Social Media is a Cocktail Party: Are PR Professionals Invited?

In many respects, social media has turned the worlds of marketing, advertising and public relations upside down. The practiced and preached marketing models, which some CEOs are still more comfortable with yet today, have been tossed aside for a completely new two-way communication approach. No more are the days when public relations professionals and marketers pushed out information to consumers, or developed flat campaigns to be disseminated through traditional media approaches. The seemingly one-way tube of communication has been broken. Let’s just say the average consumer now has an invite to the cocktail party…and he’s making a big entrance.

By entering the cocktail party at all, the consumer enters the conversation. This shift in control—or rather, loss of control—for marketers and public relations professions is a difficult thing to grasp at first. The level of transparency only increases from here, and that can sometimes hurt a brand’s image or a campaign’s objective. The voice of one unreasonable individual can be heard by all, and can raise concerns among other consumers. However, when used correctly, social media is truly the beginning of a lasting, meaningful conversation.

Companies should note that there are many, many individuals in the general public who want to speak with or about you. Read the rest of the story here.