet demand

Every day, we hear about some new technology or approach that public relations professionals should use to help clients reach their communication goals. However, with each exciting discovery or approach, we need talented people to actually do the jobs.

Writers must be phenomenal wordsmiths, creative talent has to be ingenious and everything has to be cutting-edge. People who do the best work are those who are passionate about their craft, and they don’t just fall out of the sky.

The professionals at Axia Public Relations are zealous and eager to use their expertise to help you stay on top of trends and maximize your communications efforts. In other words, we like this stuff, so instead of wasting time and energy worrying about dangerous trends, contact us and let us handle it for you.

– Lisa Goldsberry is a writer for Axia Public Relations and has more than 15 years of public relations experience. She specializes in business, higher education and technology PR. Connect with Axia Public Relations on Twitter at @axiapr.


Topics: public relations

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