PR in the 21PR in the 21stst Century Century

Stacy ArmijoStacy ArmijoVice PresidentVice President

Pierpont CommunicationsPierpont Communications

A little about meA little about me

Not your typical online evangelist

Live in the most exciting time this century

Believe there are lots of new opportunities

Also believe the fundamentals still apply

…Because you can, doesn’t mean you should.

…Because you’re intimidated, doesn’t mean you shouldn’t.

I Believe That…I Believe That…

Where we areWhere we are

Proliferation of media outlets

Barriers to entry almost eliminated

“Citizen Media”

Now everyone is an expert…Now everyone is an expert…

……So who really is?So who really is?

The good newsThe good news

More outlets = More, broader coverage

Specialized outlets = Better targeting

More interaction (can) = Stronger brands

Cheap, cheap, cheap!

The bad newsThe bad news

Fast news = Fewer controls, less accuracy

Many outlets = More work for us

Bad news travels faster than ever

Credibility difficult to determine

Less control than ever

In defense of “MSM”In defense of “MSM”“Barriers” serve

a purpose

“In print” and “on air”

still powerful

MSM as primary source

Traditional media far from dead, but changing rapidly

Focus on the fundamentals.Focus on the fundamentals.

What’s the objective?What’s the objective?

Think twice if it’s because…

Your competitor has a MySpace page.

All of your Web developer’s friends are doing it.

Your CEO’s neighbor has a blog, so he wants one too.

What’s the objective?What’s the objective?

Dig deeper if it’s because you want to…

Drive sales leads

Supplement expert positioning efforts

Cultivate your online reputation

Extend the reach of other communications

Enhance employee recruiting efforts

…using online tools.

If you passed the first testIf you passed the first test

Ask yourself a few questions…

Is the Internet your primary source for sales leads / employees?

Does your product or service inspire “fandom”?

Does your organization like to experiment, take risks?

If you passed the first testIf you passed the first test

Alternatively…

Do you operate in a highly regulated or litigious industry?

Are you ready to endure severe public criticism?

Do you have the resources (time, writers, techno junkies)?

PR Tools of the 21PR Tools of the 21stst Century Century

Web SiteWeb Site21st Century storefront

Benefits: Risks: Good for:

• Critical in today’s business environment

• Accurate positioning

• Technical security

• Introducing the organization

• Educating your audience

• Leveraging other tactics

• Driving leads

Media RelationsMedia RelationsReaching out to news media to generate coverage of your organization.

Benefits: Risks: Good for:

• Third-party credibility

• Longer lifespan• More editorial

controls• More cost-

effective than advertising

• Story is in the reporter’s hands

• You could be bumped anytime

• Educating your audience

• Positioning you as an expert

• Awareness / Credibility for your organization

Search Engine OptimizationSearch Engine OptimizationTechnical strategies for achieving a high ranking for your Web site on search engines.

Benefits: Risks: Good for:

• Very targeted audience

• Can be inexpensive

• Changing rapidly• Requires constant

attention• Find a trusted

partner

• Lead generation• Online reputation

management• “Write your own

Google page”

Pay Per Click AdvertisingPay Per Click AdvertisingPaid search results guaranteed to appear when users type specified terms into search engines.

Benefits: Risks: Good for:

• Very targeted audience

• Pay only for what you receive

• Changing rapidly• Click fraud• Find a trusted

partner

• Lead generation• Boosting organic

search rankings

Videos / PhotosVideos / PhotosMarketing your organization through videos and photos, using online sharing services such as YouTube and Flickr.

Benefits: Risks: Good for:

• Shows personality of your company

• Can use it to supplement blogs, Web sites

• Can be used to educate

• Legal considerations of videos / photos published

• Extending the reach of your events and presentations

• Employee morale, Recruiting

• Branding

BlogsBlogsA regularly updated journal published on the Web.

Benefits: Risks: Good for:

• Targeted audience

• Catalogues your expertise

• Interactive• Inexpensive

• Compelling copy is time-intensive

• “Comments” can become divisive; expose readers to negative views

• No editorial controls

• Lead generation• Search engine

rankings• Expert positioning

PodcastsPodcastsAudio recordings posted online for downloading onto computers, MP3 players and PDAs.

Benefits: Risks: Good for:

• Catalogues your expertise

• Applicable to a mobile audience

• High quality can be expensive

• Educating your audience

• Expert positioning• Entertainment

WebinarsWebinarsMeetings or presentations conducted over the Internet, often in combination with a phone conference.

Benefits: Risks: Good for:

• Participation easy for attendees

• Catalogues your expertise

• Very inexpensive

• Attendees often multitask during presentations

• Educating your audience

• Maintaining contact between live events

• Expert positioning

Social NetworkingSocial NetworkingOnline communities for users with similar interests such as Facebook, MySpace, LinkedIn and Twitter.

Benefits: Risks: Good for:

• Broad reach• Fosters “fans”• Interactive• Inexpensive

• Access to personal info

• “Comments” can become divisive; expose readers to negative views

• Updating is time-intensive

• Consumer products

• Social causes• Career / Business

development (LinkedIn)

Mobile MarketingMobile MarketingCommunicating to your audience via cell phones and other mobile devices.

Benefits: Risks: Good for:

• Currently, mobile is growing, less crowded venue

• Direct connection to audience

• Recipients highly sensitive to “spam” on cell phones

• “Do Not Call” compliance

• Spurring action among attendees during events

• Extending the reach of other communications

Community Relations

Event Marketing

Direct Mail

Email

Advertising

Traditional ToolsTraditional Tools

…and much more!

Overwhelmed?Overwhelmed?

Don’t know where to start?Don’t know where to start?

Get the lay of the landGet the lay of the land

Online monitoring– RSS feeds track blogs, social media

– Google Reader, Pluck, MSN, Yahoo!, others

Who’s the real expert?– Technorati – View “authority” and Top 100 list

– Digg – Today’s most popular blog posts, videos, etc.

Tracking it all– del.icio.us – Social networking bookmark site

What’s it all mean?What’s it all mean?

You’ve got some choices to make.

Ask yourself those questions.

Do you have some time on your hands (or money to pay someone else)?

Where does it fit in your overall marketing strategy?

Remember, it’s all gravy.

Stacy ArmijoStacy ArmijoVice PresidentVice PresidentPierpont CommunicationsPierpont Communications512-448-4950512-448-4950sarmijo@piercom.comsarmijo@piercom.comwww.piercom.comwww.piercom.com

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