Introduction
Sales and public relations (PR) are desirable professions to work and advance one’s career. While sales influence choices, public relations focus more on raising awareness of a company, a good, or a service. Many of the tasks involved in both disciplines frequently cross over with one another. In this sense, the term “public” refers to customers, possible investors, and other social assets of the business. The primary distinction between public relations and sales is that the former concentrates on a single objective. At the same time, the latter provides a range of possibilities based on the customer or circumstance.
Definition of PR
Public relations create, maintain, and advance a company’s public image. Communication with the public is referred to as public relations. Practitioners need to be adept at spotting and analyzing political, social, and media trends before creating and carrying out strategic communications strategies that establish a business as a thought leader in its industry. Public relation is a type of communication meant to persuade the public to embrace a particular good or service (Bala & Verma, 2018). Companies use public relations agencies to tell their narrative, educate the public and press about their goods and services, and cultivate connections with influential people in their sector.
The Differences between PR, Marketing, and Advertising
Public relation is a term used to describe communicating with the public. It is how a company or organization can communicate its message to the public. This could be via news releases, press releases, interviews, or social media. Companies often use public relations as a term used to describe the process of communicating with the public to improve their image or stand out from their competitors in the media frequently. According to Bala and Verma (2018), marketing is a more general term to describe all activities influencing customers’ purchasing behavior. Marketing can be done directly by companies (such as advertising). Still, it can be done indirectly by using public relations, a term used to describe communicating with the public. Advertising is a type of marketing that focuses on attracting attention through an image created by the advertiser. Advertising includes all paid mass media, such as television, radio, and newspapers, and consists of any form of public display, such as billboards.
The Advantages and Disadvantages of PR to a Business
Business public relation helps a company build a positive reputation for itself and its products or services, allowing it to expand, acquire new customers, and improve brand awareness. Consumer satisfaction and negative press can be improved when corporations use public relations to resolve product or service complaints (Luttrell et al., 2022). Public relations helps businesses reach their target audiences by offering media relations, business communications, crisis management, and public advocacy (Quesenberry, 2020). It enhances brand recognition among journalists who cover niche markets, industry trends, or events.
A significant downside of public relations is its cost because when hiring a public relations firm, managers must spend money to get their company in front of the right people. Small businesses may find it more challenging to use public relations effectively. Businesses lose control of the message when they adopt public relations. Advertisers do not have complete control over how and where their message is conveyed through PR, as in ad campaigns. For example, an advertiser may waste hours discussing a business story with a newspaper columnist, only to discover that their brand is not acknowledged in the piece.
Similarly, PR carries the risk of the message, a big challenge for marketers. Whereas certain marketing communications are meticulously developed before being sent to a targeted audience through a pre-determined placement in a commercial, public relations is used to inform media members. The latter rewrites the content as a news item or segment component. As a result, the final message may differ from what the advertiser intended.
Social media has become an essential part of everyday lives, which has changed how to communicate, how to do business, whom to know, and how to spend time. It is now a part of every brand’s strategy and is a significant priority for many companies. One of the biggest trends in public relations today is content marketing. It allows brands to create engaging, relevant, and timely content that helps them reach their target audience and drive sales. Influencer marketing has changed branding by effectively using famous and trustworthy people to sell products and services. Mega- and micro-influencers promoting products have increased client awareness. Knowing these people are paid handsomely to promote products may have the opposite impact, especially if they push other things incompatible with the brand or audience’s values.
PR Issue Management
Public relations issue management is the process of managing public relations issues. This involves Planning, executing, and evaluating communications projects that address customer needs, develop customer relationships and improve customer satisfaction. According to Bourne (2019), Planning involves identifying the needs of customers and stakeholders, developing an action plan to address them, and implementing it with communication channels. Execution ensures that all stakeholders know what has been done, what is planned for the coming weeks or months, and how they can participate in the process. Evaluation involves evaluating whether or not the project successfully met its objectives.
