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MANAGEMENT UNIVERSITY OF AFRICA

STUDENT’S NAME: JOHN MALEMA

ADMISSION NUMBER: BDS/1/00900/3/2011

UNIT TITLE: Student to insert unit title as appropriate e.g. DEVELOPMENT FINANCE

UNIT CODE : Student to insert unit code as appropriate e.g. BDS 207

WORKBASED ASSIGNMENT (WBA) Or CONTINUOUS ASSESSMENT TEST (CAT)

(Use only one per document)

LECTURER’S NAME: BROWN KITUR

SEMESTER: MAY- AUGUST 2021

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Introduction

The formal practice of what is referred to in contemporary society as Public Relations

dates back a long time ago. Most people tend to define it, or at least think of it, as a thorough

communication process that tends to build a mutually important working relationship between an

organization/company and other institutions. Though this definition may seem to integrate the

ideas of engagement and the building of productive relationships, modern definitions seem to

understand that the relationship should mainly be beneficial- and notably so to both sides. Public

Relations plays some rather definitive roles; ranging from shaping and protecting the reputation

of an institution, enhancing the efforts of an organization to shape public opinion and policy,

creation of adequate content for client/ customer engagement, to mention but a few. As such, the

scope of public relations is thus wide; thereby interacting with other fields as marketing,

propaganda, journalism, advertising, and publicity. This essay aims to outline the relationship

between public relations and all of these fields. In the same vein, the role of public relations in

marketing- especially in the generation of leads- will also be discussed in detail in the latter parts

of this paper.

The core of public relations centers on influencing, building strong and lasting

relationships, not to mention the art of shaping the wireframe of a company, organization, or

institution. For this goal to be achieved, the players involved in public relations must strive to

ensure that appropriate research has been conducted on members of the public- especially when

it comes to anticipating and analyzing opinions from particular members of the society. Research

has proved in the recent past that modern-day organizations and institutions alike cannot do

without integrating the usefulness that comes with Public Relations into their usual operations.
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Relationship and Similarities Between; Public Relations and Journalism

Public Relations and Journalism seem to be two fields that are closely intertwined.

Perhaps one might think that this is entirely the case; especially once the similarities between the

two fields are brought to light. As such, it is worthwhile mentioning that there is also an array of

differences between the two fields- especially when it comes to the targeted audiences, the

freedom of creativity and expression accorded to Journalism, as well as the objective nature of

public relations as opposed to the subjective nature of journalism. Some people tend to argue that

the relationship between the two fields is somewhat symbiotic (not in the literal sense). In other

words, some functions achieved by one seem to either complement or entirely replace those of

others if need be.

As expected, there is a myriad of similarities that accrue to both of these fields. For

starters, both fields seem to have a common goal of communicating to the members of the

public. Professionals constantly rely on interactions with members of the public in an attempt to

ensure that the goals of the organizations and/or institutions are suitably met. Both fields

intensively tell stories for cordial interactions with the public- thereby sustaining the operations

of the organizations (Alam, 2018).

Another similarity identified in both fields is that they must build trust with the members

of the audience- as a resort to building credibility with the members of the public. The former

similarity seems to have essentially paved the way to the latter one. Public relations and

journalism are also similar in that both tend to relay information in an easy, yet comprehensive,

but understandable way. Each of these fields achieves this goal through articles, stories,

bulletins, or social media posts. Finally, Public relations and Journalism are similar in that they
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both tell stories. Telling engaging stories is key in maintaining audiences- thereby ensuring that

the institution/organization in question meets its objectives.

Public Relations and Advertising

Advertising mainly focuses on paying for space in the form of media airtime or

publications in the print media- as a way of attracting and persuading prospective customers to

invest or purchase goods and services offered. Public relations, on the other hand, encompasses a

myriad of tactics- often making effective use of independent media to gain favorable coverage.

As such, it is therefore worthwhile mentioning that both of these fields seem to be similar to each

other. People often regard one as the mirror image of the other. Though this may not essentially

be true, it plays a critical role in helping us understand how close these two fields may

sometimes be similar. Both advertising and Public Relations are intended to raise awareness of a

good or product to members of the public. In the same vein, the message from both of these

fields is usually directed to a specific target audience. This may range from the elderly, people

from a specific location, people from a specific background, or people with a particular interest

in something.

Public Relations and Sales Promotion

Public relations often include information that an institution/ organization may want the

public to be aware of- including customers, employees, and stakeholders. In other words, a

specific message must be relayed to the public in an attempt to create a good image for the

company. Sales promotion, on the other hand, are promotional activities performed by an

organization or business to appeal to the members of the public, create awareness on the

availability of a good or product, or attract customers to invest or purchase a good or service.

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Some good examples of sales promotions include the issuance of coupons and shopping

vouchers, running games and contests (whether physically or online), or offering mail-in offers

to prospective customers. Other forms of sales promotion include product placement,

sponsorships, and cause-related marketing (use of income sources earned to support beneficial

causes such as breast cancer, research on infectious diseases, etc.). From the above examples and

explanations, it is crystal clear that some key notable similarities accrue to both of these fields

(Creative Commons, 2021).

