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CHAPTER 13 PUBLIC RELATIONS Chapter Overview Public relations (PR) is the way by which information about the organization, its products may be communicated. Like the program elements discussed thus far, the marketer will attempt to use this tool to benefit the firm and its offerings. At the same time, this promotional mix element is generally used in a different way in that it is not always designed to promote a specific product. Rather, it may be used to promote the organization as a whole, a cause or position advocated by the organization, or to create goodwill in the marketplace. In addition, it is not always within the control of the marketer. Thus, while it may be possible to affect public relations in some situations, in many others the marketer may have to assume a reactive posture. This chapter discusses and expands on the changing role of public relations. Learning Objectives 1. To recognize the roles of public relations in the promotional mix. 2. To understand public relations and its strengths and limitations. 3. To understand the reasons for corporate advertising and its advantages and disadvantages. 4. To know how to compile a public relations plan. 5. To understand how public relations is obtained partly through publicity generated through news media. Chapter and Lecture Outline I. A. PUBLIC RELATIONS The Traditional Definition of PR—The chapter begins by differentiating between the traditional role of public relations and the new role. The traditional role (as defined on page 348) reflects a management function that has as its primary responsibility the goal of communicating and the gaining acceptance of the organization’s policies and programs within its various communities. B. The New Role of PR—The new role assumes a much broader, and more marketing-oriented, perspective. In the new orientation, the public relations function operates in close communication with the marketing department (rather than as separate entities) to develop programs and policies. Figure 13-1 outlines four classes of marketing and public relations use. C. Publicity: One Effect of Public Relations – Publicity refers to the generation of news about a person, product or organization that appears in the media. It often is the result of a public relations effort. It typically lasts for a short period of time, and it is not always positive and under the control of the marketer. Some of the most powerful incidents of publicity are unplanned by the marketer. D. Strengths of Public Relations: credibility cost avoidance of clutter lead generation ability to reach specific groups Chapter 13 – Public Relations 164 image building E. Limitations of Public Relations weaker brand or corporate identification effect inconsistent message timing accuracy II. PUBLIC RELATIONS PLAN A structured public relations plan can help ensure that PR is an ongoing process as opposed to series of disconnected one-time events. As well, a plan will facilitate the integration of PR with other IMC tools. The key elements of a PR plan are: A. Situation Analysis – In addition to a review of the situation analysis elements from the marketing or IMC plan, people’s attitudes towards the firm, its products and/or specific issues should be assessed. The value of conducting attitude research includes: It provides input into the planning process It serves as an early warning system It secures support internally. It increases the effectiveness of the communication. B. Determine Relevant Target Audiences—Target audiences may be categorized as internal or external. Internal audiences include: employees stockholders and investors community members suppliers and customers External audiences may include: the media educators civic and business organizations governments financial groups C. Behavioural Objectives – The framework for these as discussed in Chapter 5 is readily applicable for PR. D. Communication Objectives – The communication objectives set out in Chapter 5 also apply to PR. These include awareness and attitude change. E. Strategy – There are two elements for the PR strategy: the message and the medium. Message strategy decisions fall into two main categories: the focus of the message and the creative of the message. Chapter 13 – Public Relations 165 Public relations activities designed to support marketing objectives are referred to as marketing public relations (MPR). Used in conjunction with other traditional marketing practices as well as IMC elements, MPR can be used in the following ways: building marketplace excitement before media advertising breaks creating advertising news where there is no product news introducing a product with little or no advertising influencing the influentials – providing information to opinion leaders defending products at risk with a message or reassurance constructively promoting a product F. Tactics- These depend on the type of dissemination tool used including the media, directmarketing, press conferences, seminars, events and personal letters. III. PUBLIC REALTIONS STRATEGY OPTIONS The news media options for communicating with various target audiences include: press releases press conferences exclusives interviews community involvement A. Strengths of News Media Options they are highly credible endorsement frequency potential B. Limitations of News Media Options timing accuracy IV. CORPORATE ADVERTISING OPTIONS A firm’s advertising is not always designed to promote a specific product or service. Corporate advertising is designed to promote