Public Relations

Public Relations
A business firm should not only relate
constructively to customers, suppliers, and
dealers but also to a large number of interested
publics. A public is any group that has an
actual or potential interest in or impact on a
company’s ability to achieve its objectives. PR
(Public Relations) involves a variety of
programs designed to promote or protect a
company’s image or its individual products.
A wise company takes concrete steps to
manage successful relations with its key
publics. PR departments monitor the
attitudes of the firm’s publics and
distribute information and
communications to build good will. The
PR departments constantly counsel top
managements to adopt positive
programs so that negative publicity is
avoided.
 PR Functions
1. Press relations – presenting news and information
about the company
2. Product Publicity
 Corporate communications – promoting
understanding of the organization
through external and internal
communications
Lobbying – deal with legislators and
government officials to promote or
defeat legislation and regulation

Counseling – advising management on

public issues and company positions
and image during good and bad times
Marketing Public Relations

These days many companies are turning to

marketing public relations (MPR) to
support corporate or product promotion, and
image making. MPR like financial PR and
community PR, serves a special
constituency, the marketing department. The
old name for MPR was ‘publicity’ which
essentially involved creating free press
coverage in the media for the company’s
products and services. But today’s MPR
goes beyond simple publicity and plays an
important role in the following tasks.
1. Assisting in the launch of new products
2. Assisting in repositioning a mature product – like
salvaging the image of a city or a music hall
3. Building interest in a product category – rebuild
interest in products like eggs, milk, potatoes,
coconuts, etc., or expand consumption of tea,
coffee, orange
4. Influencing specific target groups – build goodwill
among communities and special groups by
sponsoring neighborhood programs
5. Defending products that have encountered
public problems – PR professionals must be
adept at managing crisis, such as the Coca-
Cola issue at Plachimada, Kerala and
elsewhere in the country
6. Building the corporate image in a way that reflects
favorably on its products – Narayana Moorthy’s
speeches and public conduct have had favorable
impact on the brand image of Infosys
As the power of mass advertising weakens,
MPR can be put to use to build awareness and
brand knowledge for both new and established
products. MPR is very effective in targeting
local communities and reaching out to special
interest groups. But it must be cleverly planned
jointly with advertising. Creative public relation
efforts can affect public awareness at a fraction
of the cost of advertising.