Open up your mind and say, ahh...

You’ve probably heard a lot about Pinterest over the last few months. Not only has the company received $27 million in venture funds, but the site’s popularity has exploded from 1.2 million users in August to over 4 million today.

 

SEE ALSO: Study Shows Pinterest Will Compete with Top 10 Social Networks VIDEO

Leyl Master Black is a managing director at Sparkpr, one of the world’s top independent PR agencies. Leyl has more than 15 years experience driving high-impact communications programs for emerging technology companies.

The past decade has been rough on the media industry. As media consumption has shifted online, many print publications have struggled to adjust their editorial approach, advertising infrastructure and revenue models to accommodate a rapidly changing readership. During this time, quite a few online-only news sites also entered the market. With no legacy advertising infrastructure to deal with, lower overhead costs and startup agility, these new competitors began to attract viewers — and ad dollars — from traditional publications. Many publications have had to downsize, and reporters must now cover more beats and file more stories than ever before.

The recent social revolution changed the game again. Our social networks have taken on the role of crowdsourced news editors. Instead of going directly to websites to scan for news, we frequently only see bite-sized news headlines that have been posted or retweeted by our trusted sources. When we do go directly to a site, we’re now relying more on news aggregators such as TechMeme, or getting the scoop on what’s trending from sites such as Tweetbeat.

Today, mobile devices are sparking another big shift in media infrastructure, with the iPad in particular set to become the centerpiece of media strategies for top print publications such as The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal and USA Today.

As the media changes, so too must the practice of public relations. In light of these evolving dynamics, what should savvy PR practitioners be thinking about as they’re building plans for 2011? Here are a few trends to watch in the coming year.

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1. Social Sharing of News

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In a recent article on Forbes.com, entrepreneur Dan Greenberg asserted that the web has evolved from a network of sites to a network of people. And because you can’t put ads on people, you must now focus on creating content that people will want to consume and share. The same holds true for PR, and next year, we will see more PR strategies that put social sharing at the forefront.

News releases will have more attention-grabbing or controversial headlines to drive more retweets. We’ll see more pitches that seek to seed a contrarian view or spark controversy, both of which will have a better chance of being shared than straight news. There will be more aggressive outreach to influencers on Twitter to ask them to tweet about news, and more strategies to provide incentives to tweet or post to Facebook. And PR professionals will be under more pressure to measure program success using social sharing metrics.

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2. Increase in “Direct Editorial”

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As media companies overhaul their revenue models, many have moved beyond straightforward banner-style advertising to offer new types of content-driven ad experiences, sponsored content and creative syndication partnerships. This means that the need for content has never been greater. But with staffing levels still low, there will be even more opportunities in the coming year for company execs to contribute their own thought leadership pieces and educational articles to prominent publications.

We can also expect to see more corporate blogging in 2011. While just a few years ago, many companies shied away from blogging because it was so difficult to promote the content and actually get people to read it, it’s now easier than ever to promote blog content to a targeted audience through social media. And, the shake-up in the media industry has produced a large number of talented freelance writers to support these efforts.

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3. Greater Demand for Exclusives

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With breaking news now posting almost instantaneously online, straight news coverage has become a commodity. When Facebook announces a redesign, you can expect to read similar stories about it on dozens of news sites the minute it hits. Many publications, as well as journalists, are now grappling with how to differentiate their coverage in this environment. Watch closely for publications shifting their editorial approach to find the right niche next year, and adjust your engagement accordingly.

Also look for increasing value being placed on exclusives as a way for journalists to offer a differentiated and unique news product. As more publications request (and even require) exclusive content, reporters will be able to invest more time in doing a “deep dive” for stories, and we’ll likely see an increase in longer, more insightful pieces.

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4. Growth in Multimedia

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Another point of differentiation for publications will be the use of use podcasts and video interviews to complement their print and online stories. Where appropriate, PR professionals should begin to build ideas for podcasts into their pitches to paint a more complete picture of how a story could be rolled out.

