The first press relations, or public relations, depending on who you are, didn’t come fully formed out of the primordial ooze. It took two 20th-century persuaders who were professionals to realize its potential and power and to reposition the communication styles of their respective companies to become PR.
This transformation has largely taken place over the past 100 years. However, the twin powers of influence and persuasion have existed since a visionary cavern dweller promoted fire as “good” for the first time.
Press relations, as we will call them, for B2B marketing purposes, are in many ways more sophisticated than they were when first implemented. Data analytics, enabled by the online media platforms that many consider essential and the availability of data in real-time, have transformed PR. Many of the basic principles are still the same.
Let’s go back a little. You must know how you arrived at your current position to understand where you want to go.
The beginnings of PR
Modern PR is thought to have been born roughly at the same time as the Industrial Revolution of the 18th century. It was necessary to spread information in order for new businesses, many of which were transformative, to gain public and private acceptance. It made everything easier (and profitable!) Promoting a new business or expansion in a transparent, accurate, and trustworthy way.
It may not be clear today what qualifies to be labeled with these noble attributes, but back then, “truths” were considered to be obvious. The public transparency of the benefits of any project, service, or initiative was often enough to calm the opposition.
It wasn’t until the 20th century that PR was recognized as a career. Edward Bernays and Ivy Lee, both born in Austria but raised in the US, are two early pioneers who can claim to be the “Father” of Public Relations.
The two men have been contemporaries and somewhat rivals in terms of personality and approach for many years.
Lee fought for honesty, truth, and accuracy when it came to how companies should behave in public. He was the one who first established a “Declaration of Principles,” reflecting his views.
Bernays was the nephew of Sigmund, the founder of psychoanalysis. He believed that public perception could be changed by using celebrities, opinion leaders, and other influential people to influence it. In other words, transforming public “desires’ into “needs.”
Both approaches are effective and continue to be used in modern practices. Transparency and accuracy are best achieved by relying on the opinions and endorsements of respected and trusted third parties. The marriage is harmonious despite the occasional disagreements over drapes or tactics.
It would be misleading to claim that B2B and consumer PR are 100% pure, selfless, and wholesome. There are always those who choose the murky side of PR, but our experience is that most PR professionals have the professionalism and integrity one would expect in a profession.
Modern data-driven methods of PR measurement
What has changed since the days when barnstorming and coercive coercion were commonplace?
Data!
The days of regional focus groups and fax machines are gone. Online messaging testing is the fastest and most reliable method to get a true understanding of what your target audience responds to. You will quickly learn what resonates and what doesn’t with your potential customers.
It is important to have a data collection and analysis team that has the expertise necessary for a project or retained basis. This can also be done in-house. It is vital to clearly define the parameters for measuring and assessing a campaign, as well as the department or agency responsible for shaping public opinion about a product, policy, or persona.
Each outcome has different goals, but a common factor in modern PR is that to achieve them, data analysis can be used to measure the success of a campaign.
These measurable parameters include:
- How well have you established and maintained a positive brand reputation, protected your brand from potential crises, and increased trust through your PR campaign?
- Has the message that you have so carefully crafted on the basis of your analysis been successful in convincing your target audience? Is the bridge you built with those audiences perceived as trustworthy and transparent?
- Has your brand’s reputation, built on your PR campaign, mitigated any potential damage to your reputation or fallout if the worst happens? It would be best if you were prepared to crack the glass in your crisis communication plan.
- What is your level of engagement with social network influencers? Are you aware of who he is? 21st-century equivalents have replaced Edward Bernays’ early 20th-century methods of blatant or implicit endorsements. Influencers are now an important part of the PR equation. It took some time, but they have a large amount of persuasive power.
- Have you applied your research methods to determine whether your message reflects the concerns and needs of your stakeholders? (i.e., customers, colleagues and employees, investors, and the community at large) What do you propose? Does it align with their perception of success or satisfaction? Or do the data suggest that you should recalibrate your approach? It can tell you very fast these days. You can still rely on intuition, experience, and instinct, but you should not ignore data.
These are only a few of the parameters to be considered, but these are the ones that are most important for PR.