At its most basic form, public relations is about building relationships. And as PR professionals, we strive to make the organizations and people we represent relatable in ways that allow them to accomplish their organizational or corporate goals.
What is the definition of public relations?
The Public Relations Society of America (PRSA) defines public relations as “a strategic communication process that builds mutually beneficial relationships between organizations and their publics.” Let’s break down some of the main areas of public relations, while keeping in mind that storytelling sits at the heart of it all.
Functions of Public Relations
Media Relations
Journalism, while continually evolving, still plays an important role in helping people and organizations tell their story. That’s why PR professionals build relationships with journalists to help get their messages out there – whether that be through a print or online news article, a broadcast television or radio segment, or even an influencer’s blog or social media. People receive information through all of these avenues, so we must meet them where they are.
Content Creation
While media relations remains essential, more than 21,400 news and media jobs were lost in 2023. PR professionals don’t just rely on journalists to tell a worthwhile story, especially since there are fewer out there. But this also provides an opportunity because digital tools and distribution systems allow us to create the story ourselves. In short, clients are able to cover themselves and reach key audiences with everything from website blogs to short- and long-form video content creation, social media content, photography … you name it. The best part? We can control the messaging for our clients that’s disseminated to the audiences desired.
Issues Management
Things happen. But what matters is how you recover from those things and how bad the damage is to your reputation. PR professionals guide the organizations and people they represent through crises, major changes and advocacy work. Specific services include responding to media as necessary, developing messages to stakeholders, providing counsel to senior executives, and much more.
Employee Engagement
Employees of a company, no matter the size, expect steady and effective communication from within. This helps them feel a sense of belonging and engagement to the organization, as well as a connection to its leaders and mission. PR professionals help organizations develop employee loyalty and engagement, as well as help them navigate all types of internal issues, through developing communications strategies, messaging, content, and more. We also help attract talent, which is often a major challenge for organizations.
Devine + Partners is a public relations agency based in Philadelphia. We offer a full range of communications services – from message and content development and media relations to issues management and employee and community engagement.
How can public relations help you tell your story? We can answer that. Let’s chat. Drop us a note at resteasy@devinepartners.com.
