As much as the focus for business in today’s market focuses on things like online visibility, much of your success still depends on some bedrock ideas. How you are perceived and your reputation will determine your success. Establishing some sound public relations strategies makes this happen.
Even if you have all the correct SEO data and you are gaining high-level exposure online, if your reputation is not up to par, you will not rate among customers. Managing your reputation, both online and in-person is the heart of public relations. Successful companies of all sizes have learned that a good public relations strategy makes the difference.
But a good many companies are still not sure how to integrate public relations into their marketing practices. Especially small businesses, which rely more on word of mouth as much as their online presence, may not be clear on how public relations work within their business model.
What are public relations? How do public relations work? What are the main functions of public relations? And how do you build a public relations strategy for your business? This guide will give you the fundamentals of public relations.
What are public relations?
Public relations is simply the practice of managing information about your company. Part of managing this information involves taking control of the ways information is disseminated to take some measure of control of public perceptions of who you are and what you do.
Public relations differs from publicity. Publicity involves strategies that gain notice and attention. As anyone can imagine, publicity does not need to be positive. Negative publicity can and does occur, and you do not want that. Public relations, on the other hand, is the practice and strategies of managing publicity so that it works in your favor.
Why are public relations important for your business?
All business owners know that you need to build some kind of image around your brand. The entire purpose of building an online presence is to achieve this goal. Making yourself known and getting attention are all forms of publicity. This is how customers find you and buy into your brand.
What many people do not fully understand is that a public image requires maintenance and management. The management of your image is the essence of public relations. It is important for your business that you take an active role in how your business is perceived by the public. As we mentioned above, one unsatisfied customer can create a real problem. When your business image becomes associated with a negative idea, this can mean ruin.
Public relations is all about managing situations like this in proactive ways. Public relations identify ways to build your image about the kinds of ideas and associations and create customer trust. Public relations identifies strategies that forestall negative associations before they happen.
It is not enough to publicize. You must also manage your image and brand association, and this is what public relations do for your company.
What Are the Main Functions of a Public Relations Firm?
Most people who start a business tend to focus on boosting their online presence. Making sure they are known and recognized in the first order of business. But you need to do more than that, and managing your public reputation is key to success. This is where public relations comes in. Some of the key features of public relations include:
Managing your reputation
This is perhaps the most important job of public relations. Many things can happen with public perceptions of your brand. An unsatisfied customer who cannot be made happy, and advertising mistakes are just two things that can tarnish your reputation. It is essential to success that the reputation of your business be maintained. PR strategies and PR firms make sure your reputation is upheld, and they can devise ways of regaining your reputation in the event of unforeseeable problems.
Promoting brand values
Brand values matter in any business, but in today’s market, this has become increasingly important. More and more, customers want to know what kind of values your company embraces. Are you a green company? Do you want to advance the idea of integrity? Is your company allied with a community? These things make a difference, and PR is all about making sure customers see that these are your company values. Making connections and networking strategies are just two ways that PR advances and upholds your company values.
Build community relations
Public relations is one of the best ways to build community relations. Building and strengthening ties to the local market and joining groups that promote civic engagement are ways of weaving your company into a local community. This builds brand trust and integrity. This means understanding things like influencers who are instrumental in making it known that your company plays an active role in the local community.
Enhances your online presence
Good public relations enhance and build your online presence. PR can help create and disseminate the kind of image your want in the digital market and beyond. This means building and strengthening your social media. PR can craft press releases that garner attention from other media.
Good public relations involves monitoring consumer interests and community partners, and it also identifies potential threats to your online image. Public relations can resolve conflicts to your advantage and turn public opinion in your favor. In short, public relations takes a much wider view of what we mean when we talk about the public by taking into consideration other online conversations and activities beyond your target market.
What Are the Main Categories of Public Relations?
Public relations come in different forms. The main categories of public relations are:
- Strategic communications: This means understanding your business’s priorities and formulating strategies to support these priorities. Strategic communications involve communicating to all channels the essence of what your company is about.
- Media relations: This is to spread messages through all available media. Press releases and pitching interviews are features of media relations. Make sure important messages are not only formulated and released but also meet their target audiences. You can pay to advertise, and you can get media outlets to spread the word.
