If you work in public relations, you’ve definitely been asked, “What exactly is PR?” We have, many times. The next question is usually, “So, is it the same as media relations?” Our answer? No. Here’s why.
What is public relations?
The Public Relations Society of America defines public relations as “a strategic communication process that builds mutually beneficial relationships between organizations and their publics.” In this sense, “publics” could be stakeholders of any kind – customers, prospects, investors, community members, employees, etc. It encompasses anyone who interacts with or is impacted by the organization on any level.
PR professionals use creative storytelling to achieve certain objectives with these audiences. Examples are raising awareness, building a thought leadership reputation, increasing value perception, generating demand, and so on.
Today, the channels and tactics are plentiful. Social media, special events, content creation, owned channels and communities are a few. Another way to accomplish PR goals? Media Relations.
What is media relations?
Media Relations is just one aspect of public relations. The terms are not interchangeable as media relations focuses solely on the relationship between the company and the media.
In media relations, companies work to earn coverage and tell their story to key stakeholders through reporters at different media outlets rather than directly engaging with them. They pitch reporters, editors, producers, etc. different news and story angles to secure coverage.
The media relations sandbox today is much bigger than it used to be with the evolution of the Internet and what constitutes "media."
There are over 30 million people blogging in the United States alone. Specialized podcasts and newsletters have dedicated followings. Social media influencers have amassed huge audiences. These have all become competitors to traditional mainstream media and are now a key lever in "media relations."
The key to success in a top-notch communications strategy today is the combination of strong public relations with strong media relations. It's about using multiple channels to tell your story, both building your own audience and tapping into others' audiences. Earned media is just a piece of the puzzle that makes up a broader and more comprehensive successful PR strategy.
To see how we execute integrated public relations programs, with earned media-specific initiatives, see our recent work.
What’s a Rich Text element?
The rich text element allows you to create and format headings, paragraphs, blockquotes, images, and video all in one place instead of having to add and format them individually. Just double-click and easily create content.
The rich text element allows you to create and format headings, paragraphs, blockquotes, images, and video all in one place instead of having to add and format them individually. Just double-click and easily create content.
Static and dynamic content editing
A rich text element can be used with static or dynamic content. For static content, just drop it into any page and begin editing. For dynamic content, add a rich text field to any collection and then connect a rich text element to that field in the settings panel. Voila!
How to customize formatting for each rich text
Headings, paragraphs, blockquotes, figures, images, and figure captions can all be styled after a class is added to the rich text element using the "When inside of" nested selector system.
