Public Relations; the planning and challenges

In fact the subject of public relations is not new and it has been there and in practice since time
immemorial. Man has always tried and wanted to communicate to make him understand, e.g.100
of years ago wall paintings in the caves of primitive people,
ancient buildings , pyramids, early temples , mosques , cave paintings
Holy Books also communicate and tell people about faith. So, it will be appropriate
to say that public relations are as new as civilization.

Public Relations:
Public relations (PR) is the way organizations, companies and individuals communicate with the
public and media. A PR specialist communicates with the target audience directly or indirectly
through media with an aim to create and maintain a positive image and create a strong
relationship with the audience. Examples include press releases, newsletters, public appearances,
etc.
A basic definition of public relations is to shape and maintain the image of a company,
organization or individual in the eyes of the client's various "publics." What is a "public"
exactly? A public, in PR terms, is anyone who ever has or ever will form an opinion about the
client. Depending on the nature of the client's work, these publics could include clients, potential
clients, voters, members of the local community, members of the media, students, parents of
students, online fans groups, foreign citizens -- the list is endless.

Definitions:

One of the oldest, adopted in 1978 in Mexico City during the

First World Assembly of Public Relations Associations and the First World Forum of Public
Relations, still contains essential elements:
“Public relations practice is the art and science of analyzing trends, predicting their
consequences, counseling organization leaders, and implementing planned programs of action,
which will serve both the organization’s and the public interest”.

The universally accepted definition of public relations as per Edward Burneys popularly known
as the Father of PR is that:
"It is a planned & sustained effort to establish and maintain mutual understanding between an
organization & its publics”.

Public relations is communicating your organization’s messages at the right time and in the right
place to the right audience. With the proliferation of tools and technologies, we can measure the
value of those efforts. Marla Aaron

How does PR work.

Whether the PR of an organization is sound or not depends upon the type of organization and on
a situation at a given time. It is therefore imperative that we should assess as
to how PR serves various organizations. Let us therefore first of all classify the type
of organizations.

Classification of Organizations
1. A business corporation.
2. A trade organization
3. A nonprofit organization.
4. A public utility company.
5. A communication medium
a) Newspapers.
b) Radio stations.
c) TV channels.
6. An educational institution.
7. A financial institution.
8. A religious group.
9. A political party.
10. A labor union.
11. A travel group.
12. A government agency.

Although PR activity / Plan will vary from different classification of organizations yet basic and
broad principles would remain common. Let us analyze and determine various phases of
PR for organizations.

Different Phases which Affect People's Attitude.

A Public relations for business today involves complete analysis and understanding
of all the factors that influence people's attitudes towards a company.

I. Determining the attitude of public towards the company/ organization.

This may be the employees, the customers, the shareholders, or some other segment of
the public.The attitudes are known, is possible to see where the company is misunderstood and w
here its policies and actions are creating unfavorable opinion.

II. Analyzing the state of opinion.

It may be that investigation discloses unrest among a group of employee that may well break out
into very serious uprising. Or the shareholders may express the desire to know more about
the company and its products.

III. Formulation of policy.

Analysis may indicate that certain policies of the company should be modified to improve the
attitude heldby certain groups. Often the change involves eliminating causes of misunderstanding
and misinterpretation.

IV. Planning means of improving opinion/attitude of public.

With an understanding of what people think of the company and a clarification of the company's policies
on matters that affect public opinion, the groundwork has been laid. Next comes the programming of
activities that will explain the company and its products, will overcome misunderstanding and will
promote goodwill.

Challenges:
Public relations has been somewhat reinvented in the 21st century. The Internet has made it easy
to put out a message and at the same time, has made it hard to be heard. The clutter of PR
messages can desensitize readers and viewers, but a message goes viral often enough to make the
possibilities intriguing. A small business that utilizes PR will have to overcome a number of
obstacles.
 Credibility
Through most of the 20th century, public relations professionals had to work hard to gain access
to media outlets. This meant editors at those outlets tended to screen PR messages for accuracy,
professionalism and quality. In the 21st century, anyone with an internet connection can get a
message out in seconds. This has resulted in a lot of exaggeration, boasting and untrue claims
that hurt the credibility of promotions that utilize PR. As a small-business owner, you have to
find ways to establish your credibility when putting out a message. This can include your own
credentials and background, getting third parties to endorse your message and offering facts and
figures to support your PR claims.
 Multiple Channels
The days are gone when television, radio and newspapers were enough to reach your audience.
PR in the 21st century must choose the pathways to the target audience. For example, a PR
campaign could focus on text messaging as a way to target young people, switch to an email
campaign for the parents of those young people and rely on traditional newspaper stories to reach
seniors. In addition, each message might have to be stated differently to suit the method of
distribution. Your campaign for your small business must use the right channel with the right
message to reach your audience.
 Measuring Impact of Social Media
Social media can look like a PR person’s dream. It’s simple to spread the word on the various
social media sites. In fact, many of these link to each other so that a message appearing on one
appears on the others. What’s difficult is measuring the impact of using social media. For
example, Facebook users often object to advertising and PR messages that appear on their
personal pages. PR messages may be dismissed and ignored. As a small-business owner, you
face the challenge of crafting your PR messages in ways that social media users will welcome. In
addition, a small-business owner must survey customers to see if they found out about the
business through social media or by other means.
 Two-Way PR
A public relations message was once a one-way effort. In the 21st century, the target audience
can reply to messages immediately. A small business may need to designate an employee to
monitor social media responses to see if they are positive. This means you must be prepared to
alter your message as you get feedback from your target audience.