Best Practices web site for Bloggers and PR Practitioners.

A 2007 study fielded by APCO Worldwide and the Council of Public Relations Firms (Council), revealed a disconnect between bloggers and public relations professionals when it comes to communicating with one another. While a majority of public relations professionals believed they are doing a good job in its outreach to bloggers, most bloggers disagreed.

As part of a concentrated effort to bridge that gap, APCO and the Council launched a Web site, www.bloggersandpr.com that will promote best practices. Features of the site include:

– An open call for survey questions for the 2008 version on the study, which will once again examine the working relationship between bloggers and public relations professionals
– A wiki which will allow people to edit/comment on “Communication Best Practices”
– Full results from the first study
– White paper, “State of Blog Relations”

“While bloggers and PR executives share a working relationship, the study revealed misunderstandings, as well as areas of similar beliefs and aspirations such as the importance of transparency, and the overall impact and influence of blogs,” said David Wescott, vice president, APCO Online and social media consultant.

APCO and the Council developed this groundbreaking study to determine how public relations professionals and bloggers can improve their working relationships. According to the results of the study, just over half (52 percent), of public relations executives surveyed agreed with the statement, “Our firm does a good job identifying the specific interests of individual bloggers and sending them relevant information.” Nearly two-thirds (65 percent), of bloggers surveyed disagreed with the statement, “PR firms do a good job identifying the specific interests of individual bloggers and sending them relevant information.”

“Considering the gaps in understanding between the two groups, there appears to be fertile ground for further study; there is clearly room for improvement in the communications taking place,” said Matt Shaw, vice president, Council of Public Relations Firms. “We view this as a great opportunity to bring bloggers and PR professionals together to collectively determine best practices for communication and outreach.”

“The role of bloggers within the media spectrum, including the field’s guidelines and rules, is still developing. This poses challenges for professional communicators who may want to apply the same methodologies used in traditional media relations to a medium that is not yet ready, or willing, to embrace the same labels and expectations,” said Evan Kraus, senior vice president and director, APCO Online.

Questions in the study covered the issue of treating bloggers like ‘traditional’ journalists, concerns about compensation for posts, the methods of outreach and feelings about transparency.

The Council sent the survey on the subject of blogger outreach to its 100-plus member firms; 55 senior executives responded. APCO developed a list of top-tier bloggers based on industry-standard ranking tools (like Technorati), and asked the bloggers the same questions. More than 90 percent of the bloggers in the study spend at least 10 hours per week blogging, and 15 percent describe themselves as “full-time bloggers.” To read the five tips for blogger outreach and more findings from the study go to http://www.bloggersandpr.com.