There is no doubt that social media has made the world a smaller place.  By now most of us have incorporated Facebook, YouTube and Twitter into the fabric of our daily lives and changed the way we communicate with others.   However, no event has demonstrated the extraordinary power of social media quite like the recent earthquake in Haiti.  Suddenly Twitter is no longer just a fun way of socializing, but has become a critical tool in saving countless lives in the aftermath of the disaster.   As we speak, thousands of people are tweeting about Haiti, spreading the word, building support and disseminating important and timely information to those who need it around the world.  There are currently about 100 tweets a minute being posted about Haiti, and it is estimated that there have been more than 150,000 tweets about the Red Cross, helping to raise over $20 million for the charity’s Haiti relief effort.

Although social media has been used as a platform in emergency situations in the past, it has never had this much success in actually making a difference where it matters most.  Relief organizations seem to be harnessing Twitter more effectively than before, applying it in conjunction with other mediums to boost fundraising and spread awareness far and wide in a very short time.  Volunteers working in the disaster zone are using Twitter to share information with each other and coordinate their relief efforts to ensure that they are responding in the most effective way possible. 

Traditional media outlets are also using Twitter to disseminate news quickly and easily.  Early this morning a Toronto Star reporter tweeted in the middle of a 6.1 aftershock that she felt a tremor but had run outside and was safe.  As news of the second earthquake broke, Twitter temporarily crashed due to the high volume of tweets trying to get through.  News programmes were actually reading tweets from Haiti live on-air to give viewers the latest information about the aftershock.  Phone lines in Haiti are down and even text messages are taking up to 2 days to get through, therefore social media is stepping in where telecommunication is failing. 

Although people are still relying on traditional media to get their information about Haiti, they are using Twitter to react to the situation, share their feelings, and seek solace with people in the Internet community.  For the first time after a natural disaster of this magnitude, Twitter is allowing followers to witness events as they unfold through the eyes of those who are in the centre of the action.  Not only can people share in the pain of Haitians as they struggle to come to terms with what has happened, but they can also share joy in the wonderful stories of hope and survival that are emerging from the rubble. 

Some aid workers argue that immediacy is not the same as impact, and they worry that technology is actually having a negative effect on the Haiti relief effort by distracting people from the magnitude of the disaster.  Charities are concerned that social media users will have forgotten about Haiti in a few days and will turn their attention to another fad topic, when it may take years before Haitians fully recover from the disaster. 

While this may or may not be true, the point is that Twitter has started the conversation about Haiti and people are talking about it more than ever before.  Social media has allowed people to connect over this disaster on a global scale, and it has revolutionized the way we can help those who need it the most.  Imagine the possibilities if Twitter had existed during 9/11 or Hurricane Katrina.  Twitter is saving lives in Haiti because it is giving people a medium to come together and show how much they care.  While the earthquake is a terrible tragedy, it may make people finally sit up and take notice of this impoverished country and force the world to take steps to make a difference in Haiti, not just now, but in the years to come. 

Starting your PR Plan

When is the right time to start a PR Plan?

The answer is NOW. It doesn't matter if you are "Joe's Bike Shop" or a multi-national conglomerate - almost every business has a story to tell. It is never too early to start a PR Plan. 

If you realize that there are things you don't know about your industry - take the time to learn. Also, once you embark on a PR Plan, make sure you read the newspaper every day. Don't forget about your industry trade magazines as well. 

Many daily newspapers and trade publications have clipping services available that allow you to view the news headlines and stories that only you are interested in. You can sign up on-line for this service at the publication's web site, as it is important to stay informed. You can also set up search criteria in "Google News". This is a great way to stay on top of news coverage in your industry as well as what news coverage your competitors are enjoying. 

Who do I target with my PR Plan?

First, decide who makes up your target audience. This would include your customers, investors (if you have any) and usually your local community. Now, find out what publications they read and what radio and television stations they prefer. If your target demographic is the stay-at-home mom between the ages of 29-45, you may want to target lifestyle magazines, fashion magazines, parenting magazines, home and lifestyle shows, the Oprah show and parenting sections of the local and national newspaper. The list could be more extensive depending on what you are selling. 

