It’s like PR...
Public relations is about controlling the flow of information between you and your customers. This can be done by creating new information (writing journal articles, taking part in industry awards etc) or managing the existing information by offering a new angle or reacting to an event that has happened within your company or industry.
Some business owners resist using PR because it is traditionally very difficult to track the success of a campaign in real, quantifiable terms. You can’t always know how many people have picked up the phone to call you because they read about you in a newspaper.
...but not as we know it
Digital PR takes a new approach: one that is less concerned with control and more with encouraging conversation. It uses sites like Facebook, YouTube and your blog to create stories that spread virally.
Ironically, although you have less control over how your story is perceived (as your readers will comment on it, link to it and take excerpts from it in a way that suits them), it’s a lot more trackable than a traditional campaign because you can follow the journey a reader takes from an excerpt on one site to the full post on your blog, to the homepage on your main site and finally to the contact form where a visit is converted to an enquiry.
