PR and Content Marketing: How Can They Work Together?

PR and content marketing are two separate concepts, but they can also be highly complementary. The truth is that many brands have great content marketing strategies that they use for their campaigns, yet many of them don’t know how to incorporate that content into their PR efforts.

On the other hand, some companies are great at PR but tend to overlook content marketing and fail to see how it can support their overall PR strategy.

And that’s a significant missed opportunity. A strong PR initiative can become much more valuable when it’s supported by the right content. At the same time, great content can reach a much wider audience when PR is used to amplify it.

So, in this article, we’ll look at what PR is, what content marketing is, and how the two can come together to create a powerful combination.

What Exactly Is PR?

According to Dictionary.com, PR is defined as:

“The action of corporation, store, government, individual etc in promoting goodwill between itself and the public, the community, employees, customers etc.”

So, essentially, PR is about building a positive image and maintaining strong relationships between a business and its various audiences.

There is an important distinction here, though. PR isn’t simply another form of advertising. Its goal isn’t necessarily to sell you a product right there and then. Instead, it focuses more on shaping how people perceive a company and building relationships and trust with customers, the media, the public, and other stakeholders connected to the business.

But how is this actually done?

There are many ways:

1. Press releases covering events or developments that may be relevant to the public.
2. Digital channels, such as a company website, that can help strengthen the company’s public image.
3. Corporate social responsibility initiatives with environmental or humanitarian goals.
4. Events, partnerships, and participation in important industry activities.
5. Communication with journalists, websites, and other media outlets that may cover the company.
6. More broadly, anything that helps strengthen the reputation of and trust in a company or brand.

As we can see, PR is an important area for any business. Having a strong PR team that knows how to create a positive image and build a solid reputation can be incredibly valuable.

Because, at the end of the day, brand reputation has real value.

Two companies may sell almost exactly the same product at roughly the same price, yet consumers may trust one significantly more than the other. That trust isn’t always created through advertising. It develops over time through what people hear about the company, where they see it, the initiatives it takes part in, how it communicates, and ultimately the overall image it has built around its name.

Unfortunately, many small and medium-sized businesses don’t pay much attention to PR, perhaps because they simply don’t have the resources to maintain a dedicated PR department. Still, it’s something worth investing in whenever possible.

And it doesn’t necessarily require a huge budget. Even a small local business can make some smart PR moves.

What Is Content Marketing?

Content marketing is another digital marketing strategy, and it revolves around creating content.

Content marketing activities can include:

1. Articles
2. Infographics
3. Videos for different platforms
4. Quizzes
5. Images and graphics
6. Guides
7. Podcasts
8. Social media content
9. Research and reports

And much more.

However, there is an important distinction to make here as well. Something doesn’t automatically become content marketing just because it includes an image or some text.

The idea behind content marketing is to create something that provides value to the audience you’re trying to reach. It might inform them, educate them, entertain them, or help them solve a problem.

And, of course, all of this should ultimately contribute to a broader marketing objective.

Content marketing is considered one of the most effective marketing tactics because it can connect directly with the needs and psychology of the user. A simple example makes this easier to understand.

Let’s say you sell smartphones.

You decide to start a YouTube channel where you upload videos about the phones you sell. But instead of simply posting ads saying, “Buy this phone,” you take a different approach.

You create reviews, compare different smartphones, test their cameras, explain which phone is best for different budgets, and answer common questions people might have before making a purchase.

Someone who watches a well-made video like this gets genuine value from how helpful and informative it is.

You’re already one step ahead of much of your competition.

And there’s something else that matters here.

When that person eventually decides to buy a new phone, which store are they more likely to remember?

A random e-commerce store they once saw in an ad, or the company that has been giving them useful information for months?

That is where a large part of the power of content marketing comes from.

So, Where Do PR and Content Marketing Meet?

How exactly does PR relate to content marketing?

It’s actually quite simple.

Content marketing can multiply the value of a strong PR initiative, while PR can give a company’s content much greater exposure and credibility.

Let’s use a simple example.

Imagine your company takes part in a tree-planting initiative.

On its own, this is already a good PR move. The company is participating in a social and environmental initiative that can positively influence how people perceive the brand.

But why stop there?

You could create a banner or other creative assets for social media to let your audience know about the initiative.

You could also take photos and videos during the event and turn them into content for Instagram, Facebook, TikTok, or LinkedIn, depending on your brand and target audience.

You could then publish an article on your website covering the initiative.

The next step could be reaching out to local websites and media outlets, letting them know about what you’ve done and potentially earning brand mentions and backlinks.

You could also create a short press release and distribute it to relevant media.

Suddenly, one PR initiative has produced:

Social media content, photos, videos, a blog article, a press release, potential coverage from third-party websites, and backlinks to your website.

And this is where the relationship between PR and content marketing becomes much clearer.

The tree-planting initiative itself was the PR activity.

Content marketing was the way you took that initiative and transformed it into content that could reach and engage a much larger audience.

And PR comes back into the picture when third-party media outlets begin talking about what you’ve done.

Voilà!

That’s just one of the many ways PR and content marketing can work together.

But It Works the Other Way Around Too

So far, we’ve looked at how you can take a PR initiative and build content around it.

But the opposite can happen as well.

Content itself can generate PR.

Let’s say, for example, that you run a company in the travel industry.

You decide to conduct a large survey on the travel habits of Greek consumers and publish the results on your website.

On its own, that’s content.

But what happens if your research reveals some genuinely interesting findings?

A major news website might publish an article using your data. Another website might reference your research. A journalist might even contact your company for additional information or commentary.

Your content is now generating media coverage.

And along with that coverage come brand mentions, backlinks, additional website traffic, and potentially greater credibility for your company.

So, we’ve essentially reversed the process:

Content → Media Coverage → PR

And this is something many businesses overlook.

PR and Content Marketing Are Not the Same Thing

Even though they can work extremely well together, it’s important to understand that PR and content marketing are not the same thing.

PR primarily focuses on a company’s reputation, relationships, and public image.

Content marketing uses valuable content to attract, inform, engage, and build relationships with a specific audience.

But when the two work together effectively, each can make the other much more powerful.

A great article can easily go unnoticed if nobody promotes it.

Likewise, a great PR initiative can go largely unnoticed if a company fails to create the right content around it.

So, rather than viewing PR and content marketing as two completely separate worlds, it makes much more sense for businesses to think about how one can strengthen the other.

Whenever you launch a PR initiative, ask:

“What content can we create around this?”

And whenever you create a genuinely strong piece of content, ask:

“Can we use PR to take this even further?”

Once a company starts thinking this way, PR and content marketing can become a truly powerful combination