The traditional marketing and PR relationship within companies is changing and thank goodness it is. No longer is it such a master/servant relationship where PR sits as something on the side, whilst marketing owns the communications with the customer.
Inherently, marketing and PR people have different views and a complementary skill sets. PR teams traditionally understand how to talk to journalists and influence the national conversations, whilst marketing arguably seeks to communicate the commercial benefits of products to end consumers.
Some say that the marketing teams owns the direct customer communications and PR owns thought-leadership, but due to the explosion of digital and social, and the increasing number of channels there are for consumers to engage with; the focus should be less on which channel provides it, but how teams can work together to keep up with the insatiable demand for content out there, that is only on the increase.
Rather than worry about who owns what element of media the customer may engage with, brands today need to focus on building stronger, long-term customer engagement, rather than short-term customer acquisition and individual sales. With smartphone adoption continuing to rise, with an estimated 2 billion consumers worldwide owning a smartphone at the end of 2016, the 'connected' customer, empowered by social networks and their digital devices, is increasingly dictating what they want, when and where they want it.
So how can brands regain control? Enter the importance of Content - from marketing or PR or any other source who has a good understanding of the brand and its customer values. Brands that can deliver the right content, at the right time, to the right consumer, are more likely to win over a customer who is in turn likely to respond positively, want to shout about their experience and repeat!
So whilst companies may be slow at changing their internal structures, they need to catch up quickly, as the reality is, the customer doesn't care who within a company is talking to them - they just want engaging, exciting content that speaks personally to them and adds value.
To find out more about the changing digital landscape and how PR and Marketing can work together to more effectively engage their customers, book your place on the 1-day PR in the Digital Landscape course.
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