I can’t tell you how many times I’ve heard the phrase, “PR is changing.” As much as that phrase makes me cringe, I think B2C and B2B professionals alike can agree that PR is ever-changing. This list of Ten Trends Affecting PR Professionals in 2010 sums up the trends that PR pros are likely to see this year (thanks to Crenshaw Communications for putting this list together).

Here’s a quick list of my takeaways:

1. Social media will drastically change public relations in 2010—so be prepared and be educated about the many ways you can use social media.
2. Reputations will be fragile and harder to control. With social media increasing, everyone will have a say in brand management. And, with this, crisis communications preparation will be more important than ever.
3. The way people get information will change. Therefore, the way PR pros reach their target audiences will change. We need to get information to our audiences where they are looking for it.

In the end, the PR pros that embrace these trends and adapt to them will come out on top in 2010.

What do you think? How do you see PR changing in 2010?

Is it just me or has the activity on Twitter slowed down? Perhaps people have run out of compelling things to say in 140 characters or less.

I mostly follow folks in the marketing and PR industry and I’ve gained a lot of insight from quite a few of them. Then, there are those that initially held some interest for me, but now their tweets consist of where and with whom they’re off to lunch today or something about their cats.

It’s like people are compelled to Tweet at least five times a day, and it’s to the point that they’ll just say anything.

Frankly, I don’t have time for 140-character musings about date night. And, I find so much more value in other social media.

So, I’ve decided to cleanse my Twitter account and streamline it to follow only the Tweeps that really deliver valuable content to my day. I know, I know many of you may say Twitter should be a mix of personal and professional, but for me I’m going all pro from here on out. And, if that makes me a Twitter snob, then so be it.

Let the cleansing begin! What about you? Are you seeing the value of Twitter diminish over time?

Right now, it seems the only constant in PR is change. The reporter you were pitching yesterday, no longer has a job today; the trade pub you’ve targeted for 10 years just shut its doors; and, yet another social media site appeared overnight.

B2B companies need to operate under a new model of communications, but many aren’t quite sure how or what this means. In the simplest terms, we can’t just build PR programs to push out information, we must use PR to be found by those seeking information.

Below are a few ideas to adapt your PR programs to this change and deliver value in 2010.

1. Make search marketing and SEO part of PR
2. Create your own original, branded content (great content travels at the “speed of share”)
3. Use social media as a program, not a one-off tactic
4. Focus measurement on business outcomes, not impressions

Moving forward, we need to be flexible with our PR programs and be open to new ideas. But, we can’t ignore the traditional programs that have been the basis of PR for years. Ultimately, we simply have more jobs to do now.

How do you see PR changing?

Dear Twitter,

Where do I begin? Life is so different since you came into the world.

I can now interface with brands and get immediate responses to my questions, comments and complaints. I can vent about annoyances and find others who share the same pet peeves. I can tell the world about the awesome service I received, the smokin’ deal I found at a shoe store or a fascinating article I read online.

And, as a B2B marketer, I can listen to and participate in conversations that are relevant to my clients’ industries and use the information to enhance their strategic marketing campaigns.

But Twitter, why haven’t YOU changed? Why are you still asking the same stale question that causes many to mock you? “What are you doing?” does not do justice to the wonderful information you can provide.

“What are you doing?” can lead to Tweets about what people have eaten for lunch and potentially even more mundane information about their day.

It’s time for a change, Twitter. How about asking something more thought provoking? I’ve prepared a list of suggestions for you to consider:

“What’s on your mind?”

“What’s new?”

“What do you think?”

Thanks for listening; I’ll talk to you soon!

xoxoxo

Tena