Step up to the challenge

Post written by Dee Anna McPherson.

I had an interesting chat with Forrester’s Jeremiah Owyang last night at an event hosted by our client, Tealeaf.  I mentioned to him that I liked his commentary about the well-publicized drama between bloggers and PR people, and he asked what the PR industry is going to do about its image problem.

Part of the reason I think the PR industry catches flack from bloggers is because they see us merely as connectors - or bottlenecks.  However, helping our clients connect with influencers is only a piece of what we do.  Much of the value we offer to clients is the thinking and strategy we provide, which bloggers benefit from but may never see directly.

Some CEOs naturally are great communicators, but many are not.  And most don't have the time to follow all the conversations and run their companies at the same time.

Many of our clients need to explain complicated technologies or new business models to the media, investors, partners, employees and consumers. They also need to get their arms around the implications of the changing media landscape and find new ways to engage with their audiences. 

As Jeremiah points out, good PR firms help with both listening and refining communication, but it’s also more than that.

Yes, the media landscape is changing rapidly, so of course the PR industry needs to adapt as well.  At Horn Group, we are more and more involved in all aspects of content creation – from developing web sites and customer communities to copy writing and video production – because there are so many more ways to reach important audiences.

To those who see PR people as nothing more than gatekeepers, I invite you to come spend some time with us at Horn Group and see what we're really all about.

Any takers?

Comments

[Jeremiah Owyang]

This is great, and I enjoyed talking to you about this last night. The next step in my mind is to see how PR professionals go and tell this story, and why you make a difference. It would be interesting, and perhaps helpful to engage some of the blogger critics head on in a discussion --let them show behind the scenes. In fact, Scoble's Fast Company TV show does just that. Let me know if you need an intro.