Electronic Public Relations

A relatively new but powerful communication channel for public relations activities is the Internet. Electronic public relations compose the digital challenge for organizations worldwide. The adoption of Web 2.0 technologies and especially the wide use of social networks over the Internet enable the creation and maintenance of long-term relations. Public relations practitioners are becoming increasingly involved in electronic public relations activities such as the launch of web sites, the monitoring of blogs and social networks, the support of e-voting activities, the creation of e-mails and e-newsletters, and so on. That is why the dialogic approach with the stakeholder public is suggested for a two-way symmetrical communication to be achieved. The main principles underlying electronic public relations are web attractiveness, usefulness of information, ease of use, conservation of users, generation of return users, and a dialogic loop comprising the framework for a true dialogic communication. Public relations practitioners should also try to secure compatibility and alignment between digital and physical worlds to achieve the organization's overall public relations' objectives. Finally evaluation of electronic public relations activities should be made to record and improve the effectiveness of public relations' practitioners' digital actions.