Public relations is typically what we call “earned” free publicity — press releases or article pitches, for example, which result in coverage by the media. That sort of publicity will always serve a worthy purpose. But just as Internet searches have changed how consumers and clients find potential products or businesses, paid search ads provide businesses with a new opportunity — to direct very specific messages at very specific audiences. By becoming your own editor — with a paid search ad that has a PR twist — you have access to one of the most influential and largest “publications” that exists today — Google. In the U.S. alone, Google gets 5 billion views a month.

The key to a paid search ad campaign begins with defining your purpose. Are you ‘righting a wrong’ — such as a brand or product misperception? When a consumer made a false message board posting stating that Kikkoman soy sauce was not a vegan product, what did Kikkoman do? They put together an ad that simply stated, “ Soybeans, wheat, salt, water. Nothing else added.” When you clicked on the ad, you arrived at a landing page that explained how soy sauce is made — and how very vegan it is. This is an example of brilliant conversational PR that engages the consumer with facts — not simply marketing copy — to address a potential crisis.

When news hit the stand that some tomatoes on the market were contaminated, Hunts responded with a paid search ad stating, “Hunts Tomatoes Are Safe.” Again, the ad directed people to a special landing page that — you guessed it — explained the contamination issue and clarified that not all tomatoes were affected.

Besides purpose, be certain to define your audience. Perhaps — thanks to your online customer reviews and comments — you’ve determined that not all your customers utilize the full potential of your product. A paid ad placed on the specific publications your audiences read can provide current and potential customers with key advice that builds brand loyalty. One of our clients in Minneapolis found that their customers had trouble taking their demand data intelligence insights to the next level — they faced resistance from retail buyers’ assistants when presenting their insights. The response was a paid search ad campaign on industry-specific sites that anticipated and addressed an industry concern — communicating demand data insights between suppliers and retailers. Again, the ad directed this specific audience to a very specific message, featuring screen shots of key reports to share and case studies illustrating how best to communicate and drive ROI for both retailer and supplier.

By disseminating information, not propaganda, with paid search PR you can build brand loyalty. Better yet, it’s measurable. Use Google analytics to track the inbound clicks to measure traffic. And to keep the dialogue going, provide visitors with the ability to comment or contact you from the very landing page that started the conversation.