originally posted to www.carnsight.com 

There are many aspects to PR, and its fast pace can make it all the more difficult to understand. But there are certain aspects within PR, and getting to grips with the definitions can help you better communicate with your PR agency. When you know what exactly you’re trying to achieve, and what aspects of PR can help you achieve this, it becomes much easier to set long-term goals and objectives.  

PR is all about managing communication. This means as times have changed and technology has developed, we’ve often found the landscape of PR changing to adapt to these different communication styles, leading to Traditional, Content and Digital. That doesn’t mean we have to dismiss the traditional methods, but it can be handy to know the PR updates and how you can implement this in your brand’s messaging.  

Traditional PR 

Traditional PR has always been around, and it’s become a long-established way to amplify a brand’s message. This uses print – such as newspapers, magazines and books – combined with press – such as TV and radio, to raise awareness for a company. This differs from the online networking that Digital PR focuses on, however that doesn’t mean it’s ineffective. In fact, combining Traditional and Digital PR can show great results in expanding your coverage.   

Content PR  

Content PR is a spin-off from content marketing, which uses social media to attract and retain a relationship with a brand’s audience. In the context of PR, this can include blogs and infographics to help build brand credibility and increase brand awareness. Whilst traditional press coverage is still very much important, the use of social media is increasingly gaining brand visibility, particularly for younger audiences. Content PR is therefore great for sending purposeful messages to your audience, but you need to consider your goals before deciding if social media is the best way to align with your objectives. And for more information on mastering success behind social media, you can check out Leigh-Ann’s blog on the importance of quality over quantity. 

Digital PR 

Digital PR also involves social media engagement, but the focus is mainly on boosting search engine rankings. This prioritises generating coverage and backlinks from websites with high domain authority, as well as maintaining that relationship with the brand’s audience. This all helps to improve a brand’s search engine optimisation (SEO), which increases organic traffic to the brand’s website, increasing its online visibility.  

This may also include an influencer partnership, where a brand uses the influencer’s audience to amplify their message, creating wider reach and higher engagement.  

Choosing the best PR strategy for your brand isn’t easy, but having more of an idea about the differences between traditional, content and digital PR can help inform you on what would work best for your audience. And if you’re stuck – that’s what we’re here for! Have a look at what we do to see how we can help you get noticed by the right audience, at the right time.  

About Carnsight Communications

At Carnsight Communications we create strategies and campaigns to showcase our clients’ brilliant work through PR, content and social media. We help them get noticed by the right audience, at the right time. We specialise in creative agency PR.