Vocus Public Relations Software Brings the Media World to Your Door

As a marketing manager for a small company in the electronics industry, it is my job to get the most bang for our promotional buck. These days, that means trying to keep up with a rapidly changing media world.

Professionally, I have chosen to subscribe to a number of marketing newsletters in an attempt to keep up with what is going on in the world of web marketing. Somewhere along the way I clicked on an ad in an HTML email and was introduced to Vocus Public Relations software.
Vocus is an on-demand, web-driven software provider. The company specializes in helping companies of all types reach journalists, analysts, media outlets and publicity opportunities.

Understanding Public Relations is a question of knowing who you need to reach, and when. Vocus cannot decide whom you need to reach in the mediasphere, but they can help you knowing how and when to do it.

Basically it works like this: Vocus has more than 150 people assigned to updating their Media Outlets and Media Contacts databases. That is one of the most powerful aspects of the software. Everything about Vocus is done in "real time," with real contacts seeking information about the subjects they cover.

That's why Vocus divides their database into Media Outlets and Media Contacts. If you are researching whom to send your information for a public relations campaign, Vocus lets you search by topic and by company. For deeper information, Vocus provides popup quotes detailing company history and focus. This information can be really helpful in finding media outlets that cover your particular industry. This lets you target content to a specific purpose.

That specificity is key in the information age. No journalist appreciates getting information in their email inbox that does not pertain to them. Likewise, if you are able to target your information to a media outlet and a specific journalist covering a subject related to your business, everyone wins.
Why waste anyone's time?

That is why the Media Contacts segment of Vocus works so well. It feels a little like cheating knowing so much about some of the people you are contacting for a story. But that doesn't mean story placement is automatic. You have to remember these are busy people whose inboxes are literally full with requests for press coverage. Having complete information really does help personalize the Public Relations process. On a human level, it also makes you realize there are people on the other end of the Public Relations process.

Occasionally using Vocus will result in a missed connection with a journalist. There is always turnover at publications and media outlets. That's why Vocus sends out "Living List" updates to notify you if people change jobs or leaves a position. Vocus provides you an update for the new contact. 


There is almost no way a small company like ours could affordably develop on its own the type of information Vocus provides its clients. Previously I had been using a company Public Relations list provided to me when I started the job. I quickly figured out this list was hopelessly outdated. 40% of the emails sent out came back undeliverable. That meant we needed to update our lis. Last summer we hired a college intern to make calls. Even measures like those cannot keep up with the changing face of media. Our list was soon outdated again.

It took some selling on my part, but our company President agreed to invest in Vocus. Having participated in a few online seminars with Vocus company representatives, it seemed like a good solution for a company our size. We have a great story to tell about a new product and the reinvention of a long-recognized brand name in educational technology. 
That story is now being promoted through Vocus to local and national media. We've already generated several key stories in the first month of usage. 
 


Recently I participated in a Vocus educational seminar with a couple PR industry experts. One of the key points made in the presentation is that journalists are no longer interested in "pitches," that is, being sold on running a story. Instead, journalists are interested in getting information they can use to develop a story. The difference is subtle, and you may argue that it is a question of semantics, but the fact remains that journalists know the "PR game" better than anyone. Most appreciate being respected for their position and simply want to get information in a form and style that is useful to them.

There are all sorts of bloggers out there specializing in power brokering information about stories. One interesting (if occasionally annoying) solution is called HARO, which stands for Help A Reporter Out. These Twitterized daily reports emanate from one Peter Shankman, who had the bright idea to become a portal for writers looking for story sources. Now he's a progressive media mutt sending out all kinds of self-promotion while helping reporters find news leads. Some of the story leads are fascinating. Others seem a bit selfish, like requests for book content. But that's the modern media landscape. Everyone is in it for their piece of the pie. And remember folks, when it comes to the web, it's SEO or die. 
 


The PR landscape is thus changing daily. Vocus tries to meet these changes head on with services like PR Web, a service specializing in online news and information.
Of course none of the Vocus services is cheap. Their basic annual PR package runs around $5000. Tracking and measuring PR results will add another $5000 or so per year. PR Web adds another few grand. For many companies, however, this expenditure should be "no big deal." The value received for the Vocus efficiency should easily pay for the cost.

Maybe that's why Vocus assigns an "advertising value" to stories placed in the media. While useful as a gimmick to justify PR expense to bosses, this measurement is rather subjective. For those of us who are goal oriented and appreciate confirmation of our efforts, the "ad value" can provide needed affirmation. It can also serve to provide ROI reports to management less interested in the art and subtlety of great PR. 


Who uses Vocus? The spectrum is wide. The company currently lists more than 2000+ customers including organizations of all sizes. When asked whether Vocus PR is competition for traditional Public Relations agencies, a Vocus representative wryly admitted that some PR firms currently use Vocus.
One can see why. It might be practical for a person with reasonable Public Relations experience to start their own firm using Vocus as a silent partner. If you amortize the annual cost of subscribing over 12 months, the monthly expense is $416. All it takes is 10 small clients spending $500 per year and you've paid your baseline expense, and then some. The rest would be profit.
After health care expenses of course...

Vocus was started in 1999 and could not exist without the Internet. It depends on electronic delivery to drive information distribution and communication. You can opt to print labels from the lists if you choose. Have fun paying the postage price on some of the larger media lists created in Vocus. One of mine topped 3000 contacts. But I'm sure there are companies that need to distribute product samples and literature with their mailing. Vocus sets up the mailing list for you.

There is quite a thrill for PR geeks building lists and refining press releases sent through Vocus. With 800,000 contacts in their database, the variegations are almost endless.

The Vocus software also allows you to write and edit online, preview your releases and, for efficiency's sake, delivers press releases to each media contact or outlet individually. This cuts down on email spam problems. Each release also delivers an "opt out" form so that journalists can notify you if they prefer not to receive communications about the subject you are submitting.


In this era of tightly scaled organizations, Vocus lets marketing and PR managers do more with available resources, allowing even small companies to play the "media game" on a much larger scale, competing with organizations having far larger budgets. The list of clients on the Vocus web site speaks volumes about its diverse uses; from Bass Pro Shops to Gibson, Goodwill to the Indianapolis Museum of Art, Southwest Airlines ("our executives love the analytics," their testimonial says) to Arbitron. The company reportedly keeps on growing, and for good reason.

Vocus simply makes the previously painful process of producing PR more positive.