Blogs as Excellent Public Relations Tools - The Value of Personalization
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Perhaps the single most powerful aspect of blogs, in the area of public relations, is the personalization aspect. The writer is a real person, putting a human face on what might otherwise be perceived as a unknown and distant company. By developing trust among the various readership groups, the blog writer provides a personal link to the company.
If the goal of a public relations effort is to work in coordination with sales and marketing, a blog will establish trust with current and prospective customers and clients. It's a well known truism that people will buy from their friends and people whose word they trust. The development of a blog component to the company website will go far in achieving those trust based goals.
In the past, public relations depended upon controlling the message that was put forward from the organization. The unspoken goal was to manipulate public opinion. The pre-arranged message was centralized and carefully vetted for wording and nuances. The term "spin" was born to describe the technique.
Blogging as a public opinion medium gives up that tight control and presents a message in a conversation with the reader. In that sense, the blog cultivates public opinion. With increasing transparency, inside and outside of organizations, the best approach is one of open discussion. A blog is the ideal delivery vehicle.
Many people have begun to mistrust the traditional canned public relations approach as lacking honesty. The openness of a blog changes that perception entirely. As the philosopher Marshall McLuhan stated, "Perception is reality". In other words, what we perceive to be true is real in our own thoughts.
A blog can enhance that perception of honesty by delivering the straight goods on an issue. With that open approach, lacking the traditional tightly controlled message, trust in the company is enhanced. In both the short and longer terms, that trust translates into more life long customers and clients.
Next: Getting Traditional Media Exposure Through a Blog >>
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