the firm overall—either by enhancing its image, assuming a position on a social issue or cause, or seeking direct involvement from the market. As noted in the text, this form of advertising is often considered controversial and/or of dubious benefit to the firm. A. Types of Corporate Advertising—Five distinct types of corporate advertising and marketing communication tools are covered in the text. Image advertising—Advertising designed to promote the organization’s overall image may include: - general image or positioning ads - television sponsorships - recruiting Chapter 13 – Public Relations 166 - generating financial support Advocacy advertising—This form of advertising is designed to promote the organization through the taking of a position on an issue rather than through the promotion of the firm directly. The Bell Telephone ad is an example of the use of this form of advertising. Cause-related marketing—A company links with a charity or non-profit organization as a contributing sponsor. Event sponsorships – The marketer ties-in with a cause and/or event. Sports and entertainment events are among the most frequently used. The Internet – The Internet is a means by which organizations can disseminate corporate advertising beyond traditional media. While it offers a more limited opportunity to gain attention, it has linking capability and the ability to provide substantial information. B. Strengths of Corporate Advertising excellent for positioning the firm offers some control that the message will be disseminated reaches a select target audience C. Limitations of Corporate Advertising questionable effectiveness constitutionality and/or ethics Teaching Suggestions As in the previous chapter, this chapter can be supplemented and developed in more detail according to the needs of the instructor. A number of good public relations texts are available. In addition to lecturing on the topic, it is possible to generate a great deal of class discussion. A multitude of public relations and corporate advertising examples can be found, and the discussion of the impact (and examples) of PR can also stimulate a great deal of student interest. We have found that the issue of corporate advertising, particularly advocacy advertising, provides a great topic for debate. Students might be encouraged to take one position or another and discuss the issues, providing examples to support their arguments. Finally, some time should be spent on the discussion of Figure 13-1. Because of the new role of public relations, quadrant four is becoming a more common model for the organization. It is important to discuss the Exhibit, and to have students understand the various roles that public relations assumes in the different types of organizations. Answers to Discussion Questions 1. Discuss the advantages that the Internet offers for those responsible for conducting public relations activities. Describe how these activities are different than traditional methods. Even though public relations practitioners have been some of the slower adopters of this innovation, the Internet offers this field a number of advantages. Traditional pr activities involve the dissemination of press releases, articles, etc. regarding the organization. The process of delivering these is cumbersome, and can mount up when paper and mailing costs are considered—particularly when the list of contacts is large. In addition, this distribution takes time. Chapter 13 – Public Relations 167 The Internet offers the advantage of speed. Articles and/or newsworthy events can be posted on the site almost immediately after they happen. There are no limits on length, which allows the organization to provide as much detail as they wish. News organizations or others wishing to use this information can access it as needed and remain up to the minute in terms of developments. Knowing that the organization has a website providing this information also allows the user to know where to go to access the same. Rather than having to wait for the pr news, the medium can access the site, and get it themselves. They can go back for updates, additional information, etc., which makes their job much easier, and increases the likelihood of the information getting published or on the broadcast medium. Finally, the cost savings are enormous. There are no paper and printing costs. There are no distribution costs other than putting it on the site, and of course there are no mail costs. And, in the process, many trees are saved. 2. Discuss some of the advantages associated with the use of marketing public relations (MPR’s). What are some of the disadvantages? Pages 356 and 357 of the text discuss some of the advantages and disadvantages of using MPR’s. Advantages include: It is a cost effective way to reach the market—public relations activities are often less expensive than traditional marketing programs It is highly targeted—MPR’s can be targeted to a specific audience, thus increasing the effectiveness of the program Endorsements of third parties—MPR’s may be perceived as more credible because they receive endorsement of those who may not be connected directly with the organization. This perceived lack of a relationship is a benefit to the sponsoring organization. Credibility—as noted in the previous advantage, MPR’s may result in higher credibility than marketing efforts Support of the IMC program—due to its credibility, the MPR program lends support to the more profit-oriented IMC program strategies Breaking through the clutter—due to the length of the articles, and