Intro To Public Relations PUR 3000 Outline Ch 1 7 Chapter One Defining Public Relations 1 Definition a Public relations is a strategic communication process that builds mutually beneficial relationships between organizations and their publics i The combination of social media public relations has revolutionized the way organizations and individuals communicate to their key constituent publics 1 The challenge within PR is to cut through the clutter to deliver an argument that is persuasive believable and actionable 2 Prominence of Public Relations a The field of public relations has grown immeasurably within the 21st century i Multibillion dollar business practiced by 320 000 professionals 1 New media outlets will create more work for PR workers increasing the number and kinds of avenues of communications 2 3 250 colleges universities offer a PR degree program US government has thousands of communication professionals who keep the public informed of government activity 4 Largest PR firms are owned by media conglomerates Omnicom Interpublic Group b All elements of society companies non profits governments religious institutions sports teams wrestle with competition security concerns popular opinion and therefore are increasing PR to communicate their stories 3 What Is Public Relations a Strategic process which focuses on helping achieve an organizations goals Its fundamental mandate is communications and its focus is building relationships FROM CLASS NOTES i PR is most effective when it s based on ethical principles and proper action 1 2 1 Without these two aspects achieving influence is either transitory or impossible You can fool some of the people some of the time but not all of the people all of the time 4 Planned Process to Influence Public Opinion a RACE i R Research attitudes about the issue at hand ii A Identify action of the client in the public interest iii C Communicate that action to gain understanding acceptance and support influenced iv E Evaluate the communication to see if opinion has been b The key to the process is action you can t have effective communication or positive publicity without proper action Performance must precede publicity act first and communicate later i PR performance recognition c ROSIE i Research ii Objectives iii Strategies iv Implementation v Evaluation the field 1 Proposed to encourage a more managerial approach to d PR must serve as an honest broker to management unimpeded by any other group Its advice to management must be unfiltered uncensored and unexpurgated e No amount of communications regardless of its persuasive content can save an organization whose performance is substandard 5 Public Relations as Management Interpreter a Every organization has public relations whether they want it or not The trick is to establish good public relations i PR professionals act as the organizations interpreters 1 2 They must interpret the philosophies policies programs and practices of their management to the public They must convey the attitudes of the public to their management 6 Public Relations as Public Interpreter a Finding out what the public really thinks about the firm and letting management know b History is filled with examples of powerful institutions and their PR departments failing to anticipate the true sentiments of the public i Example President Clinton forgot candid communication skills that earned him the white house and lied to the American public about his affair with an intern which led to his impeachment and tarnished his administration and legacy 3 7 The Publics of Public Relations a Practitioners must communicate with many different publics not just the general public i Technological change particularly social media has brought greater interdependence to people and organizations ii A public can be defined as when a group of people face a similar indeterminate situation recognizes what is indeterminate and problematic in that situation and organizes to do something about the problem 1 Within PR more specifically a public is a group of people with a stake in an issue organization or idea a Internal External i Internal are inside the organization supervisors clerks managers stockholders board of directors ii External are those not directly connected with the organization the press government educators customers b Primary secondary and marginal i Primary publics can most help or hinder the organization Members of the federal reserve board of governors who regulate banks would be primary public ii Secondary publics are less important marginal publics are the least important of all c Traditional and Future i Traditional employees and current customers ii Future Students and potential customers d Proponents opponents and the uncommitted i Proponents are those who support it opponents oppose it and uncommitted have yet to make a decision ii Normally changing the opinion of skeptics calls for strong persuasive communication Within politics the uncommitted public is crucial FROM CLASS NOTES 4 8 The Functions of Public Relations a There is a fundamental difference between PR and marketing advertising i Marketing promotes a product or service PR promotes an entire organization ii Functions associated with public relations work Writing the fundamental public relations skill speeches brochures etc Media Relations dealing with the press Social Media Interface websites Facebook Twitter monitoring the web and responding to appropriate organizational challenges Planning special events media events management functions Counseling dealing with management and its interactions with key publics Researching attitudes and opinions that influence behavior beliefs positive publicity Publicity marketing related function generating Marketing communications promoting products sales creating marketing material Community relations positively putting forth the organizations messages within the community iii Other functions Consumer relations interfacing with customers through written verbal communication Employee relations communication with employees and managers who work at the firm Government affair dealing with legislators and regulators Investor relations communicating with stockholders and those who advise them particular organizations Special public relations public uniquely critical to Public affairs and issues identifying and addressing issues of consequence that affect the firm Crisis communications when the company is under siege for any number
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