Public Relations (PR): objectives, tools, models and synergies

There is no business that operates in isolation from its environment. Every company, consciously or not, creates its image – that is, how it is perceived by the media, potential customers or the general public. In the modern world, it influences virtually every aspect of a company’s operation. Public relations activities allow it to be exactly as we expect it to be.

Definition of Public Relations

There is no single definition of Public Relations.

As early as 2005, W. Budzynski mentioned in his book ‘Public Relations. Managing a company’s reputation’ that there are more than 2000 different explanations of the term. Despite the passage of years, the problem seems to remain relevant.

Most commonly, however, Public Relations is defined as activities carried out by a company or an organisation, which consist in creating its positive image externally (in relation to the environment).

However, it is important to remember that the term was coined a long time ago, so its meaning has evolved.

History of Public Relations

Public Relations literally means social relations or relations with the public. The first PR activities were therefore aimed at communicating specific information to the environment to help win public favour. An example of such activities can be found in the autobiography of Julius Caesar, in which he presented himself as a great leader and soldier. The publication was intended to help him in his political career.

The concept of modern PR, which is primarily applied to business, began to form in the early 20th century. The fathers of this process are 3 people:

• Ivy Lee – founder of the world’s first PR agency. He believed that the public needed to be informed honestly and truthfully, in a way that inspired trust in organisations and businesses. He worked with John D. Rockefeller himself. Rockefeller.
• Edward L. Bernays – was the first to combine public relations with behavioural psychology. He used persuasion and manipulation techniques in his work. He was involved in working alongside politicians, but when propaganda became associated with the actions of the Nazis, Bernays began promoting the term ‘Public Relations’.
• Arthur W. Page – a pioneer of Public Relations activities in corporations. He was the first Vice President of Public Relations at AT&T. Based on his work, ‘The Page Principles’ were created – 7 principles that are the basis of good PR.

As technology has progressed and developed, PR has come to be defined less as a way of managing corporate processes and more as part of a communications strategy.

What is black PR?

Black PR is defined as activities that aim to negatively affect the image of a company, organisation, person, product, etc. To achieve this, false or manipulated information is given to the public. It is therefore a type of industrial sabotage.

Black PR is unfortunately applicable to both marketing and politics, but it should be noted that the Public Relations industry is opposed to the use of the term.

Objectives of Public Relations

The objectives of PR activities vary depending on the strategy adopted and the target group, but they always relate to the creation of the company’s image and relations with the environment. This type of strategy or form of communication is intended to build trust in the organisation, create a positive reputation for a particular business, prevent image crises in the media, etc.

Public relations objectives are divided according to divergent methodologies, which is why one may encounter inconsistencies or different nomenclature in publications on the subject. However, 3 types of objectives are most commonly distinguished.

General Public Relations objectives

Also sometimes referred to as universal or primary objectives. They include activities aimed at the general environment (not, for example, only at customers – as in marketing), which aim to shape a positive opinion of the company or organisation, build relationships with stakeholders and reduce conflicts, including dealing with crises. As the name suggests, these are very general objectives that are set at the strategy development stage.

Public relations intermediate objectives

These are the resultant of the general objectives. They include specific activities to contribute to the main objectives. For example, an intermediate objective is to inform the environment about the company’s position on socially relevant issues. By achieving this, we add another pebble to the main objective, which is to create a positive image.

Ongoing Public Relations objectives

These are PR activities carried out on an ongoing basis, adapted to the company’s strategy. These include:

• drawing the public’s attention to the company’s existence;
• showing the company’s attitude towards important current events;
• increasing confidence in the company, products or services;
• building relationships with authorities e.g. to gain approval;
• reorganisation activities;
• building links with employees.

Strategic, operational and tactical objectives

This is a different division of the objectives of PR activities, but the definitions of these activities overlap to a large extent with the division into general, intermediate and ongoing objectives.

Strategic objectives of Public Relations

Encompass the overall objectives of PR activities. They are the essence of what we want to pursue, such as better public opinion or strengthening stakeholder relations.

Public Relations operational objectives

These are measurable activities that are expected to produce specific results, e.g. increasing positive reviews of a company by 30%.

Tactical Public Relations objectives

These are operational objectives broken down into smaller parts (‘tactics’) that are tailored to specific audiences. This division is needed when we are targeting a message/action to different types of personas and therefore need different tools.

Public relations tools

PR tools are, in practice, the various types of activities that are undertaken to achieve pre-defined objectives.

We divide them into internal and external PR tools.

Internal PR tools

In a nutshell, these are communications and activities directed at the company’s employees. These processes relate to the inside of the company and are closely linked, for example, to Employer Branding, i.e. building an employer brand that is desirable on the labour market.

Examples of internal PR tools

• Internal communication – messages on the internal communication network (intranet), newsletters, employee mailings, etc;
• Company meetings – organisational, integration and other meetings;
• Company events – organised to integrate employees and increase the bond with the employer;
• Internal Employer Branding activities – implementing employee benefits, creating a clear development path, creating a good atmosphere, etc.

External PR – tools

Public Relations are primarily those activities that build the company’s image externally and result in good relations with the wider environment. External PR tools can therefore be called the core of this strategy.

Examples of external PR tools

• Media Relations – building good relations with the media in order to create a positive opinion of the company. The primary tool used for this is the press release. Other activities include interviews and press conferences;
• Social Media Marketing – within this strategy, social media communication serves not only marketing purposes, but also public relations;
• Investors Relations – building relationships with investors, authorities, external organisations, etc. Through such activities, you can gain the favour of those around you and this will help you achieve your PR goals;
• Influencer Marketing – building the company’s image by working with online creators;
• Crisis Management – crisis management, i.e. preventing the occurrence of crisis situations and implementing the prepared plan when such situations arise;
• Media monitoring – both traditional and electronic;
• External Employer Branding activities – e.g. organising charity events, sponsoring a sports team, implementing a social campaign.

