Public Relations and
Corporate Advertising
Chapter 20 with Duane Weaver
Public Relations - defined
…focuses on communication that can foster
goodwill between a firm and its many constituent
groups: customers, stockholders, suppliers,
employees, government entities, citizen action
groups, and the general public.
O’Guinn, Allen, Semenik, 4E, p. 699
Today’s PR
Today’s major brands tend to be born with
publicity, not advertising, whereby advertising is
used to maintain brands and PR is used to
establish brands. As per: “The Fall of Advertising
& The Rise of PR”.
PR and Damage Control
• PR can provide damage control from bad publicity.
• E.G.: Intel, 1994..Pentium Chip…flaw in floating point calculations
producing errors to the 5th and 6th decimal place.
– PR 1: so insignificant that a flaw once in 27,000 years
• IBM counter…once very 24 hours, stop shipping intel PCs
• Every major newspaper and even Dilbert laughed at Intel publicly
– PR 2: Intel admitted division problem and offered free chip to anyone
experiencing the problem “$475 M replacement program”
• E.G.: Pepsico and syringe in can
– PR 1: Pepsico considers 100% recall, yet FDA suggests not necessary
– PR 2: Pepsico enlist FDA to go on camera with Pepsico to defend
manufacturing process
– PR 3: Pespico catches woman on film inserting a syringe in a can of
pepsi after purchase
• PR often reactive, but can be planned and proactive
PR Objectives
• Promote Goodwill
– Image building, industry events, community activities…
• Promote a Product or Service
– Press releases, events, brand news, increase public awareness
• Prepare internal Communications
– Disseminate information and correct misinformation to maintain
employee support
• Counteract Negative Publicity
– Damage control function
• Lobby
– Deal with government officials and pre-empt pending legislation
• Give Advice and Counsel
– Assist management positioning on public issues, prepare employees for
public appearances, and help management anticipate public repsonses.
PR Tools
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Press Releases
Feature Stories
Company Newsletters
Interviews and Press Conferences
Sponsored Events
Publicity (unpaid media exposure)
Buzz Marketing – seeding the media
Viral Marketing – consumers marketing to
consumers via blogs, newsgroups, etc…
Basic PR Strategy
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Proactive
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1.
2.
Guided by marketing objectives, publicizes brands and company,
offensive approach to PR.
PR Audit – looking for +ve newsworthy aspects of a firm
PR Plan – identifies objectives and activities
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
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Current Situation Analysis
Program Objectives
Program Rationale
Communications Vehicles
Message Content
Reactive
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1.
2.
Driven by outside influences to the company, problem solving based,
defensive approach to PR.
PR Audit – same as above (provides ammunition to react)
Identification of Vulnerabilities – recognize areas where firm has
weaknesses so as to be prepared for controversy, discussion.
Corporate Advertising
• …not intended to promote a specific brand,
rather…intended to establish a favourable attitude toward
a company as a whole.
• TYPES:
– Image:
• Majority of corporate advertising is Image.
• Enhance overall image amongst constituents: consumers,
employees, and general public.
– Advocacy:
• Establish corporation’s position on important social, political, ore
environmental issues.
– Cause-Related:
• Features the firm’s affiliation with an important social cause.
ETHICS
• SUPERSIZE ME and Ethics.