Public relations is all about connecting with your audience. We try to find little ways to make them understand where we’re coming from and convince them they should care what we have to say. If we don’t do a good enough job, the public has no reason to remain loyal to the company we represent.

Sometimes in trying to figure out little ways to connect with our audience we forget we’re dealing with other human beings. It’s very easy to see the customers and fans as numbers on a page instead of the people they are. If you lose sight of this it’s also easy to forget the reason you’re in public relations is to talk to people.

To truly connect with your audience you have to get back to the roots of public relations. Let’s look at a few ways you can get back on track.

Think of Them and Not You 

Often as we go through our days, weeks, and months at work, we think about how the company would benefit from our interactions with the public. We see we talked to forty people that day and it could potentially lead to an increase of such and such dollars – forgetting that our main purpose is to talk to customers, clients, and strangers (i.e. people).

To help combat this, make a note to always take what the customer is thinking into consideration. For example, you represent a company that sells ceiling tiles. Recently, a scandal broke out and you’ve been tasked with putting out the fires.

As weeks went by, you started to forget you were dealing with real people. It was just day after day and interaction after interaction for weeks. You even started a game with yourself to talk to more people than your coworkers. However, the scandal really hurt people’s lives and destroyed property…and you’ve forgotten that.

Put yourself in the customer’s shoes. They don’t care about the company’s overhead or reputation, they just want their ceiling tile fixed. If you come off as condescending or dismissive you can end up with a larger problem on your hands.

Get Some Faces Up There

Nobody wants to go on a company’s Facebook or website and interact with a faceless corporation. They want to feel like their favorite business is there for them, and that includes employing real human beings who just happen to be typing on a keyboard instead of shaking their hand.

It doesn’t matter how big or small your company is, you need some sort of brand ambassador to help put your best foot…er, face forward. It doesn

’t even have to be someone who works there – hire an actor if you want to take a few professional photos. Anything’s better than a customer staring at a static, corporate logo.

This could go a long way in your customers connecting with you on a deeper level. The simple act of having a real human being for them to look at may bring them back time after time.

Do you have problems with a customer/representative divide?

This article is written by Mickie Kennedy, founder of eReleases (http://www.ereleases.com), the online leader in affordable press release distribution. Download your free copy of 7 Cheap PR Tactics for Success in Any Economy here: http://www.ereleases.com/7cheaptactics.html