6 PR principles pros can’t afford to forget

In a rapidly changing professional environment, public relations practitioners can lose sight of the basics. Here’s a refresher.

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When you feel stuck, stop and evaluate your progress: Think about what you’re striving for.

In the whirlwind of delivering results, some PR principles are often forgotten. Here are a few that can help you re-center your program:

1. Communications is an extension of the business—not a standalone activity. Any communication or PR plan must ultimately contribute to achieving a company’s business objectives. If it doesn’t, then there might not be a good reason to put it into motion.

2. Public relations is a long-term process, not a short-term solution. Despite what some movies or TV shows would suggest, there is no way to PR your way out of a crisis. You can minimize the damage, but can’t talk your way out of a problem you had a hand in creating. Developing, nurturing and enhancing a reputation will take time, but the benefits are worth it.

3. A reputation can be tarnished in a matter of minutes. If a reputation takes time to develop, there’s a strong likelihood that repairing it would take even longer. Executives make business decisions, and as counselors we must consider the reputational effect they may have on our companies or clients.

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