Why Public Relations is a Better Option than Advertising in 2017

To promote a new start-up company, people usually go for the straight up advertisement way or the PR way. These two industries are very different even though they're commonly confused as being the same.

Public Relations (PR) is the practice of developing communication between marketers and the target audience using all types of media vehicles such as print, Television and the internet. Public Relations (PR) for an organization or individual is nothing but gaining exposure that influences the audiences in creating a positive image just like advertising but in an altogether different manner and style.

PR is not advertising; it is a separate branch of marketing which is developed exclusively for image management, brand building, media interaction, media relations, market outreach, event coverage and crisis management. A company that hires an advertising agency with the motive of getting a place in the newspaper, magazine or Television pays a huge amount for the media for purchasing the space or time slot. Whereas PR is a non-paid form of marketing and promotion and a PR agency develops strategies for the client to gain coverage endorsed by the end of a journalist in a subtle manner. PR professionals develop a range of tactics to gain positive media attention for a brand, which helps to aware your target audiences about your company and brand and marketer (You).

In present times, public relations is playing a very vital role in the branding and promotion of the companies that hire a PR agency for promoting their brand and services and uplifting their market image. But, Advertising and PR are similar in the way that both convey a message to their clients and target audience. However, they convey that message differently in using different strategies and tactics.

Being a smart business leader, you need to understand the difference between advertising and PR to determine which approach is more effective and budget friendly for your business. Since in Advertising you're paying for space, you have creative control over what goes into that ad. But in Public Relation You have no control over how the media presents your information if they decide to use your info at all. They're not obligated to cover your event or publish your press release just because you sent something to them. Advertising also has a longer shelf life than PR.  However, PR professionals help you to communicate your message with your target audience in a variety of channels - traditional as well as unconventional social media channels. The key to enhancing your reach is to place your message in the channels that your clients or potential customers enjoy using.

When you are alone, you may achieve good or bad relations. However, by using PR effectively, you can build strong relationships and maintain a sound reputation at all times and in all circumstances. Whether your customers, suppliers, employees and stakeholders buy your services or not, in fact, it depends on your reputation and market image. Public relations differentiates you from your competitors and gives you an edge over them.

The Marriage of SEO and UX for Mutual Reinforcement

Not just tens or twenties but with the crowd of hundreds and thousands entering the digital arena every day, clicking high on success parameter in this overly crowded virtual word is not that easy. And, with technologies and software programs developing at quite an aggressive pace, the task of touching success heights becomes even more of a herculean thing to do.

Each day thousands of new technologies and software programs enter the digital canvas with some getting completely rejected and some getting widely adopted. With new ones entering the canvas it is usually believed that the old ones need to leave. But is this true in the case of UX (User Experience) and SEO (Search Engine Optimization), Is the former better than the latter or should we believe still in the concept that Old is Gold?

But neither the old needs to go nor the new needs to be rejected, instead, they both need to work together in a team to gain better online results. Both might have different priorities and distinct structures, but one thing in common is that they both are working for the same goal of providing best service. While the SEO is focused on letting the crowds at different online platforms know about your presence in the market; UX, on the other hand, is keeping the crowd engaged and impressed with the quality content.

Following are the 4 genius ways of bringing the SEO experts work together with their UX counterparts for a better Web Development program:

Utilise the erupting tension

Make the SEO expert in Delhi and UX geniuses understand that they are not on the opposite side of the fence but are all part of the same team. Conflicts and frictions are all part of the organisational working, but only a good management expert can utilise the erupting frictions for improving development, rather than impeding it. Before making any development programs, both the SEO and UX teams need to work in collaboration to better achieve their goal of good user experience.

Guide them towards the overall site goals

When conveying the goals and objectives of a site project it needs to be made sure that both SEO and UX teams have a common understanding of the goals. Because, at times it is observed that due to the expertise in their respective fields only, both the parties develop their own perspectives on the website need which is best in their better knowledge but is conflicting with the strategies of the other team. Every single decision regarding the website from keyword research to user flows should be taken after taking the combined efforts& expertise, industry research and overall user’s feedback into consideration.

Don’t forget the design elements while creating content

Content shouldn’t be crafted without a design in mind, and design should never indicate towards content being void of something. From site structure, content’s length and the quantity and quality of the design elements quite everything related to the blueprint of the site needs to be created with the combined efforts of both the teams so as to ensure the site is delivering the website message in a best possible way. Always remember good content without the support of design element isn’t going to be noticed by the audience. And, quality design void of quality content isn’t going to be trusted at all.

