Paid media budgets for PR? 

I get it though, earned media is supposed to be “earned” but consumer attention today is at a premium. I don’t know how many times I’ve heard, “Oh, I’m on the PR team. We don’t do paid media. That’s marketing.” This is frustrating on many levels. But it’s mainly the opportunity cost of not thinking outside the traditional “I only do earned media” PR box.

I’m not talking about hiring a media agency and spending thousands of dollars a month with programmatic ad buying. That’s marketing’s job When in reality, having a paid media budget for PR is now table stakes.  All it takes is making smart, strategic and highly targeted paid media buys that ensures your content is reaching the right audience, at the right time and in the right channel. Not ads, but stories … earned coverage, owned content, thought leadership and employee content.

The important thing to remember about paid media is that it is predictable. Unlike earned media where you cannot control the outcome, with paid media you know exactly what you will receive based on what you were spending. That’s why I paid media budget for public relations is critical so that teams can amplify earned coverage using paid search, paid social, and even display advertising if it makes sense. Repetitive, consistent, and surround sound storytelling is critical to achieving and maintaining brand relevance.

At least I think so. Agree, disagree? If you don’t agree I would love to understand why you don’t think paid media budgets for PR is necessary.

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