The Main Forms of Public Relations
It’s more than just pitching the media.
There are a ton of forms of PR though when many people think of it they consider it to just be media relations. Of course, there is media relations, but there is also community relations, crisis communication, public affairs, social media, internal communications, and strategic communications.
The main forms of PR I focus on are media relations, community relations, crisis communication, social media, and strategic communication so I’ll break those down a bit here:
Media Relations: This one feels pretty self-explanatory but media relations are all about earning media coverage for clients from journalists, bloggers, broadcasters, podcasters, and the like. Journalists and producers are always looking for compelling stories to share with their readers, listeners, and viewers so a big part of what we do in media relations is acting as a source for them. By doing media relations for our clients we are boosting their credibility and conversions.
Community Relations: We develop our client’s relationships within specific communities whether it be local to where they operate or nationally. Typically the types of tactics that fall under this branch of PR are events, volunteering, and philanthropic donations.
Crisis Communication: Within this branch of PR we handle any crisis situation a client has as sometimes a single incident can take down a company or a person. When a crisis comes to fruition a PR company will have a strategic plan in place to elaborate on the situation and provide transparency to maintain the positive image of the client in the eyes of the public.
Social Media: One of the few highly quantifiable aspects of PR is social media. At the end of the day, PR is always going to come down to connecting your client with their audience and boosting their credibility. Having a strong online presence is a very big part of that and it gives our clients the opportunity to directly engage with their target audience and humanize their brand. Another part of social media as a PR form is influencer marketing which can be a useful tool in your strategy to appeal to your audience.
Strategic Communication: Every single form of PR has some element of strategic communication within it. Whether we are doing media relations, community relations, crisis communication, or social media, there is always going to be a strategy driving that service. We develop strategies for our clients by diving into their priorities and goals from the beginning of our relationship and consistently revisit those goals throughout the course of our work together. You have to have a plan in place that will deliver consistent messaging and lead you to meet the priorities of your clients.