Ensure repetitive checks

Teams related to Web development programs are never done with their projects. As the users’ needs evolve, so evolve the web practices and thus evolves the website. UX and SEO professionals need to make it a point that they test real-life users and evaluate the site’s performance from time to time. This repetitive real time check will provide these professionals with a chance to make desired site changes to optimise user experience and conversions for the overall website growth & development

Why Lifestyle Brands Cannot Ignore the Public Relations

In order to understand that why lifestyle brands cannot ignore the public relations, it is necessary that we know what action public relations performs.

Public relations as the word suggests clearly means maintaining healthy relations with the public so that it in turns benefits both the potential person associated and also the company in its growth. Public relations bring together an organization/ individual and the target audience. It identifies the right image to be projected.

Lifestyle brands require creativity, strategic approach and rigorous implementation. For lifestyle brands it is necessary that they engage the audience and build a connectivity that begins a conversation which might further lead to glory.

Public relations drive awareness about the existence of the brand and the products in the market and also create the desire in the minds of the people to buy it or inculcate interest about it.

•          Create a strong image in the minds of the consumers.
•         Prove the value of the work done by a brand.
•        Conveys the right message to the people.

PR Companies in Delhi communicate an organization’s message and present it on behalf of the company in its best light. Public relations are critical to every company’s success. It is especially important in lifestyle as it is one of the most competitive and diverse industries.

The lifestyle industry today is very competitive, with new people popping up every year. Lifestyle brands are doing their best to make their brand stands out from the rest. Each passing year innovative and more magnificent brands are seen in the market. There are thousands of brands competitive stand to overshadow each other just cannot comprise and ignore the public relations as they highlight and promote the achievements of the brand.

Act as the Creative communicators; they also manage the reputation of the organization. Public relation also tries to influence opinion and behavior. As a PR , the  monitoring of the  publicity and research is also conducted  to find out the expectations of your client .This is  very helpful for the brand to build the future plans to survive in the market and also optimizing the usage of resourses.

PR Consultants in Delhi perform the following role which makes it difficult for the lifestyle brands to un associate themselves from taking the public relation services for their firms.

• Planning, developing and implementing the strategies;
• Answering enquiries of media, individuals and other organizations.
• researching, writing and distributing press releases to targeted media;
• analyzing media coverage;
• organizing events;
• managing and updating information on social media sites such as Twitter and Face book;
• performing market research;
• developing community relations through events

At the end I would like to conclude by saying that PR is performance recognition – Douglas Smith and ‘’ everything you do or say is public relations.” irrespective of the field. It is essential and un-separable from all the existing fields.

3 Questions to ask before hiring a PR Agency

Whether dealing with the Public Relations (PR) companies in Delhi for the first time or have dealt with them quite a many times, finding the right one is always a herculean task to do. Every professional working in a PR firm is adept at praising themselves and their company to make clients. With each one of them claiming to be the best and with hundreds of PR companies in Delhi selecting the one that has the experience and hunger to take client’s business to great heights is one of the toughest tasks to do. In order to get the best PR for Startups, it is essential to find someone who clearly understands the workings and dealings and is able to sculpt out their story in a best possible way. Following are some of the questions that one needs to be clear with before starting a hunt for a PR Agency:

1. 'What are your needs?' 

If one goes to a car dealer and asks for the best car, the dealer will surely ask for their needs and preferences to suggest one for them. So, calmly think what exactly your company needs at the moment? If there is a great internal marketing team working with you, then you might just need PR professionals to handle some special projects only.  Around 70 percent of PR firms in Delhi are full-service organisations, and only some have the potential to specialise in certain areas. So, before going on a hunt to find the best PR Agency in Delhi, it’s better to perform an internal evaluation and recognise your needs.  

2. 'What is your financial capability?' 

Speaking of the funds involved in the PR dealings, it can be as high as ₨. 1, 00,000 per week to as low as ₨. 30,000 per month. Services provided at these two different costs may vary enormously. A PR firm will surely want you to sign the long term deals. But it is you who needs to understand at what stage the business is and how deep your pockets are.

3. 'How quickly the results need to be expected?' 

Public Relations is not a short-term process, but instead, it is a long game. Results can’t be derived in the first month itself because the first few months are all about getting on board, understanding the functioning, dealings and other logistical matters. At least a period of three months is enough to decide whether the firm is benefitting the business or not and whether it will be good to continue the partnership or not. The better you are clear about your goals and needs the less time will the firm take in giving you the real results.