Meaning and Definition, Characteristics of Publicity and Public Relations( Marketing Management) Notes

Publicity and Public Relations 

Topic Objectives:

• Meaning and Definition of Publicity Characteristics of Publicity
• Various Forms of Publicity
• Meaning and Definitions of Public Relations
• Public Relation Department 
• Functions of Public Relations

PUBLICITY

It is non-personal stimulation of demand for a product, service or a business unit by placing commercially significant news about it in a newspaper or magazine or obtaining favourable presentation of it upon radio, television or on the stage that is not paid by the sponsor.

"Publicity is a part of marketing and customer relations. It is non-personal communication and is transmitted through a mass media in the form of news item and not paid by the organisation."

Publicity comes from news reporters, columnists and journalists. Publicity is a part of a larger set of communication activities called public relation, which is designed to create and maintain a favourable image of an organisation and may be paid or non-paid. Publicity is an ingredients of promotion-mix. 

Every firm tries to create a good public relations so as to get good publicity through press and electronic media. Publicity is mainly due to good response of customers, or due to quality or can be even due to some controversies.

Defective products, unfair trade practice, anti-social activities often result in unfavourable publicity, consumer ill-will, bad product image, increased consumer protests, government regulations and so on. The firm having a poor public image will have lower sales and lower profits. Reducing the impact of bad news is as important as creating good publicity. Under the social marketing concept, publicity and public relations are assuming unique importance in the firm's promotion mix. Consumerism is altering consumer attitudes not only towards products, but also towards the firm and dealers selling the products of the firm.

Characteristics of Publicity

Following are the main characteristics of the publicity:

1. Publicity is a non-paid personal communication about an organisation. 

2. Publicity is informative but not persuasive. 3. Control lies with the publicity media.

4. Publicity messages are generally not repeated. 

5. Publicity does not need an identified sponsor.

Various Forms of Publicity

Following forms can be used for publicity by an organisation: 

1. News release which is a form of publicity that is usually a single of typewritten copy about a newsworthy event and is sent to editors for possible publication.

2.News conference is a meeting with media representatives to give major news events. Feature article is a form of publicity that is upto three thousand words in length and is usually prepared for a specific publication.

4. Editorial film or tape is a tape or film distributed to broadcast station or newspapers in the hope that its contents will be used in news stories.

5. Captioned photograph is a photograph with a brief description explaining the people or event pictured.

 PUBLIC RELATIONS

In the modern marketing 'Public Relations' is considered as fifth 'P' of the marketing mix. In every good company we find an independent 'Public Relations Officer' (P.R.O.) or a separate "Public Relations Department."

Public relations is a new term which got importance only after 1940s. Since then the industrialists feel the need of image building among the consumers of their organisations. Nowadays, image building is an important element of successful marketing. The main object of public relations is to secure the goodwill of the public by behaving in a manner as to please those with whom the company (business house), through its representatives, comes in contact. It is an image building activity of the company in the minds of the general public. It is, therefore, increasingly recognised that not only a business house requires good products and efficient employees, but it also needs good public relations. It is the backbone of a company.

Definitions of PR 

Following are some definitions of public relations:

1. "Public relations is the attempt by information persuasion and adjustment to engineer public support for an activity, cause, movement or institution. -Edward Bareney

2. "Public relations practice is the deliberate, planned and sustained effort to establish and maintain mutual understanding between the organisation and the general public.' Institute of Public Relations 

General public is a wide term and thus includes customers, dealers, shareholders, suppliers, employees, government and the community at large. Experts have identified five significant targets for public relations efforts: 

(i) consumers, 

(ii) dealers, 

(iii) employees, 

(iv) shareholders, and 

(v) community. Besides these, there may be other target groups with which the company might wish to communicate. 

Thus, in short, public relation is a duly planned effort to develop the mutual understanding between the organisation (business house) and the general public.

Public Relations Department

Public relations involve a variety of programs designed to promote or protect a company's image or its individual products. Public relation has often been treated as a minor element in the promotion mix, but the wise company takes concrete steps to manage successful relations with its key publics. Most companies have a public-relations department that monitors the attitudes of the organisation's public and distributes information and communications to build goodwill. Public relations department performs the following functions:

1. Press relations: Presenting news and information about the organisation in the most positive manner.

2. Product publicity: Sponsoring efforts to publicise product. 3. Corporate communication: Promoting understanding of the organisation through internal and external communications.

