We often hear the general question, “What kind of value does public relations add to my business?” Usually, the question is framed somewhat more bluntly: “What good is PR?”
The underlying question business leaders really are asking is “How do you connect brand awareness efforts to business value?”
And, in virtually every instance, business leaders equate value with more revenue or lower costs.
What role does marketing serve in business?
Step back for a moment and ask, “What is it that marketing does?”
Marketing aims to increase or maintain sales and revenue.
Within the marketing function, advertising, public relations, promotion, and research are the marketing components that support sales.
Advertising
Advertising, which is expensive, is controlled by budget and media-buying decisions. One knows where one’s ad will appear, who it will reach, and how many folks might see it. What one doesn’t know is how many people will actually look at it or respond to an advertisement.
Public relations
Public relations, which is not nearly as expensive, is controllable only to a point. Information is distributed, but how many people see it or respond to it totally depends on the interest value of the information and the audiences served by the media outlets that present the information.
Promotion and research
Promotion capitalizes on other people’s dollars to expand one’s marketing program. Research seeks to find out how people perceive your business, which in turn, influences how you approach your marketing.
Awareness is the first step in marketing
Brand awareness is the first step in building a connection with a customer. It’s the foundation upon which a brand builds recognition, trust and preference in a competitive market.
How effective is PR in building awareness for your brand?
Connecting the effectiveness of public relations in building brand awareness to increased revenue or decreased expenses is like trying to figure out how a football or baseball player’s statistics relate to a team’s wins.
So many other things must happen that pinning wins on a player’s passing yardage or batting average involves a tenuous connection at best.
While PR is statistically difficult to measure, experienced business leaders know that successful public relations is a “must” in their overall marketing approach.
PR goes beyond self-serving advertising and attracts powerful third-party endorsement in the form of recognition of one’s brand by someone else.
So how does good PR fit into building your brand?
Branding is a strategy for making your company memorable.
Public relations generates interest in your product or service through storytelling. The ultimate goal of PR is to tell your story through other channels of communication…i.e., media coverage, whether it’s mainstream media like print or television or emerging media on the web or social.
While the goals of branding and PR are different, it’s a symbiotic relationship—a partnership. Your business thrives when branding and PR align.
Find out more about how you can utilize the power of public relations to affordably and successfully add value to your brand.
Contact us at 407-339-0879 or email us at will@wellonscommunications.com and let us tell you more about how good PR can make a difference in making your brand stand apart from your competitors.
