Why PR’s Shouldn’t Fear Change

PR is an ever-changing industry – probably the reason many professionals get into the career. If you’re on the hunt for daily change, excitement and newness, then PR is the world for you. But just how much are PR professionals willing to accept change?

One area that has become more and more intertwined with PR, is social media. The advent of social media and the online world has made many industries re-think the way they conduct and strategize campaigns for their organizations, PR being one of them. The issue is that many PR professionals are very traditional and set in their ways, not very willing to accept change.

This needs to stop. The world is ever-changing and the social world is changing by the second. While change can be scary, it is also exciting. The web has created numerous ways in which messages can be communicated, consumers can be reached and PR campaign can be disseminated.  What is tough is staying on top of the changes and being willing to accept change.

A great example of an organization that might not be as willing to change with the times is Timothy’s Coffees of the World. The Toronto Star recently reported (here: http://tinyurl.com/7x7khzf) about a Facebook promotion that Timothy’s conducted which quickly spun out of control. Put simply, Timothy’s asked Facebook followers to “Like” them on Facebook and the company would send fans four free 24 pack boxes of single serve coffee. This was an incredible deal, and one of the first problems is that Timothy’s underestimated how many people would actually sign up. In the current social web, we have to be prepared for anything and everything.

Timothy’s also accidentally sent an email to all of the Facebook users who “liked” them saying the coffee was on its way when it really wasn’t. Clearly this was a technical glitch; however the handling of this situation, especially in the social web, was not thought through. It took Timothy’s one month to post an apology video. PR professionals have to change their line of thinking to understand that social media is instantaneous and therefore needs to be addressed immediately. Like the Toronto Star article says, days and weeks are not acceptable. It is great that organizations are willing to change and let social media into their strategy, but if they are not willing to learn and keep current with the changes, then campaigns are not going to be as successful as they could be.

The issue surrounding Timothy’s Coffees of the World this week is a great example of how imperative it is that public relations professionals change with the times, especially when dealing with social media. While it might seem like a daunting task trying to take on an understanding of the social web, it is more and more becoming an essential component of staying on top of the public relations industry.