unicornnews: Economist notes rise of PR

While many in the sector had to trim their waist lines and hold their breath during the difficult year that was 2009, some reckon that with hindsight this might turn out to have been a pretty good recession for the PR industry.

That is to say, an increasing number of companies have recognised the value of good communications in protecting corporate reputations during tricky times, and the crucial role public relations – as a more nimble and reactive communications discipline than advertising and marcomms – has to play in successful corporate management. Which means business leaders increasingly recognise the importance of good PR, which has to be good news for the industry as the economy recovers.

And you don’t have to believe me about this. An article in the latest edition of The Economist headlined “Good News” reports on the relative good health of the US PR industry following the economic turmoil of the last twelve months, and observes: “PR has done well in part because it is often cheaper than mass advertising campaigns [and] its impact, in the form of favourable coverage in the media or online, can also be more easily measured”.

Perhaps stating the obvious to those within the industry, but reaffirming an important trend to the wider business community, the article continues: “PR firms are beginning to encroach on territory that used to be the domain of advertising firms, a sign of their increasing clout. They used chiefly to pitch story ideas to media outlets and try to get their clients mentioned in newspapers. Now they also dream up and orchestrate live events, web launches and the like”.

The article adds that it is not just economic turmoil that has helped boost the credibility of PR, with the changed media landscape also playing a role. It observes: “The withering of many traditional media outlets has left fewer journalists from fewer firms covering business. That makes PR doubly important, both for attracting journalists’ attention, and for helping firms bypass old routes altogether and disseminate news by posting press releases on their websites, for example. The rise of the internet and social media has given PR a big boost”.

If you’re enjoying all this “good news” then you might want to check out the full Economist piece for more. It’s available here.

Posted Tuesday January 19 2010 by Chris Cooke

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