In today’s digital age, both traditional and digital marketing and public relations in the digital age continue to benefit organizations in communicating brand messages, building reputation, and leveraging the wide variety of channels that now exist to increase visibility. However, modern technologies pose a new challenge by generating new forms of communication, behaviors, and information, making it essential for brands to be prepared to act appropriately, as the saying goes: “Forewarned is forearmed.”
Aware of concerns about what brands will need in this era and how they can leverage their digital PR strategy, here are six key strategies that will help public relations in the digital age give visibility to brands in the digital world:
1. More virtual events?
People are eager to receive and experience new hybrid experiences in both virtual and in-person environments.
Did you know?
- 71% of experts plan to invest in new event formats, agendas, and designs. (CMO Council).
Events have transformed their format; however, their objective remains the same: to extend the brand experience beyond four walls and maximize time and money invested by developing in online channels, allowing for greater reach and visibility of brands. In this context, public relations in the digital age must take advantage of virtual platforms to create immersive and engaging experiences that foster stronger connections with audiences.
2. Discover changes in your buyer persona
Knowing our buyer persona is the starting point for any modern public relations and marketing strategy because their preferences, tastes, and needs change over time.
Did you know?
- 33.3% of the world’s population shops online. (eMarketer).
- 79% of buyers make online purchases at least once a month. (Forbes).
Consumers now seek information and opt for brands with social responsibility. (Radyant).
Researching and being clear about changes in consumer behavior will be a priority to connect with your buyer personas, thus ensuring the proper functioning of tactics and good campaign results. This is where public relations in the digital age can leverage data analytics and AI to anticipate and meet audience expectations more effectively.
3. Increase brand presence on social media
Now more than ever, due to their relevant and interactive nature, social media is a way for companies to connect directly with their consumers and other stakeholders.
Did you know?
- There are 81 million active internet users in 2023, of which the time spent on social networks increased compared to 2022. (Statista).
- 64% of users claim to discover new brands on digital channels. (Global Web Index).
Our brand can bet on the digital PR tactics that suit it best, from relationship building with media, journalists, and influencers (companies can collaborate with influencers to reach new audiences and increase their online presence) to extending the reach of press mentions, content promotion, and paid advertisements (social ads), among others. Social media is an integral part of public relations in the digital age, making it a crucial tool for brand storytelling and engagement.
4. Online reputation and trust will be priorities
Now is the time when trust will be more critical than ever. Public relations in the digital age play a fundamental role in transmitting the right message to the right people in the right place, as well as managing your brand’s online reputation (all those experiences, mentions, interactions, comments, and reviews that users share on the Internet through social platforms), which leads to new opportunities to increase awareness and credibility.
Did you know?
- 81% of consumers buy from brands they trust. (Harvard Business Review).
Brands require stable ground on which to build their foundations, and this can only be generated through trust and a good reputation. If a company wants to survive in the medium and long term, it must acknowledge that reputation is a key issue for the business and that it must be managed through generating and increasing trust with all its audiences. This highlights the importance of modern public relations strategies that integrate crisis management and proactive reputation monitoring.
5. Master online content marketing
Content has proven that it remains king in the digital ecosystem.
Did you know?
- 44% of consumers have switched to digital channels due to convenience and availability. (McKinsey).
- 72% of marketing leaders anticipate increasing their investment in online content. (Semrush).
Brands will have to reach and adapt to consumer habits and interests, circumstantially open to the digital environment, as in digital channels, consumers find in authoritative and valuable earned content and media the resource to stay informed. As a result, public relations in the digital age must focus on creating high-quality, engaging content that builds trust and establishes authority in the industry.
6. SEO and inbound marketing will be critical for brands
SEO is the set of accessible and effective marketing techniques and strategies that brands have adopted to improve visibility and positioning in organic search results. This resource will continue to be critical for inbound marketing strategies to work and for brands to build relationships online. Thanks to their ability in content generation activities, placing it at touchpoints, amplifying its reach, and generating interactions with the brand, public relations in the digital age take a leadership role in improving traffic quality and brand positioning.
7. Social Listening
Now playing a role as prosumers, consumers post a lot of content on brands’ social media, make memes, give reviews, and even generate videos and valuable content when they are truly engaged with brands. That’s why paying special attention to social listening will be a key strategy for the future of digital PR.
We must constantly monitor social listening and brand sentiment, as it becomes an important boost for the prevention of possible crises and improvement of optimized public relations plans and strategies.
8. Actionable KPIs to measure your PR efforts
The interest in evaluating PR efforts through key performance indicators (website traffic driven by coverage, organic search positioning, or engagement level, among others) with real impact and utility for decision-making will continue to grow. These KPIs will be possible thanks to the combination of PR professionals’ experience and knowledge and insights obtained from applications and systems that, with the help of technologies such as AI, monitor online channels, providing valuable data for immediate action and optimization of public relations in the digital age.
I am sure that each of the above points will be able to respond to the concerns of marketing professionals and take advantage of the complementarity of modern public relations.
Let’s remember that every change creates opportunities, and it’s better for our brand to be prepared and adopt a proactive public relations in the digital age approach to the new consumer today and their changes in the future.