the separation from advertisements, MPR’s may break through the clutter of ads Circumvents consumer resistance—consumers may be hesitant to respond to marketing efforts they know are designed to sell, MPR’s help circumvent this problem Disadvantages include: Lack of control—as with other PR pieces, the marketer loses control over the material Difficulty tying in marketing efforts—it is often difficult to get one’s logo, positioning statement, etc. tied into the message Media time and space are not guaranteed—because there is no media being paid for, there is no guarantee that the media time or space will be granted Measuring effectiveness—the measures used to determine the effectiveness by marketing standards may be more difficult to employ. Traditional pr measures may not be as useful. Chapter 13 – Public Relations 168 3. Explain why traditional public relations practitioners might be unhappy with the organization’s use of MPR’s. Take a position as to whether this criticism is justified. Those educated in public relations programs—as opposed to business schools—have been taught PR from a very different perspective. To them, public relations is designed to create goodwill for the organization through traditional pr activities. Profit motives are, at best, optional benefits. MPR’s represent marketing activities. Public relations is considered a marketing tool, designed not only to create goodwill, but to potentially generate a profit as well. This is a very different perspective than traditional public relations objectives. The difference in perspectives leads many pr practitioners and academics to a position of conflict. The PR people believe that marketers are overstepping their bounds, and are getting involved in an area in which they do not belong. They see for-profit efforts as eventually ruining the credibility of PR and eventually destroying its effectiveness. Marketers take the position that since it is being paid for, and it benefits the firm, PR should be used to better the interests of the organization, even if it means making a profit. In addition, they want to see coordination among all efforts to bring synergy to the communications. They don’t understand the PR argument or logic. The truth probably lies somewhere in between the two positions. Too much of a focus on profit will eventually render the PR program ineffective due to a loss of credibility. At the same time, no coordination with PR may mean mixed messages, wasted monies, and less contribution to the overall communications effort. A balance between the two extremes seems to be in the best interest of all. 4. List and describe the advantages and disadvantages of the use of public relations in an IMC program. Provide an example of an appropriate use of public relations in this mix. Pages 351-352 list the advantages and disadvantages of public relations. Advantages include: Credibility—due to its perceived news intent (versus selling), PR may have higher credibility than many marketing messages Cost—PR costs less than marketing messages, due to the lack of media costs Avoidance of clutter—longer articles, separation from ads and new content help avoid clutter Lead generation—PR, if effectively targeted, can generate leads ranging from financial investments to sales to participation in or support of the cause Ability to reach specific groups—through effective targeting, and due to its news value, PR messages may get through to groups advertising cannot Image building—corporate advertising, cause and advocacy advertising, and PR activities in general may help establish a positive image in the mind of receivers The major disadvantages of PR are the lack of control over the message and guarantee that it will appear in the media at all. Thus, the intended communication may never take place or an unintended message is delivered. Marketers can effectively employ PR activities and eliminate the disadvantages. Corporate, advocacy and cause advertising are paid for, and will get the message and media sought delivered. At the same time, they maintain many of the advantages, as there is no perceived intent to sell. Likewise, sponsorships can be effectively used to get the message delivered. Many Chapter 13 – Public Relations 169 companies now formally design-in PR programs as part of their IMC program to increase effectiveness. 5. What is a video news release (VNR)? Provide an example of a situation in which a company might employ the use of a VNR. Discuss some of the ethical implications (if any) of using this tool. Video news releases (VNR’s), are broadcast segments designed to look like news that are made by companies themselves in an attempt to get their messages out. VNR’s can take a range of topics, including company information regarding new products, stories of interest, etc. Unfortunately, depending on the content, VNR’s have the capability of deceiving the audience. An obvious VNR in which product information is provided may be honest and straight-forward, but has less news value, and thus, less likelihood of being aired. As a result, some companies design the VNR to look more like news, when the purpose is to sell. For example, if Intel introduces a new chip, they may develop a VNR and provide it to the media. The media, will decide if it is news worthy and air or not air it. Others may have more deceptive messages. A number of years ago, when a hurricane ravaged Jamaica, the Jamaica Tourist Bureau developed and released a VNR approximately six months later to show how well the country had come back. The video showed new hotels, new roads, etc., all of which were true. But when aired, the VNR appeared to be a news story only, without mentioning that the backers were trying to improve tourism. While this example is not terribly deceptive, nevertheless, viewers were deceived. The VNR which appeared on CNN looked just like any other news story, with no indication of profit motives. 