Changing Media in the Baltics

By Heikki Sal-Saller
In Nomine Public Relations, Estonia

At the beginning of the year, I wrote an article for a popular Internet portal asking for only good news.  People were simply tired of depressing bad news.

Marketing in the Baltics mirrors the rest of the world.  However, we are beginning to see some bright spots as companies become just a little more optimistic.  Perhaps my article was a precursor of things to come.

From the end of 2008 to this spring, a number of In Nomine clients decided to end their contracts.  The refrain went something like this: "Our headquarters in Vienna has denied us any marketing money."

Now, there is a slow turnaround as spring segues into autumn.  Interest seems to be building again, though there are a few catches.  This is not necessarily bad, but it does pose challenges.

For example, there is a tendency for companies to squeeze budgets, and to demand more service, improved products and better results at the same time.

On one hand, the situation is more competitive, and we put more effort into our work.  On the other, we are stretched thin as we attempt to cover our costs.  The result could result, if we allowed it, in disunity and a decrease in quality.

Another trend we are seeing emerge at an even faster rate than in the past is marketers turning to the Internet.  Last summer,

Estonia hosted an Internet competition for the best website and blog.  We saw a host of encouraging new media solutions.

This means one thing for print media-a lack of advertising. Newspaper circulations are diminishing and some magazines with limited audiences have already closed in Estonia.  Marketing data suggests that the ad market in Estonia has decreased by 30 percent to 40 percent.

Recently, Estonian Public Broadcasting conducted a poll to determine how the population wishes to receive its news.  An astonishing five out of six respondents said they only read newspapers on the Internet.  My colleague, Andrius Kasparavicius, from the Lithuanian PR agency KoKo, tells us that older people prefer to read news on the Internet because they cannot afford to purchase printed media.

The trend to Internet - and Estonia has an extremely high Internet penetration - presents an opportunity and a challenge for the PR practitioner.

While so-called social media can be an inexpensive marketing tool, the name of the game is content, not quantity.  In my view, no one is interested in reading an unprofessional blog, whether by an individual or a corporation.

To be credible, information must be interesting and accurate, which is not always the case, particularly given a situation where a corporate CEO appoints someone to write his blog as if it is he or she pushing the "send" button after each post. The operative word here is "newsworthy."

From the viewpoint of the PR consultant, the decrease in the number of printed media channels is regrettable.  Clients love to see their story on the printed page, preferably with a photo.

Another view, however (and what we tell clients), is that a press release stays in the Internet indefinitely, allowing Google to find it at any moment and ferry it to a  new audiences.

I am optimistic about the PR business in the Baltics.  We see business returning.  However, we will have to concentrate on continuing ways to save the client money while understanding different and more modern ways of communicating messages.