Public Relations uses digital and social media in many types and formats, but we can summarize some of the most typical ones. These - as well as being the most prominent - have proven to be the most effective. Here are some examples of the use of digital and social media:

Electronic Newsletters and Digital Publications

The production of printed publications is often expensive, especially when we print in color on quality paper. It also takes time, often adding several weeks to production schedules. On the other hand, digital publications are quicker and cheaper to produce, and can also have a greater impact.

As an example, electronic newsletters have become a common form of communication. For employees, communities, customers and other stakeholders, they are often more convenient than physical copies. Similarly, companies can design and distribute reports, brochures and information sheets as digital documents. In this way, updates and corrections are quick and less expensive compared to printed formats.

Websites

Almost every organization has a website, but they are not necessarily informative or user-friendly. This is because the customer experience is usually left solely in the hands of the IT department. This is a flawed practice, because even though building the "back end" of websites - creating databases to store information and programming - is the responsibility of the IT team, they may lack the knowledge needed to develop a user-friendly website.

PR and communications professionals and companies need to be involved in the planning and creation of their organization's website. In this way, they can ensure that it is tailored to the needs of their customers. stakeholders and the public. It should also be accessible and easy to use. In addition, the content should be more than just text. Websites can involve videosThe most effective way to capture attention is with photos, sound files (speeches), graphics and even animations.

Intranets and extranets

Additional tools for organizations in the "digital world" are features such as special websites. These have password-restricted access to provide specialized information to internal stakeholders. If these stakeholders are employees, then we are talking about an intranet, if they are external stakeholders - such as distributors or retailers - this is an extranet.

The IT department can only provide the technical infrastructure for these networks, with PR and marketing specialists having a say in the user experience.

The organization can rely on marketing, communications and PR to create and update content that is relevant and interesting to the target audience.