The definition of public relations has varied over the years depending on the priorities of the time. In the golden age of journalism, getting a brand mentioned in a traditional media article may have been considered the height of success. Today, communications with the public tend to be more grassroots and democratic. All brands big and small have the same opportunity to communicate directly with the public.
What is PR?
Public relations are all about getting your message in front of the public. Media mentions might be nice to have, but they are not essential to this goal.
One aspect of public relations that is generally common to most definitions is that it is “earned” as opposed to bought. Public relations are not the same as advertising. It’s more about informing the public than it is about selling, though ultimately, a brand or organization should start to rank higher in the collective consciousness resulting in a bigger share of the market.
In addition to building awareness, public relations are concerned with the reputation of the company or organization. Thus, a PR agency will work on developing favourable content and managing any negativity that may already exist or may appear as the result of a crisis.
Public interest
The public interest is something that has been added to many definitions of public relations. The Public Relations Society of America says that the relationship between the organization and public should be “mutually beneficial.” Public relations should result in communications that are useful to those on the receiving end of the message being communicated.
The public interest is especially necessary for governments and non-profits, though, of course, every company should act in the public interest in terms of being responsible in their communications, advocating for causes that their clients care about and responding appropriately to problems. Examples of public interest campaigns could include awareness, public information and advocacy.
Stakeholder is an important concept in public relations. Your message may not be relevant to everyone in the general public. You might want to target groups of people such as clients, customers, funders, job seekers, employees, governments, etc. A company or organization might have many different stakeholders and may need to develop different communication strategies to target them.
Delivery platform
The platform of delivery is also important. A PR campaign can communicate directly with the public through social media, websites, speeches and events, or it can communicate indirectly through media mentions, influencer mentions and other third party means.
What a PR agency focuses on will depend on strategy developed in consultation with the client. This strategy will take into consideration the goals of the campaign, the market position, the audience and many more factors that are similar to what you probably considered when you developed your marketing plan. You will likely find once you have developed a strategy that it overlaps with your marketing plans.
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Shella Gardezi is a marketing, PR and SEO specialist with experience doubling website traffic and sales and getting features in national publications and on the airwaves.
This is a very insightful post! I learned quite a bit I didn’t know before. Thanks so much for sharing!
I’ve worked in public relations for nearly 10 years now — mostly in social media. I always think of it as a way to tell a story hoping to gain the audience’s trust (or sympathy, or whatever emotion) in order to sell a product.
Great post! x
Michelle
dressingwithstyle-s.com