Renaissance for Financial Services Public Relations?

Is financial services public relations in the midst of a renaissance

? Perhaps. However, no one will argue with the fact that the discipline of financial services public relations has never been more important and might be surpassing another form of commercial persuasion, namely advertising, as a key weapon in the marketing arsenal.

What's changed? For one thing, our financial institutions are under siege and suffering from a crisis of trust (or is that a lack of trust?). For another, the growth of online activity, where personal recommendation and personal communication have become more important. And it's clearly editorial and it's clearly not advertising-based.

Practioners of Financial Services Public Relations possess a distinct advantage over their brethren in advertising. Rather than simply broadcasting positive messages, financial services public relations professionals help institutions create an ongoing dialogue with their audiences. The growth of blogs and social media have made this essential if today's financial institutions are to restore consumer confidence and trust.

The importance of two-way communications should never be underestimated. Through two-way communications, financial services public relations professionals can learn what is working and what isn't in real time. That's the benefit of real time feedback as opposed to conducting audience research studies, which can take weeks to complete and analyze. Through this so-called "spot feedback," an institution can modify its plans to address the critical needs of its various audiences. In addition, the mechanism of two-way communications can enable a financial services public relations practitioner to spot a problem and deal with it before it turns into a full-fledged crisis.

While public relations in general hasn't gone unscathed from the standpoint of budgets during these challenging economic times, crisis management has moved to the fore, particularly for financial services public relations professionals. Crisis communications is usually administered by the very highest levels of a company or institution and involves the reassurance of various constituencies from customers to shareholders to staffers, etc. It also involves the communication of a plan to remedy the situation.

Renaissance for Financial Services Public Relations?

By: Kevin Waddel

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