Page 201 - DMGT547_INTERNATIONAL_MARKETING

International Marketing

Notes 11.3.2 Public Relations

Public Relations (PR) is the department or function responsible for evaluating public opinion
about, and attitudes toward, the organization and its products and brands. Public relations
personnel also are responsible for fostering goodwill, understanding, and acceptance among a
company’s various constituents and publics. According to Marla Aaron, “Public Relations is
communicating your organization’s messages at the right time and in the right place to the right
audience. With the proliferation of tools and technologies, we can measure the value of those
efforts and how they align with a business’ overall mission.”
Like advertising, public relations is one of the four variables in the promotion mix. One of the
tasks of the PR practitioner is to generate favorable publicity. By definition, publicity is
communication about a company or product for which the company does not pay. The Tools
that are generally used under Public Relations can be News releases, Media kits, Press conferences

Public relations professionals who are responsible for international business operations should
serve as more than a company mouthpiece. They should be able to simultaneously build consensus
and understanding, create trust and harmony, articulate and influence public opinion, anticipate
conflicts, and resolve disputes. As companies become more involved in global marketing and
the globalization of industries continues, company management must recognize the value of
international public relations.
Public relations practices can be affected by:

Cultural traditions
Social and political contexts

Economic environment

Notes Public Relations expenditures are growing at an average of 20% per year. In India
they are reported to be growing by 200% annually.
Reasons for this growth are:

Increased governmental relations between countries
Technological development
Societal issues like the environment
Public relations professionals must understand these differences and tailor the message to be
communicated, appropriately.

Task Pick an international case study from a major international PR firm and write a
profile of how the firm localized the campaign to fit the country and culture of the product
or service tactics.

11.3.3 Personal Selling

In today’s world, one of the fastest ways to convince a person to do something is by
communicating with that person. International markets are swarming with firms and their
products and services marked by complex technologies and multiple choices, and in cut-throat

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