A time for change…and why it matters to understand these changes
May 11, 2009
A public relations practitioner’s job is constantly evolving. Two clients will never be the same; they will not need the same publicity; they will not need the same events; in essence, each client will present an entirely new endeavor for the practitioner. What PR practitioners are seeing these days is a shift in the way PR is done. New media outlets combined with a shift in what audiences want has affected how PR practitioners do their jobs.
Amanda Moke, graduate of the University of Oregon (UO) School of Journalism and Communication (SOJC) and account coordinator of Ant Hill Marketing, states: “It is essential to know how to use social media effectively for your client.”
Pat Curtin, Ph.D., and public relations professor at UO SOJC, states that especially for crisis communications, social media is changing timeline expectations. “It used to be that if, in an hour, a statement was issued in relation to a crisis that was good. Now a statement must be issued within minutes,” says Curtin.
Kelli Matthews, public relations professor at UO SOJC states that social media has changed public relations from a “push” mechanism to a “pull” mechanism. What this means is our audiences are telling us what they want rather than being told what is available.
Tiffany Derville, Ph.D., and professor at UO SOJC says that social media is too important of a communication [device] for practitioners to ignore. “Social media provides a way to become involved in the conversations among the audiences,” Derville says.
What Matthews, Moke, Curtin and Derville all agree on is that this shift in public relations is demanding that practitioners be transparent. Because it is so easy for information to be sought, it is more important that the PR practitioner presents the information in a logical, truthful and transparent manner to the audiences.
A practitioner’s job no longer solely consists of writing press releases, planning special events, doing publicity and promotions, and handling media relations. Today practitioners may be in charge of these and a myriad of other tasks facilitated by social media. PR has never been an 8 to 5 job. It, by nature, is not a typical office job. Because of the nature of social media it becomes even more of a non-traditional career. In a job that requires expertise in too many skills to list it is vital for PR practitioners to follow new trends and how to use them to the benefit of themselves, their employers and their clients.
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