In Chapter 7, "Survival of the Publicists," we stated that PR practitioners, who adhere to may find themselves in a new career in the restaurant service industry. As a recovering publicist, I wrote those words without joy. We advocated that communications practitioners need to now listen and respond rather than command and control.
We interviewed a bunch of top-notch PR pros like Shel Holtz, Neville Hobson and Richard Edelman, who talked about how they had adapted their professions because of blogging. Some disagreed with us on just how disruptive blogging is, but not as strongly as we had thought they would.
Since completing Naked Conversations, we've talked to other top level PR agency folk and they quietly acknowledge that they are in what is gently called a transformative stage.
In retrospect, Chapter 7 would have been a stronger if we had ended it with a list of specific ways that agencies and corporate communications departments can change. We should have tried addressing:
- What does the PR agency of the future look like?
- How does PR improve its tainted image?
- What specific tactics should be abandoned.
- What new tactics should be installed?
- If the press release is dead, what replaces it?
- If PR operatives need to transition from gate-keepers to facilitators, how is this implemented?
Please give me your thoughts.
