If you haven’t noticed already, content marketing has seen a steady increase in popularity in recent years. And, there is a good reason for that. Conventional forms of marketing, the ones you might call “in your face” tactics, can’t cut it anymore. Therefore, content marketing is skyrocketing like never before!
More people are investing their advertising budgets in blogs and social media. In fact, they are forgoing the more traditional forms of marketing. Why? Because, in the word of modern technology, where the latest scoop is just a few clicks away, people value knowledge and information. And that is the main selling point of content marketing.
Yet, this change of pace in marketing forms leaves public relations in a peculiar state of limbo. The typical path of advertising put much emphasis on PR in the past. What’s more, advertising and public relations went hand in hand. However, marketers that consider content to be the king, often neglect public relations. They do so for different reasons. Some don’t see the benefits of writing a story and then getting the media to cover it. Furthermore, others understand the appeal but don’t know how to achieve that. Finally, some marketers wrongly believe that public relations and content marketing shouldn’t be mixed, but rather kept as separate categories.
The dynamic relationship between Yin and Yang
However, that couldn’t be farther from the truth. When it comes to advertising, public relations are equally as important as content marketing. What’s more, they should go hand in hand. Just like Yin and Yang.
The ancient Chinese philosophy tales say that Yin and Yang are seemingly opposing forces. They are in a constant dynamic relation. They work better as a whole than as separate entities. This duality is a focal point of change and progress. The opposite forces work in such a way so as to create equilibrium. If disturbed or separated, they are thrown out of balance.
The situation with PR and content marketing is very similar. The equilibrium between those two advertising forms brings a much-needed balance to your business. Yin and Yang are described to be integral, correlated, and reciprocal. PR and content marketing should have the same dynamics. At the end of the day, you need to utilize both for a successful promotional strategy.
Integral: necessary to make a whole complete; essential and fundamental
Public relations are, in fact, very akin to content marketing. That’s precisely why you shouldn’t look at them as separate entities. Media relations use the news, press releases, and other forms of media to publish features that focus on a specific company and its products. And, when you think about it, that is very similar to content marketing. What’s the essential difference? Who is publishing the work?
When you’re putting out information about your business, it’s important to remember to utilize both PR and content marketing, each to their extent. You should use them in conjunction. However, choose your battles wisely. For example, PR is more credible. What’s more, you should probably take that route when announcing something big. Publishing big news on your blog isn’t the best way to get the attention you seek. Furthermore, strategic media relations move will spread the word around and attract more visitors, leads, and customers. Thus, it will perfectly complement your marketing strategy.
Like we mentioned before, Yin and Yan work best in conjunction. They are stronger when connected, rather than being apart. The same goes for media relations and content marketing. Content marketers know how to use their ability to tell a remarkable tale to engage their audience. That is the essence of content marketing. On the other hand, media relations has the task of distributing those stories to a broad and diverse audience. They do so by using contacts with media houses and independent journalists. Therefore, the connection between the two is as clear as day – they work best in unison.
When combined, PR and content marketing can work wonders. How? Well, first the content marketers compile great stories. Then, the media professionals handle them so that they could reach big audiences. Media professionals know all about spinning a story. Therefore, they will surely boost your content so that it gets the attention you need.
On the other hand, content affects PR, as well. It’s a kind of a “scratch my back, and I’ll scratch yours” situation. The better the content you produce, the easier it will be to get media coverage. Excellent content marketers are a dream come true for PR experts. After all, a good story isn’t hard to sell. Their job is to convey amazing stories and give the worldwide audience an opportunity to see them. Therefore, excellent content makes their job that much smoother. Furthermore, if your content is unique, there is a chance that the media relation experts you reach out to for PR already know who you are and what you do.
Reciprocal: an equal binding of two parties
When you really think about it, everyone is a content writer. Everyone who is producing any kind of content is a content creator. The posts on your blog, social media, etc., as well as other publishings like ebooks – all of that is content. So, if everybody is creating content, you might be pressed to see why media relations are that important. You might even be wondering – what’s the point?
The fact that content marketing and content creation are on the rise is the exact reason why PR is crucial today. That is especially true since the two rely upon each other.
The whole point of marketing is visibility. You want the right people, i.e. prospective clients and customers to be aware of you and your business. If you can’t accomplish that, it means that your target audience isn’t seeing your content. In short, if that’s the case, don’t bother even publishing your content. However, how will you achieve visibility in the seemingly never-ending sea of content that’s flooding the internet? That’s precisely where PR takes charge. PR can guarantee the visibility and the attention your material needs and deserves.
So, like Yin and Yang, public relations and content marketing create an equilibrium. They work well on their own, but the best results are only possible if you combine their powers. They work better together – PR needs excellent content, while content won’t be seen without proper coverage and fantastic PR. Therefore, make sure to make PR an integral part of your content marketing strategy.
