The Awareness Scale: How Social Media, Pr & Advertising Now Work Together

Since we’ve been pitted against all sorts of different marketing agencies lately — from PR firms to interactive shops to megalithic advertising agencies — I’ve been thinking about the interplay of these disciplines.

How can we help the average corporate marketer distinguish between these puzzle pieces, since Social Media has created such a mash-up of our thinking?

Thus the Awareness Scale. It’s a simple way of thinking about how Social Media, Public Relations and Advertising fit together in an ideal way.

Smart brands are coming to understand that Social Media is an ongoing behavior change that pays homage to grassroots communications: it’s a splendid scary mix of monitoring, communications, customer support and evangelism. Newly-minted consumer evangelists can provide a bulwark against criticism and better yet, can gin up a wave of goodwill for new products and services.

And what better foundation for a rock-star Public Relations program? The public approbation found via Social Media engagement softens the beach head for a mainstream media outreach program. Approving articles in the mainstream are picked up and shared by a brand’s fans, effectively “giving proof” to their belief in the company.

That’s where Advertising comes in: advertising can play defense. Don’t take that the wrong way. Ask any sports fan — “Defense” makes or breaks a team’s performance. As a form of earned (i.e., paid-for) media, Advertising is great for capturing attention that reinforces the consumers’ perception of the brand. This makes it 10X harder for start-ups to capture mindshare.

This is the Awareness Scale. It’s a mountain all great brands are learning to climb.

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Continue reading here: Social Media In Corporations: Pros & Cons Of Organizational Models

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