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Advertisement

Generally speaking, advertising is the promotion of goods, services, companies and ideas, usually by an identified sponsor. Marketers see advertising as part of an overall promotional strategy. Other components of the promotional mix include publicity, public relations, personal selling and sales promotion. sales promotion

History

sales promotion In ancient times the most common form of advertising was 'word of mouth'. However, commercial messages and election campaign displays were found in the ruins of Pompeii. Egyptians used papyrus to create sales messages and wall posters. Lost-and-found advertising on papyrus was common in Greece and Rome. As printing developed in the 15th and 16th century, advertising expanded to include handbills. In the 17th century advertisements started to appear in weekly newspapers in England. These early print ads were used mainly to promote books (which were increasingly affordable) and medicines (which were increasingly sought after as disease ravaged Europe and Britain). Quack ads became a problem, which ushered in regulation of advertising content. As the economy was expanding during the 19th century, the need for advertising grew at the same pace. In America, the classified ad became popular, filling pages of newspapers with small print messages promoting all kinds of goods. The success of this advertising format led to the growth of mail-order advertising. In 1843 the first advertising agency was established by Volney Palmer in Philadelphia. At first the agencies were just brokers for ad space in newspapers, but by the 20th century, advertising agencies started to take over responsibility for the content as well. The 1960's saw advertising transform into a modern, more scientific approach in which creativity was allowed to shine, producing unexpected messages that made advertisements interesting to read. The Volkswagen ad campaign featuring such headlines as "Think Small" and "Lemon" ushered in the era of modern advertising by promoting a "position" or "unique selling proposition" designed to associate each brand with a specific idea in the reader or viewer's mind. Today, advertising is evolving even further, with "guerrilla" promotions that involve unusual approaches such as staged encounters in public places, giveaways of products such as cars that are covered with brand messages, and interactive advertising where the viewer can respond to become part of the advertising message.

Media

Philadelphia Commercial advertising media can include billboards (outdoor advertising), street furniture components, printed flyers, radio, cinema and television ads, web banners, web popups, skywriting, bus stop benches, magazines, newspapers, town criers, sides of buses, taxicab doors and roof mounts, musical stage shows, subway platforms and trains, elastic bands on disposable diapers, stickers on apples in supermarkets, the opening section of streaming audio and video, and the backs of event tickets and supermarket receipts. Any place an "identified" sponsor pays to deliver their message through a medium is advertising. Covert advertising embedded in other entertainment media is known as product placement. The TV commercial is generally considered the most effective mass-market advertising format and this is reflected by the high prices TV networks charge for commercial airtime during popular TV events. The annual Super Bowl football game in the United States is known as much for its commercial advertisements as for the game itself, and the average cost of a single thirty-second TV spot during this game has reached $2.3 million (as of 2004). Increasingly, other mediums such as those discussed below are overtaking television due to a shift towards consumer's usage of the Internet as well as devices such as TiVo. Advertising on the World Wide Web is a recent phenomenon. Prices of Web-based advertising space are dependent on the "relevance" of the surrounding web content and the traffic that the website receives. E-mail advertising is another recent phenomenon. Unsolicited bulk E-mail advertising is known as "spam". A message is spam only when it is unsolicited and in bulk. Some companies have proposed to place messages or corporate logos on the side of booster rockets and the International Space Station. Controversy exists on the effectiveness of subliminal advertising (see mind control), and the pervasiveness of mass messages (see propaganda). Unpaid advertising (also called word of mouth advertising), can provide good exposure at minimal cost. Personal recommendations ("bring a friend", "sell it by zealot"), spreading buzz, or achieving the feat of equating a brand with a common noun ("Hoover" = "vacuum cleaner", "Kleenex" = "tissue") -- these must provide the stuff of fantasy to the holder of an advertising budget. The most common method for measuring the impact of mass media advertising is the use of the rating point (rp) or the more accurate target rating point (trp). These two measures refer to the percentage of the universe of the existing base of audience members that can be reached by the use of each media outlet in a particular moment in time. The difference between the two is that the rating point refers to the percentage to the entire universe while the target rating point refers to the percentage to a particular segment or target. This becomes very useful when focusing advertising efforts on a particular group of people. For example, think of an advertising campaign targeting a female audience aged 25 to 45. While the overall rating of a TV show might be well over 10 rating points it might very well happen that the same show in the same moment of time is generating only 2.5 trps (being the target: women 25-45). This would mean that while the show has a large universe of viewers it is not necessarily reaching a large universe of women in the ages of 25 to 45 making it a less desirable location to place an ad for an advertiser looking for this particular demographic.

