In this installment of our Hot Take series, VP of Operations Cory Van Auken explains how PR plays a big role in his family’s daily lives, even though no one else in the Van Auken household understands it.
I love my job, but explaining it can be a pain. Those in communication professions know all too well the blank stares and polite nods from family and friends when the topic of conversation drifts to, “So…what do you do for work again?”
My wife describes my job to our eldest as “emails and video meetings”—she’s not wrong. This answer seems to suffice as he mulls over this information and forgoes using his fork to shovel ‘long pasta’ (his term for spaghetti) into his mouth with his hands, amusing his little brother in the process.
The truth is, while most of my friends and family may not know how to define PR, they regularly use PR coverage in their daily lives, even if they don’t realize it.
If you ask most people to identify a piece of PR coverage, they’d probably point to the work of a celebrity publicist. However, PR often plays an outsized yet under-reported role in how consumers gather information and make purchasing decisions.
Take the Van Auken household as an example—my wife rarely purchases a discretionary item without first doing some research. She regularly parses through informative content, distills the information, prioritizes ‘product differentiators,’ and makes an informed decision.
To highlight how our family uses PR, I want to share two real-life examples.
Product PR in Action
Recently, I decided to introduce our oldest son to camping. We dipped our toes in the water by setting the tent up in our backyard. While the level of cushion (or lack thereof) was more ‘I’m in my 20s’ and less ‘I’m in my 30s,’ the overall experience was a SMASHING success (only those of a certain age will understand this reference). I’ve fielded requests to camp in the backyard every night since.
The next morning, I mentioned to my wife that there’ll be plenty of family camping in our future, but we may need to upgrade to some ‘age-appropriate’ gear. Ever the family adventurer, she was thrilled and immediately researched sleeping pads for our maturing backs. Our glorified yoga mats just don’t cut it anymore.
30 minutes later, after consuming third-party reviews at a blistering pace, she narrowed her decision down to two choices. She started with a quick non-branded Google search, chose a CleverHiker article, moved on to a Wired article for an additional POV, and finished off with two individual review articles from Outdoor Gear Lab before making an informed decision. Fantastic!
Brand Awareness Plans Our Trip
The following weekend, we decided to pile into the Subie and take a day trip. As Massachusetts flexed its end-of-summer charm, our noble steed cruised towards the coast with Royel Otis’ cover of Linger blasting through the speakers (our 3.5-year-old’s favorite song…the kid’s got layers). Plum Island beckoned our family chariot east. The barrier beach was ideal for a morning hike and some much-needed salty sea air.
However, this was not a spontaneous foray to the coast; instead, it was a kernel of an idea that grew into a plan thanks to some quality PR content. Earlier in the week, my wife showed me an Instagram reel highlighting Plum Island. This instantly reminded me of an article I read in the Summer Edition of Edible Boston detailing a day trip to Newburyport.
After a few ooo that could be fun’s and several this looks good for the boys, we committed our Saturday to making it happen, crafting our itinerary based on various pieces of content we consumed. Good ol’ brand awareness at its finest.
- 8:00 AM: Early pit stop at Olive’s for coffee and pastries (thanks Edible Boston)
- 8:30 AM: A morning adventure on Plum Island (good call @fromnewenglandwithkids)
- 12:00 PM: Lowkey stroller cruise along the Newburyport ocean walk
- 1:30 PM: A beverage and tasty sandwich at the Sunset Club (thanks Boston Uncovered)
It was an adventure well planned. We spent quality family time outside and enjoyed the last gasps of the New England summer weather. The oldest focused on his beach clean-up initiative, which consisted of indiscriminately throwing anything smaller than a softball into the ocean, and the youngest cooed appreciatively as he surveyed the beach high up on his hiking backpack throne. Thanks to some quality PR content, the Van Auken tribe had a blast!
In Conclusion
So, what’s the point of sharing these two stories? The first is an example of product PR that helped educate us on specific product offerings when we proactively sought answers. The second example is a more subtle reminder that the impact of PR builds awareness over time.
PR needs more PR. In the examples above, no software will attribute our eventual sleeping pad purchase back to the PR that informed our decision, and our customer journey can’t be mapped cleanly from an article highlighting Olive’s stellar baked goods.
While my wife continues to play coy and act as if she doesn’t know what PR is, her purchasing journeys and decision-making are often shaped by PR…and that’s by design. Like many consumers, being informed before making a discretionary purchase is an important step in our household. So cheers to you, quality PR coverage. The Van Auken house salutes you—even if ¾ of the household defines you as “emails and video meetings.”
Learn more about how we can help you build brand awareness through impactful PR campaigns here.