6. Give examples of companies that are pursuing traditional public relations activities, and those that are employing the new role. The traditional role of public relations has been to operate independently of the marketing department with the purpose of earning public understanding and acceptance. In this regard, public relations activities typically involved establishing community relations through planned events, tokens of goodwill, charitable contributions, etc. The marketing of the firm and its products were the responsibility of the marketing department. The new role of public relations is substantially different. While the responsibilities of maintaining community understanding and acceptance remain, the PR department has now been given a broader role. Organizations have recognized that the activities of the public relations department may often have a direct effect on sales. As a result, the PR departments are working more closely with marketing to reduce redundancies in their efforts, and to work together so that their individual contributions may achieve a “sum of the parts is greater than the whole” situation. Keep in mind that it was the PR department that saved Tylenol—not marketing. And it was a joint effort between marketing and public relations that led to the effective Life Cereal campaign to bring back Mikey. Likewise, within the past few years the design of advertising agencies and public relations agencies has been changed to coincide with the new perspective. Ad agencies now offer public relations activities, and many of the public relations firms now have advertising departments. In those situations where both departments have not been created, agencies are teaming with their advertising or PR counterparts to offer the clients integrated full service capabilities. Chapter 13 – Public Relations 170 7. Many companies are now taking the position that their charitable contributions should lead to something in return—for example, sales or increased visibility. Discuss the pros and cons of this position. Traditionally, public relations activities have been separate from the marketing department, primarily designed to create goodwill in the community, portraying the organization in a favorable light, etc. In some cases, the organization would attempt to insure that no profit- motive aspects were realized, (from a sales standpoint) in fear that the goodwill would be negated. The more modern role basically takes the position that “if we are doing it, why not get credit for it”? In other words, these PR activities may not need to be designed to aid the marketing process, but if they do, what is the harm? Still another perspective is to use PR activities to directly aid the organization’s marketing efforts. From a marketing standpoint, one might take the position that if the PR activity is done in good taste, and it does benefit the recipient, why not get credit for it? There is no less value to the receiver, and so long as there is no exploitation involved, everyone benefits. One can take this position too far however, in that the receiver of the benefits now are selected based on potential benefits to the organization not on need. It is this last point that upsets the PR people—especially the traditionalists. They believe that PR was never designed to be a marketing activity and that it should remain independent. In addition to their altruistic convictions, they note the fact that the whole plan could backfire, causing the firm more problems than benefits. Many companies still engage in both forms of PR. Olympic sponsors are one example. Some do so quietly, with little or no recognition. Others essentially buy the sponsorship, using the same in their advertising and promotions to benefit their products or services. 8. Many companies are now trying to generate as much free publicity as they can. Cite some examples of this and discuss the advantages and disadvantages associated with this strategy. There is an old saying that “any publicity is better than none”. We are not sure that we subscribe to this expression. Many companies have a designed strategy to generate as much publicity as they can, assuming that most exposures are likely to help them. In many cases it does. For example, No Excuses Jeans was very successful without advertising, just based on the free exposure the pants got everytime a “No Excuses Woman” (Donna Rice, Marla Maples, Monica Seles) was chosen. Others have been much less successful. (Clothestime ran ads that were knowingly controversial in an attempt to generate free publicity. The ploy was seen through and the strategy was ineffective). The logic is that if one generates free publicity, the exposures result in millions of dollars of free time. For example, when Michael Jackson’s hair caught on fire during the making of a Pepsi commercial, it was estimated that over $32 million dollars of free air time was accrued as stations showed the accident. The impact of the publicity generated by products associated with the O.J. Simpson case demonstrate the positive impact that this publicity can have. On the other hand, one of the key ingredients to this success may very well be