- Community relations: One of the best ways to convey your message and image is by directly reaching out to your community. Community relations involve making contact with other local businesses to promote community priorities, and it also means making contact with local community partners—both individuals and groups.
- Internal communications: This has become an increasingly important facet of public relations. Keeping your people involved and informed is just as important as getting your message out to the public. People within your business and organization need to understand what the brand image and message are all about. This involves developing internal programs that keep people informed and engaged.
- Crisis communication: No one wants to think about handling a crisis, but the best way to handle it is to be prepared for it. Planning for a potential crisis involves strategic communications that build relationships with customers and the community. This means having a planned and consistent approach to crisis management, with a clear crisis communications plan in place.
- Online and social media communications: Building and maintaining a strong online presence is essential for success. Customers rely on the web to find products and services, and they rely on the web to find information on these products and services. Good public relations service build this online presence and it sustains this presence in dynamic ways. This involves choosing the best social media platforms and other digital channels to build your online presence.
Owned vs. Paid vs. Earned Media
Part of public relations involves the different forms in which media can be used to publicize your business, brand, and image. These come in three forms:
Owned Media Public Relations is a media channel that you create, control, and can leverage to your advantage in a range of different ways for brand awareness, search visibility, and thought leadership.
Paid Media Public Relations: These are media channels that you paid for to promote your brand. Paid media is any kind of advertising or paid media coverage that promotes your brand.
Earned Media Public Relations: This is any publicity or media that is not generated by your company or agents of your company, but rather by organic methods via customers, social media fans, journalists, or bloggers.
5 public relations strategy examples to use today
There are five primary public relations strategies. These include:
Press Releases.
These are short news stories written by PR professionals for a target media audience. Press releases are designed to bring attention to something important for your business so the press will spread the information.
Public/Private Events.
These are public or private events designed to showcase what your company has to offer. Often these are highly coordinated events designed to present products or services to a specific audience.
Social Media.
We all recognize the importance of social media. In some ways, it is the easiest way to gain free attention. Good PR strategies will involve things like data analytics to optimize the reach and scope of social media to gain maximum public reach.
Video content.
Video content is easier now than it has ever been. The role of public relations in video content is to see to it that it is of the highest caliber and professional standards and that it reaches both the target audience and a wider audience.
Strategic partnerships.
Partnerships drove by public relations often involve media or other organizations with shared goals. The purpose of creating strategic partnerships is to develop platforms and strategies that provide for the mutual benefit of all parties.
How to Build a PR Strategy
There are some straightforward steps you can take to build a good public relations strategy. These steps include:
- Make a project timeline. …
- Create goals. …
- Identify your target audience. …
- Think about the competition. …
- Write your key messages. …
- Set and implement tactics. …
- Measure the results.
To effectively implement these strategies, you will likely need a great public relations consultant. Getting these strategies in place and making them work can be a challenge, and that is why good public relations professionals can be indispensable.
PR FAQS
What are public relations? Public relations is simply the practice of managing information about your company. Part of managing this information involves taking control of the ways information is disseminated to take some measure of control of public perceptions of who you are and what you do.
Why are public relations important for your business? It is important for your business that you take an active role in how your business is perceived by the public.
What Are the Main Functions of a Public Relations Firm? Promoting brand values, building community relations, and enhancing your online presence.
Public relations is crucial for success in today’s market. It simply is not enough to devise a strategy that will gain public attention. You also need a sound set of strategies to maintain the image of your company and to help that image grow. Public relations not only builds your public profile but also sustains that profile in the most beneficial ways.
As you can see from this guide, there is a lot to effective public relations. To get the most out of public relations, you can leave things to professionals who are knowledgeable and will invest themselves in the success of your company. HeyDay Marketing Services provides public relations services that will help your business grow.
HeyDay Marketing Services can build a public relations campaign that will position your brand as a leader in your industry and create a positive image for your business in the media. We can help you build community relations that will suture your company in a local community.
HeyDay Marketing Services offers several packages for you to find the public relations campaign that works for your company. We understand that one size does not fit all. For sound public relations strategies that work, allow HeyDay Marketing Services to take over the public relations for your business.