Objectives

Whereas marketing aims to identify markets that will purchase a product (business) or support an idea and then facilitate that purchase, advertising is the paid communication by which information about the product or idea is transmitted to potential consumers. In general, advertising is used to convey availability of a "product" (which can be a physical product, a service, or an idea) and to provide information regarding the product. This can stimulate demand for the product, one of the main objectives of advertising. More specifically, there are three generic objectives of advertisements : communicate information about a particular product, service, or brand (including announcing the existence of the product, where to purchase it, and how to use it), persuade people to buy the product, and keep the organization in the public eye (called institutional advertising). Most advertising blends elements of all three objectives. Typically new products are supported with informative and persuasive ads, while mature products use institutional and persuasive ads (sometimes called reminder ads). Advertising frequently uses persuasive appeals, both logical and emotional (that is, it is a form of propaganda), sometimes even to the exclusion of any product information. More specific objectives include increases in short or long term sales, market share, awareness, product trial, mind share, brand name recall, product use information, positioning or repositioning, and organizational image improvement. Examples of the ideas, informative or otherwise, that advertising tries to communicate are product details, benefits and brand information. Advertising usually seeks to find a unique selling proposition (USP) of any product and communicate that to the user. This may take the form of a unique product feature or a perceived benefit. In the face of increased competition within the market due to growing numbers of substitutes there is more branding occurring in advertising. This branding attributes a certain personality or reputation to a brand, termed brand equity, which is distinctive from its competition. Generally, brand equity is a measure of the volume and homogeneity of, as well as positive and negative characteristics of, individual and cultural ideas associated with the product. Effective advertising will stimulate demand for a product and build brand equity and brand franchise. When enough brand equity is created that the brand has the ability to draw buyers (even without further advertising), it is said to have brand franchise. The ultimate brand franchise is when the brand is so prevalent in people's mind (called mind share), that it is used to describe the whole category of products. This phenomena is sometimes known as "hyperbranding." Kleenex, for example, can distinguish itself as a type of tissue or a label for a category of products. That is, it is frequently used as a generic term. One of the most successful firms to have achieved a dominant brand franchise is Hoover, whose name was for a very long time synonymous with vacuum cleaner (and Dyson has subsequently managed to achieve similar status, having moved into the Hoover market with a more sophisticated model of vacuum cleaner). The strength of a brand franchise can be established to a greater or lesser degrees in various markets. In Texas, for example, it is common to hear people refer to any soft drink as a Coke, regardless of whether it is actually produced by Coca-Cola or not (more accurate terms would be 'cola' or 'soda'). A legal risk of the dominant brand franchise is that the name can become so widely accepted that it becomes a generic term, and loses trademark protection. Examples include "escalator", "aspirin" and "mimeograph". (See genericized trademark)