the fact that it is not perceived as a planned effort to generate free time. Once the consumer and/or the media figure out that the publicity is sought, the effectiveness decreases immediately. Chapter 13 – Public Relations 171 Additional Discussion Questions (not in text) 9. Explain what is meant by the term cause-related advertising and advocacy advertising. Cite examples of organizations that have used this strategy. Does it work? Cause-related advertising is the term used to describe the linking of companies with charities or non-profit organizations as contributing sponsors. Cause related marketing is a “hot” trend in the business community. Companies like American Express, Visa, Johnson & Johnson and many others have participated in cause related marketing for a variety of reasons. First, the goodwill and positive publicity associated with these activities are beneficial to the firm. Secondly, there is the feeling of doing something good for the community. Third, marketing activities such as coupon redemptions and sales have been shown to be positively affected. Participating in a cause-related relationship is not a guarantee of success, however. American express has suffered negative publicity, as have others when the public feels that all of the motives are not altruistic. In addition, some causes (such as AIDS) are considered by many to be too controversial to engage in, creating possible problems in the marketplace as well as within the organization. Advocacy advertising involves the propagating of ideas and elucidating controversial social issues of public importance in a manner that supports the interests of the sponsor. A quick perusal of any major daily newspaper will reveal that this form of advertising is on the increase. Such ads can also be found in magazines such as Time and Newsweek among others. The reasons for advocacy are many. One is to generate public support on an issue. Another is to elicit funds, while a third is to make people aware of an issue. Such ads may range from taking a safe stance (Mobil’s back the police campaign) to extreme depending on the goals of the sponsor. Effectiveness will also vary depending on the goals sought. 10. What are MPR’s functions? How might they benefit the organization’s marketing programs? MPR functions are those public relations activities designed to support marketing objectives. As noted, MPR’s may aid the marketing program in a number of ways: building marketplace excitement before advertising breaks creating news where there is no product news introducing a product with little or no advertising providing a value added customer service building brand-to-customer bonds influencing the influentials defending products at risk giving consumers a reason to buy The instructor is referred to the text for more explanation on the above. 11. Why is publicity so powerful? Give examples of how publicity has worked for and against companies. Chapter 13 – Public Relations 172 The power of publicity emanates directly from its high credibility. Because the source of the communication is generally perceived as being objective, or at least as not having a vested interest, the information is often treated differently than that of advertising and/or promotions. As a result this information is passed on more readily, and in general is considered more believable. A contributing factor is the way that the media handle publicity. Unfortunately for many firms, negative publicity often receives more attention than does that of a positive nature. The Audi example, as well as those of Jack-in-the Box and Suzuki demonstrate this point quite well. As a result, more coverage is provided, more consumers are exposed, and the information seems to convey more “news value.” Examples of the power of credibility are common in both regards. Perrier, Corvair, Tylenol, and Suzuki are all examples of the power of negative publicity. The Buick and Cabernet wine examples demonstrate the impact of how publicity can be used positively. Likewise, a number of products have directly benefited or been hurt by the publicity they received from sources such as Consumer Reports. 12. Some people believe firms should not adopt the new marketing oriented role for public relations. Argue for and against this position. Those who would argue against the new role of public relations base their arguments on the fact that public relations is not a marketing function. They argue that public relations is designed to create goodwill, promote relations in the community, etc. They believe that those trained in public relations take a different perspective and have different skills than those trained in marketing. Those who support the new role of public relations contend that since public relations efforts benefit the firm they offer a marketing advantage. Corporate image has been shown to be an important factor in consumers’ evaluations of products and services, and creating a good image through public relations activities helps the marketing cause. Secondly, they argue that organizations need all the help they can get in the marketing cause. By using public relations as a marketing effort, the organization is just receiving an additional benefit. Supporters of the new role can offer a number of examples of the success of combining public relations with marketing efforts. The Mikey story cited in the text, the cause-related efforts of companies and other examples are commonly cited as good reasons for supporting the new role. They also note that the successful return of Tylenol was initiated by the public relations department—not marketing. Finally, the new role of public relations has effectively utilized the power of publicity. More and more firms are using public relations and publicity in conjunction with marketing activities to increase the power of the total effort. Ads featuring Arnold Palmer, Madonna, Tiger Woods and others have been proven to return the cost of using these celebrities as a result of the free publicity they generate. 