Anyone who has been working in PR over the last few years will have witnessed the dramatic increase of digital requirement from clients. Offering an integrated approach that includes both traditional PR tactics, supported by a digital marketing strategy is becoming more common and expected by clients. With that in mind, there’s a strong case for PR agencies to collaborate with expert digital marketers in order to deliver a multi-channel communication campaign efficiently and effectively.
Although there is a clear crossover between public relations and digital marketing, specialist skillsets are required for each of these disciplines. PR agencies enable marketing teams to reach different audiences through media relations and thought-leader content, and digital teams help PRs digitalise their strategies and offer measurable, targeted delivery methods – it’s a match made in heaven!
Creating co-ordinated campaigns that use the best that PR and digital marketing have to offer can improve reach, performance and influence. When common goals align, agencies can find new ways to work together to suit everyone’s needs.
Just some of the most pertinent common goals are: Brand narratives and story development, good content strategies, including planning and placement, social listening for buying signals, amplified social interactions and media coverage and optimised marketing strategy based on data.
With the explosion of social media and digital channels over the last few years, the client requirements are evolving and the need to master new platforms is growing, rapidly.
Clients have new expectations from their PR agency, however, it doesn’t always make business sense for agencies to build internal teams to provide the level of digital expertise that may be required. Partnering with a digital marketing agency can assist PRs in areas such as specialised SEO content, design, web-based briefs and social media – an area that is especially in demand.
Reactive Content
The digital landscape is constantly moving, which creates a heightened demand for a reactive approach in order to respond to the amount of real-time events and trends popping up across various social platforms. As digital marketers are adept at this ‘seat-of-your-pants’ style of social marketing, they are able to help support PR agencies with short-term, reactive content that their clients might require.
What’s more, because of their regular online surveillance, digital marketers can help with content strategies that anticipate business trends.
On the other hand, PR agencies are experts at creating content such as thought leadership pieces or detailed press statements. This collaboration may be needed when digital marketers are developing a campaign that is more suited to traditional media.
Data Analysis
Being able to monitor how well your campaigns are going enables you to pivot, make changes and improve your campaigns next time.
Having the software to monitor interactions and connections across a wide range of social platforms is essential for any modern marketing campaign. With this type of information at your fingertips, PR agencies can have a reporting suite and data to communicate and demonstrate the campaign’s process to clients. This will enable agencies to advise, enhance, improve and maximise client campaigns.
Connections
Both PR companies and digital marketing agencies can provide each other with a whole host of interesting and relevant contacts to boost campaigns. By collaborating with each other, this little black book of contacts can be shared and utilised.
PR agencies tend to have a comprehensive list of media contacts and connections that can be tapped into for marketing campaigns that require traditional forms of media. Whereas digital marketing agencies might have connections with web-based contacts, such as social media influencers or service providers.
Conclusions
Combining PR and digital marketing strengths, such as PR outreach or highly targeted paid advertising, can help agencies and businesses build more successful campaigns and overall marketing strategies.
At McOnie, we are delighted to partner with the award-winning team of digital experts, designers and marketers at watb Creative. The talented bunch works closely with both our team members and clients to help strengthen campaigns with specialist advice, content and data.