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Flight to the Web
With over 100 million active internet users in the United States alone and 475 million active internet users globally, media outlets and businesses are flocking to the web to meet consumers online. Blogs and social networks are becoming more mainstream everyday (73% of internet users have read a blog and 57% have joined a social networking site*); thus, public relations and marketing efforts have to incorporate initiatives for this massive audience.
The way consumers get their news and communicate with each other is quickly adapting along with these technological advancements. The convenience of Google search and open source software has made it possible for companies and bloggers to become online publishers with the ability to target their content to specific audiences. These advancements also allow individual bloggers and companies to claim a position as an authority in their industry or area of expertise. Often specific sources of user-generated content are so informative and reliable that reporters use them as resources when researching their stories.
While this citizen journalism trend has been growing, print publications, television, and radio have been establishing their presence online in an effort to engage the ever-growing number of internet users. As a result of both consumers and reporters searching for news online, traditional media has been forced to evolve and to create online versions of their publications. Even radio and television outlets are exploring on-demand podcasts and internet television sites as a means of distribution.
Google, search engine optimization, and RSS feeds have also affected the distribution of press releases and multi-media news to journalists as well as online publications, websites, blogs, and social media sites.
With all this flux, how do businesses adapt their marketing and PR efforts to keep pace? There is a tremendous opportunity, despite the associated learning curve, for both large and small businesses to re-evaluate their marketing and public relations campaigns to assure that they engage the masses where they live – both in the real world and online.
The “How the Convergence of Media Online Affects Marketing and PR” panel at the Austin Open 4 Business conference will provide an opportunity to discuss these issues in some depth. For more information, visit http://www.austinopen4business.com/speakers.php
* Source: Universal McCann, “Wave 3 Global Research Report”
