At Delphi we’ve been picking up many more client briefs asking for a direct route to their audience through owned and paid media.
“Going direct” – in other words, avoiding the mainstream media and reaching your audience in less intermediated ways – is definitely one of the hot ideas in tech comms right now.
We think this might be more than a trend but actually a direction of travel for the comms industry. The FT writes about it here: https://www.ft.com/content/3c45bb4f-10d5-4681-92df-d649f26fce3d
In practice, going direct can mean three things:
➡️ Building your own media channels and presence (such as your own blog, newsletter or podcast) – as lots of VC firms and consultancies do now
➡️ Running a much more active profile on social media outlets, like X and LinkedIn, than typical leaders are used to – as done by business leaders like Ryan Petersen in logistics
➡️ Reaching an audience through non-traditional outlets, such as podcasters and independent journalists – best exemplified by Mark Zuckerberg’s recent appearance at the Acquired podcast event
The move to going direct reflects today’s tighter media environment, where there are fewer outlets (especially for B2B verticals), and how it’s easier now to reach a specific interest group through social channels. But of course there are pros and cons to this approach…
Going direct means you have much more control over your message – no more worries about being misquoted or misinterpreted. And you can keep your content totally focused on the topic and narrative of your choice. That’s particularly powerful if you’re in a niche field that few media outlets are interested in.
But you sacrifice audience reach (unless you’re highly successful at this approach, and even then it’ll take time). And you don’t benefit from the implicit credibility that comes with appearing in well-known media outlets (one of the traditional benefits of PR).
Going direct also takes a decent investment in energy, mental bandwidth and resources. It might not be for everyone. But for those in niche technological areas, who care about deep rather than broad audience engagement, and who are prepared to commit, there are good reasons for its appeal.
If going direct is something you’re interested in, Delphi can help you with defining your stories, messages and content. Contact us at hello@wearedelphi.com to find out more.
