Public Relations

We’ve all heard this old chestnut.

Which of these is news? “Dog bites Man” or “Man Bites Dog”

Knowing that a “Man Biting a Dog” is much rarer and therefore a more news worthy event is the first step in understanding the often misunderstood and under-appreciated field of Public Relations.

Public Relations is loosely defined as the relationship between a corporation and the public. But in reality it has a series of sub-categories that include media relations, Government interaction, consumer relations, crisis management, industry participation, investor communications, labour relations, sponsorship/donation and internal communications. Large multi-national companies have entire departments dedicated to this discipline and some have individuals looking directly after each of theses sub-categories. But regardless of your corporate size, public relations or the more commonly referred to “PR” is a gold mine that you need to make a pillar of your marketing efforts.

Common business theory suggests we set aside between 1 to 5 percent of our gross sales as marketing funds. Most companies in Winnipeg are on the low side of this equation, so understanding how to add in a PR component can really extend or leverage your marketing dollars.

Media Relations

Most business owners make the common mistake of creating a press release or media kit about a new product and assume the media will call eager to tell their story. A good PR person knows that in order to get media coverage they need to ensure that the media see a news story, rather than simple self-promotion.

Local festivals, as an example, realize that simply informing the media about this years line-up is not enough to warrant more than a couple of inches of copy. They need to uncover interesting story angles; the musician who has succeeded by overcoming some daunting challenge, the donor who has a personal story of involvement, the adjustments or changes made as a result of festival goer feedback.  These are newsworthy and can result in extended stories that if had to be purchased as advertising would cost thousands of dollars.

Sponsorship

I advise some of my clients rather than chase their prospective clients through advertising that they invite them to an event they have sponsored. I call this “opening a door, as opposed to chasing them through one”. Together we carefully choose a sponsorship opportunity we know will be of interest to the group they are targeting. An example might be, a high-end investment firm looking for wealthy clients might sponsor an art show by an emerging local talent and invite prospects to attend an opening.  They can bask in the warmth created by being seen as benefactor of the arts and supporter of local talent. Their target market thinks highly of their philanthropy and comes to the show giving the investment company opportunities to meet and interact with this well-heeled crowd without them feeling they are being chased or hounded for business.

Rather than expensive media buys we are drawing the intended audience to us. This is a far cheaper and more effective strategy to say nothing of the benefit to the community, arts group, and individual artist.

Crisis Management

I advise my clients to work up a crisis management framework before something happens. You need to think through your responses to a crisis and doing so while feeling the glare of media and public attention is not conducive to a considered and thoughtful response. Think about how elegantly and forcefully Maple Leaf meats handled their recent crisis and compare that with how a certain famous golfer kept duffing his PR and ending up further in the rough.

Labour/Internal/Investor/Industry Relations

In addition to considering how customers will react to changes in your organization you need to ensure time is spent looking at those working with you, talking to your staff, investors and industry understanding and mediating their concerns and inviting input. Regular internal communication in the form of newsletters, bulletins, annual reports and “staff only” password protected sections of your website can go a long way towards creating an environment where staff, board and investors feel they are being listened to, included in decision making and part of the team.

PR is a proactive position rather than reactive. A good PR person is thinking about how each new initiative will be received by the wider public and ensuring that management is kept abreast of public opinion and media informed. Because as we all know the image and strength of your Brand is determined by pubic perception and is not always fully in your control.