Online media and public relations

Online media is taking the world by storm. A study conducted by Pew Research Center regarding print verses online media determined that more than half of America receives its news through online sources rather than print media. Additionally, the number of Americans who depend entirely on social media for their news has doubled in the past two years. Certain publications, including Newsweek and Smartmoney Magazine, have made their content solely available online. Currently, the main concern for public relations professionals is how to communicate this change to their clients and guide them in the direction of adequately using these tools.

First of all, it is important to understand that earned media will now lead to owned media. This is because the media tools used by professionals in the fields of marketing, public relations, and social media are blending together. Only now is it possible to effortlessly turn earned media, such as Facebook likes and comments, into owned media, including client blogs, tweets, and Facebook posts. The presence of both earned media and owned media ensures a consumer that a brand or product is a respectable one and that they should try it.

Second, the tracking of a PR campaign has become much easier through the invention of Google Analytics. It is now possible to quickly and efficiently see who visited one's page and saw the print hit. Also, referring sites can now also be investigated which will allow one to see the PR hits which were most successful at bringing people to a specific page. This entire process can only benefit one's company because it will allow them to adequately plan their campaign. 

Online publications receive much more viewings than public publications. Furthermore, a story that is printed in a magazine or newspaper will be in the recycling perhaps the day after it is read, while online stories live on forever. People will have easy access to these stories through links and it will be forever searchable to them. Companies' assets are more easily attainable and may include various slideshows and videos, whereas print media can really only include a picture. 

Finally, online media has the ability to be published constantly. This allows breaking news to be written and accessed immediately. With all of this taken into consideration, it is evident that the popularity of online media versus print media will allow consumers as well as companies to remain much more up to date on various topics and products. 

To read the full PR Daily article, click here.

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Picture via LeaderLab.