It wasn’t too long ago when public relations meant cultivating media contacts who could bridge the gap between businesses and mass media audiences. The press release became the currency of the PR world, and businesses had to work hard to get some “ink time” or “air time” to promote themselves.
This situation had a couple of disadvantages. First, the press release itself was a very restricting medium. It was static, limited to a few hundred words and its printing or airing was totally up to the media contact. It became so that the sole objective was to get the press release released, regardless of what that may mean to the business.
Social media has changed all that, and for the better. And if you’re still paying big bucks to your media publicist to find you a spot to air your promotional plug on local TV or radio, or to bury your press release within the local dailies, then you need to climb out of the rock you’ve been living under these last few years. Social media has changed the game, practically rendering traditional media and PR practices irrelevant.
Here’s how social media makes your public relations efforts more effective.
