Five Steps to Build Relationships with Bloggers

Lisa Lundy, Ph.D., University of Florida

Partnerships with bloggers are an attractive strategy for PR professionals because they offer detailed reporting and a type of third-party credibility akin to journalism. Blogs influence consumers' purchasing decisions and, interestingly, consumers say that smaller communities are more influential than larger communities.

Blogger relations offer organizations potential for two important types of social capital: bridging and bonding. Individuals within a community can share and develop resources together, but they can also share and develop resources with other individuals outside their community. To build these relationships, communicators need to provide the bloggers with rich descriptions and authentic material. Read more.

Six Ways Employer Branding Can Improve Internal Communication

Marlene Neill, Ph.D., Baylor University

PR professionals tend to be less involved in employee recruitment and orientation, important stages at which employees are first introduced to the organization's core values and ethics policies. However, as strong writers and storytellers, PR leaders should have a leading role in communicating the brand's story.

Promoting a company or organization's core values is being hailed as a competitive advantage as part of a movement in the marketing and human resources fields called employer branding. Employer branding programs improve employee engagement by focusing on developing an intellectual and emotional buy-in among employees to the point where they are committed to their employers, reflect the brand's values and become brand champions. Read more.

Updating the Generic/Specific Theory of International Public Relations: Two Factors to Consider When Practicing in New Markets 

K ara Alaimo, Ph.D., Hofstra University  

Local expectations of organizations differ dramatically in countries and cultures throughout the world. PR practitioners must understand who is influential in a particular society. For example, in the U.S., the traditional media generates much of the content that trends on Twitter. By contrast, in China, the press is not considered trustworthy, so the public follows influencers for reliable information on social media.

 

Noted scholar Dr. Jim Grunig. outlined five dimensions to consider when practicing PR in a new country or culture. These are: political-economic systems, cultures, extent of activism, levels of development, and media systems. But now, there are two additional factors to consider when practicing in new markets: social expectations and local influencers. Read more.