13. Describe some of the problems that might result from boycotts. Discuss some of the strategies for combating boycotts. Obviously, no organization wants to become the target of a boycott. Besides the loss of public image, a number of other problems can also result. For example: internal morale problems lost sales Chapter 13 – Public Relations 173 lost opportunities lost work time and effort to combat the problem lost dollar expenditures to combat the problem lost customers lawsuits court injunctions protests Obviously, the best way to combat boycotts is to take a proactive approach rather than a reactive one. What this means is that companies should think about the results of their actions before they do them, so as to head off any potential problems. Since this is not always possible, the organization must be prepared to respond to boycotts. Many organizations have crisis plans and even managers responsible for dealing with such occurrences. Others are forced to respond once the problem has occurred. Actions that might be taken once the boycott has been initiated include: rectifying the situation (P & G changed their logo) apologizing (Exxon’s apology letter shown in the text) changing policies (Burger King quit buying beef from Costa Rica) refuting the counter position (GF stated its own position on advertising on “sexy” shows) ignoring the boycott (Spain’s Expo 92 ended before bullfighting was abolished). Of course, the proactive approach is the desired one. However, when a boycott does take place, the company will almost always have to respond. 14. How do public relations programs differ in various countries around the world? Give examples. The public relations literature provides an interesting perspective of how public relations activities are carried out throughout the world. Rather than rehashing these here, we feel that it is more important to focus on the misperceptions that many students may have regarding these activities. For example, most students believe that we in the US operate in a completely free environment with little or no restrictions. This is not necessarily the case. In fact, there appears to be a trend to more and more restrictions on the media. Likewise, students are often not aware to the fact that many third world countries conduct pr activities. We have a tendency to think of public relations as being disseminated through conventional channels such as those that exist in the Western world. Finally, it may come as a surprise that a rather sophisticated communications network providing public relations information to the masses exists in Russia and/or China. Again, while these networks may not take on the same form as those here, they do, nevertheless, achieve the same goals. Chapter 13 – Public Relations 174 15. What are some of the reasons for conducting public relations research activities? As with any other part of the communications program, there are reasons for conducting public relations research activities. These include, but are not limited to the following: to determine target audiences—some members of society may provide more effective markets than will others. to determine attitudes and perceptions—it is important to know the audiences perceptions of the organizations as well as the programs it may or may not implement to “tune” the program—testing source, message, and media factors is important to insure the success of the pr program to evaluate the effectiveness of the program—follow-up research designed to determine the effectiveness of the program is important. Just as we would want to conduct research as input into the design of the program, we would also need to do the same to determine how the program worked once implemented. Research activities are required throughout the program 16. Explain the differences between public relations and publicity. In what ways are they the same? As noted in the text, the distinction between public relations and publicity is often not clear to students. Much of this can be attributed to the fact that problems and opportunities involving publicity are typically handled by the public relations department. Thus the tools used in the creation of public relations programs are the same as those employed to generate or control publicity. The procedures used to measure the effectiveness of these programs are also similar. At the same time, there are distinct differences between public relations and publicity, with control being foremost. While public relations programs are designed and implemented by the organization, publicity may originate from within or outside of the organization. In the latter case, the information is not always favorable to the firm, and the scope of the actions designed to deal with these communications will differ significantly. A second difference lies in the cost of public relations and publicity. While some textbooks argue that there is no cost involved in public relations, we take a different view. Public relations programs may be very costly in and of themselves, not to mention the cost of staff, materials, etc. Likewise, public relations agencies charge firms for their work. (If public relations is free, how did these large public relations firms get in business in the first place?) Publicity may also cost the firm. Writing and issuing press releases, managing “leaks,” etc., obviously cost money. But these costs may be much less than those involved in large PR efforts, and—when released by other sources (for example, Consumer Reports)—may be free. Finally, both PR and publicity may too often be reactive rather than proactive in design. That is, they may be employed in response to an event or communication that poses a potential threat. Formalized programs designed to be proactive are now becoming more common, though more so in the public relations area than in publicity. 