UNIT 2

UNDERSTANDING PUBLIC RELATIONS

UNDERSTANDING PUBLIC RELATIONS

A. Fundamentals of Public Relations

B. Emergence of Public Relations

C. Public Relations Environment

D. Theories used in Public Relations

Fundamentals of Public Relations

 Introduction
 Meaning & Definitions
 Essentials of Public Relations
 Eight Basic principles of PR practice
 Objectives of Public Relations
 Scope of Public Relations
 Significance of Public Relations
 Reasons for Growth of Public Relations
Introduction

Have you heard the

following terms

 PR Spin
 PR Hype
 PR Stunt
 Mere PR
Definition
Role of PR manager

 To help management in preparing, interpreting

adopting and evaluating the public relations
policies and programmes
 To design effective performance appraisal system
 To conduct education and training program for PR
staff
 To prepare different literature matters for different
medias
 To control the PR department and present and
implement all public relation policies and activities
IN HOUSE PR & PR AGENCY
OBJECTIVES OF PR
 Human relations  Understanding
 Free exchange  Influencing
 Better relations  Supply of information
 Fostering attitude  Dialogue (purpose)
 Suggestions and  Persuasion
complaints
 Reinforcing the brand
 Discourage
misinformation
Essentials of Public Relations

Human
Relations Planned and sustained efforts

Communicatio
Mutual Understanding
Empathy
n

Evaluates public attitude

Serve public Interest

Dialogue Persuasion
8 Basic Principles of PR
 PR deals with facts not fictions
 PR is public not personal service
 PR practitioners must have guts to say no to a client or a
deceptive program
 PR cannot be a guessing game
 PR practitioners should be alert and ready
 PR field requires multi disciplinary applications
 Intuition is not enough
 Never lie to media – outright or implied
SCOPE OF PUBLIC RELATIONS
Scope of PR

Areas of application
 Promotional opportunity
 New Image
 Competitive challenge
 Rumours
 Crisis
 Conflict of interest
 Ineffective communication
Measures of PR

EXTERNAL INTERNAL
 Image Building  Suggestion schemes
 Communication (open  Advice
house, exhibitions, trade  Counselling
fairs, seminars, mass media)  In house publications
 Data Collection  Notice boards
 Propaganda through  Posters
sponsorships  Employee handbooks
 Handling customer  Public address system
complaints  Get togethers
 Press releases
Significance of PR
 Complex structure of  Promote new products
industry  Employee goodwill
 Communication  Effective financial
revolution relations
 Keen competition  Better community
 Emphasis on employee relations
relations  Social responsibility
 Literacy and education
 Need to
communication clearly
REASONS FOR GROWTH OF PR
 Growth in size of organisations
 Growing population
 Political environment
 Increasing employee aspirations
 Communication gaps
 Development of media
 Human relations
 Universality
 Consumerism
 CSR
ONLINE BOOK STORE – VISITOR
PLANNING
Ice Bucket Challenge
 The ALS Ice Bucket Challenge was more than a viral video sensation. It
was also started by The ALS Association and raised an incredible level of
awareness around the need to find a cure for an extremely serious illness.

 What made this campaign work so well? Here are a few thoughts:

1. It gave people a cause to rally behind. Doing good feels good.

2. The campaign encouraged people to participate. Giving people a chance
to show off on social media is an excellent way to get them engaged.
3. There was an element of fun and creativity. The novelty of the campaign
caught people’s attention.

