European PR Congress 2011 – The Role of PR in the Digital Age

The Role of PR in the Digital Age
Philip Sheldrake
www.philipsheldrake.com
@sheldrake
Author
The Business of Influence: Reframing Marketing and PR for the Digital Age
www.influenceprofessional.com
Founding Partner, Meanwhile
www.andmeanwhile.com
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Excellent public relations and effective organizations: A Study of Communication Management in Three Countries, Routledge, ISBN: 9780805818185
http://www.flickr.com/photos/philip_sheldrake/488820724
Let’s start with a conclusion:
Public Relations, as defined by the Excellence Study, has a very bright future.
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Public Relations – a management function that focuses on two-way communication and fostering of mutually beneficial relationships between an organization and its publics.

And a polemic:
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Public Relations practised as spin, as one-way, as just “media relations”, is dead.

You have been influenced when you think in a way you wouldn’t otherwise have thought, or do something you wouldn’t otherwise have done
The Business of Influence, Philip Sheldrake, Wiley, 2011
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If you’re in business, indeed any type of organization, then you’re in the business of influence
… marketing, advertising, public relations, internal communications, public affairs, customer service, customer relationship management, social media, copywriting and content, SEO, branding, branded apps and widgets, brand journalism …
… web design, graphic design, direct marketing, packaging, merchandising, promotion, publicity, events, sponsorship, sales and sales promotion, marketing and market research, product and service design and development …
… human resources, training and development, channel management, procurement and supplier management, facilities management …
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The authors of the Cluetrain Manifesto asserted back in 1999 that the Internet allows markets to revert to the days when a market was defined by people gathering and talking among themselves about buyer and seller reputation, product quality and prices.This was lost for a while as the scale of organizations and markets outstripped the facility for consumers to coalesce.
//The rise of social media
The Cluetrain Manifesto – http://www.cluetrain.com
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social / digital is not:– a new team or department– something to procure, design or manage separately
social / digital does:– require new skills– bring new opportunities, and threats
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An illustrated history
http://youtu.be/wp2eUSL4oHc
http://www.philipsheldrake.com/2011/01/content-an-illustrated-history
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Influence Strategy and Execution, Philip Sheldrake, Marketing Magnified eJournal, June 2011, CMO Council http://www.marketingmagnified.com/2011/june
Perception is reality
May have been a relevant axiom for 20th Century, but now…
Reality is perception
The real-time social enterprise must, by nature, be authentic.
You can’t fake it.
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We are more influenced by the 150 nearest to us than by the other six or so billion combined
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Align Your Stakeholder-Facing Functions with an Influence Strategy, Philip Sheldrake, Balanced Scorecard Report, July-August 2011, Vol 13 No 4, Harvard Business Publishing
No organization is an island
Everything an organization does occurs in the context of a changing world, in a dynamic interplay with every entity around it
Organizations must cultivate a sensitivity to the new dynamic (one that’s superior to competitors’) and sharpen their ability to interpret and respond to the myriad communication flows issuing from all sides
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Phones are the most personal of consumer electronic devices. They rank with keys and money when going out. They become an extension of their owner and their loss is mourned, literallyIt keeps you connected with those far away, and disengaged from strangers nearby
//The info tech explosion
- address book
- diary
- digital messenger
- web browser
- games machine
- music player
- video player
- navigator
- video & stills camera
... and, of course,
a phone
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The Internet of ThingsA public and private nervous system for the planet
Internetome Conference, London, 2010
Electronic devices(washing machines, air conditioning units and cars)Electrical devices(lighting, electric heaters, and power distribution)Non-electrical objects(food and drink packages, clothes, and animals)Environmental sensors(measuring such variables as temperature, noise, moisture)
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Data paucity was a problem of the 20th Century.Big data is the problem and opportunity of the 21st.
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Web 3.0 – the Semantic Web – is about the Web itself understanding the meaning of all the content and participation.
Indeed, the Web becomes a universal medium for the exchange of data, information and knowledge.
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The social enterprise
//The Business of Influence
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Socializing the enterprise demands more than just procuring some social tools. It demands a CEO-led organizational redesign.
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It demands a new and simple model, devoid of ‘baggage’, to think about what we’re trying to achieve.
A framework for all influence activities, for the social media, info tech and business strategy of the 21st Century.

The Six Influence Flows
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The Influence Scorecard
How can we systematically learn from and manage influence flows?
How do we define, develop, and execute a consistent and coherent influence strategy?
How do we prioritize investments in influence-related human, information, and organizational capital?
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Kaplan and Norton’s strategy map tool and Balanced Scorecard framework are well suited to these efforts.

The Influence Scorecard /2
The Influence Scorecard serves as both the methodology for defining influence strategy and the tool for executing it.
It’s a subset of the Balanced Scorecard, containing all the influence-related objectives and metrics extracted from their functional silos.
Helps management ensure that the potential to influence and be influenced is exploited cohesively and consistently throughout the organization.
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In conclusion
Today, influence activities are:
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– Spread, uncoordinated, across functional silos
– Encompass only some aspects and subsets of the Six Influence Flows and the Influence Scorecard
– Defined in the context of 20th Century technology, media, and articulation of and appreciation for business strategy

In conclusion
Tomorrow, your influence strategy must:
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– Socialize the enterprise, systematically
– Take best advantage of new info technologies
– Drive business performance management

Excellent public relations and effective organizations: A Study of Communication Management in Three Countries, Routledge, ISBN: 9780805818185
In conclusion:
Public Relations, as defined by the Excellence Study, has a very bright future.
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Public Relations professionals have the right expertise at the right time to help lead this transition; to help socialize the enterprise.

The Business of Influence: Reframing Marketing and PR for the Digital AgePhilip Sheldrake, Wiley, May 2011ISBN 978-0470978627www.influenceprofessional.com#infpro
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European PR Congress 2011 – The Role of PR in the Digital Age

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