No pain, no gain. No guts, no glory. The pr profession is screaming those words from the rooftop. It’s deafening to organizations who are trying to hide behind ‘traditional pr.’ Those organizations who are trying to continue on as if change isn’t happening, or for that matter, has happened already.
There are those who say traditional pr is dead. I don’t know if I agree that it’s dead yet, but it’s certainly dying. Six months ago, social media was not a part of my vocabulary. And today, it keeps evolving.
For Alex Koritz, it’s not. He says he recognize the importance of new media to the pr profession but what he’s missing is that new media is the pr profession.
Practioners who are trying to hold on to their old ways of thinking, who are unwilling to change, will be left behind. Clients don’t want a firm who can only solve half of the equation, they want a firm who can build a community.
Kyle Flaherty of Engage PR states it eloquently that true pr beyond 2008, will integrate technology and communication skills to start a conversation. He says those that integrate those skills will dominate the landscape.
I see that landscape and I’m excited to be a part of it. I wonder how many Practioners feel the same.
Hi Michele,
Well, social media has been a part of my vocabulary for about 2 years. We have been implementing blog strategies for our clients for several years. I’m not missing that social media is PR, but our profession is about more than that. For example, media relations is only a part of PR. My point was, there’s a lot we can talk about, let’s not ignore the other important stuff!
Michele
You write, “Clients don’t want a firm who can only solve half of the equation, they want a firm who can build a community.”
I disagree.
From what I see is that most clients don’t understand social media. Less so than PR firms. This means the resistance isn’t knee deep, say, in beach sand. It’s up to the waste. The tide of change is coming in. In waves. Not a tsunami. But all to often it’s the client that is reisting.
Thanks for your comment. I’ve found not all clients are resisting, there are some who are ready to embrace it. But the ones who are resisting may be somewhat responsible for firms not engaging, but not entirely. I have a few acquiantances at various firms whose clients are uninterested and sometimes it seems so are they. The tides of change may be coming in waves, but I think we still need to be ready for it.