It’s a bit sad to see how print news outlets are suffering. Since the first of the year some of the most well-known and respected newspaper mastheads have either ended print editions (Rocky Mountain News, Seattle Post-Intelligencer) or have filed for bankrupcy like the Minneapolis Star-Tribune. Others, like the Boston Globe and Miami Herald, are bleeding money. Even the venerable San Francisco Chronicle is in serious trouble.

In many instances all that remains or may remain is the online version of print newspapers. We’re not only becoming consumers of online news–watch out CNN, you may be next!–but also ”unmassed”  news consumers. Mobile devices and platforms instantaneously push just the news we want. And mass media’s coveted role as unbiased third-party endorser is being taken over by social media: online communities are respected and trusted not because they’re right, but simply because they represent shared interests and values.

What does this hold for the future of publicity as an important PR tool? It’s doubtful that all newspapers and print publications will go away, nor will they be removed from the marketing communication mix. The situation has created an opportunity for traditional print reporters to broaden their practice of journalism; many now tap into the online space as bloggers. PR professionals are no longer just pitching content and racking up media impressions, we’re building relationships and engagement with targeted influential online journalists and bloggers. We’re facilitating and when appropriate, transparently participating in social media conversations. We’re being forced to re-think media relations, and that’s good, powerful and more effective for the brands we represent.

At its heart, PR has always been about exchanging information, a sort of conversation, that builds links to an organization’s stakeholders. I believe, too, that PR is the most effective communication discipline for managing how a brand is received and perceived. PR plays in a brand’s “environmental” space; at best, evoking emotion that builds trust and drives behavior.

Instead of longing for the good old days when a mass message delivered via a few channels did the trick, we need to meet stakeholders where they live with messages crafted for their particular interest. And in the case of social media, simply standing up and waving the brand flag doesn’t get the job done. Yes, we must still deliver information. But now as never before we have communication channels that allow engagement, real conversation, influence. Once upon a time, PR hung its hat on the credibility of news media as a disinterested third-party influencer. Scary to hand over a brand to consumers, but few opinions are more credible than those from whom we consider peers and influencers among our peer group.

Unmassed media–especially social media–present an opportunity for the closest thing to face-to-face communication and conversation with all those who hold a brand’s life in their hands. Does that make our job easier? Definitely not. Does it require more thought, strategy and management? Certainly. Does it require more of an investment than a simple news release, a compelling press kit, hours of pitch calls or an attention-getting event? Most definitely. But the potential return on that investment far outstrips any from papering the universe with nothing but mass messages and hoping that some stick.

AskPatty.com and Tire Review have teamed up to help tire dealers build stronger relationships with women.  AskPatty.com is an automotive advice website for women and Tire Review is the leading B-to-B magazine for the North American tire industry.  Together, they have rolled out a program to help retailers with their sales and marketing skills to become “Certified Female Friendly.”  The complete package for tire retailers is extensive.  Here are a few of the perks:

• Ongoing training and certification
• Private labeled co-branded AskPatty website
• Premier listing in AskPatty.com Certified Tire Dealer search engine

To view more information on the complete package you can visit AMN.  The multi-step program will be administered through webinars and interactive online programs.  This will allow the tire dealer to have as many employees attend as possible.

I’m thrilled to hear the industry is making strides to improve relationships with women.  It’s no longer enough to have clean floors and a nice showroom. Women need to feel confident and comfortable by feeling well informed.

And, to throw in a PSA—be a responsible driver!  Your tires are the only thing between you and the road. Check your tire pressure and tire tread.  Underinflated tires are an enormous hazzard and can cost you big at the pump!

Policy makers and the public alike are questioning whether “What’s good for General Motors is good for the U.S.A.,” attributed to 1950s GM president Charles Wilson. The 2009 Edelman Trust Barometer, the 10th such study conducted among “informed publics ages 25 to 64 in 20 countries” bears this out (www.edelman.com/trust).

Some interesting findings from this year’s study:

• Globally, 62% of the respondants said they trust corporations less than last year; the “most profound fall from grace for business” has been in the U.S.–a stunning 77% said they have less confidence in business
• Interestingly, people in “social model governments” such as the Netherlands and Sweden have the highest levels of trust in business–and those levels of trust rose in 2009
• Counter to conventional wisdom, lower trust in business was not offset by higher trust in government
• The most-trusted companies are headquartered in Sweden, Germany and Canada; the least trusted, in China and Russia with the U.S. falling squarely in the middle
• The most trusted businesses: technology and biotech/life sciences; the least: insurance and media companies. In the U.S., banks and auto makers were least trusted
• CEO-as-spokesperson credibility hit a new low; ”an academic or expert in that company’s industry or issues” overtook “people like me” as the most credible spokespeople in 2009
• Respondants said both businesses and governments are responsible for causing global issues such as the credit crisis, energy costs, access to affordable healthcare and global warming, but that government should lead the search for solutions

The study measured for the first time how trust directly impacts a company’s bottom line, via the actions consumers take depending on their level of trust. Trust is also connected to a company’s “license to operate,”  in consumer support for preferential treatment regarding laws, tax breaks, employment policies or environmental impact.

The path ahead? As former WalMart president and CEO H. Lee Scott, Jr. said before the National Retail Federation, “Do special interests refuse to yield on any part of their agenda , regardless of the common good? Or do we come together–government, NGOs and business–in a new approach to solving the big problems facing our country?”

Don’t get me wrong. We and the client were beyond thrilled when the launch of Greenies Pill Pockets attracted the attention of Good Morning America, Martha Stewart, Parade magazine, the San Francisco Examiner and hundreds of other print and broadcast media. A fair number of the 73 million people who potentially read, listened to or viewed the story did perhaps visit their veterinarian or hustle to the nearest pet store. We couldn’t really say; impressions simply told us our output was impressive.

Think about how we consume news. Who reads every article on every page of the local paper? Every inch of online stories? Or every feature in a magazine? I’m a huge fan of Brian Williams and the NBC Nightly News—when I’m home to watch it—but I can’t say that I don’t, from time to time, tune out when I tune in.

That’s where impressions alone fail as a worthy measure of a PR campaign. Ink and airtime output do not equal brand-advancing outcomes: an increase in sales, a bump in website traffic, a behavioral change or other strategic, measurable objective.

PR can be one of the most effective—and cost-effective—tools in the marketing mix. Those unfamiliar with strategic public relations (and there shouldn’t be any other sort) believe it’s mostly about creating “buzz” and amassing impressions. What’s much more meaningful is PR that understands the customer and their environment: where they “live” and what motivates or drives them to take action. PR that contributes to the bottom line is more worthy and desirable than mountains of ink.

There are so many reasons beyond the 11 in this blog to engage in social media, but the biggest one on everyone’s mind is cost-efficiency. However, I believe you have to be very careful with your approach.  If you think you’re going to be able to control a social arena, then you are sadly mistaken.  You must listen to your target.  Find out where they are in the blogosphere.  Be completely transparent and do not pretend to be something you’re not.  If you can do this properly and provide your target with information they are looking for and not just a product pitch, then, most likely, you will be successful.