Importance of Public Relations in Marketing

CHAPTER - I INTRODUCTION
A business organisation deals with a number of external agencies, apart from customers, suppliers, dealers, government departments, advertising agencies etc. A public includes any group that has a potential interest in the ability to achieve the objectives of the company. Public relations involves a variety of programmes designed to promote or protect the image of the company. Developing and maintaining a good relation between the company and outsiders is known as public relations. In the modern, complex corporate affairs we find the public relations department of companies becoming prominent and certain companies are tuning to specialised public relations in selected areas like marketing public relations. Public relations (PR) is the practice of managing the flow of information between an individual or an organization and the public. Public relations may include an organization or individual gaining exposure to their audiences using topics of public interest and news items that do not require direct payment. The aim of public relations by a company often is to persuade the public, investors, partners, employees, and other stakeholders to maintain a certain point of view about it, its leadership, products, or of political decisions. Common activities include speaking at conferences, winning industry awards, working with the press, and employee communication. Public relations is thought by many to be propaganda by a different name, ironically, the very term "Public relations" could easily be seen as a public relations ploy to make the idea of propaganda more acceptable. Public Relations is similar to Analyst Relations, Investor Relations and Public Affairs depending on the firm, organization or population it represents.

The European view of public relations notes that besides a relational form of interactivity there is also a reflective paradigm that is concerned with publics and the public sphere; not only with relational, which can in principle be private, but also with public consequences of organizational behaviour

Importance of Public Relations in Marketing

Bernays was the profession's first theorist. Bernays drew many of his ideas from Sigmund Freud's theories about the irrational, unconscious motives that shape human behaviour. Bernays authored several books, including Crystallizing Public Opinion (1923), Propaganda (1928), and The Engineering of Consent (1947). He saw public relations as an "applied social science" that uses insights from psychology, sociology, and other disciplines to scientifically manage and manipulate the thinking and behaviour of an irrational and "herd like" public. "The conscious and intelligent manipulation of the organized habits and opinions of the masses is an important element in democratic society," he wrote in Propaganda, "Those who manipulate this unseen mechanism of society constitute an invisible government which is the true ruling power of our country."

One of Bernays' early clients was the tobacco industry. He consulted psychoanalyst A. A. Brill on how to persuade women to smoke. Brill told him that the desire to smoke was suppressed and could be released by emancipation and that cigarettes could become "torches of freedom" from gender imbalances. In 1929, he orchestrated a now-legendary publicity stunt by convincing women to smoke at the Easter parade in Manhattan as a statement of rebellion against the norms of a male-dominated society. The demonstrators were not aware that a tobacco company was behind the publicity stunt. Bernays dubbed his PR campaign the: "Torches of Liberty Contingent.

Importance of Public Relations in Marketing

Publicity photos of these beautiful fashion models smoking "Torches of Liberty" were sent to various media outlets and appeared worldwide. As a result, the taboo was dissolved and many women were led to associate the act of smoking with female liberation. Some women went so far as to demand membership in all-male smoking clubs, a highly controversial act at the time. For his work, Bernays was paid a tidy sum by George Washington Hill, president of the American Tobacco Company. What is Public Relations ? The practice of maintaining a healthy relationship between organization and its public/employees/stakeholders/investors/partners is called public relations. Public relation activities ensure the correct flow of information between the organization and its public also called its target audience. Public relations goes a long way in maintaining the brand image of an organization in the eyes of its audience, stake holders, investors and all others who are associated with it. For schools, the target audience would be students and their parents/guardians, for retailers the target audience would be customers and so on. In the above examples, Public Relations ensures a smooth two way communication between the school authorities and its target audiences (students and their parents).Retailers must address their customers well for a positive word of mouth and a strong brand positioning. It is really important to create a positive image of any particular brand in the minds of consumers for it do well. Public relations experts not only help in the flow of information from the organization to its public but also from the public to the organization.(Two way communication).The flow of information from the public to the organization is generally in the form of reviews, feedback(positive/negative),appreciation and so on. Public relations strengthens the relationship between the organization and its target audience, employees, stakeholders, investors etc.

Importance of Public Relations in Marketing

Definition
Ivy Lee and Edward Louis Bernays established the first definition of public relations in the early 1900s as "a management function, which tabulates public attitudes, defines the policies, procedures, and interests of an organization followed by executing a program of action to earn public understanding and acceptance." In August 1978, the World Assembly of Public Relations Associations defined the field as "the art and social science of analyzing trends, predicting their consequences, counseling organizational leaders, and implementing planned programs of action, which will serve both the organization and the public interest." The Public Relations Society of America (PRSA) defined public relations in 1982 as "Public relations helps an organization and its publics adapt mutually to each other." "Public relations is a strategic communication process that builds mutually beneficial relationships between organizations and their publics." Public relations can also be defined simply as the practice of managing communication between an organization and its publics.

WHAT IS MARKETING?

Marketing is the process of communicating the value of a product or service to customers. Marketing might sometimes be interpreted as the art of selling products, but selling is only a small fraction of marketing. As the term "Marketing" may replace "Advertising" it is the overall strategy and function of promoting a product or service to the customer. The American Marketing Association defines marketing as "the activity, set of institutions, and processes for creating, communicating, delivering, and exchanging offerings that have value for customers, clients, partners, and society at large. From a societal point of view, marketing is the link between a societys material requirements and its economic patterns of response. Marketing satisfies these needs and wants through exchange processes and building long term relationships. The process of

Importance of Public Relations in Marketing

communicating the value of a product or service through positioning to customers. Marketing can be looked at as an organizational function and a set of processes for creating, delivering and communicating value to customers, and managing customer relationships in ways that benefit the organization and its shareholders. Marketing is the science of choosing target markets through market analysis and market segmentation, as well as understanding consumer buying behavior and providing superior customer value. There are five competing concepts under which organizations can choose to operate their business; the production concept, the product concept, the selling concept, the marketing concept, and the holistic marketing concept. The four components of holistic marketing are relationship marketing, internal marketing, integrated marketing, and socially responsive marketing. The set of engagements necessary for successful marketing management includes, capturing marketing insights, connecting with customers, building strong brands, shaping the market offerings, delivering and communicating value, creating long-term growth, and developing marketing strategies and plans.
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Importance of Public Relations in Marketing

