All companies want great press. Helen Woodward, the first female advertising executive in the U.S., once famously said, “Advertising is what you pay for; publicity is what you pray for.”
Advertising and PR are two important tools in a company’s marketing strategy for promoting products and services.
Previously, the two functions remained fairly separate in most organizations. PR pros worked together to pitch their next big headline, while the advertising team worked on (what I always joked) the more fun and creative projects. However, in today’s business environment, companies can no longer afford to keep these teams divided. Not only do they end up working towards different campaign goals that might not fulfill the eventual business objectives, losing valuable time and money in the process, they also lose the opportunity to tell one story with the biggest impact, with one voice.
Agencies that fail to integrate advertising and PR will lose out to more nimble companies with a wider array of talent and a more thorough understanding of marketing best practices. A large majority of successful marketing strategies today involve an integrated marketing communications plan to give the best possible results. GoPro is a great example of what this approach can achieve: thanks to an ingenious marketing strategy combining advertising, relevant sponsorships and endorsements, SEO, and social media, the company has fostered loyal brand engagement (and over six million subscribers on YouTube!) by leveraging engaging user-generated content. In the past three years alone, GoPro’s marketing efforts have consolidated its position as one of the fastest growing camera companies in the world.
So what do marketers need to think about and do differently to truly drive measurable business results?
As companies start to place more focus on making smart strategic investments and increasingly demand that those decisions be backed by data, marketers must go further than simply placing banner ads or envisioning dream headlines. Ad equivalency and media impressions certainly aren’t enough to measure PR’s impact on the bottom line, but neither are website visits and social engagements. Even lead generation is only a part of the whole story. Agencies need to rethink their strategy and align their tactics to hit the client’s true business objectives.
Some argue that PR’s traditional goal of building relationships with stakeholders is incompatible with marketing’s focus on sales. I would say that marketing and PR both need to be at the strategy table, as they need to complement each other to truly enhance and expand a company. If they work together to determine what’s most important to their clients or company, both PR and marketing execs have a better chance of developing a successful communications strategy to increase brand awareness, drive word-of-mouth advertising, and generate sales.
A 2017 campaign by Marmite is a perfect example of this. As part of the strategy to raise brand awareness and increase sales, Marmite launched a “Love it or hate it” campaign spanning from traditional TV advertisements to app creations, social media, and even launching saliva-testing kits intended to allow users to find out whether they are genetically ‘lovers’ or ‘haters’ of Marmite. This campaign was wildly successful – uplift in awareness quadrupled from 3 per cent to 12 per cent, while consideration for the product shot up more than fivefold, from 4 per cent to 21 per cent. Mostly importantly, sales increased by 11 per cent, making it one of Marmite’s most successful campaigns yet.
I am firm believer – and I think PR practitioners would agree – that no matter what team we’re on, we should never stop seeking ways to add value for our clients. Trying to think more like marketers is one of the most effective ways that the PR industry can reinforce its relevance in today’s fast-moving economy. The rising integration of advertising and PR in-house and in companies is proof that a thriving relationship between the two is the best way to provide value and exceed business goals.
At the end of the day, depending on the company’s needs, having an integrated marketing approach can be a highly valuable way for many companies to increase brand exposure and customer loyalty, but neither PR nor advertising can replace the other altogether. Marketers need to look at the bigger picture and focus on reaching business objectives by quantifying success with real metrics and conversions (with whatever marketing tactics they deploy). That means connecting with your customers holistically, wherever they happen to be.
This article was also published on Telum Media.
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