CHANGES IN THE COMMUNICATIONS MARKET

At the start of this century, traditional media still held a monopoly, and that worked well then for clients and communications firms. Google existed in the lab but had yet to hit our radar. Terms like “search engine optimization” and “sentiment analysis” meant little. In this world, who you knew was often as important as what you knew.

Change over the past decade has been rapid and disruptive, allowing all of us in communications to rethink how we bring value to our clients. While we still place great value on who we know, we place increasing value on what we know about technology’s disruptive impacts on communications. And what we know must constantly expand as new media technology tools show up every day. Change is constant.

The accelerated pace of technology innovation and data analytics and the multitude of diverse information channels require a different client strategy and a different service model. Laptops, tablets, smartphones and advanced data analytics have allowed organizations and individuals to raise money for their causes, motivate like-minded individuals and build name recognition for their brands and causes, both online and in traditional media.

For reputational challenges and advocacy initiatives, communications practitioners now face a two-headed monster — traditional media and online media like Facebook, Twitter, SnapChat, YouTube, Reddit, and Instagram. With hundreds of communication channels, you have to be an expert in all aspects of digital technologies, including having a complete understanding of how search engine optimization really works. You also have to be able to measure the impact of online communications and understand the dynamic tension between traditional media and online.

We always strive to work with the smartest people, and this virtual agency includes top talent — senior level people doing your complex and critically important work.