What is Digital PR and Why is it So Important for Business?

Ever watched a vlogger rave about a new skin-care product they’re using? Or read about a new brand on your favourite blog? That’s digital PR in a nutshell. Digital PR involves reaching out to online journalists, bloggers and social influencers to share your insight, talk about your product and increase your online presence. The aim? To gain high-quality backlinks to your website, and increase your site’s traffic and search engine visibility. We’re here to break down the details of digital PR, find out why it’s different from traditional PR methods and show you how to get your content out there and measure its success.

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Traditional PR vs Digital PR: What’s the Difference?

In simple terms, traditional PR focuses on print media and press releases, while digital PR is about online presence and data-led approaches to accurately measure success.

Traditional PR also differs in the way contacts are approached. Generally, traditional PR firms look at readership and viewer ratings in order to decide which platforms to contact. While this gives a good idea of the source’s demographic, it can be difficult to measure how successful your efforts have been and how many people have been referred to your brand as a result.

That’s where digital PR comes in. Digital PR experts analyse readership data and domain authority to target current trends and sell their brand to the right groups on the right channels. While digital PR specialists approach site owners and influencers in a similar way to traditional PR firms, they have the advantage of more creative and varied content. Rather than sticking to short press releases, digital PR experts can play with video content and images, too.

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How to Sell Your Content

In the world of digital PR, ‘sell’ is a loose term. Much like traditional PR methods, the idea is to build a strong relationship between the brand and the owner of the digital platform in order to get them to showcase your product or allow you to share your insight. But it isn’t as hard as it sounds.

Firstly, turn up the social. Follow influencers on multiple platforms and make sure to post your own regular content too. Media influencers are more likely to respond if they recognise your brand, even if you’re a start-up or SME. Throw them a shoutout on Twitter, Instagram or Facebook and at the very least, you’re on their radar.

Secondly, know your stuff! If your content is highly researched and your data is accurate, site owners will be far more likely to take up your offer. Remember: you’ve got to give the journalist some incentive to promote your content. If you’ve got convincing evidence that you can increase their traffic, you’re ten times more likely to attract them. Use Google Trends and consult other sources to ensure your data is up-to-date and relevant.

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How to Measure Digital PR

Measuring the success of digital PR depends on your objectives. Some clients ask for more brand awareness, while others want increased sales or website traffic. Broadly speaking, links are the key factor in measuring success in all areas. Digital PR specialists need to analyse the number of links back to their website, as well as the quality and relevance of these links. For example, achieving links on websites with high domain authorities is good evidence of success, and even better if you rank higher on Google as a result. Increased website traffic is another good example of a successful digital PR campaign.

We may have only scratched the surface of digital PR, but with these rules in mind, you can start to grow your brand awareness, increase traffic to your site and build relationships with leading online journalists and media influencers.

Author Bio: This guest post was written by Issie Hawker who works as a Content Writer at The Click Hub. As an independent digital marketing agency, they specialise in all areas of Search and Social. Based in Exeter and London, they produce highly effective digital PR and marketing campaigns for a wide range of brands.

About the author

Dan Wiseman

Founder & director of Web Wise. He writes about web design, marketing, entrepreneurship, investing and games. Dan regularly speaks on these subjects and is available for coaching and consultancy.

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