by Sarah Ryther Francom
Utah business magazine

“Public relations will never be the same as before social media,” said Brian Watkins, public relations manager of social media at Omniture. Watkins spoke to Utah Technology Council (UTC) members about how public relations professionals can utilize social media in their communication strategies.

Watkins said that social media is becoming the way to communicate with customers, noting that the key difference between social media and traditional forms of PR communication methods is that social media is interactive. “Social media allows anyone to participate in a conversation, and the conversation is in real time,” Watkins said. “Your customers can reach out to you and you can reach them.”

Watkins said that many companies are reluctant to utilize social media, with the main concerns being time constraints, fear of giving the customer too much authority and legal implications, among others. But those companies are missing out on reaching many customers, Watkins said. “Participating in [social media] will increase your visibility, increase your customer loyalty, will give you the ability to watch your customer’s behaviors and then allow you to respond fast. [Social media] is also a lot cheaper than a focus group,” he said.

To the companies that are participating in social media, Watkins advises to do so with a strategic plan. “Everyone has this attitude of ‘Hey, we should be doing that.’ I think it’s really important that you be strategic about whatever you do. Don’t just do it to do it. Use [social media] as a strategic tool,” he said.

Before hopping on the social media bandwagon, Watkins said that each company should begin with an assessment. “Find out where your customers are. Are they blogging? Are they on Twitter?” he asked. Next, Watkins said to write up a detailed strategy and make sure that you’re using the right social media platform.

Once your company begins participating in social media, whether through a blog, MySpace, etc., Watkins said that it’s vital to be authentic. “You must be yourself. Customers can see right through fakeness.” He added that companies must be prepared to receive negative feedback, be prepared to fix customer-related problems and have a code of conduct. It is also important, Watkins said, to designate one individual who will watch and evaluate the content, whether on the company’s site (like a company blog) or on an independent site (like a customer’s blog).

To be successful, Watkins maintains that companies should respond to customer queries and complaints, and respond quickly to any potentially damaging comments. “You should respond to anything that could be harmful to your company within three hours,” he said.

Watkins also said that companies should not be reluctant to participate in another company’s (or an individual’s) blog, Website, etc. For example, while many companies hesitate to provide a link to another company’s Website, doing so can actually benefit your company, Watkins said. “The whole point of social media is to establish a community. If you link to them, they’ll link to you and you’ll see more customers on your site.”

All-in-all, Watkins said that PR professionals should remember that traditional PR rules apply in social media, but PR professionals must also acknowledge that the communication arena has significantly changed. “The whole point of social media is that it’s an individual talking to another individual. It’s not a faceless organization broadcasting content to its customer. It’s not targeting anymore, you’re having a conversation.”