Video is also becoming a critical part of many news sites and an important asset for PR to provide to busy reporters, particularly as publications focus on creating visually rich content for devices such as the iPad. In 2011, expect to see more stories that include individual videos or even curated video in a slideshow or mosaic layout, such as this New York Times story about Tufts University applicants submitting YouTube videos as part of the application process.

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5. Data, Graphics and Apps

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Relevant stats have always been critical for validating trend stories, and with online survey tools making data gathering easier than ever, many PR pitches are now already accompanied by original research. In 2011, with news outlets hungry for visuals but short on resources, look for the presentation of this data to become more sophisticated, with PR teams working to develop infographics and other visuals to make their data pop. And in our app-happy world, also expect to see a slew of interactive applications to supplement stories, such as this texting and driving game that accompanied a New York Times article on the topic.

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Image courtesy of iStockphoto, Yuri_Arcurs

Over the weekend I visited one of my favorite places. It didn’t matter that I hadn’t been there in a while, or didn’t know most of the people I encountered. The second I walked in, heard the noise, saw the walls… even the way it smelled… I was transported.It’s incredible to think about–a room could magically change the way I felt. A physical room with the right memories can do this in just a heartbeat. So can a metaphorical one, even a brand.

The states of your emotions (your moods and passions) are like rooms in a house.

Anxiety, flow, joy, fear, exhaustion, connection, contemplation, emotional labor… each one can be visited at will if we choose. Sometimes by entering a real room, but more often in metaphor…

Do you have a friend you can have an intimate, tearful conversation with anytime you pick up the phone? Is there a topic that if you bring it up with your boss, it will quickly lead to contention? Is there a place or a memory that never fails to bring melancholy along with it?

Occasionally we encounter emotions at random. More often, we have no choice, because there’s something that needs to be done, or an event that impinges itself on us. But most often, we seek emotions out, find refuge in them, just as we walk into the living room or the den.

Stop for a second and reread that sentence, because it’s certainly controversial. I’m arguing that more often than not, we encounter fear or aggravation or delight because we seek it out, not because it’s thrust on us.

Why check your email every twenty minutes? It’s not because it needs checking. It’s because the checking puts us into a state we seek out. Why yell at the parking attendant with such gusto? Teaching him a lesson isn’t the point–no, in that moment, it’s what we want to do, it’s a room we choose to hang out in. It could be something as prosaic as getting involved in a flame war online every day, or checking your feeds at midnight or taking a shot or two before dinner. It’s not something you have to do, it’s something you choose to do, because going there takes your emotions to a place you’ve gotten used to, a place where you feel comfortable, even if it makes you unhappy.

There’s a metaphorical room I can go to where I’m likely to experience flow–a sense of being in the moment and getting an enormous amount done. Down the hall is the room where there’s a lot of anxiety about something I can’t change. I can visit that room if I choose, but I don’t. And yes, it’s a choice.

Great brands figure out how to supply a ‘room’ to anyone who chooses to visit. Soap opera fans, for example, can count on being put into a certain state anytime they tune in. The Apple store is carefully calibrated as an architectural and retail room that will change how you feel when you enter it. Chiat Day built offices in New York and LA that triggered huge waves of creativity. And there’s nothing like the face of a kid eating a Hershey’s bar…

YouTube isn’t just video. It’s a room. Not everyone uses it the same way, but most people use it the same way every time they use it. If it’s the site people go to see stupid pet tricks and write stupider comments, then they know why they’re going and it’s going to be hard for it to become something else…

Is your brand providing the right room to the right people at the right time? Most products, most services–they provide a thing, a list of features, but not a room for my emotions.

This insight about our moods and your brand is all well and good, but it becomes essential once you realize that there are some rooms you’re spending way too much time in, that these choices are taking away from your productivity or your happiness.

Why are you going there again?

