Trialling PR2.0: an exploratory study of the non-capital city practitioner's social media use

This exploratory study examined how public relations practitioners based outside capital cities are using social media. Forty-eight practitioners based in one of Australia’s largest non-capital city regions were surveyed in 2010. It was found that these practitioners are trialling how social media can be used to achieve public relations objectives. Practitioners are more likely to be using social media in their personal lives and for their own professional development, than for their organisation or clients. However, this research indicates practitioners who use social media outside of work will progress to using social media for public relations purposes. Further, these practitioners and their organisations are resource-challenged and risk-averse when it comes to using social media to engage with their publics. Further research is needed to ascertain the implications of these findings for public relations practice and education.