{"id":29581,"date":"2024-01-24T10:14:42","date_gmt":"2024-01-24T09:14:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/agenciacomma.com\/uncategorized\/public-relations-all-and-the-communication-parts\/"},"modified":"2024-02-28T11:24:57","modified_gmt":"2024-02-28T10:24:57","slug":"public-relations-all-and-the-communication-parts","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/agenciacomma.com\/en\/public-relations\/public-relations-all-and-the-communication-parts\/","title":{"rendered":"Public relations: the whole and the parts of communication"},"content":{"rendered":"

Talking about public relations in Spain is a bit complicated, especially if you do not belong to the world of communication; Although it is true that the economic development of our country since the 80s and 90s marked a change in perception, the term has almost always carried connotations that are not very positive and almost linked to environments that have little or nothing to do with our activity: parties, discotheques, alcohol… These are some of the nouns that have been used to define public relations throughout our history and that distance it from reality and its essence; Ignorance cannot be a justification for their incorrect placement within the fundamental tools of communication and therefore, we dare to weave a simple but, we hope, clear picture of what they really are; So what should we consider as public relations?<\/span><\/p>\n

Understanding public relations<\/b><\/h2>\n

As its name suggests, it is the discipline that manages the relationships between organisations and their publics; There is often a tendency to use public relations and communication interchangeably, although they have many things in common, they differ in their basic subject matter: while public relations deals with relationships, communication emphasises information; Yes, I know, it is very subtle and often very difficult to separate because both work with and for both, but it is less so if we think of communication as the whole, and public relations as a part that complements communication;<\/span><\/p>\n

How does public relations come into being?<\/b><\/h2>\n

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Shortly after the First World War, in New York, a very young Edward Bernays, nephew of Sigmund Freud, decided to use psychoanalysis (and work with the unconscious, with emotions) to offer on a platter to the Washington Hill tobacco company, manufacturer of Lucky Strike cigarettes, the solution to their problem: half of the population did not smoke because they considered it inappropriate; That is, women do not smoke, especially not in public; Bernays’ intervention changed that perception and gave women a subtle tool with which to challenge male power; But how? <\/span><\/p>\n

Bernays hired a group of women to light a cigarette at his signal during the Easter parade that year and to start smoking as a sign of defiance of the established order and to hold up a symbol (like statues of freedom) that might well represent their power, their strength; In addition, he arranged for all the press and photographers to be there, and under a slogan (<\/span>claim<\/span><\/i>) created especially for the occasion –<\/span>Torches of freedom<\/span><\/a>– sowed the seed of ‘cigar equals independence, equality, freedom’; The next day, newspapers in New York, across the country and around the world reported the event as a unique and revolutionary gesture for women’s freedom;<\/span><\/p>\n

This campaign with Washington Hill was followed by others, such as the one for the meat industry and the changes in the eating habits of Americans who, from then on, began to include bacon and eggs in their breakfasts; or the one aimed at creating the need to lighten the cooking time of these breakfasts through ready-made products such as Kellogg’s cereals…<\/span><\/p>\n

The concept of ‘selling’ begins to shift from the ‘need’ for a product to the ‘desire’ to own that product and in the process acquire the attributes that product bestows on its consumer; After the war and the Great Depression, money starts to flow, industries modernise and production increases; A new mentality was born and the consumer society as we know it today was born; <\/span>Bernays had just become the father of public relations;<\/span><\/a> In his book <\/span>Crystallising public opinion<\/b> (1923), Bernays laid the foundations for understanding and influencing public sentiment and this was used by businesses, politicians, tycoons, presidents and public figures of all kinds to change perceptions, gain reputation and improve image;<\/span><\/p>\n

From citizen to consumer<\/b><\/h2>\n

Persuasion, propaganda, consent engineering… These are some of the terms with which public relations became identified; In fact, Bernays himself published <\/span>a book entitled ‘Propaganda’ (1928<\/span><\/a>) in which he promotes the power of communication to influence the masses, which, after the Second World War and the Third Reich’s use of propaganda, was relatively questioned; Indeed, Bernays himself used his powers of persuasion to convey the idea that the United States should enter the fray as a way of guaranteeing democracy in Europe;<\/span><\/p>\n

It was then that strategies that took into account principles of psychology and sociology began to be used as a way of influencing people’s wants rather than their needs; Many of those ideas are still used today by products and brands and where advertising, marketing and public relations are interconnected; <\/span><\/p>\n

Main features<\/b><\/h2>\n