Research

Only about 30% of all socially active brands have an Instagram profile, so now is the time for public relations professionals to work with clients on strategies to incorporate the platform into communications strategies

If we are ever to engage our stakeholders in a meaningful meeting of the minds, we have to have a better idea of their mental models—what they’re comprised of and where we have an opportunity to change them in our organization’s favor.

Nine out of 10 marketers now use social media for multiple purposes, including exhibit marketing (80 percent), event marketing and other general marketing purposes (86 percent), according to Exhibitor Media Group’s 2014 Social Media Marketing Survey.

If you add a lot of hype or, worse, are lose with the truth in your communications (either written or spoken) it might result in getting your brand or organization some exposure. But what happens when the information is questioned and, ultimately, shown to be false or embellished?

It seems like a hardly a day goes by that Facebook isn’t making one change that impacts PR pros. One of the biggest changes that continue to have repercussions for communicators was back in March, when Facebook started to slash organic reach for brand pages.

Much of the PR industry’s social media dialogue focuses on a platform-specific approach. However, I’m afraid that—amidst all these Facebook plans, Twitter strategies and Pinterest campaigns—PR executives and communicators have found themselves astray from truly strategic thinking.

▶ The Unyielding Power of Perception: Sure, things may look great on paper. But when it comes to how the public views your brand, the perception is out of whack. Case in point: the investment potential

Companies of all stripes are scrambling to recruit, hire and retain social media talent. That encompasses people well versed in content creation, SEO, design, video and several other disciplines that are not in the traditional PR mold.

According to Pew, 67% of those ages 16 to 29 read a book at least once a week, considerably more than the 58% of adults ages 30 and older who do so. For PR pros, it’s time to challenge the conventional wisdom regarding millennials.

While brand ambassadors are appealing to some companies because they appear more regulated, they simply aren’t authentic and therefore aren’t effective.