Brands have recognized the power of content to drive business goals for hundreds of years.

The 1700s found Benjamin Franklin publishing the annual Poor Richard’s Almanack to promote his printing business. In 1888, Johnson & Johnson launched several publications featuring helpful articles targeted to the medical community. Charles Scribner’s Sons published Scribner Magazine to offer readers a glimpse into the lives of its authors. It would go on to become a competitor of Harper’s Monthly and Atlantic Monthly.

These early content wins speak to the enduring value of storytelling as one of the oldest and most effective modes of brand communication. More than a century later, modern content marketing has grown into the strategic practice we know today. And delivering relevant, helpful, engaging content is a key marketing objective for brands in virtually every industry.

Today, brands can optimize their content marketing strategy with insights and expertise from a similarly impactful media practice with deep historical roots — public relations.

PR Solutions Support Content Marketing Strategy Goals

Today’s media landscape has grown more complicated than ever. Traditional reporters and media outlets are under tremendous pressure to deliver content that readers find valuable, interesting and worth clicking.

Public relations professionals identify stories that make an impact on reporters and other media gatekeepers, and resonate with relevant audiences. Public relations professionals are well-suited to help develop the content themes and stories to explore and promote across owned channels of communication.

Blending public relations and content marketing strategy makes for effective and engaging content. It aligns your social media, blog posts, e-newsletters, webinars and other digital marketing initiatives around the most compelling and engaging stories.

Put simply: Content marketing is the engine and PR solutions can drive it forward.

Using PR to Optimize B2C and B2B Initiatives

“Content marketing has a higher chance of success when a company has a plan around it.” —Forbes

An effective content marketing strategy constantly undergoes optimization, whether your target audience is consumers or other businesses. This process is called content strategy recalibration. It’s a way of dialing into what’s resonating with your audiences and what’s missing the mark.

If audiences aren’t engaging with your content, it may indicate a need to recalibrate your brand’s story themes. The public relations team can provide insights into how to bring your content strategy into better alignment with your audience’s needs and interests.

Aligning marketers and public relations practitioners optimizes more than just content strategy. It can also generate public relations wins. Turn trending stories on your owned channels into PR pitching opportunities. Amplify the story on earned channels, boost impressions and coverage, and activate business goals.

Ultimately, strategic communications is about the stories we tell and the audiences we engage. Public relations professionals and content marketers should work together to support the ongoing process of attracting, engaging and delighting prospects on the journey to purchase and beyond.

Communications Strategy Group (CSG®) blends the tenets of public relations and content marketing to achieve meaningful business results — find out how we can help you.