It was fun to talk with Adam Torres of Mission Matters Media about how public relations is both serving and changing the way businesses interact with consumers.
Our B3Ps ("Big 3 Points") included:
Making the Case for Content Marketing Over Interruption-based, Legacy Communication Tactics
The way that consumers buy goods — whether it’s a new gadget, car, or large-scale industrial equipment — has changed drastically. Pre-pandemic, Americans were spending about five to seven hours a day on screens and received 15,000+ marketing messages a day. This has undoubtedly increased as we’ve spent more time physically distancing and working from home.
Essentially, we are marketing to a society of information hummingbirds. They land on a web page, “sip” information, then scroll away from content in a matter of seconds. Now when a person goes to make a purchase decision, it’s usually not because a sales person caught their attention. Instead, they’re seeking content on their own. If we can enable business owners to originate this content — not just advertisements, but educational materials buyers find useful — that’s where we can provide a lot of value through smart clean energy marketing.
Pay Attention To Near-future Developments In Clean Economy Communications
Cleantech has a unique vantage point, because we’re constantly bringing new technologies to renewable energy markets. There is an incredible influx of smarts and capital into the cleantech space, and we’re even seeing growing efforts to clean up hard-to-abate industries. But we can’t get away from the fact that all of this work is designed to address a global climate crisis that continues to accelerate at a faster pace than it can be fixed. We must scale these technologies much more quickly, and that will require more public relations firms to reject clients who have no plans to quit polluting.
Problems That Communicators Will Have To Solve As Current Trends Progress
- More seamlessly integrated technology in human outreach efforts. Some of these AI-based technologies are being used for nefarious purposes, like deep-fakes. But I hope to see these features also used to reach different audiences around the world in new ways. I don’t think the cleantech sector has put its head down to figure this out yet, but I foresee a lot of new space for innovation in renewable energy marketing plans and techniques.
- Further democratization of content creation. Now anyone can make content and make it well. There’s a trend towards organically generated, or at least organically appearing content. People want to feel an emotional resonance with the product they’re buying. That’s why I think there’s a big future in influencer campaigns, even in the B2B space.
You can listen to the full episode on Adam’s website, here.