By Edward M. Bury, APR, MA (aka The PRDude)
As it has been noted in this space on a somewhat regular basis, the practice of public relations and strategic communications continues to evolve and expand at a somewhat extraordinary pace.
To repurpose a somewhat corny, somewhat antiquated phrase: “This ain’t your daddy’s kind of public relations anymore.”
To support the premise just noted, let me share some insight I gained by participating in three recent online activities.
Storytelling, in Five Easy Steps. The presenter shared this format for success in the relatively new modern communications known as storytelling: 1) Introduce interesting characters. 2) Present the challenge. 3) Highlight a turning point in the story. 4) Put a spotlight on what’s new. 5) Return to the purpose or focus of the story. Collectively, this process enhances trust and expands awareness for the message delivered through the news release. I mean by the communication shared. Okay, as part of the storytelling message.
Website Metrics Re-Examined. Key take-aways from this event included: a) Too often, those responsible for websites pay more attention to the number of visits, rather than whether any relevant action was taken. b) These days, bot traffic comprises 51% of website activity. c) Referral web traffic is declining because of — you guessed it — less human connections. d) Too often, those responsible for website design and management fail to what generates visits and what are priorities. e) Vanity metrics are, therefore, relatively meaningless. Hallelujah I say! Back in the day, a client placement in a major print publication was a mark of success, even if it was challenging or impossible to fully measure or justify the results.
LLM Defined. Full disclosure: When I registered for the online event in question here, I had no idea of the meaning of a Large Language Model. (Digging further, I learned there’s also a Generative Pre-Trained Transformer or GPT.) What I wrote in my notes taken during the presentation was that 60% of Google searchers today do not result in a click; furthermore, if AI is involved, 83% of searchers do not result in a click. Fascinating. And, now I add another acronym, make that two, to my glossary of what comprises modern communications
Some final thoughts on what I just shared. An ancient form of communication continues to evolve and thrive. Technology now provides the tools and resources needed to better measure whether a plan meets objectives. And, perhaps AI ain’t all that it’s cracked up to be.
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