What public relations have to do with marketing

Marketing is key to growing a business, and good marketing is essential for gaining loyal customers and turning profits that can support your business. So, what do public relations have to do with marketing? The following answers this question and explains some of the details of having good public relations through good marketing:

First and foremost public relations are considered the fifth "p" of the marketing mix. The first four "p" s are product, price, place, and promotion, and each of these really make a huge difference in whether or not your marketing plan works. So, the fifth "p" stands for perception. If you have a good image, it is easier to sell your product, and it is through your public relations that your image is created.

Even if you have an attractive product, and you have it priced right, you may not get a sale. Why? Because people make moral and emotional decisions when buying, not just financial and practical decisions. No one wants to buy something from a company with a bad reputation, or a poor image.

So, public relations are in affect, a portion of your marketing. You are going to use PR techniques to enhance your image, and in doing so shape positive customer perception so that you gain and keep loyal customers. It is like the movie "Miracle on 34th Street" when the Santa Clause started telling people where they could find things for cheaper, these people suddenly became customers for life because of emotional and moral reasons, not practicality and finances. The store's image was improved because unlike most, they care more about the customer then the "almighty dollar." This is a good lesson for anyone. If you want to keep customers happy, boost your image through good PR.

So, what public relations things can you do to boost your image, and in effect aid your marketing efforts? Well, you can sponsor a charitable event that is well publicized in the community. When people see that your store sponsored the special Olympics, or Breast Cancer Awareness, or something similar they start to relate to your company, even if before they did not.

So, get out there and find a worthwhile cause, or a local venture, then publicize this in the media so that it can be a part of your marketing campaign. The media loves to report on big business or (and especially) small business taking time and money out from their own pockets to help a worthy cause.

So, look at your business, decide how your customers view you now, and how you want them to view you. Decide what things you can do to make your public relations efforts affect your marketing directly. You want people to see your marketing campaign and when they think of your company feel good, warm and fuzzy, and want to be a loyal customer because your image is one they want to be aligned with. For example, store like Nordstrom have a good reputation and image for quality because part of the PR campaign is that if you are not satisfied they will take anything back. People want to align themselves with the connotation the brand name brings because it is associated well.

So, to answer the question of what does public relations have to do with marketing, it is a lot. It is through a good and positive company image that your marketing can be effective. Without good PR you would not have good marketing. So, involve your PR staff in your marketing decision making and vice versa.