For some reason, PR has been attacked lately. I put it out of my mind until yesterday, when, while sitting in a meeting, I realized that PR being dead is old news. Its marketing’s death thats the new(er) scoop. With that I backtracked and read PR is Dead: Was I Supposed to Care on Todd Defren’s blog. In it, he references Hubspot’s Marketing Blog Post ‘Is PR Dead?’.

I can say it: back in the day (circa 2004) I thought I was built for PR. I quickly learned that, being that I detest cold calling and seemingly dirty reciprocal relationships I, in fact, was not. But now, does PR matter – no, we all know that. PR is as relevant as the paper its printed on, those which we no longer read. True, stories pitched may end up online, but with the social web, spun webs are very easily cut. Such brand recognition can be built via real people and experiences, which are just – if no more so – powerful than print in big media.

In steps the next on the way to slaughter: marketing. Marketing:  ‘the commercial processes involved in promoting and selling and distributing a product or service’ is seemingly dead too. On its own. No longer can any tactic: PR/Advertising/Marketing, be utilized in a vacuum. Integrated communication, which was once seen as ‘huh?’ by my colleauges is now, whether defined as such or not, the way ‘marketing/pr/advertising’ is living.

Marketing is an old hat. It thrived on one way communication and being all about what the company wanted to say to get what they needed. Now, integrated marketing communication and social networking strategies are opening what used to be a dirty business into a hopeful and honest give and take. Companies can (well, should) learn from what is said about them and their products and make changes. No longer is this novel or a ‘cool thing’ to do. Its commonplace and expected. To not have such makes a company seem outdated or uptight, possibly hiding something.

And who can be loyal to that?