The Public Relations Blog

Optimize your digital footprint with these steps

Incredible amounts of research have gone into determining how people form first impressions. The digital age has complicated the phenomenon by eliminating physical signs and signals. In place of smiles are likes, retweets and reviews, not direct word-of-mouth referrals. Businesses must therefore consider how their digital first impressions (gained not only through their websites but also via social media chatter and search engines such as Google) impact their brands.

How a social media policy can help you in a crisis

It seems that, almost overnight, social media has taken over our lives. We use it to stay connected, express opinions and follow the issues that are important to us. Some people feel they couldn’t go one day without it.

Unfortunately, the technology has evolved faster than many can manage it. Businesses especially have found themselves playing catch-up, struggling to engage customers and increase profits through social media platforms, lacking the necessary guidance and making reputation-crushing mistakes along the way. With assistance from PR, you can create your social media policy and avoid disaster.

Many people assumed the rise of social media (and with it the rise of amateur journalists) would turn the newspaper (and perhaps the news media itself) into a relic. And an article by Paul Eastham proposes a valid argument as to why the newspaper will survive social media and amateur content.

Eastham explains the theory that the rise of social media and the ability for users to easily copy and circulate articles without paying for them would essentially make journalism unprofitable. And then he details why such theory is flawed.

If you ignore Google, it may ignore you!

By Jason Mudd, APR

Your company has followed all the smart advice about making the most of social media for business. Most likely, you have hired a social media manager (or outsourced one) who ensures that you have a constant presence on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and maybe even Instagram and Pinterest. You may also have some videos on YouTube. What about Google+?

Many companies have neglected Google+ because they feel it’s still new and unpopular. However, there are several reasons why you need to give this platform more than a passing glance. In fact, I would go so far as to say that Google+ should move to the front of the line when it comes to the social media focus for your business. Here’s why:

Use PR tools and tactics to fight back the right way

You Google your company name and one of the first things you find is a scathing review written by a disgruntled customer. Before you go into panic mode, stop and think.

For many people, the initial reaction is to strike back, maybe with a reply accusing the customer of not using the product properly. There are right ways and wrong (reputation-damaging) ways to respond to negative online reviews, and PR can serve as your guide.

Why a PR firm is a great inbound marketing partner

Traditionally, the sales, PR and marketing functions haven’t always gotten along. There are squabbles over budget dollars, arguments over territory and confusion about who can claim success for various initiatives. Now, with inbound marketing, all that can change.

Inbound marketing represents a new way of selling and conducting your business online. It involves engaging your target audiences, building relationships and making more conversions by using the right kind of value-added content. A PR firm can make this process much easier.

With help from PR, you can use inbound marketing to turn strangers into satisfied customers faster

You may remember the days when businesses opened at 9 and closed at 5 (maybe a bit later on the weekends). If a business was closed, no sales were made and that was that. Additionally, all it took to get a customer’s attention was a huge holiday event or cheesy gimmick like Christmas in July.

Thanks to social media, smart devices and constantly connected consumers, the concept of what it takes to attract a customer and close a sale has significantly changed. Audiences now expect 24-hour access and real connections. It can all be very bewildering if you don’t know how to maximize the potential. With help from PR, inbound marketing can help you take advantage for increased profitability.

Create mutually beneficial relationships using social media

Already this month, our team has blogged about social media and its role within an overall marketing communications program. To that end, comments have come in inquiring about how businesses can establish stronger ties with the local media through social media.

If you use Twitter, LinkedIn or Facebook regularly, you immediately gain access to a large and varied population of journalists and news media outlets. Even a quick review of local media websites highlights that most news professionals maintain social media presences – with Twitter handles (@name) stashed within team bios, beneath photos or in news blog posts. Of course, if you aren’t yet comfortable with Twitter as a social media platform, you’ll first want to brush up on basic functionality and terms including “retweet” (RT), “hashtag” (#), “favorite,” “newsfeed,” “tweet,” etc. before proceeding.

In our experience, if businesses or individuals truly want to establish relationships using Twitter, they’ll want to consider these best practice tips:

Use the Axia PR social media e-book to ensure you’re doing everything to reach consumers

Social media is not just for college students anymore; it is big business. Understanding best practices for this tool and how it can affect your bottom line may help you jump ahead of the competition.

Axia PR’s e-bookThe Essential Social Media Management Guide can show you how to best utilize social media for reputation management, search results rankings and customer engagement. Download it today to help with your social media efforts.

Embrace, understand and leverage this important tool

Everyone reading this post likely has a general understanding of social media. Regardless of the platform, social media is about one thing and one thing only: social engagement.

All businesses should seriously consider at least a minimal social media presence. Unlike traditional public relations, social media is focused on creating brilliant content, sharing it, then listening and responding in an effort to take traditional PR efforts to the next level. Using advanced reporting, monitoring and structuring tools, public relations teams can further build brands and create a loyal, active following of customers and fans – all of whom can further extend your reach.