PR
emerges as a ‘Marketing Essential’ During the New Normal writes Vedaxari Joshi,
Founder, All ‘Bout Communication
Nano Influencers may get more attention from the brands than before the Lockdown.
In the last few years, we have already seen that PR agencies are going beyond their traditional roles of keeping brands in news and have started supporting the clients in creating more consumer engagement programs.
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Vedaxari Joshi, Founder, All ‘Bout Communication |
While
we are amidst a Global Pandemic and would wake up to ‘The New Normal’, brands
can be classified into three broad categories:
Highly Impacted Sectors (those who have hit a complete standstill and may have
a long-term impact due to COVID 19) E.g. Travel & Tourism Industry
Temporarily Impacted Sectors (has a temporary impact but may evolve to fit
customer’s needs as per the new normal) E.g. Beauty or Make Up Industry
sectors that found an opportunity amidst threats (which includes brands that
finally found their opportunity to create a consumer base and leverage the
current pandemic to modify consumer behaviour in their favour) E.g. Video
Conferencing Platform Zoom or TikTok that saw a substantial rise in user base.
the other hand, media landscape too has seen a transformation where print media
continued to keep readers informed and entertained in PDF formats, while
strengthening their digital handles and presence to ensure credible and
verified news reaches the readers. Digital platforms and influencers have been
playing a vital role as opinion leaders in their respective areas of expertise
and have been noticed by a more widespread audience than before. While most
businesses have experienced a temporary or long-term revenue hit, it is obvious
that marketing budgets have also seen downsizing which would mean either the
available media and influencer may become cheaper to retain their customers or
brands will shift to cheaper media vehicles or platforms. Nano Influencers may
get more attention from the brands than before the Lockdown.
the last few years, we have already seen that PR agencies are going beyond
their traditional roles of keeping brands in news and have started supporting
the clients in creating more consumer engagement programs. PR firms have
always been the front liners of marketing where they are constantly in
touch with opinion leaders and influencers which gives them insight on how they
plan their content and what makes a good story for their audience. Staying
alert and being intuitive is a part of the DNA of an effective PR agency and
handling or averting media crisis is something PR firms thrive on. Therefore,
during exceptional circumstances like the one we are in right now, PR firms are
playing a vital role for their clients irrespective of the business category
they belong to. PR firms are ensuring that during the lockdown their clients
keep the audience engaged while staying in news for all the good reasons,
transit to the new normal seamlessly and responsibly with relevant strategies,
downsize budgets with minimum impact on consumer engagement/interaction and if
their client’s business is relevant during the lockdown, ensure that the
consumers continue to use the services even in the New Normal.
(Vedaxari Joshi is the founder of All ‘Bout Communication. Views expressed in the article are of the author.)