By Gina Cuclis



This week I published the last issue of PR Tip of the Month, which I started in July 2005. At the end of the issue, I said I would write a blog post about why I decided to stop publishing "PR Tip of the Month."

The Blog Became More Popular

Several months ago I started reevaluating why I was publishing an e-newsletter. This process started, because I noticed significantly more people were reading Cuclis PR's blog than reading "PR Tip of the Month." I started Cuclis PR's North Bay New Media blog in April 2009 to provide case studies and PR tips related to the changing media landscape in the region where I live and work. Within a few months, I was getting a lot more feedback about the blog than the newsletter, hearing from readers via online comments, Twitter retweets, e-mail responses, and in-person comments. The significance of this trend hit a particular chord with me after I republished "PR Tip of the Month's" April 2010 issue on the blog, and found several times more people read it as a blog post.

Newsletter Would Need to Be Revamped

I then came to the conclusion that the e-newsletter needed a face lift and a refocus if I was going to continue it. I also took into consideration that a large percentage of the subscribers where people located in regions far from my target market territory, or were other PR pros. They were not the audience I hoped to reach when I started an e-newsletter.

As an independent consultant, I must evaluate how I spend my time. For awhile I tried maximizing the reach of "PR Tip of the Month" by simply republishing it on the blog. But there were months when I didn't, if a particular issue didn't fit the blog's theme. So I found myself asking if the time I spent on an e-newsletter was still worth it, since I now have a blog? A lot of consultants do both.

Time to Change or Quit

Then I asked myself, did I feel like putting the time and energy into redesigning and refocusing "PR Tip of the Month?" Did I think it would help increase business prospects more so than the blog? Although the answer to both of these questions was no, the first one was key. I had lost my desire to continue an e-newsletter. Especially when I was having more fun and response with my blog.

Conclusion

I decided "PR Tip of the Month" had lost effectiveness. However, one reason is because I had grown tired of producing it. I was more interested in the North Bay New Media blog. That is where, I concluded, I felt like putting my energy. I share this to illustrate that no marketing or PR activity is going to work for your company if you've lost interest.

I hope my experience has given you something to think about. Please leave a comment and let me know. What is your opinion about e-newsletters versus blogs?

Archived issues of "PR Tip of the Month" are available on Cuclis PR's website.