PUBLIC RELATIONS PROFFICIENCY
PUBLIC RELATIONS
Public relations is…‘about reputation – the result of what you do, what you say and what others
say about you.’
Public relations practice is…‘the discipline which looks after reputation – with the aim of earning
understanding and support, and influencing opinion and behaviour.’ ‘it is the planned and
sustained effort toestablish and maintain goodwill and mutual understanding between an
organisation andits publics.’
THE INSTITUTE OF PUBLIC RELATIONS (IPR)
‘The method of defining messages and communicating them to targeted audiences in order to
influence a desired response.’
THE PUBLIC RELATIONS CONSULTANCY ASSOCIATION (PRCA) ‘Public relations is the
management function that establishes and maintains mutually beneficial relations between an
organisation and the publics on whom its success or failure depends.’
‘Public relations practice is the art and social science of analysing trends, predicting their
consequence, counselling organisation leaders and implementing planned programmes of action
which will serve both the organisation’s and the public interest.’
THE MEXICAN STATEMENT
CONFERENCE OF INTERNATIONAL PR PRACTITIONERS, MEXICO CITY 1978
‘Public relations is the systematic attempt to influence people’s beliefs, attitudes,opinions or
behaviour towards an organisation, its products or services, or an issue or cause.’
Uses of public relations to:
Help build a positive reputation among an organisation’s stakeholders.
Contribute towards changing attitudes and perceptions and, ultimately, behavior.
Make people feel good about working in, or with, or for an organisation. Persuade potential
employees that the organisation is ‘right’ for them.
Educate stakeholders about the organisation and its products and services. Reach difficult or
niche audiences precisely.
Gain information about your stakeholders and your competitors, which will help your
overall approach to marketing.
Encourage debate and discussions about issues affecting the organisation and/or its sector.
Help raise finance, attract investors and maintain confidence.
Raise/increase awareness of the organisation, its products and services.
Support corporate, sales and marketing strategies.
Open new markets and prepare the way for and launch new organisations, products and
services.
Manage issues and crises.
Don’t make assumptions – public relations will not:
Change values, attitudes and opinions overnight –PR is long haul.
Build a positive reputation when the organisation doesn’t deserve it.
PREPARED BY MR. ANTONY AMBIA Page 1
, Achieve objectives, which should be more appropriately set for other marketing disciplines,
like advertising and sales promotion.
Smother deserved complaint and criticism or act as a smokescreen form misdemeanour or
malpractice –get your corporate act together.
Guarantee media coverage – but good PR practice will increase your chances of coverage.
Guarantee direct sales – although good PR practice will increase the likelihood o fim proved
sales.
PERSONAL QUALITIES AN EFFECTIVE PUBLIC RELATIONS PRACTITIONER
1. Good communicator
2. Perspective/sense of humour
3. Calm under pressure
4. Creative
5. Organised
6. Willingness to learn
7. Curious
8. Warm/approachable/down to earth
9. Confident
10.Focused
11.Practical
12. Energy
13. Enthusiasm
14. Assertive
15. Integrity
What is PR?
• Public relations is about reputation.
• PR aims to earn understanding and support by influencing opinion and behaviour.
• PR is the planned and sustained effort to establish and maintain goodwill between an
organisation and its publics.
• “Organisation” can be a governmental body, a business, a profession, a public service or a
body concerned with health, culture, education.
Publics• “Publics” are audiences that are important to the organisation.
• They include customers, existing and potential, employees and management, investors,
media, government, suppliers and thought leaders.
Reputation in PR• Public relations is about reputation—the result of what you do, what you
say and what others say about you.
PREPARED BY MR. ANTONY AMBIA Page 2
, • PR is the discipline which looks after reputation, with the aim of earning understanding
and support and influencing opinion and behaviour. It is the planned and sustain effort to
establish and maintain goodwill and mutual understanding between an organisation and its
publics.
Public relations (PR) is the managing of outside communication of an organization to
create and maintain a positive image.
Public relations involves; popularizing successes, downplaying failures ,announcing changes,
and many other activities.
PR IS NOT….
Public relations is not handshaking and backslapping
• Good people skills are a very important part of public relations
• Public relations is about communicating effectively—it’s not about socializing gracefully.
Public relations is not journalism• The most common element shared between journalism
and public relations is writing.
• Both professions rely on the written word for much, if not most of their existence. They
both use research skills to gather information, and they both must synthesize that
information into a suitable format for consumption by an audience.
• But PR specialists also deal in issues management, events management, advertising, and
promotion. PR firms must be able to write in a variety of styles, from10-second TV teasers to
radio taglines, to detailed analytical reports.
• Journalists are trained to report what they research.
• PR people are trained to analyse, synthesize and utilise communication channels to
transcend mere information dissemination.
• Where a journalist produces factual and objective copy, a PR specialist culls the facts and
presents a view point.
Public relations is not advertising
• Advertisers use the most appropriate mass media to reach their selected audience.
• PR people also use mass media to reach their publics, but for reasons far different from the
ordinary advertiser.
• PR agencies use more than advertising—they produce brochures, news releases,
presentations, feature stories, conference events, posters, web sites, and specialty items.
• PR moves minds. Advertising moves products.
Public relations is not marketing.
• PR is only one of the tools that marketing uses in its promotional planning process.
• Marketing is also concerned about product design, packaging, pricing, and distribution.
• PR is concerned with building success through building relationships between an
organisation and its publics.
• GOK presents itself to its publics through community support programmes.