Every time you go to that room, you get unhappy, and so do we. Every time you go that room, you spend more time than you expected, and it stresses out the rest of your day. Every time you go to that room you short-circuit the gifts you give to the rest of the team.

Once your habit becomes an addiction, it’s time to question why you get up from a room that was productive and happy, a place you were engaged, and walk down the hall to a room that does no one any good (least of all, you). Tracking your day and your emotions is a first step, but it takes more than that. It takes the guts to break some ingrained habits, ones that the people around you might even be depending on.

Sometimes flinging a virtual cupcake at a Facebook friend just isn’t enough. As you may know, Facebook has offered the option of purchasing real gifts since last summer.

A big pro here is that you don’t need to know the person’s address to send them a physical gift. And like the Twitter gifting services we recently rounded up, the service makes it easy to integrate birthday, anniversary, and holiday shopping right into your favorite social network.

Take a look at our quick how-to guide below, and if Facebook’s in-house offering doesn’t quite do it for you, check out the three alternatives we’ve also detailed.

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Buy Facebook Credits

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First things first: You need to get yourself some legal Facebook currency in the form of “Facebook credits.” You can purchase this virtual currency by going to the “Payments” tab in “My Account.”

Options to pay include Visa, Mastercard, American Express, Discover or JCB credit cards, PayPal or via cell phone. At the moment, one credit equals 10 cents, so you can buy 50 for $5, 100 for $10 and 200 for $20.

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Head to the Gift Shop

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Once your virtual wallet is full of money, head over to the Facebook store where you are presented with the options of “Music and MP3s,” “Virtual Gifts,” “Charity,” “E-Cards,” “Sports,” and of course, “Real Gifts.”

Enter the name of the person you want to send the gift to and you can then choose from toys, flowers, candy, baked goodies from Mrs. Fields, various items of jewelery, some smaller consumer electronic items, Fandango movie tickets, and our favorite — all sorts of geeky products from ThinkGeek.

A nice touch is the ability to choose the delivery date. If you’re super organized and know your Facebook friend has a birthday coming up in the next few weeks, you can get the gifting sorted ahead of time.

If you do know the address of the person you want the item sent to, you can add it. But the system works on the basis of the giftee confirming a delivery address once they get the wall notification (with a message personalized from you) that you want to post them a present.

And that’s it folks. And by the way, if the person refuses your gift for any reason, then the order will be canceled and Facebook will refund your credits — but not your feelings.

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3 Alternative Services

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1. DashGift

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This Boston-based startup offers a limited service at the moment, but is certainly one to watch if they manage to sign up more partners. The premise is quite simple: You post a gift on your friend’s wall via the Facebook app. Your friend hits a link to get a DashCode and then goes to the local store/venue to redeem it for the item.

At the moment, some elements of the service are limited to the Boston area, such as SWEET cupcakes, a beer voucher for Tommy Doyle’s Bar, and Finale Desserts. But Fandango movie tickets and the $10 global giving donation are open to all users. Expansion into other local areas is planned this summer, so be sure to bookmark this app.

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2. Friendgiftr

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Friendgiftr has had no trouble signing up partners. Its social gift card service currently works with around 150 companies, many of which are major names. You can buy a gift card from any of the stores and present it to a friend on Facebook. Your friend can then either shop online with a card code, request a hard copy version to be mailed to them, or — and this bit is cunning — swap the card for one from another retailer.

So if you send someone a Lands’ End gift card, but they’re really more of an L.L. Bean kinda guy, they can do a switcheroo without you ever knowing.

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3. ParcelGenie

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ParcelGenie is a fantastic resource for small, affordable and fun gifts, such as candy, buttons, key rings and the like. Via the Facebook app, you can chose a gift, select a friend to send it to, and personalize a message that will be posted on their Facebook wall, after which they need to let ParcelGenie know where to mail the item. The app cleverly displays Facebook friends’ upcoming birthdays, so you may end up sending more than you expected to.

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Image courtesy of iStockphoto, kutaytanir