Customer orientation

Constructive criticism helps marketers adapt offerings to meet changing customer needs. A firm in the market economy survives by producing goods that persons are willing and able to buy. Consequently, ascertaining consumer demand is vital for a firm's future viability and even existence as a going concern. Many companies today have a customer focus (or market orientation). This implies that the company focuses its activities and products on consumer demands. Generally, there are three ways of doing this: the customer-driven approach, the market change identification approach and the product innovation approach. In the consumer-driven approach, consumer wants are the drivers of all strategic marketing decisions. No strategy is pursued until it passes the test of consumer research. Every aspect of a market offering, including the nature of the product itself, is driven by the needs of potential consumers. The starting point is always the consumer. The rationale for this approach is that there is no reason to spend R&D funds developing products that people

Importance of Public Relations in Marketing

will not buy. History attests to many products that were commercial failures in spite of being technological breakthroughs.

Product

Solution

Promotion

Information

Price

Value

Place (Distribution) Access

If any of the 4Ps were problematic or were not in the marketing factor of the business, the business could be in trouble and so other companies may appear in the surroundings of the company, so the consumer demand on its products will decrease. However, in recent years service marketing has widened the domains to be considered, contributing to the 7P's of marketing in total. The other 3P's of service marketing are: process, physical environment and people. Some consider there to be a fifth "P": positioning. See Positioning (marketing). Some qualifications or caveats for customer focus exist. They do not invalidate or contradict the principle of customer focus; rather, they simply add extra dimensions of awareness and caution to it. The work of Christensen and colleagues[8] on disruptive technology has produced a theoretical framework that explains the failure of firms not because they were technologically inept (often quite the opposite), but because the value networks in which they profitably operated included customers who could not value a disruptive innovation at the time and capability state of its emergence and thus actively dissuaded the firms from developing it. The lessons drawn from this work include:

Taking customer focus with a grain of salt, treating it as only a subset of one's corporate strategy rather than the sole driving factor. This means looking beyond

Importance of Public Relations in Marketing

current-state customer focus to predict what customers will be demanding some years in the future, even if they themselves discount the prediction.

Pursuing new markets (thus new value networks) when they are still in a commercially inferior or unattractive state, simply because their potential to grow and intersect with established markets and value networks looks like a likely bet. This may involve buying stakes in the stock of smaller firms, acquiring them outright, or incubating small, financially distinct units within one's organization to compete against them. Other caveats of customer focus are:

The extent to which what customers say they want does not match their purchasing decisions. Thus surveys of customers might claim that 70% of a restaurant's customers want healthier choices on the menu, but only 10% of them actually buy the new items once they are offered. This might be acceptable except for the extent to which those items are money-losing propositions for the business, bleeding red ink. A lesson from this type of situation is to be smarter about the true test validity of instruments like surveys. A corollary argument is that "truly understanding customers sometimes means understanding them better than they understand themselves." Thus one could argue that the principle of customer focus, or being close to the customers, is not violated herejust expanded upon.

The extent to which customers are currently ignorant of what one might argue they should wantwhich is dicey because whether it can be acted upon affordably depends on whether or how soon the customers will learn, or be convinced, otherwise. IT hardware and software capabilities and automobile features are examples. Customers who in 1997 said that they would not place any value on internet browsing capability on a mobile phone, or 6% better fuel efficiency in their vehicle, might say something different today, because the value proposition of those opportunities has changed.

Importance of Public Relations in Marketing

Organizational orientation In this sense, a firm's marketing department is often seen as of prime importance within the functional level of an organization. Information from an organization's marketing department would be used to guide the actions of other departments within the firm. As an example, a marketing department could ascertain (via marketing research) that consumers desired a new type of product, or a new usage for an existing product. With this in mind, the marketing department would inform the R&D department to create a prototype of a product/service based on consumers' new desires. The production department would then start to manufacture the product, while the marketing department would focus on the promotion, distribution, pricing, etc. of the product. Additionally, a firm's finance department would be consulted, with respect to securing appropriate funding for the development, production and promotion of the product. Inter-departmental conflicts may occur, should a firm adhere to the marketing orientation. Production may oppose the installation, support and servicing of new capital stock, which may be needed to manufacture a new product. Finance may oppose the required capital expenditure, since it could undermine a healthy cash flow for the organization. Marketing research Marketing research involves conducting research to support marketing activities, and the statistical interpretation of data into information. This information is then used by managers to plan marketing activities, gauge the nature of a firm's marketing environment and attain information from suppliers. Marketing researchers use statistical methods such as quantitative research, qualitative research, hypothesis tests, Chi-squared tests, linear regression, correlations, frequency distributions, poisson distributions, binomial

distributions, etc. to interpret their findings and convert data into information. The marketing research process spans a number of stages, including the definition of a problem, development of a research plan, collection and interpretation of data and disseminating information formally in the form of a report. The task of marketing research is to provide management with relevant, accurate, reliable, valid, and current information. A distinction should be made between marketing research and market research. Market

Importance of Public Relations in Marketing

research pertains to research in a given market. As an example, a firm may conduct research in a target market, after selecting a suitable market segment. In contrast, marketing research relates to all research conducted within marketing. Thus, market research is a subset of marketing research. Marketing environment The market environment is a marketing term and refers to factors and forces that affect a firms ability to build and maintain successful relationships with customers.Three levels of the environment are: Micro (internal) environment - forces within the company that affect its ability to serve its customers. Meso environment the industry in which a company operates and the industrys market(s). Macro (national) environment - larger societal forces that affect the microenvironment. Types of Market Research Market research, as a sub-set aspect of marketing activities, can be divided into the following parts:

Primary research (also known as field research), which involves the conduction and compilation of research for a specific purpose.

Secondary research (also referred to as desk research), initially conducted for one purpose, but often used to support another purpose or end goal.

