Public Relations and Communicators Blog

It is not every day that a brand gets tested such. It’s an uncanny coincidence that a brand which bears the name Amazon, a name depicting the legendary female warrior race, believed by ancient Greeks to exist on the edge of the known world, comes face-to-face with a modern day social warrior living on the edge of her beliefs.  Like every human or brand battle, this one too is about courage, convictions and beliefs. It is important to bring the episode to fore, lest the discussion become an anesthetized one about a brand and its ambassador. The incident which Swara Bhasker tweeted about is a blood curdling gang-rape of an eight year old, by a man, his son, his nephew, and his friend, repeatedly over four days. The girl was kept alive with this single gruesome purpose and finally strangulated, and her head stone-bashed to doubly ensure her end. Swara tweeted “I am Hindustan. I am Ashamed. #JusticeForOurChild #JusticeForAasifa. 8 years old. Gangraped. Murdered. In ‘Devi’-sthaa...

The power of Public Relations is the power of the masses. If used well, not only does the Brand get etched into the public minds, but it also has the ability to turn mere ‘carriers’ into ‘idea transmitters’. Public Relations can convert mere believers into self-powered evangelists. What is it that gives an evangelist missionary purpose, infectious zeal and volcanic energy, to go about spreading the ‘faith’ unflinchingly? The idea-meme which converts them, if pure and potent, has the ability to make the transmission of idea-meme a vital reason for their very existence - sometimes even the only reason for their existence. Those who dedicate their lives to religion, country, family, community, society, or organization, exhibit visions similar to that of ‘faith-keepers’. Ideas that may seem insignificant to many still find their faith-keepers, and often these evangelists turn these ideas into revolutions. A few examples include the legendary Jane Goodall who dedicated forty-fiv...

The world's best marketers clearly understand the value that Public Relations can add to their brand. More importantly they understand the limitations of PR and therefore are able to use it more effectively. See Richard Branson talk about PR Unfortunately, there are not that many well-grounded marketers who understand the subtler aspects and nuances of public relations. Usually most marketing professionals are off the mark by miles and they often overlap PR with the external manifestations of advertising. But then, PR is not even of the same DNA as Advertising, let alone being look-alikes. Unlike advertising, PR has far more layers and factors impacting the outcomes. Speaking about the two in the same breath is as aberrant as is comparing mud with mud-pie. Public relations requires subtle skills, advertising relishes blatant outbursts; PR purrs while advertising rumbles; PR builds trust and credibility, while advertising moves the audiences to action. To make the most ...