August 30, 2009

Dear Abby,

I am so happy to hear of your interest in public relations and the underlying principles that guide this practice. In my time at Utah State, I have gained a general understanding of what public relations is and how it works.

Public relations (PR) is the positive promotion of a company and representing the organization in the best light possible. PR helps to relay and filter information that is released to the public in order to make the company more appealing. PR is also a way for organizations to inform the public about the values of a company and how they operate and function.

PR is a way for a company to achieve their highest potential as part of public relations is relaying feedback from the public back to the company. This is done through research methods to see what concerns and praises the public has with the organization. Overall, this makes PR a way to best please the public market and keep the masses happy with the organization.

In order to help protect the image of a company, PR is also responsible for avoiding negative press. PR means spinning bad situations around and helping protect the company’s image. A recent example of negative PR is the death of an initiate among the Greek Community at Utah State. When this travesty occurred, it was the role of PR specialists to step in and try to make the situation as less damaging as possible for Greeks and USU. This was done by Greeks making promises to live their values to the fullest and attempting to increase their involvement in the community.

Public relations is a way for a company to gain exposure to their audiences using tools such as news items, speaking at conferences, employee communication, and working with the press. These resources are extremely beneficial for a company because they do not require direct payment and have more credibility. Since these forms of PR are done by outside third-parties, the public finds them more legitimate than internal advertising that is directly controlled by a company. New technology is also a fast growing PR tool that provides instant information to the public. Social networks such as Facebook and Twitter can instantly get information out to a large amount of people creating instant exposure for a company.

Within the realm of public relations there are a variety of tools and resources that help assist with the representation of a company. Non-profit events, charity donations, and community service done by an organization all help assist with positive representation. Furthermore, if a company hosts a non-profit event helping the community this news will likely get recognition from a third-party, like a newspaper, and provide positive PR for the company. An example of this is the Utah Fast Pass where Cache Valley Electric (CVE) hosts a charity banquet where all donations go towards helping the community. Although CVE is not personally advertising these actions, the event still acts as a great PR tool as third-party media sources relay this information to the community.

Compared to advertising, public relations is generally much more effective. Even if the PR is not free, expenses are generally minor things such as phone calls and mailings to the media. Not only is it far more cost-effective, but it reaches a much wider audience. A newspaper article compared to an advertisement not only is viewed by a wider audience, but is taken much more seriously since outside sources are more credible and less bias. There is much more longevity with a news article as well, which also makes it more important that the information about the company is positive.

Overall, PR is one of the most important tools a company can use in order to promote the overall image of the organization. In order for a company to function effectively, it is necessary for the public to view the company in a positive light, thus making PR one of the most effective resources available in the business world.

Best Regards,

Shaelee B.

P.S. If you have any further questions let me know and I would be happy to assist your further!