Marketing planning:

The marketing planning process involves forging a plan for a firm's marketing activities. A marketing plan can also pertain to a specific product, as well as to an organization's overall marketing strategy. Generally speaking, an organization's marketing planning process is derived from its overall business strategy. Thus, when top management are devising the firm's strategic direction or mission, the intended marketing activities are incorporated into this plan. There are several levels of marketing objectives within an organization. The senior management of a firm would formulate a general business strategy for a firm. However, this general business strategy would be interpreted and implemented in different

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Importance of Public Relations in Marketing

contexts throughout the firm. Marketing strategy: The field of marketing strategy considers the total marketing environment and its impacts on a company or product or service. The emphasis is on "an in depth understanding of the market environment, particularly the competitors and customers. A given firm may offer numerous products or services to a marketplace, spanning numerous and sometimes wholly unrelated industries. Accordingly, a plan is required in order to effectively manage such products. Evidently, a company needs to weigh up and ascertain how to utilize its finite resources. For example, a start-up car manufacturing firm would face little success should it attempt to rival Toyota, Ford, Nissan, Chevrolet, or any other large global car maker. Moreover, a product may be reaching the end of its life-cycle. Thus, the issue of divest, or a ceasing of production, may be made. Each scenario requires a unique marketing strategy. Listed below are some prominent marketing strategy models. A marketing strategy differs from a marketing tactic in that a strategy looks at the longer term view of the products, goods, or services being marketed. A tactic refers to a shorter term view. Therefore, the mailing of a postcard or sales letter would be a tactic, but a campaign of several postcards, sales letters, or telephone calls would be a strategy. Marketing specializations: With the rapidly emerging force of globalization, the distinction between marketing within a firm's home country and marketing within external markets is disappearing very quickly. With this in mind, firms need to reorient their marketing strategies to meet the challenges of the global marketplace, in addition to sustaining their competitiveness within home markets. Buying behaviour: A marketing firm must ascertain the nature of customers' buying behaviour if it is to market its product properly. In order to entice and persuade a consumer to buy a product, marketers try to determine the behavioural process of how a given product is purchased. Buying behaviour is usually split into two prime strands, whether selling to the consumer,

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Importance of Public Relations in Marketing

known as business-to-consumer (B2C), or to another business, known as business-tobusiness (B2B). This mode of behaviour concerns consumers and their purchase of a given product. For example, if one imagines a pair of sneakers, the desire for a pair of sneakers would be followed by an information search on available types/brands. This may include perusing media outlets, but most commonly consists of information gathered from family and friends. If the information search is insufficient, the consumer may search for alternative means to satisfy the need/want. In this case, this may mean buying leather shoes, sandals, etc. The purchase decision is then made, in which the consumer actually buys the product. Following this stage, a post-purchase evaluation is often conducted, comprising an appraisal of the value/utility brought by the purchase of the sneakers. If the value/utility is high, then a repeat purchase may be made. This could then develop into consumer loyalty to the firm producing the sneakers. Relates to organizational/industrial buying behaviour. Business buy either wholesale from other businesses or directly from the manufacturer in contracts or agreements. B2B marketing involves one business marketing a product or service to another business. B2C and B2B behaviour are not precise terms, as similarities and differences exist, with some key differences listed below: In a straight re-buy, the fourth, fifth and sixth stages are omitted. In a modified re-buy scenario, the fifth and sixth stages are precluded. In a new buy, all stages are conducted. Use of technologies: Marketing management can also rely on various technologies within the scope of its marketing efforts. Computer-based information systems can be employed, aiding in better processing and storage of data. Marketing researchers can use such systems to devise better methods of converting data into information, and for the creation of enhanced data gathering methods. Information technology can aid in enhancing an MKIS' software and hardware components, and improve a company's marketing decision-making process. In recent years, the notebook personal computer has gained significant market share among laptops, largely due to its more user-friendly size and portability. Information technology

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Importance of Public Relations in Marketing

typically progresses at a fast rate, leading to marketing managers being cognizant of the latest technological developments. Moreover, the launch of smart phones into the cell phone market is commonly derived from a demand among consumers for more technologically advanced products. A firm can lose out to competitors should it ignore technological innovations in its industry. Technological advancements can lessen barriers between countries and regions. Using the World Wide Web, firms can quickly dispatch information from one country to another without much restriction. Prior to the mass usage of the Internet, such transfers of information would have taken longer to send, especially if done via snail mail, telex, etc. Recently, there has been a large emphasis on data analytics. Data can be mined from various sources such as online forms, mobile phone applications and more recently, social media. Services marketing: Services marketing relates to the marketing of services, as opposed to tangible products. A service (as opposed to a good) is typically defined as follows:

The use of it is inseparable from its purchase (i.e., a service is used and consumed simultaneously)

It does not possess material form, and thus cannot be touched, seen, heard, tasted, or smelled.

The use of a service is inherently subjective, meaning that several persons experiencing a service would each experience it uniquely.

For example, a train ride can be deemed a service. If one buys a train ticket, the use of the train is typically experienced concurrently with the purchase of the ticket. Although the train is a physical object, one is not paying for the permanent ownership of the tangible components of the train. Services (compared with goods) can also be viewed as a spectrum. Not all products are either pure goods or pure services. An example would be a restaurant, where a waiter's service is intangible, but the food is tangible.

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CHAPTER-2 Importance of Public Relations

In the current scenario of cut throat competition, every organization struggles to stay a step ahead of its competitors. It is essential for every organization to communicate well with its stake holders, partners and each and every individual associated with it. Here comes the importance of public relations experts: Public relations experts are hired to present ones organization in the best light: Public Relations experts create a positive image of a particular brand in the minds of target customers through regular interaction, press release, newsletters, interviews, events, functions, hiring a celebrity as a brand ambassador or even through charitable functions. Public Relations is essential for effective brand positioning. In a laymans language, public relations experts are hired to make an organization and its products/brands popular among the masses. Public relations experts strive hard to reach to the maximum people (potential customers) and eventually gain maximum exposure for their organization/brand: More and more people relate to their brand and automatically revenue of the organization goes up. In todays world, it is really essential for every organization to understand the needs and expectations of its target audiences. Public relations experts ensure free flow of information between the organization and its target audiences, necessary for the survival of every business. Correct information must reach the customers for them to be loyal towards your brand. (Products and services).Public relations experts help an organization stand apart from the crowd. Public relations department gives the customers and in fact the whole world a better understanding of how their organization functions, policies, products, services and so on. Public relations experts focus not only on information flow from organization to its public but also vice a versa: Proper feedback is being taken from potential customers as to how they feel about the organization and its products. These reviews and feedbacks (positive or