 Those three things together added up to one of the most effective viral
campaigns in recent memory. While social media was the medium it used,
its goals were rooted in pure PR.
Google.org Impact Challenge
 The Google Impact Challenge connects the company with
nonprofits, lending funding and the help of Google volunteers
to winning organizations.
 This campaign drives awareness and engagement by:
1. Setting high stakes. Google is a big entity with massive
resources.
2. Taking on big issues. And as such, they’re able to do big
things that get a lot of attention and help advance tough
problems in a meaningful way.
3. Actively encouraging participation. They’re actively raising
awareness for everyone who enters (even if they don’t win)
just by giving them exposure.
#RideYourIndependence
Brand: Bajaj Avenger

 On Independence Day in 2017, Bajaj Avenger released

a 1.44-minute video that packed a solid punch. The
impactful campaign showed women riding bikes,
cruising down roads at night and doing whatever they
deem fit without any fear.  At the end of the moving
video, a quote by Mahatma Gandhi fills the screen:

 “The day women can walk freely on the roads at night,

the day we can say that India has achieved
independence.”
#Touch of Care
Brand: Vicks

 The video tells the story of a transgender woman, Gauri, who

cares for and raises an orphan child, Gayatri, despite all the
difficulties society throws her way.
 The Vicks campaign hoped to redefine the meaning of
family.
 The goal was to show that you needn’t be connected
through the blood to be a loving unit.
 It is care that makes people come together, and every single
person deserves it
 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7zeeVEKaDLM
Fuelled By Love 
Brand: British Airways
 A six-minute video based on a real case; it shows a
cabin crew member caring for an older woman
during a flight.
 The passenger and the crew member form a bond
so strong that the latter visits the home of the older
woman.
 The British Airway’s employee is blown away by the
hospitality she receives there. 
 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZFb01yTR9bA
&t=194s
ARIEL – SONS-SHARE THE LOAD

Men #ShareTheLoad: The Social Impact!

 The social impact of this campaign has been a huge hit!
 Social media has become a fur ball of joy with men, not just
from India, but from around the world are sharing how
they’ve started sharing the load.
 Another important point to be noted here is how even while
Ariel is overtly pointing to the gravity of the situation by
giving solidly researched statistics, it nonetheless mediates
the effect by showing that there is always space to take the
first step.
 It’s never too late. 
 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wJukf4ifuKs
Paramount Pictures The Ring Publicity
Stunt

Paramount Pictures, to promote its new

horror franchise, The Ring, and to get more
user attention, took a step forward and
planned a publicity stunt where the
protagonist haunted the people in a real-life
scenario.

The film’s most iconic scene of Samara

crawling out of the TV set was recreated in a
TV showroom where the protagonist came
crawling out of the hidden compartment
behind a TV screen and scared people.
EMERGENCE OF PR
HISTORY OF PR

 https://
https://www.slideshare.net/dianeharney/pr-hi
story
 www.bms.co.in/emergence-of-public-relatio
ns/
 https://www.prmuseum.org/pr-timeline
 https://shodhganga.inflibnet.ac.in/bitstream/
10603/105765/5/th-1915-%20chapter%203.pd
f
PR IN INDIA

Pre-Independence Phase Post Independence Current State

• Philanthropy • Industrial Policy • Thriving profession
• TISCO 1912 Resolution (1948 & • Private companies
• TATA – First PR dept – 1956) mostly have PR dept
1943 • PR dept for Central • PR includes media
• Railways Public Sector relations and employee
Enterprises communications
• House Journals for • Used for strategic
Employee communication, brand
Communication building, customer
• Public Relations Society relations
of India (70’s) • Crisis Management
• MNC’s and
Globalisation
• Advocacy and lobbying
International PR
 International public
 Varied customer segments
 Competition
 Different Cultural environment
 Local market preferences
 Global publics – unions,
stakeholders, pressure groups
 Identity issues
 Global financial, commercial, legal
risks
 Foreign relationship issues
 Interdependent economies
 New Communication technologies
REVISION
 ……………….refers to right to be left alone
 ……….is spoken defamation
 ……………….is written or published defamation
 ………..is a bundle of rights given by law to
creators or artists
 ……………..refers to duplication of copyright
material from internet
 ………………gives citizens of India right to
access records
 Time allowed to reply under RTI is………. And
………in case of emergency
 ………..is outcome of mutual understanding
 ……..is a group of similar individuals having
similar interest, problems, goals
 ………….is a feeling towards others and
understanding them
 …………is any conversation with a purpose
 ………….and ………………are generally involved in
dialogue
 PR is a …………………strategy
 ………. is a positive strategy where as
……….can be positive or negative
PUBLIC RELATIONS ENVIRONMENT
 Social &
Cultural

