Publicity Versus Public Relations: What's The Difference? - Small ...

I know the terms publicity and public relations (PR) are often used interchangeably, but they are in my opinion two very distinct and separate disciplines. As a small business owner, you should take this little ?Hollywood? lesson to heart because leveraging the media to further brand your business in the eyes of the public should be part of your overall marketing plan.

What is Publicity?

Publicity is everything that you do to attract the media?s attention. Exactly how the media reports that publicity is up to them. That?s why the saying goes in Hollywood, ?There?s no such thing as bad publicity? or ?Any press is good press.? Because the general public craves a good story, which often involves juicy topics such as scandal, infidelity, sex, crime, drama and shock & awe; you?ll always see a celebrity of the week getting a lot of ink under their belt for something they did off the silver screen, usually in their personal lives. It causes one to question whether their lives really are as dramatic as the media portrays them, or if it?s the end result of a very strategically planned publicity campaign crafted by a very good publicist.

Study Sir Richard Branson. He?s probably the entrepreneur out there that?s most well known for his outlandish publicity stunts. I?m not saying that you necessarily need to fly a hot air balloon across the world or drive a Sherman tank through Times Square to get the media?s attention, but his strategy is memorable and it does get the media?s attention. Most of all, his publicity stunts are entertaining and that?s what the media wants. If you bore them, you won?t get coverage.

What is Public Relations?

Public relations (PR) is basically maintaining the image of an individual or an organization in the eyes of the public. The difference between PR and publicity is that PR is very much is concerned with reputation management over simply getting press ?ink.? Publicity is part of the overall strategy of PR because without the media there to share the news with its audience, PR would be limited in its reach. Damage control is also part of PR. When something goes bad, it?s PR?s job to limit the damage to the client?s reputation and come up with a plan to bring it back up to par. So think of it this way, publicity is like a broadsword hacking everything in its path, whereas, PR is like a fine scalpel that can be controlled with precision.

Which One is Right For Your Business?

In my opinion, it?s not that difficult to get publicity. You don?t need to be a celebrity to get a slice of the publicity pie, although it?s unlikely that you?ll end up on the front page of Google News. You just have to do something that?s newsworthy ? and by that I mean something that?s interesting to everyone besides yourself, and you have to make sure that the media knows about it.

Having a PR strategy though is far more valuable for your business. You want to craft a proper story, usually through a press release and you want to use any publicity generated towards promoting a meaningful purpose, whether that be your brand, your product or you!

Source: http://www.profitfuzion.com/marketing-articles/2012/3/25/publicity-versus-public-relations-whats-the-difference.html

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