Media Relations in the Digital Age Conference

SINGAPORE, April 16, 2011 (Press-News.org) The media and communications industry has embraced social media, and PR practitioners in many organisations are similarly jumping on the bandwagon, creating Facebook profiles and Twitter handles for their companies. Nonetheless, in a playing field that is getting more cluttered, communicators need to adopt new ways of differentiating themselves and making themselves seen and heard.

To stand out from the crowd, PR practitioners need to start creating content that adds value to their readers and viewers. Instead of one-way brand messages, the content that brands provide now needs to be informative, compelling, timely, and most importantly, relevant to their target audience. Simultaneously, by providing people with a platform on digital media to interact with the brand, it allows for greater engagement and brand resonance.

"By providing expertise and thought leadership, brands gain credibility and trust from communities as they position themselves as industry experts. Great content is critical and social media provides the channels which brands use to engage their audiences in conversation. Combining these elements helps to enhance a brand's reputation," says Andy Oliver, Senior Vice President of Lewis PR.

The shift of brand communications to digital platforms is not without risk, and the media industry has seen many examples of communications evolving into a full blown PR disaster with the help of social media. While most organisations already have a crisis plan in place, it is imperative, when brands venture into social media, that they also incorporate the digital element into their crisis plan. Such a preemptive provides organisations with an action course that will prevent the escalation of any issues into a major PR crisis.

Donald Steel, former Chief Communications Adviser of BBC, confirms this: "In this social media age, where news spreads round the world in a nanosecond, it is more important than ever that companies plan and prepare for a crisis. It's cheap and easy to do, with a little help. Without a crisis plan, an organisation is on the road to losing their reputation and their revenue when trouble hits."

Oliver and Steel, among other experts in the industry, will be addressing these issues and more in a conference held in Singapore and Hong Kong in July this year. Some of the key highlights of the conference include relationship building, media pitching, leveraging on opinion leaders, and measuring the ROI of media campaigns. These will be shared by Genevieve Hilton, Regional Head of External Communications of BASF, Carson Dalton, Head of Corporate Communications of BT Asia Pacific, James Hacking and Max Sim, VPs of BlueCurrent Group, Ian Brown, VP and Head of Communications for SAP Asia Pacific Japan, and Jon Wade, Head of Digital Practice, Asia Pacific of Weber Shandwick among others.

Conference Details:
Title: Media Relations in the Digital Age Conference
Date & Venue: 4 - 5 July 2011, Sheraton Towers, Singapore
7 - 8 July 2011, Regal Hongkong Hotel, Hong Kong

Organiser: Pacific Conferences
Contact Person: Ms Leah Katigbak
DID: 65 6372 2216
Email: leah@conferences.com.sg

For information, please go to http://www.conferences.com.sg/conf-smr9.htm

About Pacific Conferences
Pacific Conferences (www.conferences.com.sg) specialises in organising business conferences aimed at providing interactive, insightful information and analysis about issues facing businesses in Asia-Pacific. Catered to middle and upper level executives, its events are usually case studies driven with emphasis on providing in-depth and unbiased practical knowledge.