Ever wonder what 2018 will look like for public relations? We believe that traditional and digital  are at a crossroads. Just like you refresh your wardrobe and get rid of outdated pieces, you also need to the do the same with your PR strategy.

There are tactics that are outdated and the future means looking at PR through a digital lens. At Power Digital, we don’t focus much on print coverage simply due to the fact that the coverage is extremely difficult to measure, but also because we know it doesn’t impact the other digitals channels like an online placement would.

Approaching PR with a digital lens means that you are setting goals that are measurable through online tracking and being savvy with the use of UTM codes and the referral channel in google analytics. Also, it’s about understanding how public relations fits within other digital strategies.

Here are a couple of examples of how PR can integrate with other digital channels:

SEO & Public Relations

Reasons many SEO or Public Relations campaigns are unable to flourish is because the two channels are not speaking to each other and working in silo.

For example, if the SEO team is optimizing certain pages on the NSC website and the PR team also has a placement opportunity where there is  control of an anchor text and link destination, then the two channels can work synonymously to support keyword lifts and ultimately expedite the SEO processes.

PPC & Public Relations

We can better guide online conversation more effectively if we control the SEO and PPC results for a certain term. For example, if for some reason there is some negative press around GTO or Core Brands, we are able to take up more of the SERP by driving the PPC and SEO results strategically.

A type of ad copy PPC advertisers consider using are review extensions. Review extensions are a type of ad copy that takes a recent PR placement and a quote from that placement and includes it in ad copy providing which ads further credibility.

In the end, 2018 is that much more digital centric and traditional phobic as marketing directors are becoming younger and younger and technology is becoming savvier and more measurable.