It’s always important to know and follow what’s going on in the Canadian PR community and what its leaders have to say. That is what brings me to the July 2 column in Marketing magazine, “PR agency leads should only follow on Twitter.”
I write this as president of Strategic Objectives and a self-proclaimed Twitter addict, to emphatically state that I consider Twitter to be a solid investment of my time, that of our agency, our clients and the PR community.
Ms. Webster opines that Twitter, “…lures those who often have a lot to say – and who are paid to have a lot of opinions (agency leads, for example) – into tweeting out quips, tips, and general industry spam that doesn’t always add a lot of value, but is meant to spotlight the person from whom it’s coming.”
This brings several questions to mind. Why should promoting ones’ clients preclude building the reputation of your PR agency? Isn’t the role of an agency lead to market their company’s services and expertise? Is there any reason an agency lead should not serve as a change agent to advance the PR industry? Are there other arbitrary platforms upon which agency leads should not tread when working to build their business?
Don’t get me wrong, Twitter can be very useful for blowing your own horn and, as an entrepreneur and business owner, I have found it to be a great tool for growing business. It has helped us generate new business leads, build a network of independent PR pros around the world, start new and meaningful conversations, and provides Strategic Objectives with the perfect platform to spread our clients’ good news – with full disclosure, on an ongoing basis. Twitter has allowed our independent Canadian PR agency to be recognized as a prime player on the global stage.
As a former journalist, now PR agency lead for some 30-plus years, I can assure you that we always place our clients’ best interests first when it comes to making news. But we also believe it’s important for PR professionals to learn and improve every day — one of Strategic Objectives’ core values — and to ensure we are providing our clients with best-in-class counsel, know-how, and service that is rooted in both theory AND practice.
I strongly believe in learning by doing, particularly in our hyper-connected social world where news, key influencers and crises can emerge and subside in a matter of minutes. You need to participate to learn how to effectively help your clients run memorable, award winning campaigns. In my opinion it is imperative that you practice what you preach.
How else can you perch on the cutting edge where award-winning strategies and tactics are born?
I also believe it is my responsibility as a PR leader to not only help grow the international PR community, but to help educate aspiring PR pros and industry veterans alike. That is why I serve as social media chair for Counselors Academy, the senior leadership division of PRSA (Public Relation Society of America), which is comprised of more than 300 agency owners and leads. As such, I create and manage the @caprsa Twitter stream, which our members find to be extremely useful for sharing the latest and greatest issues and opportunities involving our industry, as well as making new friends and building influential networks.
It is also why I make sure Strategic Objectives creates meaningful, educational content that helps grow our community and wealth of knowledge. We are active in delivering lectures and speeches at colleges and universities, and run an active paid intern program. We use our @SO_pr Twitter account to share this information and recruit new talent.
There is no question that Twitter, as part of our comprehensive marketing communications plan, has helped grow Strategic Objectives reputation, talent pool, client roster and bottom line. That, by definition, is the role of an agency lead. That is why I tweet, with no plans to stop any time soon.
You should too!
If you’re interested in learning how, here are my Top 10 Tips for How to Tweet like a PR Pro.
Deborah Weinstein is president of Strategic Objectives in Toronto. She can be followed on Twitter @debweinstein
