Public relations involves planned efforts to build and maintain mutual understanding between an organization and its publics. It helps shape the organization's corporate image through controlled and uncontrolled media. An effective corporate image benefits an organization by stimulating sales, establishing goodwill, and promoting favorable relations with stakeholders. A corporate image is formed through internal efforts like advertising, branding, and employee behavior, as well as external factors outside an organization's control like industry reputation and press coverage. As part of its marketing activities, an organization must consider its target audience and devise an appropriate marketing mix of product, price, placement, and promotion.

1. Public Relations and
corporate image

2. INTRODUCTION
Public relations defined
 The deliberate, planned and sustained effort to
institute and maintain mutual understanding
between an organisation and its publics.
Institute of Public Relations (IPR)

3. PUBLIC DEFINED

4. FUNCTIONS OF PUBLIC
RELATIONS
Specific public relations disciplines include:
 Financial public relations – providing information mainly to
business reporters
 Consumer/lifestyle public relations – gaining publicity for a
particular product or service, rather than using advertising
 Crisis public relations – responding to negative accusations or
information
 Industry relations – providing information to trade bodies
 Government relations – engaging government departments to
influence policymaking

5. How has the Role of PR Changed?
Traditional Role:
 Communicating and gaining acceptance of policies and programs in
the community
New Role:
 More marketing-oriented (Marketing Public Relations – MPR)
 Operates within a marketing department to develop programs and
policies
 Supports marketing objectives and adds value to the integrated
marketing communications program
 Incorporates marketing and corporate PR functions.

6. What do PR people do?
1. Determine the public’s existing attitude toward
the firm
 Helps planning
 Serves as early warning system for problems
2. Design a PR plan that is proactive rather than
reactive.
3. Execute the plan.
 E Determine relevant target audiences
 D Decide on tools
4. Determine the effectiveness of the plan

7. Public Relations Tools

8. Public Relations Tools
The Sponsoring Organization Pays for Controlled Media so
They Maintain Total Control Over How and When the Message
is Delivered.
Prepared by the Organization for Use in
House Ads Its Own Publication or One Over Which It
Has Some Control.
Ads Designed by Charitable or Civic
Public Service
Organizations for Broadcast Free of
Announcements Charge.
Corporate
Designed to Promote a Corporate Image
(Institutional) or Viewpoint.
Advertising

9. Public Relations Tools
Publications Such as Pamphlets,
In-House Booklets, and Annual Reports for an
Publications Organization’s Own Employees and Other
Publics.
Speakers,
Maintaining Visual Contact With the
Photographs, Various Publics is a Big Part of PR.
& Films
Displays, All Are Used in Both Sales Promotion and
Exhibits, & PR Programs and Include Open Houses
Staged Events and Plant Tours.

10. Public Relations Tools
The Media, Rather Than the Organization, Controls the Use
and Placement of Uncontrolled Media.
News Release Press Conference
Primary Medium Used Convening Media Reps
To Deliver PR Messages To Make a Statement.
to Media Editors
And Reporters. Risky, Because Media
May Not See Company’s
Video News Releases Announcement as Being
Contain Video Coverage Real News.
That Can be Used
During a TV Newscast. May Distribute Press
Kits.

11. Corporate image
 A corporate image refers to how a business is
perceived. It is a generally accepted image of
what a company stands for.
 A corporation's image is not solely created by
the company. Other contributors to a company's
image could include:
news media, journalists, labor unions,
environmental organisations, and other NGOs.

12. Corporate Image
Definition:
Corporate images are selectively perceived
mental pictures of an organization.The sum total
of these perceived characteristics of the
corporation is what we refer to as the “corporate
image”.
(Zinkhan, Ganesh, Jaju, Hayes)

13. Who is interested in the corporate
image?
 The most important groups are
- Stockholders: who have invested in the company
- Board of Directors: who manage the company
- Employees: who is in middle management and below
- Suppliers: who supplies any kinds of materials and services
(banks)
- Channel members: who are involved in the distribution network
- Customers: who purchase the company’s products and/or
services
- Community: who asses the company’s role as corporate citizen

14. Benefits of an effective corporate
image
 stimulating sales
 establishing company goodwill
 creating an identity for employees
 influencing investors and financial institutions
 promoting favourable relations with the
community, government and opinion leaders
 achieving a competitive position

15. How is Corporate Image formed?
Step 1: Influence and manage corporate image
Internal controllable sphere
External non-controllable sphere
 The internal controllable sphere can be used to
influence the stakeholders’ image of the organization.
 The external factors, however can also be indirectly
manipulated.

16. Forming a corporate image on the
internal sphere
Steps to follow: Forming a corporate image on the
internal sphere through the six major sources:
1.Corporate Identity.
2. Corporate Advertising
3. Brand Image
4. Public Relations
5. Frontline Employees Behaviour
6. Websites

17. Forming a corporate image
on the external sphere
Steps to follow:
There are four major sources:
1. Industry image
.
2. Country-of-Origin Image
3. Press Reports and Press releases.
4. Word-of-mouth

18. MARKETING MIX
Marketing involves a number of activities. To begin
with, an organisation may decide on its target group
of customers to be served. Once the target group is
decided, the product is to be placed in the market by
providing the appropriate product, price, distribution
and promotional efforts. These are to be combined
or mixed in an appropriate proportion so as to
achieve the marketing goal. Such mix of product,
price, distribution and promotional efforts is known
as ‘Marketing Mix