Why the Blending of Paid and Earned Media Matters to Your Business
As a savvy business owner, you know your content needs to reach the right audience in order for your company to succeed. The PESO model is a useful tool to ensure your communications are effective and maximize your budget.
But what is the PESO model?
PESO is a common model that communications professional use for message placement. PESO stands for Paid, Earned, Shared and Earned. Paid media is advertising, earned is media coverage, shared is social engagement and owned are the channels you own like your website and blog Typically, all four methods are used together to get an effective distribution of message.
And why does it matter to me?
But lately, two of the types of media, paid and earned, are blending. In the past there were distinct lines between paid and earned media – paid was strictly advertising and earned media was news featured on radio, TV, print and online publications. But recently the two mediums have been merging into a blended form of media. Known as native advertising, promoted post or sponsored content, the hybrid result is paid content that looks like editorial. Because the content is included within and designed to match the editorial story, many consumers can’t tell the difference between the two. In fact, one study found that 64 percent of public relations professionals predict that in five years, the average consumer will not be able to distinguish between news articles and sponsored content. The survey also found that 59 percent believe the average person will not care if they can tell the difference between the two.
So what does this mean to you, your business and your marketing budget?
It can and should mean opportunity.
Consider this:
- More than half of consumers don’t trust traditional advertising.
- The explosion of technology has brought on countless ways for consumers to get their content, making audiences increasingly fragmented.
- Newsrooms are shrinking every day making earned coverage harder to get.
- Social algorithms have made organic reach a thing of the past.
These factors present an opportunity for businesses.
There are benefits to including blended media in your marketing mix:
- It’s Disruptive! Content shows up in the middle of an article or a news feed making it much more likely to be seen
- It’s Credible! Since it is designed and written to look like editorial content it can seem more credible to the consumer.
- It’s Targeted! You can place your content within editorial that appeals specifically to your audience.
- It’s Controlled! Since you pay for the content, you control the message.
