“Economy” has been the buzz word in public relations of late, as industry professionals attempt to understand exactly how the current climate will affect client relationships, as well as the media landscape. The current situation has created a new demand for PR expertise in the realm of digital communications.

According to Jerry Swerling, director of Public Relations studies at the University of Southern California’s Annenberg School for Communication, current conditions provide the opportunity as well as the catalyst for growth, particularly in the field of digital communications. As major corporations make cutbacks in their communications budgets, they will turn increasingly to social media as a tool that provides more bang for their buck. Swerling believes that control of digital communications is very much up for grabs and available for the taking by the public relations industry.

A recent PRWeek survey found that marketers overwhelmingly agreed that they “would be ‘most likely’ to cut from many other disciplines before digital if forced to scale back budgets.” Executives from Kellogg Co. have gone so far as to announce that by their calculations, “digital media trounces television by a factor of 2.” 

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