Press Release

The most basic tool used in PR activities is the Press Release, i.e. a message addressed to the media. It may, for example, inform about the opening of a new branch of a company, an event organised, a report issued or cooperation initiated with a major brand. Such an announcement can be prepared without the help of specialists, but the problem may turn out to be effective delivery to the right addressees.

What should a press release contain?

• The date of dissemination of the information – we usually place it in the upper right-hand corner. The date confirms that the information is up to date;
• Title – short and catchy, but not misleading (avoid clickbait!);
• Lead – a short paragraph summarising the main message of the press release. It is recommended that it answers the questions: what, where, when, why. The lead is an important piece of information for the journalist, as it is usually reading this passage that determines whether the press release will be published. This paragraph should be in bold;
• Development – in the following paragraphs we develop the information given in the lead. A common practice is to quote a person, e.g. the president of the company, and refer to data, e.g. the results of a study;
• Contact details – at the end we provide details of a person who can be contacted for more information. This could be, for example, a spokesperson.

PR and other marketing activities

PR tools are complementary to or part of other marketing activities. Public Relations is rarely carried out in complete isolation from tasks such as employer branding (Employer Branding), event organisation (Event Marketing), content production (Content Marketing) or internal communication (HR).

Depending on the needs and structure of the company, these tasks may be carried out jointly – by several departments or, as is often the case with smaller companies, they are handled by just one, not even necessarily a dedicated Public Relations department (because, for example, the budget does not allow for hiring specialists in other fields). The solution to such a problem is to cooperate with an advertising agency that offers comprehensive marketing activities. In this case, Public Relations “naturally” interweaves with other strategies.

Target groups in Public Relations

Public relations is about building relationships with the environment, but in order to implement such a process, it is first necessary to define what exactly this “environment” is. We are talking about target groups, which, like tools, are divided into internal and external.

Internal target group

These are representatives of the inside of the company or organisation, i.e. employees, trade unions, managers, board of directors, etc.

External target group

These include the media, contractors, authorities, local communities, customers, competitors, public figures.

Communication models in public relations

A model is the method of communication that a company or organisation adopts to achieve its PR objectives. A scheme is also defined as a method of practising Public Relations.

Models differ in methodology, purpose and the way they build relationships with their audiences. In total, there are as many as four:

Publicity

This is an example of communication based on generating publicity regardless of whether public opinion is positive. The simplest way to describe this model is “it doesn’t matter what they say, it matters that they say it”.

In practice, these activities are often based on manipulation and the information provided may be untrue. Currently, the publicity technique is most often used in show business.

Public information

In a sense, this is the opposite of publicity, because the foundation of this model is truth. According to this methodology, information must be reliable and the way of communication must be open and for the public good. This model is most often used in information campaigns.

It is practised by non-profit organisations or government agencies, among others.

Two-way asymmetric model

This model emphasises the needs of the audience and communicates information that meets or relates to those needs. According to some, this is a type of manipulation, but it should be emphasised that communication must be based on truth. It is only the targeting that is unusual, because we only communicate to the audience what they might like. A common procedure in this model is to refer to data, research results, etc.

Today, it is mainly used by companies.

Two-way symmetrical model

This method is based on the assumption that PR professionals are intermediaries between the audience and the company. They appear as mediators who exchange information from both sides and want to acquaint the audience with the organisation’s position.

This type of communication is intended to benefit both the company and the audience.

How do you implement PR in your company?

If you want to carry out professional Public Relations activities, consider hiring a specialist or working with an external company.

Keep in mind, however, that Public Relations is a field that encompasses many different tasks. Some of them can be carried out by yourself without hiring a team of specialists. This is especially possible if, for example, you already have a marketing department within your company.

Some of the PR activities you can undertake without major changes include

• contact with the media – stay on good terms with journalists, publishers, etc. Try to inform the media regularly about important issues in your company. Provide press releases.
• advertising – if you already have advertising activities in place (e.g. Google Ads), you can extend them with campaigns that target public relations objectives.
• internal activities – organise team-building trips, consider introducing employee benefits, increase the comfort level of your company. These are actions that will not immediately translate into profits, but if implemented over the long term, they will simply make the opinion of your business better. You will also certainly gain more engaged employees.

How much do PR activities cost?

It depends on the scope of the activities you want to carry out and how you want to conduct your public relations. If you decide to hire one specialist, you will have to bear the full-time costs. It is difficult to estimate these costs because a lot depends on the person’s experience, so it is a good idea to do some research on the subject. Check the ranges advertised for this position and consider what terms of employment you are able to offer.

On the other hand, cooperation with an agency can cost from a few zlotys to as much as a dozen or even tens of thousands of zlotys – it all depends on the scope of activities within the public relations service. Your expectations, needs and budget are the most important factors influencing the pricing. In addition, it can be a permanent cooperation, but also a temporary one, e.g. to carry out only one project.

Public relations – is it worthwhile?

PR is not a strategy that translates directly into profits. What is more, you simply have to wait for the effects of these activities. Many entrepreneurs therefore do not attach any importance to communication with the public.

But does this mean that PR is not worthwhile? No. In modern business, public opinion plays an important role. How you are seen by customers, the media or the authorities directly affects your business. In times of high competition and frequent image crises, public relations is more important than ever.