Importance of Abiding by PR Ethics and Codes of Practices
The importance of abiding by public relations ethics and codes of practice is a common theme in the public relations industry. The principles are part of an organization’s brand, making it successful; a company established for years will always have a code of practice that it upholds. This is because it is believed that these codes help set a quality level for other companies and organizations to follow. There are many benefits for companies that abide by their codes of practice. It can help them stand out from their competitors and create consistency across the board regarding how they behave in the marketplace. When consumers see this consistency, they are more likely to trust products or services offered by these companies than those who do not adhere to such rules.
The Benefits of Staff Having Product Knowledge, Good Client Care, and Effective Communication Techniques during the Selling Process
Staff having product knowledge, good client care, and effective communication techniques during the selling process can significantly benefit their business. Here are some benefits: It makes the salesperson more knowledgeable about the product or service. The salesperson will be able to provide information about their products or services in a way that is easy for clients to understand. They can use this information to show why they are better than other companies that may offer similar products or services (Bala & Verma, 2018). It helps with generating leads and allows them to build rapport with potential customers by providing information about their company and its products/services. Promotes trust between the salesperson and customer as they work together on closing deals. Increases the likelihood of closing deals because there is an increased chance that clients will like what they hear from the salesperson. This can lead to repeat business, which means more revenue over time.
Importance of Sales Targets and Sales Forecasting in a Spa Business
Sales goals and forecasting in the spa business are essential as they help you consistently reach your desired revenue. It helps to make sure that someone is on track towards their goals and objectives. Sales forecasting can determine how much money a person will make from each customer and how many customers to expect at any given time. According to Smith and Wallace (2019), this allows people to determine which products or services will bring the most profit to the spa business. Sales goals help to determine how much money is needed to make each month or quarter to see if a person is meeting their goals for the year. In the context of spas, this approach will allow for a rational assessment of advertising spending, as well as other costs. In particular, with proper forecasting, one can count on seasonal and external conditions when assessing the costs of PR.
Selling Situations and Opportunities in the Spa and Methods to Increase Sales
The information will focus on what the buyer can expect from the product and how it will benefit them. A good value proposition includes benefits to the customer, such as time saved, stress relief, improved health, or weight loss results, by stating these benefits in the value proposition makes it easier for customers to understand why they should purchase a product or service. The second sales technique helpful when selling retail spa products is the close (Smith & Wallace, 2019). When closing with customers, one should create an emotional connection so they feel more comfortable purchasing products or services. This means that one must make sure that they present themselves as someone who cares about their needs and wants them to feel happy and satisfied with their purchase at every step of the transaction process.
PR Event
This event aims to reach out to new customers and collect views on company products directly from the consumers. Furthermore, it is intended to increase the production accordingly to the consumers by 30%, which the company should look into in the expansion. The venue is expected to be the most expensive factor, accumulating at around $1000 for a few hours’ rent, considering the approximate number of guests and size of the larger venue. Moreover, food costs can increase fast; food expenses to keep at least 50 people fed could be more than 500$. The average wage of an Event Coordinator (1 person) may reach $25 per hour, including bartenders, waitstaff, DJs, and other events staff, which can conclude up to $2000 for a night. Event planning and marketing materials (print ads, social media posts, flyers, banners) could cost up to $1000, adding to $4500 overall.
It is of utmost importance to keep the PR event budget in check, allocating the funds appropriately to ensure that the organized gathering will deliver the desired results. The return on investment (ROI) is crucial as the company aims to reach new customers with PR events, and if the money spent on the gathering does not yield fruitful results, it may harm the company’s capital. Thus, the profitability of investing in PR should be considered so that the company can compare the efficiency of various ways to gain new customers.
Communicating with my guests is critical to recognizing their opinions on my company and event and is efficient as a way of networking. Even though I plan to invite a target audience that may be interested in my services, I can still form valuable business connections for my future operations. What is more, I have to be active at the event to share my visions for the company, which can show that I can run a successful business.
My target market is the investors and benefactors in the room; they are the people who will decide whether or not we succeed with this event, so it is essential to focus on catching their attention. In particular, this type of business will be attractive to young investors under the age of thirty to thirty-five. This demographic could potentially be of interest in promoting an enterprise from the world of fashion and services. To elaborate, attracting people willing to invest in your business in the industry is always valuable. Not only can it help to expand the operations and advance the organization, but it can also contribute to getting recognition among other people in business who can financially support my company. Similarly, these events may be popular between young professionals and recent graduates, as they attend them to learn about new technologies and share knowledge. I want them to feel like they are getting an education on their terms, with experts who know what they are talking about; by doing this, I would attract new customers from different age groups. In other words, enticing potential clients and likely investors to increase my website traffic is my primary goal for this PR event.