PURPOSE OF PUBLIC RELATIONS
PREPARED BY MR. ANTONY AMBIA Page 3
PUBLIC RELATIONS
Public relations is…‘about reputation – the result of what you do, what you say and what others
say about you.’
Public relations practice is…‘the discipline which looks after reputation – with the aim of earning
understanding and support, and influencing opinion and behaviour.’ ‘it is the planned and
sustained effort toestablish and maintain goodwill and mutual understanding between an
organisation andits publics.’
THE INSTITUTE OF PUBLIC RELATIONS (IPR)
‘The method of defining messages and communicating them to targeted audiences in order to
influence a desired response.’
THE PUBLIC RELATIONS CONSULTANCY ASSOCIATION (PRCA) ‘Public relations is the
management function that establishes and maintains mutually beneficial relations between an
organisation and the publics on whom its success or failure depends.’
‘Public relations practice is the art and social science of analysing trends, predicting their
consequence, counselling organisation leaders and implementing planned programmes of action
which will serve both the organisation’s and the public interest.’
THE MEXICAN STATEMENT
CONFERENCE OF INTERNATIONAL PR PRACTITIONERS, MEXICO CITY 1978
‘Public relations is the systematic attempt to influence people’s beliefs, attitudes,opinions or
behaviour towards an organisation, its products or services, or an issue or cause.’
Uses of public relations to:
Help build a positive reputation among an organisation’s stakeholders.
Contribute towards changing attitudes and perceptions and, ultimately, behavior.
Make people feel good about working in, or with, or for an organisation. Persuade potential
employees that the organisation is ‘right’ for them.
Educate stakeholders about the organisation and its products and services. Reach difficult or
niche audiences precisely.
Gain information about your stakeholders and your competitors, which will help your
overall approach to marketing.
Encourage debate and discussions about issues affecting the organisation and/or its sector.
Help raise finance, attract investors and maintain confidence.
Raise/increase awareness of the organisation, its products and services.
Support corporate, sales and marketing strategies.
Open new markets and prepare the way for and launch new organisations, products and
services.
Manage issues and crises.
Don’t make assumptions – public relations will not:
Change values, attitudes and opinions overnight –PR is long haul.
Build a positive reputation when the organisation doesn’t deserve it.
PREPARED BY MR. ANTONY AMBIA Page 1
, Achieve objectives, which should be more appropriately set for other marketing disciplines,
like advertising and sales promotion.
Smother deserved complaint and criticism or act as a smokescreen form misdemeanour or
malpractice –get your corporate act together.
Guarantee media coverage – but good PR practice will increase your chances of coverage.
Guarantee direct sales – although good PR practice will increase the likelihood o fim proved
sales.
PERSONAL QUALITIES AN EFFECTIVE PUBLIC RELATIONS PRACTITIONER
1. Good communicator
2. Perspective/sense of humour
3. Calm under pressure
4. Creative
5. Organised
6. Willingness to learn
7. Curious
8. Warm/approachable/down to earth
9. Confident
10.Focused
11.Practical
12. Energy
13. Enthusiasm
14. Assertive
15. Integrity
What is PR?
• Public relations is about reputation.
• PR aims to earn understanding and support by influencing opinion and behaviour.
• PR is the planned and sustained effort to establish and maintain goodwill between an
organisation and its publics.
• “Organisation” can be a governmental body, a business, a profession, a public service or a
body concerned with health, culture, education.
Publics• “Publics” are audiences that are important to the organisation.
• They include customers, existing and potential, employees and management, investors,
media, government, suppliers and thought leaders.
Reputation in PR• Public relations is about reputation—the result of what you do, what you
say and what others say about you.
PREPARED BY MR. ANTONY AMBIA Page 2
, • PR is the discipline which looks after reputation, with the aim of earning understanding
and support and influencing opinion and behaviour. It is the planned and sustain effort to
establish and maintain goodwill and mutual understanding between an organisation and its
publics.
Public relations (PR) is the managing of outside communication of an organization to
create and maintain a positive image.
Public relations involves; popularizing successes, downplaying failures ,announcing changes,
and many other activities.
PR IS NOT….
Public relations is not handshaking and backslapping
• Good people skills are a very important part of public relations
• Public relations is about communicating effectively—it’s not about socializing gracefully.
Public relations is not journalism• The most common element shared between journalism
and public relations is writing.
• Both professions rely on the written word for much, if not most of their existence. They
both use research skills to gather information, and they both must synthesize that
information into a suitable format for consumption by an audience.
• But PR specialists also deal in issues management, events management, advertising, and
promotion. PR firms must be able to write in a variety of styles, from10-second TV teasers to
radio taglines, to detailed analytical reports.
• Journalists are trained to report what they research.
• PR people are trained to analyse, synthesize and utilise communication channels to
transcend mere information dissemination.
• Where a journalist produces factual and objective copy, a PR specialist culls the facts and
presents a view point.
Public relations is not advertising
• Advertisers use the most appropriate mass media to reach their selected audience.
• PR people also use mass media to reach their publics, but for reasons far different from the
ordinary advertiser.
• PR agencies use more than advertising—they produce brochures, news releases,
presentations, feature stories, conference events, posters, web sites, and specialty items.
• PR moves minds. Advertising moves products.
Public relations is not marketing.
• PR is only one of the tools that marketing uses in its promotional planning process.
• Marketing is also concerned about product design, packaging, pricing, and distribution.
• PR is concerned with building success through building relationships between an
organisation and its publics.
• GOK presents itself to its publics through community support programmes.
PURPOSE OF PUBLIC RELATIONS
PREPARED BY MR. ANTONY AMBIA Page 3
