On January 24, Apple announced its financial results for Q1 2012 (which actually ends on Dec 31). Shaking off concerns about the death of Steve Jobs, it posted record revenues of $46.33 billion and record nets profit of $13.06 bn. Key drivers during the quarter were the sale of 37.04 million iPhones (up 128% on Q1 2011) and 15.43 million iPads (up 111% on Q1 2011). Apple iPods dropped but there was a 26% unit increase in the sale of Mac computers.

The rise of the iPad is particularly interesting, because of the impact tablets are having on everything from Publishing and TV to Education. So, given that tablets are on an inexorable rise, is there anything we can say about how they impact on/improve PR?

Five ideas 

Field marketing/surveys: An iPad is a bit like a cool clipboard, which makes it a great tool at events or on street surveys. Some of its functionality is the same as a smartphone but it looks more official and is more fun to play with. Cool imagery or game mechanics could be used to entice people into participating in a survey. Or videos could provide product demonstrations. Signing up people to Facebook and so on is also an opportunity…

Media monitoring: There’s a piece of breaking news that affects your key client – or a product launch that’s taking place while you’re on the move. Either way, having a screen is an asset.

Client pitches and presentations: Many of us have experienced it already… the iPad pitch. It’s simple, immediate, effective and still quite cool. And it can also be interactive. In a room full of executives, an iPad can be passed between people as a tool for exposition. Many will be familiar with the interface from other Apple products. There’s also an efficiency issue here. Instead of handing out weighty paper documents (that someone has spent ages printing out) – maybe it makes sense to invest in a fleet of iPads that contain all of the information in easy, usable form.

Life-enhancing apps: Skype, Dropbox, Flipboard, Tweetdeck… there’s a growing number of ways in which you can use your iPad to stay connected and informed while on the moved. With Dropbox, you have the ability to move documents from device to device without clunky intermediaries like email and flashdrives. There’s a good (if slightly dated) YouTube presentation on this called Top iPad Apps for Every PR Professional (by GregoryFCA).

Know your clients: Okay, so maybe you like your clipboard. But it pays to know which of your clients are becoming reliant on iPads. Spark PR observed that the financial services sector has become a big user of iPads. So do some research, find out which sectors expect you to walk into a room with an iPad at hand. And spend some time working with one, so you start to get an intuitive feel for the kind of execs who might become reliant on tablets.