Advertising vs Public Relations

Media Relations, Healthcare Public Relations, Entertainment PR firms, Healthcare Public Relations, Communication Agency are all necessary for the survival of a business. 

Advertising and public relations are two very different industries, even though they're commonly confused for one another. To understand the differences, consider 10 different situations and how you might approach them differently through advertising or public relations.

                            what is advertising?

Advertising is a marketing tactic involving paying for space to promote a product, service, or cause. The actual promotional messages are called advertisements, or ads for short. The goal of advertising is to reach people most likely to be willing to pay for a company's products or services and entice them to buy.

                                             what are public relations?

Public Relations professionals help a business or individual cultivate a positive reputation with the public through various unpaid or earned communications, including traditional media, social media, and in-person engagements. They also help clients defend their reputation during a crisis that threatens their credibility.

There’s an old saying: “Advertising is what you pay for; publicity is what you pray for.”  

1. Paid vs. Free

Advertising – With advertising, a company pays for ad space, which is often expensive. If you just run one ad, it’s really not going to do much for your product or service unless you run it at least once a month over a period of time. However, just running an ad in a publication without awareness of the brand first is often not effective.

PR – A PR firm’s job is to get free publicity for a company or service through press releases, media pitches and good relationships with the media. An article in a newspaper provides third-party endorsement and credibility for your product or service. It can position your product or service as part of a trend or human interest story, rather than a product promotion. A media placement by a PR firm is often referred to as “earned” media. If you’re looking for media services from a quality PR firm then why not see what Violet PR can do for your organization?

2. Controlling the Message vs. Influencing the Message

Advertising – If you’re paying for an ad, you can say exactly what you want (“This is the greatest thing since sliced bread”), but consumers often are skeptical because they know you’re paying for it. This is not to say it’s ineffective, but consumers may think it’s biased.

PR – When you pitch a story to a reporter and he/she decides to pursue it, you don’t have as much control over what gets into the paper. But a good PR person knows how to increase a company’s chances of positive publicity. Conducting message training, preparing clients for interviews and helping them practice their “quotes” or “sound bites” increases the chances that the story will contain positive messages for the company or product