Nine out of ten people have come across the term “Public Relations” (PR) but how many know what it actually is? What does it include? What is not a part of it? How inclusive this term is? Well, in our line of work; it is imperative and rather necessary to know the meaning of this word and how much it encompasses. Without knowing what it is, how can one understand whether their business needs someone to look after the PR aspect (PR representative) or not? Whether one needs PR solutions? Using heavy terms or jargons like digital PR, PR campaigns, PR marketing, etc. is fairly easy but to understand the need of the hour and to ascertain the situation properly along with planning what needs to be done to properly achieve these and carry them out? That’s a whole other ballgame. And that’s where the catch is.
Putting the jargons and the technical mumbo-jumbo aside, Public Relations is defined as the practice of managing communication between an organization and its public. Mind you readers, this is possibly the simplest way to define PR and as you all know by now; PR is a really wide term. The first public relations department was created by the inventor and industrialist George Westinghouse in 1889 when he hired two men to publicize his pet project, alternating current (AC) electricity. The first appearance of the term "public relations" was in the 1897 Year Book of Railway Literature. The market data for this sector which is specifically designed to promote the interests and image of clients shows that the worldwide public relations revenue is projected to grow from 14 billion U.S. dollars generated in 2016 to approximately 20.8 billion by 2021. In the United States, PR agencies generated revenues of 13.5 billion U.S. dollars in 2016, experiencing a significant growth compared to previous years. Can you believe that? Very few sectors can boast about a growth as exponential as the PR sector.
Now coming to the main issue that we are going to be discussing in this article, do you need PR and if yes, why so? PR is one of the most effective ways to build on marketing strategies and create a solid online reputation. Companies that have caught onto that are investing a tremendous amount of time and effort into staying on top of their PR strategies, and they’re seeing even larger returns with better ROI. Now what is ROI? It is Return on Investment. What’s that, you say? Well, whenever you invest your time, effort and most importantly your hard earned money into something; you expect a good return out of it. Going to dinner at a five star? Your expectation regarding the ambience, variety and quality of food is inherently present, right? That expectation when translated purely in monetary terms is known as ROI.
PR increases three aspects that drastically affect your brand’s image, your concern’s legitimacy and also the main deal; revenue. Brand credibility increases when you invest in PR activities followed by a boost in sales and leads which obviously in turn boost up the revenue stream so that your concern can grow unabashedly. When your brand is backed by the activities of PR in full throttle then it accelerates your brand’s online and digital presence which obviously leads to better brand recognition. And as the old saying goes; out of sight, out of mind. Don’t want that, do we?
At N-Clicks Studio, we not only understand the nooks and cranny of the PR game but we also respect your brand and your dreams. We don’t just promise to help your business grow, we deliver on that promise. And we take pride in the fact that we have a transparent relationship with all our clients. There are no glass walls or ceilings that separate you from the reality.
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Aritra Chakraborty
Bachelor of Commerce,
The Jack of All Trades at N-Clicks Studio