Advertising vs. Public Relations: When To Use Each One

The application of public relations and the use of advertising are sometimes misunderstood, igniting a series of unanswered questions for companies needing to create awareness for themselves, says Mickie Kennedy, founder of eReleases.com.

When do you use public relations? Why should you advertise? The best answer on both topics is "It depends on what you're trying to accomplish."  Use public relations and advertising (and marketing) together as well as separately when the situation calls for it.

Still confused? Don't fret. You're in good company.

Message Control

A distinct difference between PR and advertising is their extent of message control. When, where, and how an advertisement runs is quite controllable. Ad space purchased in the right format (i.e. broadcast, radio, print, online, sky writing, floating barge) means one has inherent control over what messages are communicated.

Conversely, while the process of creating messages through public relations is controllable, what occurs after the message has left the "nest" is often uncontrollable. The most common uncontrollable factor is whether the media view your information as newsworthy.  In advertising there is no question whether your information will be publicized-if the check cleared, you're in.

We know what you're thinking. You want control of the message from beginning to end so you've decided that advertising is the way to go.  Have you thought about the current shelf life of an advertisement? What about implied endorsement? Costs?

Shelf Life: TV Commercials and the Press Release

Until recently, TV advertisements have had a shorter shelf life than a press release archived on the Internet.  For now this is probably still true, but watch out. New Web sites are coming online with nothing but commercial content that would make any ad executive smile.  Corporations are also posting their commercials on corporate Web sites to extend the shelf life of their ad dollars.

Obstacles to viewing archived commercials are many. The more common ones include slow Internet connections, lack of installed software for viewing, and unless there is an HTML description about the commercial for search engines to archive, add inability to find a commercial online to the list of obstacles. These barriers are coming down quickly as technology and computer training improve.

Archived press releases and news articles still rank high in terms of Internet longevity.  Search engines can locate information (even in PDF format for some) long after the hype of a press release has waned.  The major obstacle here is a person without access to the Internet.

Implied Endorsement

No matter how interesting an advertisement might be, it is recognized as a self-serving communication. The only implication here is that someone paid to have a message filtered directly to a consumer.  There is no third-party endorsement, no filter before it reaches you.

Public relations affords the credibility of indirect third-party endorsements.  This means you are not paying to get advertising placed, but a publication is freely giving space to a story about your company. When the press report about you it is called earned media; and such an endorsement is a powerful tool in shaping public opinion.

Consumers today are far more cynical than previous generations; with only a small percent saying they have a great deal of confidence in advertising messages. Anyone can buy visibility, however PR plays a critical role in sorting out the hype.

Costs

Advertising exposure is often proportional to the amount of money spent on the advertisement. Whether your ad sits on a billboard overlooking the highway or plays during prime time television, advertising will consume your budget faster than a well-positioned, well-written press release.

For small companies, public relations is the better method for direct and personal communication with a target audience.  For larger companies with a sufficient budget, advertising along with public relations may be the right combination for success.

Consumers Not Convinced They Need E-Reader

With the success of Amazon's Kindle reigniting competition in the e-reader market, the question of when the devices might join cell phones and digital cameras as mainstream consumer gadgets is once again raised. Mark Walsh writes for MediaPost that findings from a new NPD Group report suggest it won't be overnight. 

The study found that 40% of those surveyed were only "somewhat interested" or "not interested at all" in buying an e-reader. How come? Of those who don't want one, 70% said it was because they prefer the feel of an actual book. 

Among the 37% who were either "very" or "somewhat" interested in obtaining an e-reader, one of the main factors was the ability to buy and store multiple books, magazines, and newspapers. More than half of consumers were interested in features already offered in current devices like the Kindle's wireless capability and the Sony's Reader's touchscreen. 

"Today's e-reader offerings are delivering capabilities that are in demand by consumers," said Ross Rubin, director of industry analysis at NPD, in a statement. "However, some features that could enhance the appeal of more popular content, such as color, remain on the drawing board." 

Sales of the Kindle have been difficult to pin down since Amazon has not provided figures, but Citi analyst Mark Mahaney has projected that the second-generation of the device could sell up to 1 million units in 2009. That would be more than double the estimated 400,000 the original sold. Last month, Amazon cut the price of the Kindle 2 from $359 to $299 in a bid to accelerate adoption. 

Upping the ante, Sony introduced two new versions of its Reader: a $199 pocket edition and a larger $299 model with an improved touchscreen. It also dropped the price of new releases and bestsellers from $11.99 to $9.99, matching Amazon's e-book pricing. 

In an interview, Rubin said price wasn't the biggest barrier to buying e-readers cited in the NPD survey, "but lowering the entry price will help spur demand." He also pointed out that people expressed a greater interest in accessing newspapers and magazines on e-readers than books. That could be a promising sign for the larger-screen Kindle DX, designed for reading publications other than books.

"But these beg for technologies that are not commercially viable today, such as flexible displays and color electronic ink," noted Rubin. But heightened competition should help to encourage innovation as well as drive down prices. Barnes & Noble launched its own e-bookstore with bestsellers priced at $9.99. The book chain also entered into a partnership with Plastic Logic to supply content for its e-reader due out early next year. 

A separate study Forrester Research suggests Amazon could be vulnerable if competitors can better serve subsequent waves of e-reader adopters. The report indicates that unlike the mostly male, tech-savvy Kindle buyers so far, future prospects for e-readers are more likely to be female, less tech-optimistic, and big readers (five books a month on average). So it sounds like whichever company can win over women will end up winning the e-reader race.