The new global village created by the internet has been tagged by traditional news channels as toxic internet culture. Though many sociologists and journalists refer to this as a negative form of public reaction, could successful PR practitioners use this to their benefit?

How toxic are the communities?

In the rise of political awakenings, referendums, identity politics and hate speech, social media is becoming increasingly the communications platform for different forms of toxic internet culture. From propaganda to fake news and aggressive social justice warrior campaigns, this phenomenon has spread from traditional internet chat forums to all mainstream digital channels.

As mainstream media’s multiple articles on Twitter’s nonchalant battles against harassment and online trolls continues to this day, it is important for PRs to understand how this toxic internet culture could be an answer to reaching the public from a ‘reverse’ angle.

Subtly troll your pitch as a campaign

As traditional PR pitching is becoming more tedious, pitching to traditional press could be just one phase of your communications strategy. Why not begin the ‘hype’ online yourself, and spread the word by catching the public’s attention first. As many of these famous movements, such as #BlackLivesMatter #BringBackOurGirls #Veganuary have started first from the public, why not begin the message yourself in order to attract attention from influential posters in a ‘disguise’?

Get involved in the conversation

Whether it’s reach from a traditional media outlet or a comment on a digital account which has a daily viewership of 1.5million followers per month, your pitch is still reaching an audience; it is still being exposed. Particularly with B2C companies, this is an excellent way to get your brand and it’s message out there to potential customers.

Turn Toxic into Positive

Yes, the negativity is flooding in these channels, and hate speech, propaganda content is predominant. Though with targeting the right groups, audience and knowing more information about the most active or ‘outrageous’ individuals posting actively, you can benefit from their attention. Might you think your pitch is exposed to the wrong audience? Toxic internet culture is damaging, but you are as active as a contributor (with a business) as the individual spreading the hatred. If your brand lacks flaws, what ‘outrage’ could these individuals have to write about? Even fake news requires enough time to be curated well, in order for others to believe it.

Consider yourself first!

Even to the individuals spreading ‘outrage’ and hate speech, in order for you to be successful across the digital channels, you need to ensure your flaws are to a minimal. Corporate image is key to success, even when pitching yourself online. On our next blog post, The PR Insider will give you a guide on what companies should examine, before pitching themselves out to the public.

As this movement has arisen to the mainstream public in recent years, there is much PR and marketing professionals can do to utilize this ‘social movement’ in order to spread a more positive message, grab the attention of the public and encourage a more tolerant atmosphere overall.

Stay updated for more insider tips and movements on our next blog post on what companies should know before pitching themselves to the public.

Curzon PR is a London-based PR firm working with clients globally. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact our Business Development Team [email protected]