Today it is better to focus on (and engage) a Digital PR, rather than a traditional Press Office to make yourself known. Why? Because even the promotion of a brand or an activity has evolved, continuously redefining itself over time and with technology.
What it means to do Digital PR today
Digital PR is a dual-use term. It is used both to indicate the activity of public relations in the digital environment (on the web, to be clear), and to indicate the professional figure that deals with it. He can be a journalist with specific skills or a digital strategist who is fully involved in the definition, implementation and measurement of promotional activities on the web for client companies. In both cases, they are often freelancers, hired by individual clients on a specific project. So what does digital PR mean today? It means promoting a brand in the digital world, aiming to increase Brand Awareness to affirm the company. Given the delicate and complex goal, it is easy to deduce that doing Digital PR today is neither easy nor obvious. It is necessary to carefully select magazines, blogs, Influencers and portals to which to propose their own brand (or their product), so that they can circulate and establish themselves in the eyes of the target on the web. Naturally without losing sight:
- SEO techniques to allow the company’s website to quickly scale up the Google SERP
- Social media, given that they are today in effect the square on which the brands and new products aim to establish themselves to their consumers
How to make Digital PR to promote your brand
The traditional promotional activity of a brand or a product, as well as advertising, was entrusted to press releases. The press releases are articles – promotional, in fact – that are written by the Press Office (inside the company or freelance) and then disseminated on the main media so that they can bring them back to the public. Most of the companies buy press release regularly to increase the engagement of the audience and brand awareness.
Today, everything has moved on the web and on social media. So it’s fine to write a statement, but with the characteristics that every web-oriented article must have:
- A news content
- A catchy title
- A division into paragraphs with white spaces to facilitate reading
- A bulleted list with key concepts
- The keyword identified, written in bold (bold, in jargon)
- A representative image, copy left, reusable by the media
Once the text to be promoted has been obtained, it is necessary to carefully select the media to which it is sent , taking care to select them according to the target you want to achieve, according to their authoritativeness and positioning (also from a SEO perspective) and according to their presence on social networks. This last point, if it is true that it is optional, is very important to make the best Brand Awareness.
Digital PR, still some useful tips for a refresh of your brand (or product)
Making Digital PR is not a one-off activity. It is a commitment that must be carried out in a recurrent manner, in order not to be forgotten or overtaken by competitors. Here are some tips that can be useful for this purpose.
# 1 Keep your company’s personality in mind
The personality of your company’s brand and its position relative to the competition should be at the center of your public relations strategy. Once you have established your brand identity, only then can you develop tactics on how to transmit your unique message to the world. Always remember that a story – or even a tweet – transmitted digitally can distinguish or devastate a brand. Only one night is enough.
# 2 Bet on a good Influencer to help you reach the goal
By yourself and with the help of a freelance specialist, planning your Marketing and Digital PR strategy in detail, you can do a lot. But it is not enough. You must find a formidable ally: the Influencer. According to a recent Forbes article, 92% of consumers trust more than an Influencer than traditional advertising. The Influencer is technically a supporter of the brand and is often a leader in its own right, endowed with an audience that respects and follows it. If you find it today, you have an extra gear to effectively promote your brand, but remember: to find the Influencer perfect you need time, planning and even budget. Because it’s not free.
# 3 Use digital storytelling to promote your messages
The simple press release, even the one optimized for the web, is not enough on its own. Today to do Brand Awareness you have to aim (also and above all) on digital storytelling. Create stories made of text, but above all images and videos to tell about your company and its personality. Because the PR has evolved far beyond press releases, events and media relations. A good public relations plan will also include blogs, photographs and videos to tell your story through your channels and platforms. If you plan well your strategy and budget, and if your message has strength, share and promote stories through your social channels and your website could lead the media to spontaneously notice you.
Now it’s up to you! You have all the elements to choose well the next freelancer that can help you, through the Digital PR to promote your brand or your product and finally to climb the market.
