Public relations which can be defined as the ‘art and social science of analyzing trends, predicting their consequences, counseling organization leaders, and implementing planned programs of action which will serve both the organization’s and the public interest,’ (Jefkins 1995, p. 08), accommodates creativity of its practitioners. This creativity originates from identifying a problem to planning a PR program.
For example, a PR practitioner can be flexible and innovative to manage a PR program by making use of limited resources. (Jefkins 1998, pp. 39) argues that ‘there are four reasons for planning a PR program a) To set targets for PR operations-against which results can be assessed, b) To estimate the working hours and other costs involved, c) To select priorities which will control (1) the number and (2) the timing of different operations in the program, and d) To decide the feasibility of carrying out the declared objectives according to the availability of (1) sufficient staff of the right caliber; (2) physical equipment such as office machines, cameras or vehicles; and (3) an adequate budget.’
A properly managed program will trigger insights of where to improve hence innovation to even design a better model for managing a particular PR program. According to (Pearce and Robinson 2007, pp. 402) ‘innovation is the initials commercialization of invention by producing and selling a new product, service, or process.’
PR is an art because it builds its communication frame work from a scratch to make it informative, comprehensible and memorable. For example a PR department will have graphic designer and Video editor and producer whose duty will be to come up with ideas and then turn them into a visual picture where the PR can place text to make the graphic have complete meaning. The video editor and producer will also turn the shooting script into a documentary of for example of how pregnant rural women are struggling to seek maternal health care.
The preparation of the shooting and editing script, the writing of news releases, and the presentation of PR messages to the public via the media, all derive from the duty and power of art in PR at most to enrich personnel with compositions of different forms of communication. Brochures, Newsletters, House Journals, etc, are sources of art in PR practice.
Public relations is also a science. This is because it uses scientific means of solving business problems like research.
Research in public relations belongs to the faculties of social sciences and economics and commerce. For example the organization failure to market its products/services may cause the business to partner with internal or external PR consultants to help find the cause of the problem and possible solutions to it through a joint venture called Marketing-Public Relations. This according to (Belch and Belch 2004, pp. 566) ‘is referred to public relations activities designed to support marketing objectives as marketing public relations (MPR) functions.
The marketing objectives that may be aided by PR activities include raising awareness, informing and educating, gaining understanding, building trust, giving consumers a reason to buy, and motivating consumer acceptance. MPR ads value to the integrated marketing program in a number of ways: building market excitement before media advertising breaks; creating advertising news where there is no product news; introducing a product with little or no advertising; providing value-added customer service; building brand-to-customer bonds; influencing influential’s; and defending products at risk and giving consumers a reason to buy.’
And for research work to succeed publics' thinking or choices and observations have to be considered. And at this situation to know the publics' interest data collection techniques like interviews, questionnaires and observations will best generate valid and reliable information necessary for management corporate strategy formulation to reposition the marketing successes of the business.
When the business and its public respond mutually to their interests both parties have to benefit and enjoy successes. ‘This model of PR is called the Two-Way Symmetric Model represents a public relations orientation in which organizations and their publics adjust to each other. It focuses on mutual understanding and two-way communication rather than one-way persuasion,’ (Odedele 2008, pp. 15).
The science approach also comes because of ethical consideration in PR practice. Institute of Public Relations Code of Ethics borrows moral and ethical theories from respective social scientist philosophers like German Emanuel Kant (Deontologism), English Stuart Hobbes (Consequentalism) just to mention a few. For example, (1) in Conduct towards the practice of PR, ‘A member shall not: 1.4 Engage in any practice nor be seen to conduct him or her self in any manner detrimental to the reputation of the Institute or the reputation and interests of the public relations profession,’ (Jefkins 1998, pp. 130), this then ensures that PR practitioners cannot provide deceptive information to the public nor mislead or harm them through any means of communication. They will be regarded to be personnel of high integrity and honest internally and externally.
