Public Relations has evolved. While traditional PR agencies act mainly as connectors between their clients and third-party media publications, the genuinely innovative, results-focused, Modern PR agencies are revolutionizing the industry. As Lebron James said after his first NBA championship, "It's about time."
The Difference Between Traditional PR Agencies and Modern PR Agencies
Traditional PR agencies rely heavily on pitching journalists and editors. They are firmly attached to the news, and because of that, they usually build their strategy on press releases, funding announcements, and getting quotes for their clients in more broad news coverage. They spend most of the day pitching and trying to convince journalists to cover their clients.
Modern PR agencies also pitch journalists and editors, but they don't rely on it; they have a more advanced content marketing strategy that includes owned media, influencer marketing, content amplification, and direct access to media outlets and contributors. They attach their tactics to KPIs such as target audience reach, website visitors, social sharing, brand mentions, and demand generation to their client's products and services. This lets Modern PR agencies gain more traction and results to their clients compared to traditional agencies.
The Importance of Content Amplification and Multiple Touchpoints
Today, the buyer's journey is more complicated. Buyers are exposed to many touchpoints created by you and your competitors; this includes advertising, product reviews, organic social, press articles, Youtube videos, podcasts, dark social, newsletters, and so much more.
This means that it is not enough to get press, even on Forbes or Techcrunch. You need to know how to amplify it effectively. How to distribute it via platforms like LinkedIn ads to specific prospects, utilize platforms like Quora, Reddit, and various industry influencers who can enhance the reach of your content.
This is extremely valuable, as this is the difference maker between a buyer choosing you over your competitor. They need to be convinced, consistently, that you are the right fit for them.
Influencers as PR Agents
If once PR agents were usually behind the scenes, today, a PR agent or a marketer, that is also an influencer in his space, is a huge advantage. This creates much more exposure for his clients when he reshares press coverage on LinkedIn or any other social platform.
Also, influencers are constantly getting approached by media outlets to collaborate, making it easier for them to be connected to new press opportunities.
Digital PR
Modern PR agencies also have a deep understanding of PPC, SEO, and online reputation management. They know how Google's search ranking works and the importance of Do-follow links to their clients.
They also use advanced software tools to track website demographics, trending content, brand and competitor mentions, and make sure to provide their clients with metric reporting.
Content Generation, at scale
If you work with a Modern PR agency, you know that they make sure to own all of your content strategies. Meaning they take an integral part in generating thought leadership blog posts, guest columns, podcasts & newsletter production in order to scale your touchpoints and create a content infrastructure that lets you rank high on Google, build a community, create demand generation, and attract journalists to your story and brand.
Modern PR agencies also manage key team leaders' content strategies and make sure to position them as thought leaders in their verticals.
Faster Results
Because modern agencies are versatile in their content strategy, they can secure coverage more effectively and provide more traction and exposure for their clients without having to wait for a journalist to cover their story. They make sure to cover it first, Distribute it first. And utilize their direct relationships with contributors and influencers.
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