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Importance of Public Relations in Marketing

negative) help an organization to grow to its full potential. Positive feedback definitely calls for a celebration but negative reviews are also taken seriously and necessary changes are incorporated in the system to meet the expectations of the consumers. The role of public relations expert becomes critical under any kind of crisis or unfavourable circumstance. It is the role of the public relations manager to save the reputation of his/her organization. He needs to be on his toes to face questions from the media/public and handle all the criticism with a smile. It is the public relations managers role to take immediate charge of any adverse situation and turn negative situations also into the companys favour. Public relations experts in true sense are the face of every organization who work hard towards saving and maintaining an organizations reputation ad image. It is a new and highly successful way of staying connected with the target audiences for a better brand image. Modern public relations: Advertising dollars in traditional media productions have declined and many traditional media outlets are seeing declining circulation in favour of online and social media news sources. One site even tracked the death of newspapers. As readership in traditional media shifts to online media, so have the focus of many in public relations. Social media releases, search engine optimization, content publishing, and the introduction of podcasts and video are other burgeoning trends are as follows: 1. .Social media has increased the speed of breaking news, creating greater time constraints on responses to current events. Increasingly, companies are utilizing social media channels, such as blogs and Microblogging. Some view two-way communications in social media in two categories: asymmetrical and symmetrical. In an asymmetrical public relations model an organization gets feedback from the public and uses it as a basis for attempting to persuade the public to change. A symmetrical public relations model means that the organization takes the interests of the public into careful consideration and public relations practitioners seek a balance between the interest of their organization and the interest of the public.

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Importance of Public Relations in Marketing

2..Salaries In the United States, public relations professionals earn an average annual salary of $49,800 which compares with 40,000 for a practitioner with a similar job in the UK. Top earners make around $89,220 annually, while entry-level public relations specialists earn around $28,080. Corporate, or in-house communications is generally more profitable, and communications executives can earn salaries in the mid six-figures, though this only applies to a fraction of the sector's workforce. The role of public relations professionals is changing because of the shift from traditional to online media. Many PR professionals are finding it necessary to learn new skills and to examine how social media can impact a brand's reputation. 3..Methods, tools, and tactics Specific public relations disciplines include:

Financial public relations communicating financial results and business strategy. Consumer/lifestyle public relations gaining publicity for a particular product or service. Crisis communication responding in a crisis. Internal communications communicating within the company itself. Government relations engaging government departments to influence public policy.

Within each discipline, typical activities include publicity events, speaking opportunities, press releases, newsletters, blogs, social media, press kits and outbound communication to members of the press. Video and audio news releases (VNRs and ANRs) are often produced and distributed to TV outlets in hopes they will be used as regular program content. Building and managing relationships with those who influence an organization or individuals audiences has a central role in doing public relations. After a public relations practitioner has been working in the field, they accumulate a list of relationships that become an asset, especially for those in media relations.

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Importance of Public Relations in Marketing

4. Audience targeting:- A fundamental technique used in public relations is to identify the target audience, and to tailor messages to appeal to each audience. Sometimes the interests of differing audiences and stakeholders common to a public relations effort necessitate the creation of several distinct but complementary messages. On the other hand stakeholders theory identifies people who have a stake in a given institution or issue. All audiences are stakeholders (or presumptive stakeholders), but not all stakeholders are audiences. For example, if a charity commissions a public relations agency to create an advertising campaign to raise money to find a cure for a disease, the charity and the people with the disease are stakeholders, but the audience is anyone who is likely to donate money. 5. Messaging::- Messaging is the process of creating a consistent story around a product, person, company or service. Messaging aims to avoid having readers receive contradictory or confusing information that will instill doubt in their purchasing choice or other decisions that have an impact on the company. Brands aim to have the same problem statement, industry viewpoint or brand perception shared across sources and mediums. 6.Social media marketing:- Digital marketing is the use of Internet tools and technologies such as search engines, Web 2.0 social bookmarking, new media relations, blogging and social media marketing. Interactive PR allows companies and organizations to disseminate information without relying solely on mainstream publications and communicate directly with the public, customers and prospects. Other techniques Litigation public relations is the management of the communication process during the course of any legal dispute or adjudicatory processing so as to affect the outcome or its impact on the clients overall reputation (Haggerty, 2003).

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Importance of Public Relations in Marketing

7. Ethics:- The field of public relations is generally highly un-regulated, but many professionals voluntarily adhere to the code of conduct of one or more professional bodies to avoid exposure for ethical violations.[29] The Chartered Institute of Public Relations, the Public Relations Society of America and The Institute of Public Relations are a few organizations that publish an ethical code. Still, Edelman's 2003 semi-annual trust survey found that only 20 percent of survey respondents from the public believed paid communicators within a company were credible. 8. Spin:- Spin has been interpreted historically to mean overt deceit meant to manipulate the public, but since the 1990s has shifted to describing a "polishing of the truth. Today spin refers to providing a certain interpretation of informant meant to sway public opinion. Companies may use spin to create the appearance of the company or other events are going in a slightly different direction than they actually are. Within the field of public relations, spin is seen as a derogatory term, interpreted by professionals as meaning blatant deceit and manipulation. Skilled practitioners of spin are sometimes called "spin doctors." The techniques of spin include selectively presenting facts and quotes that support ideal positions (cherry picking), the so-called "non-denial denial," phrasing that in a way presumes unproven truths, euphemisms for drawing attention away from items considered distasteful, and ambiguity in public statements. Another spin technique involves careful choice of timing in the release of certain news so it can take advantage of prominent events in the news. 9. Negative PR:- Negative public relations, also called dark public relations (DPR), is a process of destroying the target's reputation and/or corporate identity. The objective in DPR is to discredit someone else, who may pose a threat to the client's business or be a political rival. DPR may rely on IT security, industrial espionage, social engineering and competitive intelligence. Common techniques include using dirty secrets from the target, producing misleading facts to fool a competitor. Some claim that negative public relations may be highly moral and beneficial for the general public since threat of losing the reputation may be disciplining for companies, organizations and individuals. Apart from this, negative public relations helps to expose legitimate claims against one.

