Page 227 - DMGT509_RURAL MARKETING

Rural Marketing

Notes Public Relations cover all the communications of the firm except the marketing/advertising
and personal selling communications.
Public Relations can be defined as, “the process of understanding public attitudes on relevant
issues, interpreting these attitudes for Management, and then working either to go with the
organizational polices and practices with those attitudes or to modify the attitudes themselves.”

Figure 11.4

Public
Relations
Sales Targets

Personal
Selling Advertisement

Publicity is only one aspect of PR Job, which covers the making of Press Releases given regarding
the firm’s activities and plans. Besides PR is useful tool in creating positive ambient, cue for the
sale of firm’s products in the target market segment.
Public Relations task in marketing activities is subtle. Nonetheless it is equally important, as
through PR, the firm is able to build custom/customer base not as a hard sell exercise, but with
gaining customer support. This is done with great finesse and yet with bringing customers on
the right side of the firm. You like us you buy from US.
The main features of PR are as follows:
1. When the firms arrange PR activities they do not have total control on the message being
sent. It becomes the prerogative of the editors of the media and they can surely use their
right. In personal selling or in marketing /advertising the firm talks all good things about
the product. In case of PR the media men can express their likes and dislikes in their
reports and not just what the firm wants them to do.
2. PR is addressed to several different classes of people, the customers being one of them.
The message goes to the firm’s stakeholders, the buyers, the sellers, the investors, banks,
the government, local bodies, trade associations and social activists like the environment
protection groups. It pays to keep these people on the firm’s right side.
3. PR does not have any direct media cost as the PR Message goes in the form of medias
editorial. No media space or time needs to be purchased for PR.
4. PR besides assisting in improving sales also does a number of pre-planned tasks like
improving investor’s interest in the firm. Labour relations and activities connected with
labour welfare get publicity through PR.
5. The most visible role of PR is seen during Annual General Meetings of the Shareholders of
the firms. The entire programme is managed by the PR Department of the firms.

Self Assessment

Multiple Choice Questions:
13. Every firm wants to be known as a good ....................... citizen
(a) corporate (b) media

(c) private (d) public

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