PR Roles and Specialties

1
Chapter 1

• PR Roles and Specialties

2
Objectives

• To understand the role and responsibilities of
  public relations in public and private
  companies, nonprofit organizations, agencies and
  firms.
• To recognize the difference between strategic
  planning and execution that relies only on
  tactics and techniques.
• To appreciate the value of public relations in
  solving problems and making policy.
• To understand why individual as well as
  institutional credibility is critical to public
  relations practice.

3
What is public relations?

• Responding to expectations of those who can
  influence an organizations operations and
  development
• Harmonizing interests of an organization with
  those on whom its growth depends
• Serving as intermediary between an organization
  and all of that organizations publics

4
Responsibilities of a PR Practitioner

• Distributing information to publics
• Researching all audiences
• Advising management
• Helping to set policy
• Evaluating PR program effectiveness

5
First World Assembly Definition

• Art and social science
• Analyzing trends and predicting their
  consequences
• Implementing planned programs of action
• Serving both the organization and public interest

6
PRSA Definition

• Management function
• Counseling at the highest level
• Strategic planning for the organization

7
British Institute of PR Definition

• Reputation management
• What an organization does and says, and what
  others say about it

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10 Basic Principles of PR

• PR deals with facts, not fiction
• PRs primary consideration is doing whats in the
  public interest
• Public interest must be the criterion for
  selecting PR programs and policies
• PR must protect the integrity of the media
  channels it uses for its messages

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10 Basic Principles of PR (cont.)

• PR involves effective communication back and
  forth between an organization and its publics
• PR depends on the use of scientific public
  opinion research
• PR practitioners must use the social sciences to
  understand what publics are saying and to
  communicate effectively with them

10
10 Basic Principles of PR (cont.)

• PR requires multidisciplinary application of
  theories and concepts
• PR has an obligation to explain problems to
  publics before they become crises
• PR performance should be measured by only one
  standard ethical performance

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Activities of PR

• Press agentry
• Promotion
• Publicity
• Public affairs
• Research
• Graphics
• Advertising
• Marketing
• Integrated marketing communications
• Merchandising

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PR Practitioners Job

• More need for depth and diversity of knowledge
• More expectation of accountability
• Less tolerance for hype
• Constants over time go-for attitude,
  strategic thinking, writing, speaking,
  persuading, respecting deadlines, multi-tasking

13
Main Roles of PR Practitioner

• Staff member in organization
• May be specialist in one area of PR if
  organization is large
• Likely to be Jack/Jill of all trades in a small
  organization
• Technician role at lower levels, managerial role
  at higher levels

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Main Roles of PR Practitioner (cont.)

• Employee of PR agency or firm
• May be specialists or generalist depending on
  size of firm
• Involved in sales Generating new business
• Often works as a member of team of writers,
  designers, production staff who together produce
  a PR message

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Main Roles of PR Practitioner (cont.)

• Independent practitioner or counselor
• May work on project basis or retainer
• May perform technical tasks for clients
• May serve as counselor to client management

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Areas of Specialization

• PR for nonprofit organizations (also called NGOs)
• PR for educational institutions
• Fundraising and/or donor relations
• Research and evaluation
• Trend analysis
• Issues management
• Public opinion evaluation
• PR for international, global organizations

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Areas of Specialization (cont.)

• Financial PR (also called investor relations)
• PR for industrial companies
• PR for general business and retail
• PR for government (all levels)
• Political PR
• Lobbying
• PR for health care organizations
• PR for sports teams
• PR for leisure-time activities

18
PR Career, Job (Field) or Profession?

• Profession requires
• Body of knowledge
• Commitment to continuing education
• Standard educational curriculum to prepare for
  entry into the profession
• Control over who enters, exits the profession
• Shared code of ethics that guides practice

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Function of PR in Business and Society

• Manipulative model Control publics, direct what
  people think or do to satisfy an organization's
  needs
• Service model Respond to publics, react to their
  needs, desires
• Transactional model Achieve mutually beneficial
  relationships among an institution and its publics

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Self-Described Roles of PR

• PR practitioner as communication technician
  (skills oriented)
• PR practitioner as communication facilitator
  (liaison)
• PR practitioner as problem-solving process
  facilitator (confrontational)
• PR practitioner as acceptant legitimizer
  (yes-person)
• PR practitioner as expert prescriber
  (authoritarian, prescriptive)

21
Roles Boil Down to Two

• Technician
• Manager
• How roles are enacted is a function of the
  organization, culture of the country and training
  of the practitioner

22
The Value of Public Relations

• PR can open and maintain a dialogue between an
  organization and its publics
• PR can encourage mutual adjustment between an
  organization and its society
• PR can focus on the greater good of society, not
  just the narrow interests of an organization

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The Value of Public Relations (cont.)

• PR has the opportunity to improve cooperation
  between an organization and its publics
• PR provides useful information
• PR can raise issues and concerns, reminding
  management of ethical responsibilities

24
The Value of Public Relations (cont.)

• PR helps management formulate and advocate sound
  objectives
• PR can be problem solver
• PR can uphold socially responsible behavior

25
Obstacles to Ideal PR

• Economics Organizations and their managers exist
  to make money
• Human nature Natural temptation to play up the
  good, ignore or deny the negative

26
PR as Problem Finder, Solver and Preventor

• Problems of
• Production
• Growth
• Personnel
• Financing
• Advertising
• Business acceptance

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PR as Interpreter and Communication Link

• A bridge between organization and publics
• Helps organization, publics adjust to change
• Stimulates positive change
• Enables groups to accommodate each other