If you are in a particular industry, such as technology, you would want to target technology publications that write about your product or service, technology sections of the local and national newspapers, major magazines about technology and the various technology reporters for the news programming and specialty shows (Tech TV).

You would also want to target trade shows, either for display or speaking opportunities, as well as conferences if you can present an interesting topic that is relevant to the conference. Local Boards of Trade/Commerce are also good places to approach.

Where do I start?

For some reason, there's a misconception that the way to get publicity is to write a catchy press/media release and then send it out to thousands of editors. 

Under this perception, the more editors you get on your list, the higher your probability of success. 

While this may occasionally be true, in most cases, PR is not about scattering your message to anyone and everyone; it's about carefully seeding your pitches to the right people, the people who control the media you most want exposure in, with specialty pitches designed just for them. In other words, it's all about relationships.

In sales, there are many strategies that stress the idea of collaborating with the customer. Since PR is arguably a sales process (selling the media on covering your story instead of someone else's), PR success rates increase considerably with your ability to collaborate with your customer - in this case, the editors, journalists, and producers who control access to the media audience you are trying to reach.

These gatekeepers are more likely to choose to cover your story if you develop a relationship with them and work to understand their needs. This means knowing their editorial deadlines or production schedules, being highly responsive, getting interviews with the right people and providing the right information at the right time.

How do I start a PR Program?

Begin by outlining the steps you need to take to get the media interested in what you are doing. 

Put together a calendar and plot the times of year that your business has the best chance of finding its way into the news (story lines). For example, the start of the holiday season in November/December is a great time to be featured in industry news stories about on-line shopping. The close of a financial year is a good time to pitch a story about "Tax Tips" or "How to Claim Expenses". 

Decide what type of newsworthy angles you could add in to get the journalists' attention. In short, create a document of "Top Stories" and plan the timing for distribution.

Think about how you can make it easier for journalists to contact you and how they can have easier access to what your company has done in the past to generate exposure. Almost every major company has a media room section on their web site. Build your own media room, complete with a media release section in chronological order and post the name, full street address, phone numbers, and e-mail address of your company. 

You will find that making this information easily available to the media is a huge benefit when you send out future media releases since it gives them a resource to do a little bit of research before they contact you. 

Become the voice of your company, and have reporters come to you for your analysis and interpretation of trends within the marketplace. It is easier than you think it is. Most media professionals are overworked and on a deadline. You can be a go-to expert just by being available and providing relevant comments and opinions.

Once you implement this strategy, you are likely to find your name mentioned on various web sites and in magazines that you hadn't even thought to target with company news. Sure, there are times when your media releases get less exposure than you'd like, but that's the nature of the business. More than anything else, you will learn to be flexible if you are going to stay ahead of the game. It may mean having to adjust your strategy in a year, or even after six months, to make it more effective. 

Ah. the story idea, the lifeblood of PR companies. But as PR professionals we are paid (in part) to dig deep for those ideas that the media will find interesting and newsworthy. 

What do small businesses do to find those ideas? Here are a few things you can do to find the story idea that is "fit to print".

Firstly, remember that timing is everything in this game so scan the newspapers every morning to look for ideas that might work for you. 

When you find a story of interest, make a note of the writer of the story as well as their contact information. Add this to your database along with a few points about the story. 

Scan the papers with a few things in mind and try to come with something we call "a story angle".

Look for a story angle that might be applicable to the Industry you are in, or a regulatory angle, political, cultural etc :

A potential story line for an on-line back up service might be a regulatory angle - since there are requirements for certain types of businesses to maintain records for a certain period of time. If information is lost then you run up against these regulatory issues. 

Use that information to write a letter to the editor or craft a media release or conduct a media pitch.

As you are building these ideas (and it is an ongoing process) think about your target audience. If you are scanning one of the major dailies - you may take that idea and pitch the local paper as it may be challenging for a small business to get the attention of the major newspapers.