Written by Marija Nikovska, Marketing specialist
Have you ever considered what the true definition of PR is or what it could be? Let’s try to define both words that constitute the phrase: Public – the group or groups of people or parties we are addressing to, or conveying our communication message or messages to, and Relations – well, that is one tough word to give proper explanation to. However, here we meet with another word, encrypted somewhere between the Public and the Relations, and that is the Message. Thinking about it, can we also define the Message?! And can we level the importance of the message and the length of its reach in PR as the ultimate goal of every campaign? And what can a message be – is the message the written headline, or is it the cover photo on our client’s fan page? Or the message is the colour that dominates our campaign? Is the message hidden behind our CSR agenda, or is it handwritten on the 2016 Christmas greeting card? Or is it everything?! How can the message be given a broader view, and how much personalized can the message be when it is transmitted? We can talk about brand messages that are broadcasted through well-developed PR and/ or advertising campaigns, or we can talk about brand messages that are conveyed all the time, every second of the day, by people that are or are not aware of the process itself?! And we can talk about people messages, how they communicate through their specific lifestyle with everything that defines them as a concrete person?!
Looking it from a broader and more likely a more personal perspective, aren’t the PR messages everything you do, what you represent, what you say, wear, your perfume, hairstyle and more? If a person wears a Prada bag does it show anything about him or her? Is it solely an expression of status? Or does it also convey a further, deeper message? But, does it also convey a message that the brand indirectly transfers to all the other people around? The Prada bag may be perceived as of financial standpoint, but it can also show the person’s character, it can be a reflection of one’s lifestyle and mind. Or how does the Prada bag compare to other bag brands – let’s say Michael Kors bag or Furla bag? Or how about a fake Gucci or Louis Vuitton bag? And how much people have the ability of spotting what is fake and what is not? Well, we can just assume that PR professionals are very much able to do so, and go even deeper, be psychologically driven to catch messages transferred in just 3-5 seconds after giving a complete first overview. Since the Prada bag it is not often combined with a coat from H&M, but rather an equivalent. Here we could also add the ability or the psychological ability of other people to notice and perceive the messages every person carries, and we would ask if PR professionals are capable to do this now necessary psychological foreseeing and the analysis afterwards. And examine how much potential is hidden behind the above argued, helping us, PR professionals, into becoming more successful.
Though there is contradiction often applied in the above given statements, since sometimes more important of what you wear is how you wear it, here we talk about the tendency of messages being transferred both sides and the ability of people recognizing these messages. What acts as PR for us, and how we produce free PR for all the brands we live with? Some examples: what does it show to us if we see a gentleman driving a Volvo, wearing Zegna suit and Breil watch? We also see a girl walking in Chiara Ferragni flats, with a Pomeranian in a plaid bag and Carrera sunglasses? How different these people are from a man and a girl with equivalent financial statuses, but associated with a completely different set of brands. While the Volvo shows stability and maturity, the Chiara Ferragni flats show free spirit, funky style and probably some Instagram addiction.
People create relations with the publics all the time, every day with the things they do, wear and drive, by conveying messages of the type a person they are. At the same time, brands or love brands freely communicate with publics all around the streets people walk – from New York to Tokyo. So, how much more the PR can be personalized? Directly or indirectly? And even more, it is not only about examining brands that can be just worn or driven, it is valid for every tiny detail that can be produced or serviced and found in someone’s life, home, office, leisure. And further how these PR messages can be and are associated with one’s background, through the things learnt in life, inherited, further expressed and posted.
The complete picture: It is all PR, a more personal side of PR. And it is all a message, whether we like it or not. Today, we just have to comply with it and learn how to identify and use it in our own benefit, and create professional opportunities. Since at the very end of the day, if we rephrase Al Pacino in the very famous Scarface, it would be: “The shoes Chico, they never lie”. J
MARIJA NIKOVSKA is a marketing specialist with extensive experience in developing abd implementing public relations and integrated marketing communication campaigns. Holding a master's degree in Marketing, Advertising and Public Relations from the University of Sheffield International Faculty, Marija has worked in the Advertising industry while now she is the Director of Managers' Academy in the city of Skopje. She often visits the Department as a guest lecturer discussing topics of corporate communication and marketing.
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