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10.Politics and civil society- In Propaganda (1928), Bernays argued that the manipulation of public opinion was a necessary part of democracy. In public relations, lobby groups are created to influence government policy, corporate policy, or public opinion, typically in a way that benefits the sponsoring organization. When a lobby group hides its true purpose and support base, it is known as a front group. Front groups are a form of astroturfing, because they intend to sway the public or the government without disclosing their financial connection to corporate or political interests. They create a fake grass-roots movement by giving the appearance of a trusted organization that serves the public, when they actually serve their sponsors. PUBLIC RELATIONS DEPARTMENT CARRIES OUT OF THE FOLLOWING FUNCTIONS: PRESS RELATIONS: The public relation department of a company prepares and presents news and information about the organisation in a positive manner and publishes it through various media. The purpose of it is to develop a good image of the company and to make the people aware of the positive developments in the company. PRODUCT PUBLICITY: The public relations department makes efforts to publicize specific products . It maintains good relations with various media and sponsors efforts to publicize the selected products. CORPORATE COMMINICATIONS: It is made with the objective of promoting understanding of the organisation through internal and external communications. LOBBYING: It is done with the government, government departments, public representatives, political leaders, etc. To promote the interest of the company. COUNSELLING: The public relations department advices the management of the company about public issues and company positions and the efforts to be made by the company during different situations the company face. CREATIONS OF NEWS: The public relations department creates favourable news about the company, its people , its product, etc. and makes the media to accept the press releases.

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Importance of Public Relations in Marketing

PROVIDING CLARIFICATIONS: Whenever there is a negative publicity or market rumours about the company , it is the responsibility of the public relations department to collect the details and give clarifications to protect the image of the company. PUBLICATIONS: To achieve the objective of the company , the public relations

department plays an important role in the preparation of annual reports, brouchers, news letters and magazines, company websites, etc.

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CHAPTER-3

ROLE OF PUBLIC RELATIONS IN MARKETING.

This lecture will explain various functions and roles of public relations in marketing and how does it provide support in this effort. The students will also be apprised of the role of public relations in market education, besides providing a guideline in relation to the market mix and for devising an effective market education strategy.

Public Relations has become a very important profession as it provides the desired support as and when needed for the implementation of various programs including marketing. In fact marketing now a days primarily depends upon the support provided by the public relations department .The major components of the support provided by PR in marketing are enumerated below:

1. Publicizing news & events. 2. Promoting established products or services. 3. Creating a favourable reputation of the company. 4. Arranging & publicizing public appearance of marketing spokespersons. 5. Probing public opinion (research) 6. Attracting news media coverage of sales conferences, trade shows &other sales promotion events. 7. Assisting in programs concerning consumerism. 8. The following figure will explain the role of PR in marketing by using four P's signifying different segments of this role.

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Importance of Public Relations in Marketing

4 P's to PR Role in marketing.

Public Relations

PRODUCT

PLACE

PRICE

PROMOTION

The basic purpose of dividing the role in four "P's" as illustrated in above figure is to explain the scope in which PR provides support to marketing.

The first "P" denotes Product meaning thereby the PR determines the features by ascertaining its quality and standard.

The second "P" pertains to the place of origin and the territory of marketing.

The third "P" determines the price keeping in mind the market trend, acceptability and the prevalent competition. and;

The fourth "P" ascertains the role in the promotion of the product.

THE ROLE OF PUBLIC RELATIONS IN THE MARKETING OF TOURIST DESTINATIONS IN CROATIA Public relations in the marketing and promotion of tourist destinations in Croatia has been increasingly used as part of the promotional and communication mix. Tourist organisations at the national, regional and local levels which manage these destinations have been spending on public relations from 38% to as much as 65% of all funds earmarked for functional costs. It can therefore be concluded that it plays a significant or even leading

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role in promotion. However, on the basis of a survey, the author has found that public relations has not been sufficiently recognised as a category and that a single public relations model should be created and adapted for use in marketing in tourism. Public relations, both as a term and as a job, is mentioned on a daily basis and is widely applied in all segments of life and work in society. Public relations is a specific form of communication with special application in tourism. It is a communication model and one of its main purposes is to create a recognisable public image. This purpose is very important in tourism, in particular in the creation of a positive image for a certain destination or for a whole country as a tourist destination. During times of fierce global competition in terms of offer, special attention is paid to a marketing approach where destination occupies a very special place. The modern view of a tourist destination is very important in the tourism market because tourists travel to a destination which has become recognisable as a place and as a tourism product. In this respect, it is necessary to apply marketing techniques, knowledge and tactics in order to highlight a destinations comparative advantages and to attract guests. A big role in the marketing of a destination is played by promotion as part of the marketing mix, and public relations plays a key part in the promotional mix. This particularly refers to the marketing of a tourist destination, where public relations is a significant and reliable way of presenting the product and attracting guests in an efficient and cost-effective way. Despite the fact that public relations as a component of destination marketing management plays a prominent role both at the global and the national level, this important part of promotional marketing has still not been sufficiently researched. Very comprehensive and abundant literature on public relations include only a very small number of manuals and articles on public relations in tourism, and no scientific publications or textbooks are found on this subject. On the other hand, publications focusing on marketing in tourism deal with public relations as a part of marketing and promotion. In literature, there is a conflict between marketing and public relation theorists because the former treat public relations as a part of marketing, while the latter treat it as a separate management function due to its wider scope. These are mostly American public relations theorists who classify the majority of marketing tools and means of promotion under tourism public relations.

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After having studied the literature and conducted a survey, the author of this paper took the approach that public relations is a very important part of promotion in tourism and has a direct and comprehensive function in destination marketing. Organisations managing marketing at the destination level, both national tourism organisations and community tourism organisations at a lower level, are right to look for significant and reliable marketing support precisely in public relations. As a result of all these points, which can be summarised as the significant application of public relations in tourism and destination marketing, the insufficient and non-specific literature, the conflict of opinions between marketing and public relations theorists and the insufficiently investigated application of public relations in tourism, this paper will attempt to establish, on the basis of a case study of the functioning of the Croatian tourism organisation at the central (national), regional and local levels, the extent to which public relations is used in tourist destination management in Croatia, and to identify its role and importance. The following hypotheses will be tested: 1. public relations is a separate category and is not to be identified with advertising or other forms of publicity. 2. public relations plays a very important role in destination marketing in terms of promoting a tourist destination. 3. the application of public relations in marketing tourist destinations in Croatia has not been sufficiently recognised. This paper is organised in the following manner: after this introduction, the author will provide the basic theoretical postulates about marketing a tourist destination, communicating with the market, and public relations. This will be followed by a presentation of the methods and results of a survey on the application of public relations at national, regional and local levels. The paper will end with a synthesis of the survey and concluding remarks.