Technological Economic

Public
Relations

Legal &
Environmental
Political
Business Environments

Internal External
SOCIAL & CULTURAL

 Social attitudes and social surroundings

impact businesses.
 Analysis of societal trends and cultural trends
is essential
 Four factors to be considered-
1. Stakeholders Part of society
2. Socio-Cultural Trends
3. Restrictive Legislation
4. Demographic and Economic Change
SOCIAL & CULTURAL
Social Structures influencing business

 Value system  Fashion based demands

  Professional organisations
Family relationship
 Perception of time
 Changing lifestyles
 Changing family
structures
 Educational system and
ties with business
 Class and economic
distinction
 Religion and beliefs
and unions
 Demographic factors
 Gender stereotypes and
roles
 Perception of the product
 Emphasis on group or
individual
 Concepts of distance and
attachment to the country
 Recreation activity
ECONOMIC ISSUES

 Economic forces have profound influence on

PR
 Economic growth, interest rates, economic
planning, economic reforms. Inflation rates,
forex rates, fiscal policies, trade balances etc
1. Inflation and availability of credit
2. Interdependence of s0cio-cultural and
economic forces
3. Eradication of information Poverty
ECONOMIC ISSUES

 Inflation
 Unemployment
 Demand pattern
 Buying power
 Fuel prices
POLITICAL / LEGAL ISSUES

 Political forces exist at the local, state,

regional, national and even global level
 Legislation
 Regulation/ Deregulation Policies
 Country specific regulations
 National and international trade agreements
POLITICAL / LEGAL ISSUES

POLITICAL LEGAL

 Govt ideology  Pressure groups

 Philosophy  Flexibility of legal system
 Bureaucracy  Court rulings
 Political stability  Laws related to capacity,
 Foreign policy pricing, product designing
 Defense policy
 Military policy
ENVIRONMENTAL ISSUES

 Environmental legislations
 Regulatory agencies
 Sustainability and viability of future
 Environmentally friendly products
 Growing importance of environment
protection
 Green washing
ENVIRONMENTAL ISSUES

 Understand impact on projects

 Changes in production process or products
 Design education programs on environment
to show organisations proactive role
 Reports on environmental issues
 Representing enterprise’s opinions and
positions
 Suggesting and implementing internal
measures
TECHNICAL ISSUES

 Computer databases and online services

 Internet
 Social media
 Interactive media
REVISION
MATCH THE FOLLOWING
A B
Public Agentry Mutual understanding
Press Information Dissemination of
information
Two way asymmetry Propaganda
Two way Symmetry Persuasion
True or False
 PR practitioners must use only one medium of
information to build relations
 Socio cultural factors do not interact with economic
factors
 Regulation policies protect industries

FILL UPS
 When unemployment is ….., the company is able to be
very selective about whom it hires
 Nature and extent of bureaucracy determines the
…….environment
THEORIES USED IN PR
THEORIES

 Theories predict the way things work or

happen.
 Theories help to create strategies for
business
 Theory predicts how events and actions are
related
 PR strategies entails knowledge of various
theories
SYSTEMS THEORY
 FINANCIAL
GOVERNMENT INSTITUTIONS

ABC
PR
Media Customers

Neighbours
SYSTEMS THEORY

 Examines relationship with external as well as

internal stakeholders
 PR people act as boundary spanners
 PR practitioners are the go betweens
 They explain organization to stakeholders
and interpret the environment to the
organisation
 Open systems allow two way flow of
information
SITUATIONAL THEORY
SOCIAL EXCHANGE THEORY
DIFFUSION THEORY