Target Feedback: How Social Media Can Trump the Rest

The introduction of social media as a viable tool in public relations has forced pros to adapt to writing for the web. In her article “Writing a PR Plan to Incorporate Social Media,” Mary White does an outstanding job of highlighting the most essential differences in writing for online. White notes that public relations writing in the past focused on having your information “outbounded” to traditional mediums like newspapers and magazines. Writing for a social media campaign facilitates information directly to your targets on your social media pages like company websites, Facebook pages, Twitter accounts, etc.

White highlights that the most significant and important aspect of a social media campaign is the ability for the target audience to give direct feedback about the company’s product, service, etc. White writes, “Simply having a presence in social media outlets is not sufficient. You need to actively participate them [the audience].”

Public Relations is often defined as a means of two way communication between a company and their targets. However, traditional means of public relations often don’t allow for necessary feedback, or rather, communication, from your audience. While using traditional media sources, like newspapers, is a means of reaching your target, the feedback you will receive from the audience is minimal. One would need to read an article, and then go out of their way to contact a company about their responses. Articles, posts, links, etc. that are displayed on social media websites for a company usually have an option attached for reader commentary. This accessibility will often prompt most readers to give his/her response to the announcement. The heavy amount of feedback is without a doubt a strong component in future decision making.

 In a suffering economy, every company needs to be able to hear the wants and needs from their targets directly. I believe that social media often offers a duel pro for companies: It is often more cost effective than traditional media forms and offers an opportunity for audiences to give more direct and specific feedback.