Branding For Dummies®

Chapter 10. Getting the Word Out with Public Relations

In This Chapter

• Telegraphing your brand introduction via public relations

• Targeting and getting the attention of news media outlets

• Developing your publicity resources

Public relations, also known as PR, is a term that's often misused and even abused. Contrary to common misperception, public relations isn't a fancy name for publicity, although publicity is the element of public relations that most marketers work the hardest to achieve. For that matter, even the term publicity comes with a set of misconceptions, including the idea that publicity is a free substitute for advertising or that it's a way to fix a brand image through — to use the term of the decade — spin.

To set the record straight, public relations involves all the activities — including employee, community, industry, and government relations; customer and prospect events and communications; publicity; and even crisis management — that marketers use to build and develop a favorable image among all the public audiences that contribute to the brand's success. In the words of the Public Relations Society of America, “Public relations helps an organization and its public adapt mutually to each other.”

Simply put, public relations is the matchmaker between what you believe about your brand and what your public audiences believe about your brand. It's no wonder, then, that most brands ride into public view on the magic carpet of a public relations program.

This chapter helps ...