17. What are the various forms that corporate advertising might assume? Give examples of each. Corporate advertising is generally classified as either image advertising or social, business and environmental issue advertising (advocacy). The former is designed to promote the general image of the firm, while the latter takes a position on a particular issue to enhance the image of the firm. Chapter 13 – Public Relations 175 Implementation of these forms of corporate advertising may be different. Image ads may be: General image or positioning ads. These ads are designed to create a specific image of the company in the minds of the public. Beatrice Foods has used this form of advertising to demonstrate the diversification of the company. Sponsorships. By sponsoring special events, programs, or even television shows, companies hope to create an image of themselves. The Hallmark Hall of Fame movie specials, the sponsorship of educational television by Mobil and Gulf Oil companies are examples. Recruiting. Companies create images through their recruiting ads. Arthur Young (an accounting firm) advertised for “free thinking” college graduates. Others have created an image of themselves as companies for those interested in “challenging careers.” Financial ads. Companies attempt to create images of themselves for potential investors. They may run ads showing their strong stock performance, sound investments, or the security of investing in them. The issue ads—or advocacy ads—take a particular position on an issue of concern or interest to the public. The Mobil and AT&T ads shown in the text are good examples. 18. How can a manager manage publicity? What types of action can be taken in response to negative publicity? Managers have the ability to control some of the publicity that is presented. The issuing of press releases, the holding of press conferences, and “leaks” (the information somehow just seems to get out!) are ways of getting information to the media. When an organization wants to get positive information disseminated, these methods can be employed. Examples include the consumer products companies releasing of information about the signing of rock stars or movie stars to serve as product spokespersons. Perhaps the most well cited example of dealing with negative publicity is the Tylenol case. Sound marketing research, a comprehensive advertising and public relations campaign and a strong brand image were all responsible for the success in dealing with negative publicity. Suzuki also instituted a strong campaign. The company sent tapes and support articles to all of its dealers and instructed them on how to deal with questions concerning the negative publicity. Tree Top and Exxon—as shown in the text—effectively handled negative communications through advertising their positions and apologizing respectively. Essentially, to deal with negative publicity, the company must have a crisis management program in place, and must use sound marketing practices to ward off the threat. Refusing to comment, attempting to discredit the source or other negative approaches are less likely to be successful. 19. Discuss some strategies used to implement the public relations program. Give examples. A variety of tools are available to the public relations manager for implementing the program. Some of these examples include: press releases—information distributed to the media for publication or broadcast. An example—IBM announcing that it would no longer sell PC’s with potentially defective Intel chips inside. press conferences—called by organizations to announce an event, accomplishment or other happening. The University of Nevada, Los Vegas announcing that they had dismissed their head basketball coach. Chapter 13 – Public Relations 176 exclusives—one medium given exclusive rights to the story. CBS gaining an exclusive interview with the family of Nicole Simpson. interviews—personal interviews with key figures involved. KCBS in Los Angeles interview with Lance Ito—the judge in the O.J. Simpson trial. community involvement—organizations become actively involved in community activities to achieve recognition for doing so. Local media get involved in cleaning up neighborhoods, painting, etc. IMC Exercise Instruct students to gather information of various types of public relations activities engaged in by organizations. These include both traditional and nontraditional methods. Have them collect examples of sponsorships, and describe the target audiences sought, and the pros and cons of the sponsorship. IMC Project Develop a public relations plan as part of the overall program. Describe what the objectives of this program are, how the program will be implemented and how it will be evaluated for effectiveness. Chapter 13 – Public Relations 177