Therefore with this evidence that PR is both an art as well as a science Public Relations have to be a management function. This is true because public relations a strategic tool; It has publics that are corporate stakes; It manages communications programs across the organization like employee relations; It supports departmental functions like education, sponsorships, exhibitions, and export trading through marketing functions.
PR is a strategic communication tool. ‘It supports corporate strategic communication programs like growth strategies.
One of the growth strategies is Market Development where it involves taking present products into fresh market and thus focusing activities on market opportunities and competitor situations,’ (Cole 1997, p. 71). This strategy best works in export trading in which PR functions include finding out the cultural aspects of the foreign countries the business intends to sell its products, lobbying of foreign government authorities to create awareness and acceptance to operate, identifying and understanding the political and economic environment like business formation laws, financial lending policies, exporting and importing policies, the judicial system, and its justice administration, the social aspects of the market whether too traditional (affected by their culture and religion) or too modern (ready to adopt new technologies).
All these can be prepared in different communication programs like press conferences, exhibitions, documentary visuals, radio and TV interviews, press visits, etc.
PR also creates a mutual understanding between the function of the organization and its publics. This means organization stakes like internal like employees, customers, and shareholders; coordinated like; financial lending institution, insurance companies, and government; and external competitors, customers/consumers, and suppliers can be maintained and considered through PR function.
Such functions can be like answering their queries, educating them about the mission and vision of the organizations, and in some instances, PR function as a means of communicating the role of the business to the society (social responsibility aspect) and by providing ethical code of conduct of the business to respective stakeholders as part of good corporate image creation and maintenance.
PR manages communications programs across the organization like employee relations. This is merely a means of repelling the gap that could be created due to unnecessary bureaucracy within the chain of command and span of control in the organizational structure. PR ensures that employees find it easy of communicating personal and business issues to their bosses without delays or blocks. It also tries to interpret the goals, missions, and visions of the organization to the employees who may be threatened if the goals seem difficult.
The PR department also creates proper means of ensuring that new employees are provided with induction literature (information of the organization premise, organization structure, assets of the organization, successes, challenges, etc) to prepare them for their respective works.
In large corporations or manufacturing companies in-house closed-circuit TV, staff conferences, ideas box, speak-up schemes, shop-floor talks, organization visits, etc, all make employees work as a team and increase the level of trust in their managers through interaction, participation, and involvement.
It supports departmental functions like education, sponsorships, exhibitions, and export trading through marketing functions. Although many business institutions in developing countries put PR as a supplementary function to marketing, it is only a means of blocking the functionality of the profession. PR does not only support Marketing, it supports human resources, financial management (lobbying financial lenders), production management (liaising with suppliers of raw materials for a sustainable relationship), etc.
But with marketing, PR supports a number of issues like educating the market before the product or service is delivered, presiding over sponsorships activities both aimed at positioning the image, selling, or typically philanthropic. It uses different programs like exhibitions which aim at displaying the product, selling the product, creating and enhancing customer interaction between the organization and existing and potential stakes like customers, government, financial lending institutions, etc.
For example, Toyota Malawi likes to communicate to its stakeholders about the organization and its products through exhibitions. Almost every new car before heavy advertising is carried out, exhibitions are conducted to educate the market and answer customer queries while maximizing the mutual understanding of the business and its customers.
Therefore looking at the functions of the PR, it is true that PR is an art as well as science and therefore it has to be incorporated into the business top management as a separate department.
REFERENCES
Belch, GE & Belch, MA 2004, Adverting and promotion, 6th edn, McGraw Hill, Washington.
Cole, GA 1997, Strategic management, 2nd edn, Thomson, London.
Jefkins, F 1995, Public relations techniques, 2nd edn, Butterworth-Heinemann, Boston.
Jefkins, F 1998, Public relations frameworks, 5th edition, Pearson Education, Harlow.
Odedele, S 2008, Public relations and communication management in Africa, Petros-Faith Public Relations Consult, Lagos.
Pearce, JA & Robinson, RB 2007, Strategic management-formulation, implementation and control, 10th edn, Mc Graw Hill, Kuala Lumpur.
You can suggest any other PR topic to be discussed. Leave a comment.
