Exploring PR directions in the digital age
with Natanisha "Deedee" Sangkhasap, MD of Solister PR: PR work must be fast-paced; use of influencers will remain popular in 2023
- มกราคม 5, 2566
- 16:57 น.
“Doing PR in this day and age requires you to stay up-to-date almost 24/7 on all media channels including print, online and social media. PR teams need to constantly have discussions among team members about the current trends and how they should advise their clients.
This means that PR work has become more fast-paced and working in the PR industry has become much harder compared to the past,” said Natanisha “Deedee” Sangkhasap, Managing Director of Solister PR Company Limited, who has more than 20 years of experience in the PR industry.
Print media is still alive and well because fashion still needs print for image presentation
Commenting on the current situation in the media industry, Natanisha said it has to be acknowledged that print media has become less popular, but print is still important in the fashion industry as luxury fashion brands still need to present their content in the print form like magazines. This is largely because the requirement for image and product presentation in print media is part of the protocol of parent companies of fashion brands in other countries. Nevertheless, the use of print media like magazines varies for other types of businesses, depending on their goals.
Meanwhile, online media and social media have been immensely popular and will become even more popular over time, in line with the ever-changing consumer behaviors.
These days, clients prefer publishing content on Facebook and Instagram over publishing on websites, but Deedee would rather advise her clients to publish their content on websites as website content is like a representation of the company.
News articles and images relating to the company can still show up on search engines regardless of how much time has passed.
On the other hand, although Facebook and Instagram offer the advantage of being able to reach the audience instantaneously, it is possible for news and content to disappear from feeds of these social media platforms one day after they were published.
Using influencers and Key Opinion Leaders (KOLs) for PR remains popular
Deedee expects the use of influencers and KOLs for PR to continue to be popular in 2023 as some clients only use influencer marketing for PR. For example, most beauty brands barely spend their marketing budget on traditional media and prefer hiring beauty bloggers or KOLs to promote their products instead.
Nevertheless, Deedee thinks that traditional media like magazines and news agencies are still necessary for PR marketing, especially when it comes to building a brand image, which is very important.
Influencer and KOL marketing is useful for presenting the brand image and promoting the selling points and benefits of the product, making it easier for the brand to reach out to its target audience and achieve real credibility compared to other marketing approaches.
In this day and age, building a good image for a product and making people want to buy it is more important than reporting or presenting news and information about a product.
Video content will become more popular as people are less likely to read written messages
Commenting on media and consumer trends, Deedee says presenting content in a video format will gain more popularity and it is, therefore, very important to create content that will grab people’s attention.
Consumers are less likely to read written messages these days as they prefer convenience and speed.
For example, if we want to look up information to help make the decision to buy a car, we would not spend time extensively reading and studying information and would be more likely to watch car review videos or opt for a test-drive.
In addition, popular online media now prefer presenting their content in a video format and publishing their video content on their platform or outlet, allowing consumers to instantly watch the content online. This trend is in line with current consumer behaviors of watching less TV and preferring to consume only media types that capture their interests. Meanwhile, as PR people, we need to stay on top of all media types.
