In many ways digital PR is most successful when built around relationships. Digital content usually has a use-by date of about three months or less from the initial release of the article. So even if you managed to get an article into one of the big media sites such as Huffington Post, the New York Times, Fortune, or the like, after a few months it’s just old news. Digital content also isn’t the best for some traditional PR specialties such as event planning, spokesperson training, and trade shows. But it has the advantage of future possibilities and evergreen content, while traditional PR is morphing more and more toward digital specializations.
What It Has That Traditional Doesn’t
Digital PR brings the power of the internet to bear, including SEO, link-building, quicker analytics, and more possibilities for content to travel within days of the initial release through influencers’ blogs or well-placed story on a media website. Using tools such as Google Analytics and Moz’s Open Site Explorer allows for easy tracking of the reach of content moving from an influencer’s blog post to the client’s website, and it shows how many shares it got on different social media platforms. Those results can be found and tracked almost as soon as the publication is on the web, which allows digital PR experts and clients to see what works and what doesn’t, making adjustments easy from the placement side of things.
Did you notice the mention of influencers? That’s a big plus with digital PR. Influencers tend to be specific to an industry, niche, or area of expertise including different types of health and wellness areas such as gluten-free, low carb, and paleo diets; different exercise systems; and other related products. So using an influencer connects consumers to a product or service easily, and influencers are connected to a large number of followers. Those followers may become customers as well as share the posts with friends and family on their personal social media accounts, taking a client’s message even farther.
Digital PR Doesn’t Always Need a PR Expert
PR experts are more likely to have established relationships with media sites and influencers, but even small or sole-proprietor companies can use digital media to tell their story and get it out to customers. Speak your truth, tell a compelling story, share good content about your field, and you can build a following. You can also use advertising on sites like Facebook for little cost and pick up tools to help you refine the process so your efforts become more effective.
If your story is an interview with an expert who also happens to be from Ireland, a good time to share that video interview might be around St. Patrick’s Day, or something about a mom and what her kids did for her might have maximum impact around Mother’s Day. When football players decided to “take a knee,” you may have noticed more veteran and patriotic posts were happening. That’s using a current event to share your related content.