Some of the similarities between public relations and advertising include: both have a

target audience for the good or service in question, both make effective use of techniques that are

somewhat attractive to customers, and that both often aim to create a good mental frame/ picture

for the organization or institution for which they have been implemented. It would also be

unthinkable if I fail to mention the similarity that arises in terms of the message being shown or

presented to the general public. Its gist is often well-crafted (in a beautiful, informative, and yet

engaging manner) for it to be both attractive and informative at the same time. As such care

should be taken when interacting with each of these two; to avoid mistaking the role of one for

the other.

Public Relations and Propaganda

For many years, both people and businesses alike have made effective use of propaganda

as a tool of shaping public opinion, action, and policy. The relationship between public relations

and propaganda is rather well-entrenched; because one seems to mirror the other. The fact that

both of these fields share a common goal of using the avenues of public communication to shape

the policies and opinions about a particular product or service makes it very easy to conflate

them (The Graduate School of Political Management, 2020).

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Public relations aim to create a good image for the organization or institution in question.

This remains to be the case even when the image presented to the public is not a true reflection

of the status quo of things in that particular company, good, or service. For instance, the

proximity of the land to water, roads, and electricity depicted by real-estate firms in their

promotional messages is often misinformed and wrongfully presented. In other words, such a

presentation is entirely a lie that has been propagated to the members of the public to maintain a

good public image for the real estate. Such instances are what bring Public Relations and

Propaganda to crosslines. The latter is often known to be trafficked in lies, inflammatory

communication, and misinformation. Though the goal of the propaganda is usually aimed at

achieving an objective related to a cause, political agenda, or specific goal, a closer look at the

gist of public relations reveals that the two might be much more similar than expected.

Public Relations and Publicity

Publicity implies the intentional act of making something known to the public; often to

enhance or increase the awareness of members of the public about its presence. Publicity of a

particular good or service may be done on print, electronic and social media. Public Relations, on

the other hand, often involves the same concept as publicity, though the content, in this case, is

well directed to a particular aspect. In this regard, both the fields of public relations and publicity

seem to do the same thing- the creation of awareness of the availability of a particular good,

service, or item to the members of the general public. Another similarity that manifests in the

two is the media used to propagate information. Both Publicity and Public Relations make

effective use of the media to create awareness or meet the objectives for which they are intended

(Sync, 2019).
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Public Relations (PR) and Marketing

Before I delve into the details, one of the most prevalent similarities between marketing

and Public Relations becomes evident in their respective definitions. The Public Relations

Society of America defines PR as “a strategic communication process that essentially builds

mutually beneficial relationships between different organizations.” Consequently, The American

Marketing Association defines marketing as “the activity, set of institutions, and processes that

are effectively applied in the communication, delivery, exchange of offerings with values to

clients and customers.” From both of these definitions, it is crystal clear that they have a lot of

information to cross over. The relationship between both of these fields presents in form of

communication strategies, storytelling, sales, as well as provision of counsel to organizations to

have a successful image and effective outreach to audiences. In a nutshell, there seems to be a

significant positive and collaborative relationship between Public Relations and Marketing.

How Public Relations Supports Marketing

Public Relations is usually conducted by an organization or business to appeal to the

members of the public, create awareness on the availability of a good or product, or attract

customers to invest or purchase a good or service. Doing so essentially increases the market size

for the product or service being presented. It is also key to understand that Public Relations

provides the necessary avenues that are effectively utilized to carry out marketing activities.

Simply put, Public Relations forms the firm foundation for which Marketing is built. Without it,

Marketing would just be futile. In a nutshell, some of the direct ways through which Public

relations support marketing is through enhancement of outreach to the target audience, refining

the message received by the market, not to mention the amplification of market campaigns and

strategies (Beddington, 2016).

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References/ Sources

Alam. (2018) Journalism and Public Relations: What Are the Similarities and Differences?

Retrieved from https://blogs.uoregon.edu/allenhallpr/2018/01/31/comparing-and-

contrasting-journalism-and-public-relations/ accessed on 17th June 2021

Creative Commons. (2021) Public Relations and Sales Promotions, Chapter 12, retrieved from

https://2012books.lardbucket.org/books/marketing-principles-v1.0/s15-public-relations-

and-sales-pro.html accessed on 21st June 2021

Beddington, J. (2016) Radioactive: How Does Public Relations Support Marketing? Retrieved

from https://www.radioactivepr.com/public-relations-support-marketing/ accessed on 21st

June 2021

Sync. (2019) Here is How PR and Publicity are Two Different Things, retrieved from

https://syncpr.co/2019/09/23/here-is-how-pr-and-publicity-are-two-different-things/

accessed on 21st June 2021

The Graduate School of Political Management. (2020) Public Relations and Propaganda

Techniques, retrieved from https://gspm.online.gwu.edu/blog/public-relations-and-

propaganda-techniques/ accessed on 21st June 2021