Most large organisations have a story to tell and need effective communications to share their news and information.
Before the internet became ubiquitous, media releases and traditional advertising were the normal ways to communicate.
Daily newspapers, morning radio and nightly TV news all had huge audiences. Today, the media landscape is much more crowded and fragmented.
Traditional media can still be influential in breaking news and using social media to promote their digital channels, but they can’t be relied on to tell an organisation’s story.
That’s up to the organisation themselves.
Sporting codes were among the first to do this, with the Australian Football League creating controversy when they employed journalists and started their own “news” website. The controversy has now largely abated and others have copied the AFL’s approach.
As a former local government reporter, I was tasked by my editor in the late 1980s to return from a council meeting with at least three lead stories, five secondary yarns, a pic/story and a dozen briefs.
That type of comprehensive reporting told the full story of what was happening in the local government but is rarely seen in today’s media, where journalist numbers have diminished and the focus is more on generating hits and online subscribers.
Each organisation will implement an effective communications strategy according to their scope, mission, reach and motive.
However, it will inevitably involve publishing their own content on websites, social media and e-newsletters.
The organisation’s story is then accessible to all without filtering. Of course, to be effective and trusted it must be truthful. And media may access the same information, repurpose it and publish to their own audiences.
It’s a win-win scenario.
The media release still has a place, but in many cases will never be printed in a newspaper or broadcast on radio. Its life will begin online before growing across blogs, media and social media.
Every organisation which interacts with the public should have a news platform that’s engaging, regularly maintained and populated with interesting content.
That’s the genesis of effective communications.
- See also: Effective speech writing