It is essential to know who my target market is and their consumer behavior. It is paramount to understand what people need and want and why they should care about the product or service. Knowing where they are and how they interact with the world around them will help me determine the best way to attract their attention. Moreover, age is also critical – younger people are more likely to respond to advertisements from companies that cater to their needs and interests.
A PR event aims to raise awareness by marketing of my company, brand, or product. Even though there are various events, I must remember that my main goal is to spread the word about myself and my product to as many people as possible. Here, social media-related methods of consumer outreach, including press releases, campaigns, and interviews, are possible. A PR event aims to increase awareness of my company, brand, or product. While there are several different kinds of events, it is essential to remember that I want to concentrate on a single, distinct objective to spread the word about me and my goods as widely as possible. Press releases, campaigns, and other methods of consumer outreach, like interviews, may all be connected to social media in this situation. You may run an advertising campaign on social networks, concentrating on the target demographic, for example, with promotional posts and videos featuring work in businesses, such as oriented design.
The riskiest part of the PR event is the execution, and I have to be able to organize my event, avoiding any repercussions. If something goes wrong, I must deal with it and make sure it does not affect my reputation. I need to ensure that no significant risks are involved in planning an event. Some potential dangers include failed execution of my event since the most important thing I need to consider is how well I will plan my event. It would be best if I put much effort into planning this part and keeping track of all the details so that nothing will go wrong during the execution phase. The second potential risk is the loss of money; in many cases, getting a refund on an event ticket is impossible. I should assess the event’s legal importance and what may happen if my guests’ lives are endangered during the occasion. I have to hire security for the gathering to protect my visitors from potential break-ins or other dangerous possibilities. Furthermore, the safety of the chosen district should be considered, as burglars and thieves may endanger people’s lives. Otherwise, if someone is injured or dies, I may be charged with a crime, which can lead to adverse legal repercussions.
It is essential to consider what risks could occur during a PR event. The event’s primary purpose is to promote the company and its products, but it is an opportunity for the company to get some free publicity. If something goes wrong, it can impact the company’s reputation. If any risks are associated with my PR event, I should plan to minimize them. It will help ensure that everything goes smoothly, and I should protect myself from any potential damage caused by something unexpected that happens during the event.
Conclusion
The task was to develop a marketing event for the Silicon Valley company that would advertise the company, raise its profile, and encourage people to visit its website. The business, Silicon Valley, is a hardware manufacturer that caters to the consumer market. The target audience for this event was anyone interested in technology who had more cash to spend on more expensive goods. Such initiatives intended to market Silicon Valley products to wealthy, tech-savvy consumers. This might be accomplished by exhibiting their new product line at a high-end gathering with no rivals. The opportunity for participants to try their items before purchasing them would increase website traffic. The second objective was getting people to the website to advertise their new product line and provide promotions for VIP club and newsletter signups. Only if someone registers for a newsletter or VIP club online will these discounts be made available, whether it be after the event or via email advertising.
Reference List
Bala, M., and Verma, D. (2018). ‘A critical review of digital marketing’, International Journal of Management, IT & Engineering, 8(10), pp. 321-339. Web.
Bourne, C. (2019). ‘AI cheerleaders: Public relations, neoliberalism and artificial intelligence’, Public Relations Inquiry, 8(2), pp. 109-125. Web.
Luttrell, R., Emerick, S. F., and Wallace, A. (2022). Digital strategies: Data-driven public relations, marketing, and advertising. Oxford University Press.
Quesenberry, K. A. (2020). Social media strategy: Marketing, advertising, and public relations in the consumer revolution. Rowman & Littlefield Publishers.
Smith, M., and Wallace, M. (2019). ‘An analysis of key issues in spa management: Viewpoints from international industry professionals’, International Journal of Spa and Wellness, 2(3), pp. 119-134. Web.