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MARKETING OF A TOURIST DESTINATION In order to be able to talk about the role and importance of applying public relations in the marketing of a tourist destination, the concept should first be defined. Marketing in tourism differs from the marketing of a traditional product. This important difference lies in the characteristics of supply and demand. Tourism is a service. Mill and Morrison state: What is sold is a non-material experience, and not material goods which may be tested before use (Moutinho, 2005). According to Senei and Vukoni (1997), in the context of applying marketing in tourism, there are two specific forms of this application: - marketing as a basis for establishing and implementing a business policy of individual companies making profit on the tourism market; -marketing as a basis for establishing and implementing a business policy, that is, as a basic concept for organising placements through tourism (at the level of an individual territorial unit). In this latter case (territorial unit), they actually refer to a tourist destination. Moutinho (2005a) believes that: Although in tourism, in the sector of air carriers, tour operators and hotel chains, there are several major players, tourism is a complex and fragmented industry. Therefore, problems with planning, research and promotion of a specific destination are usually resolved by national tourism organisations at the national level but often also by smaller organisations at local and regional levels. In brief, the marketing of a tourist destination, as a modern business philosophy and a business activity linking the destination product with the market, takes place at two levels: at the destination level and at the level of the organiser of the offer. This paper will focus on the destination level where marketing activities are generally carried out by national tourism organisations and tourism organisations at a lower level.

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Importance of Public Relations in Marketing

Communicating with the market and promoting a destination Communication with the market is one of the most important factors in the marketing process. According to Kesi (2003), communication may take two basic forms: 1. Mutual communication; 2. Mass communication. Communication with the market primarily refers to mass communication which entails the media as an intermediary in the communication process. Promotional activities may be divided into two large groups (Meler, 1999): 1. primary (basic) promotional activities advertising, sales promotion, personal selling, public relations and publicity; 2. secondary (borderline) promotional activities design, packaging, consumer services, word of mouth advertising.

When speaking of the promotional/communication mix and its application at the destination level, the key responsible bodies are community tourism organisations. When promotional activities are directed towards foreign countries, the responsible body is the national tourism organisation and regional organisations which, together with local organisations, are mostly oriented towards the domestic market. Tourism workers use all forms of the promotional/communication mix in practice. However, according to the majority of authors, for the purposes of tourism promotion it is sufficient to apply the basic promotional mix: advertising, personal selling, promotions, and public relations. Applying public relations Today, the term public relations has a very broad application. According to the definition of the International Public Relations Association founded in 1950 in London, these relations consist of the determined, planned and sustained effort to establish and maintain mutual understanding between an organisation and its surroundings, that is, the public (www. ipra.org).

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Importance of Public Relations in Marketing

When putting the definitions and scope of public relations, as well as its meaning, into the language of tourism, it may be said that the concept of public relations in tourism should refer to all activities used by the providers of a tourism offer to create a favourable opinion in the public about their overall activity, their work, their services and the goals of their work. Public relations is a conscious, thought-out and planned activity which might appear in the public spontaneously or under the influence of some other situations and circumstances on the market (Senei and Vukoni, 1997a).

When talking about the concept of public relations, it is necessary to try to differentiate public relations from other forms of communication.

Marketing and marketing communications theorists often classify public relations under marketing (Kotler, Bowen and Makens, 2001), while public relations theorists regard it as a separate management category (Cutlip, Center and Broom, 2003). Whatever the case, it ultimately has a significant influence on marketing processes.

With regard to terminology, public relations is often misinterpreted or identified with publicity, advertising and media relations... In his definition of public relations, Deuschl (2007) states that it is: a management function using two-way communication and acting in the public interest with the aim of influencing public opinion and with the task of achieving goodwill and understanding for the organisation. On the other hand, marketing is defined as a management function, organising and directing all business activities involved in the assessment of consumer needs and turning their purchasing power into a real demand for the product, making it accessible to the consumer and thus earning profit or achieving some other business goal (Weber and Borani, 2000).

Nevertheless, it is very difficult to imagine a marketing process without public relations. They are interconnected and in modern business practice it is thought that the best results are achieved through the synergy of both functions.

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Importance of Public Relations in Marketing

In communication and marketing theories, there are several types of public relations and the differences are mostly based on the target public towards whom the communication is directed. The target public differs depending on the activity or field in question.

For the purposes of this study, the author has selected an overview of the most frequent types of public relations in tourism, divided by Black (2003) into basic groups covering the majority of the target public in a tourist destination. They are the following: media relations and publicity; international public relations and consumer relations; community relations and domestic public relations; relations with the Government and state administration; internal public relations.

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CHAPTER-4
LEVELS OF PUBLIC RELATIONS

1.NATIONAL LEVEL

Public relations at the national level are managed by the Croatian National Tourist Board (CNTB). In addition to the Central Office in Zagreb, it has 20 offices and representative offices abroad (CNTB, 2009a). Marketing activities in foreign markets serve to present not only the particular tourism offer, but the country as a whole, including its entire image and the amenities it offers.

Among public relations techniques, public relations and publicity have one of the most important roles in tourism. The Croatian National Tourist Board gives great attention to study tours and meetings with the press, regular press conferences and other types of cooperation.

Study tours for media representatives result in newspaper, television and radio reports whose estimated value is much higher than the costs of the study tours. They ensure coverage in the media which may not be achieved so efficiently by advertising with the same amount of funds.

