Ostensibly, a Chinwag meeting about PR Online is simply not my bag, but an interface appears to be forming (think Star Trek) between PR and Blogging exemplified by the use of conversation space on blogs (posts and comments) to communicate and respond to messages. And it was fascinating stuff!
Anyone who has seen my recent posts on my business site about the unfinished conversation economy and landing pages are opening conversations will have noted my ongoing obsession with the idea of new media as a conversational thing rather than a cleverly coded object that allows us poor mortals to ‘interact’ with it. This PR chaps have got this with a vengeance and are inventing some great terms like ‘conversational communities’ and ‘blogger relations’.
From a Tipping Point point of view, its about the PR community finding where the conversational communities are and who is the most influential within that community - named connectors by Gladwell - and conversing there.
Manipulative? For sure. Good for consumers? For sure too. Since Dell opened up to consumers after the Dell Hell and batteries debacle Market Sentinel describes that Dell users are voting for XP to be an option on new machines, alongside Vista. Dell have actioned this, this conversation has been resolved so they get an XP option. Would this have happened without this conversation? Like hell it would.
Better and less conversationally opinionated notes than mine are available at Neville Hobsons blog. Neville was part of a panel that included Jacqui White, Online Communications Director, Edelman UK; Stephanie Bonnet, Director, Burson-Marsteller London; and Mark Rogers, CEO, Market Sentinel, with Mike Butcher as chair. An excellent and well informed panel all at the top of their game.
It’s a shame there wasn’t more time to talk about Twitter, that bizarre new 140 character comms. Tim Hoang from Rainier PR asked whether it was important or not for online PR? Or is it a ‘finished conversation’? I guess we need to talk about it …
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