4. Lobbying: Dealing with legislators and Government officials to defeat legislation and regulation.

Many companies are turning to marketing public relations to directly support product promotion and image making. However, market public relation goes beyond simple publicity and plays an important role in the following tasks:

(i) Influencing specific target groups.

(ii) Assisting in the launch of new products. 

(iii) Building interest in a product category.

(iv) Assisting in repositioning a mature product.

(v) Defending products that have encountered public problems. 

(vi) Building the corporate image in a way that reflects favourably on its products.

Functions of Public Relations

The primary function of the public relations is to create the favourably image of the company and its product in the minds of the public by communicating the policies, practices, performances and achievements to the public. Public is a very wide term which includes consumers, dealers, employees, shareholders, government and the community at large. Now we shall discuss how the public relations communicate with the various sections of the public.

1. Communicating with Consumers: The goodwill and image of the company and its products in the mind of the consumers is a dominating factor for the success of the business enterprise. A favourable image must be created both about the product of the company as well as the company itself in the mind of the consumers. Public relations play an important role in creating a favourable image about the company and its products in the mind of the consumers.

Consumer relations activities include providing proper information regarding company's history, background, policies, objectives and nature as well as quality of products. The knowledge of consumer's mind about the company and its products can be studied through surveys, research and probes etc. The consumers should be kept well informed from time to time about the availability and the quality of the products. Attempts should also be made to adjust the company's products, policies and practices to meet the consumer's preferences. Every possible effort should be made to find out the consumer's need and then indicate how a suitable product will meet that need and provide satisfaction to the consumers.

2. Communicating with Dealers: Since it is neither possible nor practicable for any company to contact each and every consumer directly for the sale of its products, the communication with dealers by the company is called for. It is true particularly in case of large manufacturers who totally depend on dealers to sell their products. The dealers represent the manufacturers to the public and to the community at large of which he is a part. Therefore, good dealer relationship becomes most important for them.

Dealer's relations are a key note in any company's public relations programme mainly in India. In India, it is a regular phenomenon in case of several products (such as cement, steel, raw films, paper, life saving medicines, certain food products etc.) that their periodical shortage is experienced for a substantial part of the year. Stocks go underground overnight and thus the prices are substantially increased. It is also known as black marketing. Such activities on the part of scrupulous dealers bring bad name to the manufacturers in the eyes of the consumers and the government. In order to avoid such type of phenomenon, the dealers should be educated and trained. They should be made aware of their social responsibilities towards the public and the community at large. In this connection the consumers should also be taken into confidence. 

3. Communicating with Shareholders: A shareholder is a person who has invested money in the company. He, therefore, naturally expect a reasonable return on his investment, keeping in-view the risk he is taking by investing his money in the company. Thus, good company shareholders relationship cannot be built up if the company is not fair to them in the declaration of proper dividend every year besides holding regular meetings etc. The amount of dividend also affects the price of the share in the stock market. Besides the declaration and payment of dividends regularly, good companies also try in different ways to build up better company-shareholders relations. For instance, the attractive annual report, which is an important means of communication, creates good image of the company in the mind of the shareholders.

Some companies (such as Reliance Industries) even send coupons to their shareholders which entitle them to purchase the company's products at a special discount (over and above the usual discounts) upto a certain amount. Similarly, the company can organise visit of its shareholders to the company's work in order to create a better mutual understanding.

4. Communicating with Employees: Nowadays strikes, lockouts, gheraos etc. are common everywhere in industries and mainly in India. This is a clear cut indication of poor employer-employee relations. It affects the production and the progress adversely. It is mainly due to communication gap between the employer and the employees. No doubt that this is the area of personal department but the public relation can also play an important role in this connection. 

5. Communicating with the Community: Communication with the community is most essential for developing goodwill and favourable image of the company in the minds of the general public. It is, therefore, necessary for every company to realise its social responsibilities towards the community at large. After all, the shareholders, consumers, dealers, employees or even the company itself is an integral part of the community. Effective communication with the community can be established through 

(i) providing donations to charitable institutions, 

(ii) providing educational facilities by establishing schools and colleges and also providing scholarships to poor and brilliant students, 

(iii) encouraging family planning programmes, (iv) adoption of a code of fair trade practices, (v) assisting in the removal of poverty, backwardness and ignorance etc. In this connection it should be kept in mind that the community relations' activities must be geared to the actual needs felt by the community at large and should not be just a form of glorification for the company. 

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