Column in PR Bulldog (See by 50k PR Pros)

Issue Date: Daily 'Dog - June 26, 2008

Do You Have Imagination for Innovation? PR Practitioners Must Now Conduct R&D

By Roger Rosenbaum, President, Rosenbaum Media Group

Savvy PR professionals are finding themselves at a crossroads. For half a century, the news release has been the mainstay of our business to reach the public through members of the media. A whole new world of Web 2.0 digital tools strategies and distribution channels to reach target audiences are emerging.

The growing options pose an interesting proposition for sole practitioners, as well as small and large PR firms. For many firms, traditional pitch and follow–up for press play is a tried and true method of getting media coverage for clients. Some clients are happy with this approach, cost and the potential results.

While Web 2.0 and world of social media is absolutely wonderful, clients who foot the bill must be on board with the costs and benefits. We must be able to understand, use and sell new PR options.

So what are you doing in your business to bring digital PR to your clients? Who in your firm is scouting new technology that can benefit new and future clients? Put simply: Developing an "imagination for innovation" leading to new products and services is essential in a competitive field where there is growing competition as well as easy access to Web–based automation of news release distribution.

Research and development is often associated with manufacturing—and not with service businesses. But firms of all shapes and sizes cannot afford to ignore changes in technology. Digital PR allows for greater control of the content and in some cases less control of where the content goes. However, a key component of digital PR is that the flow of information can be tracked and provide a more interactive way for clients to develop relationships with target audiences.

The options are vast and growing. Case in point: The Hudson Valley Center for Innovation (HVCFI) is the type of client who is willing to embrace technology in reaching out to communicate with entrepreneurs, mentors, board members and members of the media.

In April, HVCFI's Entrepreneur's Breakfast Seminar was offered as secure, live webcasts to these audiences. These seminars are a mixture of educational and news opportunities that allow a potential worldwide audience. By collaborating with technology provider CallEveryOne.com, my company was able to set up the live webcast and allow reporters to attend virtually. The we cast led to solid coverage by a regional news columnist. It was an important vote of confidence for the presenter and the client.

The HVCFI webcast also included a remote guest speaker who was linked in via a Verizon wireless data card. The whole process gave me flashbacks to my days in the control room producing live TV and in the field when the station satellite truck rolled up to a crime scene to beam the scene back to the newsroom.

There is no question that there were bumps in the road with the HVCFI webcast production and it was not network quality, but the reality is that it does not need to be. Costs in equipment were just a small fraction of what a satellite truck costs.

This is not to say that I have turned my back on the benefits of mainstream media or the impact that an independent evaluation can have for a client. I shot footage that aired on The Weather Channel, which is seen in 80 million homes. http://www.rosenbaummedia.com/pr4resorts7/pr4resorts.html

For another client, it took me a year of pitching to get Connecticut's number one news station to cover a client story. Here is the story: www.youtube.com/watch?v=4Qts2L0Qx–4.

Following the airing of the story, I took the YouTube link and sent it to all NBC affiliates in the tri–state area. I got a call from WNBC with interest in the story. They have yet to drive up to Litchfield County to cover the story, but showing editors that a story exists can be stronger than a paper news release. The YouTube link resulted in coverage by Home Living Connecticut magazine.

As PR professionals, we must embrace an imagination for innovation. We must be willing to invest in new ways to cut through the junk mail, voice mails and indoor/outdoor advertising.

To grasp the value of a service, most clients want to see how it works. New does not always mean expensive. For one client, my company purchased a newspaper Web banner ad at a cost of $300 a month. This ad linked to a countywide client's Web video content. The ad helped my client reach 50,000 Web video hits during a one–month period using user–generated website Magnify.net.

Even with the latest and greatest technologies to help deliver our message, the message itself must either be compelling, entertaining or educational. Storytelling remains a key skill for all of us. We must stretch and expand the impulse to cut and paste brochure copy and present it as a news release. It must look and feel like a story to journalists without being overly promotional.

While research and development may not pay immediate dividends, it must be done in order to stay competitive in a rapidly changing world. To ignore the need to innovate may be as detrimental to your company as it is to your clients.

Traditional PR and digital PR can work independently or in the same universe. The one thing you can count on is some interesting partnerships between firms operating in traditional and digital worlds. To spread the word about innovative partnerships, I would recommend the best of both worlds—a traditional news release as well as a live webcast.

Roger Rosenbaum is president of Rosenbaum Media Group LLC, a New York state–based digital marketing communications consulting company. RMG specializes in raising the visibility and profitability of clients through digital PR and Web 2.0 services, and operates www.realestatepublicity.com. Roger can be reached at: info@rosenbaummedia.com.