One of the greatest issues that has tainted the entire industry of public relations and still continues today to be one of its biggest challenges is the problem of honesty. For many individuals public relations is simply synonymous with amoral practices. One of the leading academics in the field of PR, Chris Galloway, has stated that PR can effectively be equated to 'deceptive communication'.
So why am I discussing public relations for this post? That's very simple to answer - because Hive needs people to come together and formulate a coherent PR and marketing pathway.
Contemporary public relations can trace its roots back to a 20th century phenomenon which actually evolved from the news media gentry of the 19th Century. During this period powerful press agents used to manipulate the credulity of the public, a public that was hungry for information and entertainment. This resulted in numerous exaggerated advertisements and press releases being published where some were outright fraudulent.
(The second daily sheet of The Liverpool Mercury, January 1824)
(The very first edition of the famous LA Daily Times, December 1881)
Let's be honest the roots of PR are murky. But like it or loathe it public relations are a very important part of the whole promotional mix, and any serious business or organization out there, including blockchains, need to consider it as part of their business strategy.
Where is Hive when it comes to effective public relations and marketing practices?
The Hive community is no different. While Hive is not a business as such and thankfully avoids any type of corporate ownership structure, there is still a huge business element to this platform, especially where the senior witnesses are concerned. There is a role for PR to play when it comes to Hive. But it isn't just the sole responsibility of the witnesses, all of us can have a part to play.
It goes without saying that on Hive the PR strategy will be different than from, say, a company or charity and it has to be tailored made but nonetheless public relations should be a consideration for everyone in the Hive community.
But as there is clearly an ethical issue when it comes to good PR practices out there in the 'real' world, how do we avoid that scenario on Hive while ensuring there is an effective PR strategy?
I know the Hive community is very small but it doesn't have to be. With an effective marketing and PR strategy Hive can flourish into a huge community of active bloggers, just so long as people can come together and forge a common pathway. Yes, I know on a platform like Hive this is no easy thing to achieve but it's not impossible.
The marketing debate on Hive can be contentious, but it doesn't need to be.
However, I know that marketing and public relations have been a somewhat contentious topic on Hive. And I am very new here but would still like to add what I hope is a positive contribution to the debate.
Assuming that the senior witnesses of the chain desire mass adoption of Hive there is a solid and intelligent PR direction they can move in. I can see already from the short time I have been a member of the Hive community that there is friction, drama and engineering. This of course reflects the real world in every way, so it comes as no surprise to me really. This in itself isn't a problem and does not need to get in the way of progressing and elevating Hive with a sound marketing and PR strategy.
I know there has been much debate and I am slowly catching up with it, thanks to people like 
I should just say when it comes to
But it's important that the debate continues. I have no idea if there is any real interest in formulating a coherent marketing and PR strategy, and whether or not that is communicated to the community, but in my opinion there should be a strategy, although I must admit I am struggling to see one.
Current Hive marketing and PR efforts.
Some places I visit within Hive I can clearly see some marketing activity taking place. Take a look at the blog of 
(Hive event taking place in Colombia, 2024)
I can also see that there are various HiveFests taking place throughout the year in different countries across the world. That's amazing, and exactly the type of healthy PR practices required to push the profile of Hive out there. There was one last year in Mexico, another one more recently in Cuba and there's another other one coming up in Croatia.
(Another Hive function happening in Mexico, 2023)
When I visit the official 
There is a more serious upcoming HiveFest taking place in Crotia very soon, which is so inspiring to see. Check out the official site here https://hivefe.st/. There is even a Hive sponsored car driving around doing its bit!
This type of HiveFest event appears to be an annual event where Hivians can buy tickets and attend an official Hive sponsored gathering. This is exactly what we need. Perhaps it could be trialled as a bi-annual event so there is another opportunity elsewhere in the year to meet up? I wonder what peoples' thoughts are on that?
As you can see there are a lot of Hive bigwigs and kingpins attending including 
I really have to applaud the way the organizers of this event have ensured that when it comes to ticket price it is tiered based on the amount of Hive stake you have at the time of purchase. Talk about fairness! And of course while there is a fiat option it goes without saying that you should pay with either Hive or HBD - rightly so!
However, I just can't get away from the fact that I can see so much potential for Hive but it's just not firing on all four cylinders, and for me, and I dare say other Hivians, that's quite frustrating to see.
But at least there are some efforts underway to get Hive noticed. HiveFest seems like an awesome start, we just need more of them and other ways of engaging with the wider crypto scene and the physical world.
How about a monthly townhall with senior witnesses and the community on 3speak or HiveStreams?
Peace!