Digital marketing and PR have long been competing forces in business. In traditional work environments, digital marketing and advertising worked in one area while public relations worked separately in another.
In the marketing team’s office, they were busy collecting data, building out sales and leads, researching new channels to test, and ensuring they were visible to both repeat customers and new ones.
In the PR office, time went toward media relations and getting the message out as wide as possible - getting the client mentioned in large media publications while monitoring overall sentiment and staying current on any industry news that might affect it.
That separation made sense in the 20th century and even into the early to mid-2000s. The goals were entirely different for each team - why would a radio segment impact the data being gathered on a paid search campaign? Nowadays, though, customers bounce from mobile phone to TV to desktop and back again. The hyper-connected nature of modern consumers and their buying habits means PR efforts land in marketing numbers, and marketing data shapes PR communications. The two have never been more closely tied.
Setting up your PR agency to measure its efforts alongside marketing is a priority for many businesses, and both fields are working more closely together than ever.
The Data Doesn’t Lie
A 2016 study by the Pew Research Center focused on how people used social media and how it, along with communications from friends and family, impacted their buying habits. A couple of the most interesting points:
- 79% of all adult Americans use Facebook
- 76% of those visit the site daily
Similarly, a study by Nielsen found that:
“92 percent of consumers around the world say they trust earned media, such as recommendations from friends and family, above all other forms of advertising”
The modern consumer landscape is entirely different than when digital marketing and PR teams worked in total isolation. The silos that prevent these teams from communicating effectively are removable - and worth removing.
Joining the Teams
How do you get these teams working effectively together? Start by acknowledging that one team’s work will impact the other’s, and that the age-old barriers separating them need to come down.
Speaking from my experience consulting and working with PR agencies on marketing and analytics, this means a kickoff call at the start and weekly or bi-weekly check-ins to share data and insights. Maybe I’m running a paid social campaign and notice a large uptick in a specific geographic region sharing posts, or a big increase in referral traffic from lesser-known news outlets covering a developing story. Maybe the PR agency is anticipating a dip in online sentiment due to some recent product updates and wants to get ahead of it with targeted ads. Sharing that kind of information back and forth has helped both sides be proactive instead of reactive - and has genuinely improved results on both ends.
For PR firms looking to increase online visibility through digital marketing practices, there are several things you can start implementing today:
- Implement proper URL tracking. If you’re sending a link to your client’s website to various publications as part of a new story or campaign, add UTM parameters so you can accurately filter and measure impact in Google Analytics.
- Use keywords with actual search volume. Make sure your websites and articles show up for terms people are genuinely searching for. That means including them in page content, H1 and H2 headings, title tags, and backlink text from off-site links.
- Reinforce your PR message in paid channels. For those willing to try paid campaigns, I’ve found it’s the best tool to help PR agencies reinforce their message. Before spending a cent, verify your tracking and Facebook Pixel are working. Set up a retargeting audience so you can re-engage people who’ve already visited through your ads. Then start small - test in specific geographic regions or among a narrow set of interests before scaling. Don’t throw money at something until you know it’s working for your defined goals.
What’s Next in Digital Marketing & PR
Business changes constantly, and digital marketing and PR are no exception. Breaking down the barriers that prevent cross-functional teamwork - and borrowing processes from each other - lets both teams amplify messages neither could carry as well alone.
The answer to a PR question very well might exist in marketing’s Analytics data. The answer to a marketing question I have might exist in past consumer engagement or sentiment analysis. Working together, each team makes the other more effective.
Interested in working together? Reach out via the contact form on my homepage.