“We must also be willing to impress upon clients the agendas, or the simple realities, of the markets we are trying to reach on their behalf. What elements of their story must we have to effectively attract and retain the attention of the media we are targeting? What works? What doesn’t? How is the way the client wants to approach things more of a hindrance than a help to our efforts?”

You’re welcome. I enjoyed your clear and direct perspective on social media. Several times I have sat down with a company executive and they’ve posed a question along the lines of, what should we do with this “social media thing?” Should we have a blog, should we do this, should we do that?

My frank and honest counsel in this circumstance begins with the question, what tool or channel of communication will best reach your target audience? You must first understand who you are trying to reach and how they obtain their information before you can make an informed decision on how to incorporate social media tools into a marketing/PR program.

Maybe I’ll print out a copy of your blog post to keep in my back pocket for the next time that question comes up.

Cheers
Leo

I wholeheartedly agree – it’s the job of any good service provider to provide ‘frank and honest counsel’. Even more so when that counsel is painful to bear.

It is far too easy to reinforce the positives and provide a rosy perspective – but in most cases what businesses need is change. If the status quo were delivering the results they wanted then there would be no need to employ the services of a PR firm, or a content writer or a consultant of any ilk.

Our job must be to challenge and provide the best advice possible, even when it’s not a popular opinion. It’s good to see that reinforced here.

Thanks again for the nod – Mark