What is public relations?“The management function that identifies, establishes and maintains mutually beneficial relationships between an organization and the various publics on whom its success or failure depends”“The strategic management of competition and conflict for the mutual benefit of the organization and its various stakeholders and publics”“The management of communication between an organization and its publics”Other terms common to definitions of PRDeliberateBe systematic on how you set it upPlannedBased on research of what you know has happenedPerformanceYour goal is to generate impactEx. Want people coming to Target, I want to move product (money)New image, a general rebranding if not getting the audience that you really wantAwareness  maybe you’re new to the market place, you want that name recognitionPublic InterestIf you’re properly doing PR, you want that mutually beneficial relationship—you want the public to have a growing level of trust in youTwo-way communicationPR is not necessarily about you telling people what to think, you want to engage in dialogueNeed to engage in public responseManagementIncreasingly becoming about managing relationshipsRelationshipsOpen dialogue between organization and groupMonitors environmentPR is increasingly about understanding what is being said about your organization, understanding what people think, feel, and their positive or negative associationAnalyzesWhere the research component comes inMust be very systematic, how can you fix weaknesses of your groupAdjustsAdapting to changes in public opinion and social mediaConvincing others that what you’re telling them is actually going to workCounselsChange isn’t bad, there are ways to adjust—explain the research behind why you are adjusting, lay out the evidenceOpinion changeOften need to change opinion because it is negativeEX: BP drops oil in the ocean, you minimize how badly people think of themNew relationshipsWant to meet new publics and get brand out thereSo, what is PR?PR is multifacetedA public relations professional must have skills in:Written and interpersonal communicationYou are writing emails, press releases for the mediaA lot of different types of writingResearchHave to understand why it’s valuableThere is limitations to it, you can make educated guesses based off it, but you won’t be correct alwaysNegotiationBack to the idea of counseling, you have to be able to talk to people who may be resistant to your ideasMaybe increasing company moral, making two companies work together who don’t want toCreativityLogistics/Management skillsBeing able to manage groups, understanding deadlinesFacilitation & Problem solvingFacilitate dialogue between those that don’t want to talk to each other or have trouble doing soMay be talking to people who are resistant to your ideasPublic Relations is growingThe public relations industry is growing in many nationsAlmost $8 billion spent each year in the USExpected growth of 23% in Asian revenue in the next 5 yearsAnnual spending of $2.2 billion in China Opportunity to work overseas, particularly growing in AsiaCNN.com:One of the top 50 professions for job opportunity and salary potentialBureau of Labor Statistics:Much faster than average growth24% job growth by 2018PR as a Process RACEResearch Action Communication Evaluation1. Research  Define the problemSome form of qualitative or quantitative research is often conducted to define the problemEX: A survey of company moralOftentimes, we’ll conduct a situation analysis to summarize the problem and broader situationSituation Analysis: essentially a summary of the challenges that are facing your organizationClient background, product/service/brand information, market/competition, consumer profile, brand marketing analysis, SWOT Analysis(Strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats), Strategic implications and recommendations2. Action  State the program’s objectivesDifferentiate between goals (long term) and objectives (specific outcomes)Objectives may be informal, attitudinal/motivational, and/or behavioral Increase the number of people who know our brand, and make them have a positive outlook on it3. Communication  Develop campaign to meet objectivesBase the campaign on pre-existing researchBase the campaign on theoryBase the campaign on the research you conducted earlier in the process We get a sense of what can and cannot work and in what situations4. Evaluation  Evaluate, evaluate, evaluate this is the most overlooked aspectShould be done continuouslyDid the campaign work?Alternative Depictions of the processFormative (before) research and analysisUse research to establish objectives/strategiesDevelop campaignExecute plan/campaignEvaluation (after) researchUse research to adjust future campaignsUse the money and time you spent on information to help your next campaignComponents of Public RelationsCounseling, Research, Media relations, Publicity, Employee/member relations, Community relations, Public Affairs (PR aimed at government), Government affairs, Issue management (Ex. Pre-problem PR), Financial relations, Industry relations, Development/Fundraising, Multicultural relations/workplace diversity, Special events, Marketing communicationsDifferences between PR and JournalismScopeJournalism is about producing contentEx. News article, magazine features, TV segments, etc.Public relations has a much broader scopeMight be organizing a special event one day and writing press releases the nextObjectivesJournalism strives for objectivity in reportingEx. Point/counter-point news writing, giving equal time to both sides of a debate (ex. Global warming)Public relations has a goal of advocacyPick a side, you aren’t giving fair timeYour job is to sell a product/brand/organizationNo need to bring up the counterpointsAudiences & ChannelsJournalists produce content for the medium for which they work, but also write for mass audiencesEx. Paul Krugman produces articles for the NY TimesPublic relations specialists will tailor their materials much more to different segments of the public and will often do so through a variety of channelsDifferences between PR and AdvertisingToolsAdvertisers use paid placements as their primary tool for workEx. Print media ads, commercials, product placementPublic Relations professionals might submit news information to journalists for consideration (ex. Publicizing an event), but also rely