Comments on: Why PR is losing the social media battle: Day One

By: Fix PR: Why PR is losing the social media battle » Gary Andrews

Fix PR: Why PR is losing the social media battle » Gary Andrews — Wed, 17 Feb 2010 12:08:50 +0000

[...] nothing that can’t be fixed but, as Darika says, we have a long way to [...]

By: jasmineguevara

jasmineguevara — Wed, 10 Feb 2010 05:47:22 +0000

I couldn't agree more! The most relevant communities are not confined to just blogs! It's very important to identify the communities that the organization plans to serve and by doing that, the organization can better learn more about them and what they can do to serve them…vs. looking at it as a short-term gig with a whats-in-it-for-me attitude. Relationships = long term. And, social media is all about relationships. So you're right – definitely suspend “traditional expectations” like coverage! It's challenging when a client hires a consultant with tactics already set in their mind and then they expect the consultant to create a strategy based on the tactics that they had already envisioned. The consultant must be brave enough to take a step back to assess the situation and at times, provide change management consultation before recommending a social media strategy. Otherwise, social media efforts are bound to yield less-than-optimal results.

By: The Digital Week «

The Digital Week « — Tue, 09 Feb 2010 15:21:03 +0000

[...] to keep a beady eye: Darika Ahrens is in the midst of a cracking series covering how PR should strengthen its lot online, and our very own Kerry Gaffney and northern-type Jed Hallam have both formulated [...]

By: Blogger outreach: why you should do it | Jed Hallam

Blogger outreach: why you should do it | Jed Hallam — Tue, 09 Feb 2010 11:20:35 +0000

[...] Gaffney and Darika Aherns, I bloody love them both. They both spit truth and fire and always manage to post my brain thoughts [...]

By: Adam Vincenzini

Adam Vincenzini — Mon, 08 Feb 2010 17:08:39 +0000

Gimme a couple seconds while I hop back in my box
Don't get me wrong, I think this series of posts has a great upside and collaboratively developing solutions is a great way to improve / enhance our reputation…but I'm like you, I just want to get on with it!!

By: DarikaAhrens

DarikaAhrens — Mon, 08 Feb 2010 17:04:03 +0000

1. The industry already looks insecure, check out my intro, every day our reputation as PR professionals is taking a beating
2. Each of my posts is topped and tailed with a “Problem” and “Solution” box. I've also invited people to contribute to a week of best practice posts with with #fixPR
3. Many long-term campaigns have been activated and are currently held-up as best practice. Agencies have had enough time to get their ducks in a row, enough waiting already

By: Adam Vincenzini

Adam Vincenzini — Mon, 08 Feb 2010 16:31:35 +0000

It's definitely a balancing act, no doubt about that.
I am still conflicted about whether we need posts like yours (and Paul's) to move things along – on one hand I think highlighting what we need to do is great, on the other, it also makes the industry look a little insecure – should we focus more on proactively creating solutions / ideas that work?
Only time will tell, and only after some successful long-term campaigns have been activated will we be able to promote our case with more confidence.
I don't know about you, but I think the right chances given to the right people / agencies will deliver that result.

By: DarikaAhrens

DarikaAhrens — Mon, 08 Feb 2010 16:21:18 +0000

I think we're pretty much in agreement Adam. I like to highlight the fact that PR is a service delivery business and as such has to do what the client requests. Many PRs desperate for a new fee income will have to take on a project that goes against their consultancy (my point "just say no").

Further to that, yeah we have moved from retainers but that's only because a highly competitive market + the recession has increased pressure to accept more projects - usually on the promise of further work. I don't think we should follow suit as generally it leads to the kinds of quick and dirty campaigns I'm railing against.

I'd advise to clients that if they can't commit to a mid-to-long term strategy with a service provider then shop around until they can. (Start-ups aside)

By: Paul Sutton

Paul Sutton — Mon, 08 Feb 2010 15:52:17 +0000

Hi Darika
Great idea for a series of posts, and really looking forward to reading the rest of the week. Your first point about brand strategy really is spot on - it's frustrating to be asked repeatedly "can we add some social media into this campaign" when the campaign turns out to be a short-term 2 month blitz. I personally believe its down to PRs themselves to educate their clients to the fact that social media is an ongoing strategy, not a short-term fix. But therein lies the problem with PR agencies at present as, in my experience at least, PRs aren't investing the time to actually learn about and understand social media themselves. I wrote a blog post on this very issue only last week that is attracting some very interesting viewpoints - http://bit.ly/9WUNws. The longer this perpetuates, the further behind PR is likely to fall.
Paul

By: Adam Vincenzini

Adam Vincenzini — Mon, 08 Feb 2010 15:36:29 +0000

Darika – great idea and great first post, looking forward to the rest of the week – I think the point about agencies not being greedy is an important one.
But I think the client point is even more important – and I often think it's not the client's fault.
I'm currently working on a social media campaign for a client who, because it is such unchartered territory for them has no choice but to 'suck it and see.'
I think both sides have to be equally fair to each other – I'd love to have a bunch of retained agreements in place but PR moved away from that world a long time ago and it only seems natural for this to follow suit.
Adam