Differences between Public Relations and other Fields of Activity

Marketing is the field that in the majority of the cases is mingled with Public Relations, but it means the process of management responsible for the identification, anticipation and satisfaction of the consumers’ demand in a profitable way.

Publicity presents the message of selling in the most persuasive possible way, in a favourable perspective for the product or service, at the lowest possible cost.

Public Relations aim not at raising the sells but at raising understanding. Of course, sometimes these notions are related but Public Relations do not claim a direct causal relation.

Any discussion about Public Relations and their role in organizations, inevitably requires the question: “What is an organization?” – the answer to this question helps discovering the main nature of communication also as a consequence of the strategic impact that Public Relations may have. The organization is a set of components (or subsystems) that have an impact on one another and together interact with the environment of the organization. So the welfare of an organization depends on establishing and maintaining the relations with itself and with the environment. It must adjust and adapt to the inner and outer changes.

Public Relations professionals use the same techniques as the ones available for the ones building strategies (e.g. PEST, SWOT analysis etc.) for “environment scanning”. They also gather information about the stakeholders of the organization.

For a better understanding of Public Relations I suggest an amusing comparison. Therefore if a boy tells a girl he wants to be with how tough and strong he is  (and smart, of course), this means PROPAGANDA;

If he tells the girl how beautiful and smart she is, this means PUBLICITY;

If the boy asks a friend to tell the girl how tough, strong and smart he is, this means PUBLIC RELATIONS!!!

 By Raluca Filip