When it comes to marketing and public relations (PR), it can be easy to assume they are two terms for the same thing. Not so!
They are actually two separate disciplines, although often strategies can work hand in hand with each other to maximise the impact. So, what is the difference?
Marketing focuses on increasing product sales through a range of tactics which may include paid-for social media and advertising, product launches and events. As such, a marketing team’s success may be measured by how many people clicked through to the website and purchased a product as a direct result of an ad they’ve created, or how many people took advantage of an offer voucher handed out during an event.
PR, by contrast, focuses on brand reputation. Teams will establish relationships with key journalists to generate news articles and thought-leadership pieces in relevant media publications for their clients. In addition, they will write organic social media posts, blogs and other online content. All of this is aimed at reaching the right audiences with the right messages, ensuring a business is first and foremost in consumers’ minds and is seen as a trustworthy and viable brand in people’s minds.
While we focus on PR, we absolutely recognise the worth of marketing – and often work with either internal or external marketing teams for brands to ensure we are aligned in our messaging and can support each other – for example, by securing coverage for brands around the time of a new product launch to maximise the opportunities to resonate in customers’ minds.
Top tips:
- If you already have an in-house marketing team, don’t assume that they are also able to cover your PR needs too. PR experts will often have a different skillset, experience and qualifications.
- Editorial content has consistently been shown to be seen as more ‘trustworthy’ than advertising – because audiences know that ads have been paid for by the company themselves, whereas editorial is a third-party endorsement of a brand.
- Don’t know where to start when it comes to launching a PR strategy for your company? Luckily, we do! We work with clients across a whole range of industries, helping them enhance their brand’s reputation and be seen in the right publications to reach their target audience. Simply give us a call or send an email for a chat about how we could help you too.
