Introduction

Every organization has the right and the obligation to communicate effectively and ethically with the public. This book was born of that premise.

But when we say “organizations”, we don’t just mean large multi-national companies or political parties with thousands of members. Public Relations is within the reach of small and medium-sized businesses, non-profit organizations and even independent entrepreneurs who recognize the importance of communication in successfully achieving his or her goals and need to have tools on hand that let them speak to their audiences.

This isn’t a book for the initiated. It looks to a be a reference for those who aspire to become a part of the dynamic world of public relations.

This book will help those who, without having a degree in Communication, need to know how to communicate adequately to their public, need to hire a an agency and need to know the best way to find one and how to get the best out of PR.

For industry professionals, this book will allow them a peek into the latest trends to help them serve their clients better.

To that end, if offers a simple guide to designing a Public Relations campaign – from the research stage to an evaluation of its results.

Furthermore, the book delves deeply into the evaluation process to show both professionals and laymen the true power of a strategically well-thought out PR campaign when its is seamlessly implemented.

The tools and tactics included in this book can be applied to all sectors. The objective is to give organizations a series of accessible tools to meet all of their communications needs.

Althought there are differences between the industries, this book is not anti-advertising nor anti-journalism. It is pro effective integrated communication,

Everyone knows that in recent years public mistrust has grown, and people are skeptical of what they read, hear and see in the media, no matter if the content it editorial or advertising.  One can’t ignore the fact that information saturation hasn’t really made society better informed.

In the midst of the skeptical climate that seems to dominate these days, small and influential groups have emerged that are occupying important positions within the public with surprising speed. These new social movements look to establish equal relationships with companies, such as starting “conversations” with them, letting them know that this is the only way to repair their damaged reputations.

In this sense, Public Relations has to show its flexibility in talking to certain audiences, its true ability to help organizations communicate with the public  in a more relevant, dynamic, transparent and committed way.

PR has the power to influence the perception, attitudes and behavior of its audiences.

This book identifies that opportunity, proposes a series of tactics and tools for immediate use within the framework of a communications plan and strategy, and establishes parameters for best practices that will help the reader in his or her endeavor to communicate adequately with their public.

This books shows the importance of media, as it is fundamental in being able to reach millions of people en masse. Many of the tools are meant to help establish enriching professional relationships with journalists.

The worst PR is that which doesn’t reach the public, but that doesn’t mean one must do anything to get “in the papers”. There are other ways to communicate with different audiences through PR tactics that the reader will find in these pages.

This book presents the reality of PR and attempts to systematize the experiene I have gained through deep professional experience in two markets, Spain and Mexico.

It also provides an overview of PR around the world, concluding that PR best practices are authentically universal.

“Public Relations. The Effectiveness of Influence” has been a great challenge and I hope that the reader finds that it has served its purpose.