Visibility vs. Credibility
Hey there gentle readers. For this week’s topic, I want to address a shift that I see happening in the marketplace and how it relates to marketing & communications professionals and our work. Simply put, there are many ways to make a company visible or increase its visibility with a given audience. Adidas Zx pas cher Some of them are:
- Advertising (Online, pay per click or social, TV, radio, print)
- Direct Mail
- Social Media
- PR (specifically media relations)
All arrows in the marketing quiver have pros and cons, but in my experience, public relations, involving the media in telling the story of a particular client delivers more than just visibility. PR delivers credibility and trust. It’s not perfect, “yes we WILL follow you right off of that steep cliff” or “sure, we’ll drink this without knowing what’s in it” type of trust. But it’s trust. Christian Louboutin Pas Cher Probably the best a brand can get these days. Here’s a couple of questions to think about: If a brand gets a story in the news, but it’s negative, you can score high for visibility, but actually you’d be better off if you did nothing rather than pursue this particular coverage. chaussure tn pour homme PR sometimes has risks involved. asics gel lyte 3 If a publication runs an awards program, but then makes participants/clients pay a fee to even be considered (ahem, New Bay Media with its new “Best of Show” NAMM Awards), without proper disclosure to the audience, is it really an award that’s worth anything to the brand? If it’s presented as “these are the best products of the show” but it’s actually a list of paid sponsors, will it work? And can you sense the backlash coming when the truth comes out? The reason you do PR is “trust transference.” Taking the trust the individual feels from a particular media outlet and transferring it to your brand or your story. And when it works, there is nothing more powerful in the arsenal.