The Central Office keeps detailed records of all organised journeys according to the profile of the media, country, type of journey and visited destinations. According to 2007 data (CNTB, 2008), Croatia was visited by a total of 842 foreign journalists from 30 countries. The estimated value of written material is close to HRK 770 million, and the value of broadcast television and radio reports is close to HRK 750 million. The total value of all published texts and supplements is estimated at HRK 1,516,211,543, which is equivalent to approximately EUR 205 million.

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As part of public relations activities, the Croatian National Tourist Board awards to foreign media representatives an annual reward for the best published material. The Golden Pen award shows journalists that we are aware of the importance of their role in the promotion of Croatia as a tourism destination. In addition, in cooperation with PR agencies and foreign representative offices, monthly email newsletters providing information on the Croatian tourism offer are also sent on a regular basis.

International public relations and consumer relations are very important because of the orientation of Croatian tourism towards foreign markets. This requires appearances at fairs, providing information and making presentations, designing and publishing brochures and other types of tourist information, creating websites (newsletters) and organising study tours for agents.

Fairs, providing information and making presentations are one of the most direct ways of addressing a wider public in tourism generating countries. In addition to generally presenting Croatian tourism, fairs, the dissemination of information and presentations create an opportunity for business meetings, press conferences, workshops, organisations of special and so-called ad-hoc presentations. At the level of community tourism organisations, fairs are organised as a type of public relations exercise where it is desirable to create a positive public opinion on the whole of Croatia as a tourism destination. In 2007, the Croatian National Tourist Board had a total of 114 appearances at fairs (CNTB, 2008a). The Croatian National Tourist Board estimates that so-called national presentations organised in the most important generating markets for Croatia are highly important. In addition, a total of 51 press conferences (2007) were organised during fairs, workshops, and during the Days and Evenings of Croatia.

Study tours for travel agents are a form of public relations during which representative offices of the CNTB abroad analyse markets in cooperation with tour operators who offer visits to Croatia in their programmes. Study tours in Croatia are organised for travel agents selling the Croatian tourist product so that they can be informed about Croatian destinations and attractions.

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Importance of Public Relations in Marketing

The most important role of community relations and domestic public relations is to encourage the whole population to act in a hospitable, warm and tourist-friendly manner, and to stimulate the entire community to work in this direction. Community and domestic public relations is aimed at improving the Croatian tourism product and raising the awareness of every inhabitant of Croatia as a tourist country of the need to contribute positively to its tourism development.

There are several activities carried out by the Croatian National Tourist Board. These are various environmental and educational actions (for example, I love Croatia), support for the organisation of events and other projects at the level of tourist boards, as well as other activities aimed at jointly improving the tourism product at the level of the entire country.

The Croatian National Tourist Board is neither in the formal nor legal sense under the direct control of the Government or Government bodies. However, relations with the Government and state administration, in particular with the line Ministry of Tourism, are very important. Since tourism public relations is an activity which is highly significant for the whole country, and is financed at all levels, that is, from the state, country, city and municipality budgets, government bodies are thus legally entitled to control the functioning of the system of the Croatian National Tourist Board. Internal public relations in the system of the Croatian National Tourist Board primarily refers to vertical and horizontal communication within the overall system. For this complex system to be able to function properly, it is necessary to establish communication at all levels. This task is easiest in the Central Office of the Croatian National Tourist Board where services and departments communicate on a daily basis. The Central Office ensures a constant exchange of information with its representative offices and other services in the country and abroad. The use of public relations is evident from the way in which guests decide to visit Croatia, that is, what kind of information they use. It is clear that there is an increasing tendency among tourists to consult several information sources before deciding to travel to Croatia. The most frequently used are the media (34% in 2007). Therefore, it may be assumed that

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public and media relations, i.e., publicity, play a very important role in promoting Croatian tourism. Internet communication is also gaining in importance. In 2007, almost 30% of all guests were influenced by the World Wide Web when deciding on their travel destination.

2.REGIONAL LEVEL Given the tourism turnover in its territory, the Tourist Board of Primorje-Gorski Kotar County is one of the most important regional tourist organisations in Croatia. The territory of Primorje-Gorski Kotar County covers the Croatian Littoral, islands and a mountain hinterland. Primorje-Gorski Kotar County or, more particularly, the Kvarner tourist region, contributed 20.4% to Croatian tourism turnover in 2008 (Kvarner TB, 2009). In other words, it accounts for one-fifth of total tourism turnover.

Public relations is one of the most significant means of promotion and is frequently used in the business activities of this region. In contrast to the national tourism organisation, Kvarner Tourist Board documents clearly define most public relations activities and treat them as financial items separate from advertising and other promotional activities. The Kvarner Tourist Board includes the following activities under public relations (Kvarner TB, 2009a): 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. Appearances at tourism fairs; Special presentations, workshops; Road show presentations; Receiving info and study tours; Newsletters.

The Kvarner Tourist Board organises appearances at fairs both together with the Croatian National Tourist Board and also on its own. In 2008, it participated in 90 fairs organised by the national tourist organisation, and had 54 separate appearances in 19 markets. It also ran 10 presentations of selective forms of tourism and organised 30 workshops. Receiving info and study tours is one of the most important tasks of media relations. Welcoming foreign journalists or agents is particularly geared towards those segments of

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the offer that are being introduced in the market and which, for example, prolong the tourist season or increase the quality of service. In 2008, a total of 66 study groups with 180 journalists and 120 tourist agents from 26 countries visited the Kvarner territory. It is estimated that written material published in 13 million copies of various magazines resulted from these study tours (Kvarner Tourist Board, 2009b). The Kvarner Tourist Board has well-developed community relations and domestic public relations. These activities are mostly carried out as part of the I love Croatia action which has been conducted at the level of the overall system of tourist boards. Relations with Government bodies in Kvarner mostly mean relations with the regional government and self-government, that is, with Primorje-Gorski Kotar County, and with all municipalities and towns in its territory. Tourism is one of the most important branches of the economy in this county. The Assembly and the Tourism Council certainly have an influence when the tourism policy for the entire region is created.

Internal public relations is directed towards employees and towards the network of local tourist offices. In this sense, information is exchanged via electronic and regular mail, by organising joint coordinating meetings and other activities. The Tourist Board of PrimorjeGorski Kotar County issues a monthly supplement under the title Kvarner littoral, islands, mountains in the Novi List newspaper. The supplement is published six times a year and has a circulation of 65,000 copies. The tourist supplement covers all tourismrelated events in Kvarner and is very important in sensitising the public and raising its awareness, and also for promotion in the domestic market (Kvarner TB, 2009c). 3.LOCAL LEVEL The Tourist Board of Fuine Municipality is one of the small tourist boards in the continental part of Croatia. It operates in the territory of the subregion of Gorski kotar which is part of Primorje-Gorski Kotar County. Since the Tourist Board of Fuine Municipality is an organisation with very low original income (just like most inland boards), a special place in promotion is played by public relations and cooperation with the press, that is, by media relations and publicity.

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Importance of Public Relations in Marketing

The target market of the tourist offer of Fuine is mostly the domestic market since 80% of all overnight stays result from domestic guests. Promotion is mostly carried out through media relations, in particular through relations with electronic media with national concessions: Hrvatska televizija (Croatian television), NOVATV, RTL. Among regional TV companies, the most successful cooperation has been established with Kanal Ri from Rijeka. The Board also organises unique or original events to attract the medias attention. In 2008, there were a total of 48 reports broadcast on national television networks, which is probably the best promotional result on the domestic market among such small tourist destinations (Fuine TB, 2009). The Tourist Board of Fuine Municipality has been actively cooperating with the following national radio stations: Hrvatski radio (Croatian Radio), especially in broadcasts devoted to tourism, and Narodni radio Zagreb, (Zagreb Folk Radio) also in specialised broadcasts. Promotion in the press is mostly done through the daily newspaper Novi List, and through cooperation with professional magazines and journals, both domestic and foreign.

Relations with government bodies are very important for the local community. A municipality, as a local self-government unit, is the founder and, due to the lack of original income, the main source of funds for the tourist board. The municipality contributes 30% to the funding and total income of the Tourist Board. Under the law, the President of the Tourist Board is the Head of the Municipality. Since the Fuine Municipality has designated tourism as the key element for future development, tourist board bodies and the director regularly coordinate their work with municipality services.

Community public relations and domestic public relations are carried out at the local level in order to encourage local people to treat their guests in a warm and hospitable manner and to contribute to the overall positive tourism image of the villages. These efforts are aimed at raising the awareness of every inhabitant of the need to achieve better results in environmental protection and landscaping, cleanliness of front yards and public surfaces and to accept and support tourism as a potential development factor. There is, for example, an interesting joint action organised with the municipality of Fuine to improve faades and front yards for which citizens are offered interest-free loans.

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Importance of Public Relations in Marketing

Public Relation Activities Here are some ways of enhancing an organizations brand image: 1. Addressing the media 2. Speaking at various press conferences, seminars. 3. Advertisements to correctly position the brand, Pamphlets, Brochures, magazines notices, newsletters and so on. 4. Corporate Social responsibility(CSR Activities) 5. Introducing various loyalty schemes for customers like membership cards, premium clubs so as to retain the customers. 6. Various events, shows and activities.

Effective Public Relations

Public Relations is said to be effective under all the below circumstances:

Awareness: To create a positive image of an organization, the message must reach the public. Information must reach in its desired form for effective public relation.

Acceptance: The audience must understand what the message intends to communicate. They ought to agree with the message.

Action: The audience ought to give feedback to the organization accordingly.

To conclude public relations is nothing but an effort to present ones organization in the best light.

ADVANTAGES OF PUBLIC RELATIONS:

Credibility Because PR communications are not perceived in the same light as advertising that is, the public does not realize the organization either directly or indirectly paid for them they tend to have more credibility. The fact that the media are not being compensated for providing the information may lead receivers to consider the news more truthful and credible. For example, an article in newspapers or magazines discussing the virtues of

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Importance of Public Relations in Marketing

aspirin may be perceived very much as more credible than an ad for a particular brand of aspirin. Cost In both absolute and relative terms, the cost of PR is very low, especially when the possible effects are considered. While a firm can employ AD agencies and spend millions of dollars on AD, for smaller companies, this form of communication may be the most affordable alternative available. Avoidance of Clutter Because they are typically perceived, as news items, PR messages are not subject to the clutter of ads. A story regarding a new product, introduction of break through is treated as a news item and is likely to receive attention. Lead Generation Information about the technological innovations, medical break-throughs and the like results almost immediately in a multitude of inquiries. These inquiries may give the firm some quality sales lead. Ability to reach specific groups Because some products appeal to only small market segments, it is not feasible to engage in advertising and / or promotions to reach them. If the firm does not have the financial capabilities, to engage in promotional expenditures, the best way to communicate to these groups is through PR. Image Building Effective PR helps to develop positive image for the organization. A strong image is insurance against later mis-fortunes.

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Disadvantages of Public Relations

While public relations holds many advantages for marketers, there are also concerns when using this promotional technique. First, while public relations uses many of the same channels as advertising, such as newspapers, magazines, radio, TV and Internet, it differs significantly from advertising in that marketers do not have direct control over whether a message is delivered and where it is placed for delivery. For instance, a marketer may spend many hours talking with a magazine writer, who is preparing an industry story, only to find that their company is never mentioned in the article. Second, while other promotional messages are carefully crafted and distributed as written through a pre-determined placement in a media vehicle, public relations generally conveys information to a member of the news media (e.g., reporter) who then recrafts the information as part of a news story or feature. Thus, the final message may not be precisely what the marketer planned. Third, while a PR campaign has the potential to yield a high return on promotional expense, it also has the potential to produce the opposite if the news media feels there is little value in running a story pitched (i.e., suggested via communication with the news outlet) by the marketer. Fourth, with PR there is always a chance that a well devised news event or release will get bumped from planned media coverage because of a more critical breaking news story, such as wars, severe weather or serious crime. Finally, in some areas of the world the impact of traditional news outlets is fading forcing public relations professionals to scramble to find new ways to reach their target markets.

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CONCLUSION
The project study has illustrated that public relations plays a very important

promotional role in the marketing activities. The survey has shown that public relation. at the same time, is a very cost-effective way of communicating with the target public and promoting products and services.

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Bibliography A) BOOKS Principles of marketing- by Philip Kotler Marketing management- by Rajan Saxena B) WEBSITES www.managementstudyguide.com

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