Techniques

genericized trademark train station in 2004.]] Advertisers use several recognizable techniques in order to better convince the public to buy a product and shape the public's attitude towards their product. These may include:
- Repetition: Some advertisers concentrate on making sure their product is widely recognized. To that end, they simply attempt to make the name remembered through repetition.
- Bandwagon: By implying that the product is widely used, advertisers hope to convince potential buyers to "get on the bandwagon."
- Testimonials: Advertisers often attempt to promote the superior quality of their product through the testimony of ordinary users, experts, or both. "Three out of four dentists recommend..." This approach often involves an appeal to authority.
- Pressure: By attempting to make people choose quickly and without long consideration, some advertisers hope to make rapid sales: "Buy now, before they're all gone!"
- Appeal to emotion: Various techniques relating to manipulating emotion are used to get people to buy a product. Apart from artistic expression intended to provoke an emotional reaction (which are usually for associative purposes, or to relax or excite the viewer), three common argumentative appeals to emotion in product advertising are wishful thinking, appeal to flattery, and appeal to ridicule. Appeals to pity are often used by charitable organizations and appeals to fear are often used in public service messages and products, such as alarm systems or anti-bacterial spray, which claim protection from an outside source. Emotional appeals are becoming increasingly popular in the health industry, with large companies like 24 Hour Fitness becoming increasingly adept at utilizing a potential customers fear to sell memberships; selling not necessarily the actual gym, but the dream of a new body. Finally, appeals to spite are often used in advertising aimed at younger demographics.
- Association: Advertisers often attempt to associate their product with desirable imagery to make it seem equally desirable. The use of attractive models, a practice known as sex in advertising, picturesque landscapes and other alluring images is common. Also used are "buzzwords" with desired associations. On a large scale, this is called branding.
- Advertising slogans: These can employ a variety of techniques; even a short phrase can have extremely heavy-handed technique.
- Controversy, as in the Benetton publicity campaign.
- Guerilla advertising: Advertising by association. Done in such a way so the target audience does not know that they have been advertised to, but their impression of the product is increased (or decreased) if that is the intent of the advertiser. The focus is to promote the products or services in a way that revolves around ingenuity rather than finances in order to make a large impact, while spending as little money as possible.
- Subliminal messages: It was feared that some advertisements would present hidden messages, for example through brief flashed messages or the soundtrack, that would have a hypnotic effect on viewers ('Must buy car. Must buy car.') The notion that techniques of hypnosis are used by advertisers is now generally discredited, though subliminal sexual messages are extremely common, ranging from car models with SX prefixes to suggestive positioning of objects in magazine ads and billboards. During the 1990s, advertisers have increasingly employed the device of irony. Aware that today's media-savvy viewers are familiar with -- and thus cynical about -- the traditional methods listed above, advertisers have turned to poking fun at those very methods. This "wink-wink" approach is intended to tell viewers, "We know that YOU know we're trying to sell you something, so bear with us and let's have fun." The ultimate goal of such advertising is to convey a sense of trust and confidence with viewers, by essentially saying, "We respect your intelligence, and you should respect us because we're not trying to fool you." Common television examples include most beer advertising and the commercials of the Geico insurance company.

Public service advertising

The same advertising techniques used to promote commercial goods and services can be used to inform, educate and motivate the public about non-commercial issues, such as AIDS, political ideology, energy conservation, religious recruitment, and deforestation. Advertising, in its non-commercial guise, is a powerful educational tool capable of reaching and motivating large audiences. "Advertising justifies its existence when used in the public interest - it is much too powerful a tool to use solely for commercial purposes." - Attributed to Howard Gossage by David Ogilvy Public service advertising, non-commercial advertising, public interest advertising, cause marketing, and social marketing are different terms for (or aspects of) the use of sophisticated advertising and marketing communications techniques (generally associated with commercial enterprise) on behalf of non-commercial, public interest issues and initiatives. In the United States, the granting of television and radio licenses by the FCC is contingent upon the station broadcasting a certain amount of public service advertising. Public service advertising reached its height during World Wars I and II under the direction of several U.S. government agencies.

Social impact

Regulation

There have been increasing efforts to protect the public interest by regulating the content and the reach of advertising. Some examples are the ban on television tobacco advertising imposed in the USA, and the total ban on advertising to children under twelve imposed by the Swedish government in 1991. Though that regulation continues in effect for broadcasts originating within the country, it has been weakened by the European Court of Justice, which has found that Sweden was obliged to accept whatever programming was targeted at it from neighbouring countries or via satellite. In Europe and elsewhere there is a vigorous debate on whether and how much advertising to children should be regulated. This debate was exacerbated by a report released by the Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation in February 2004 which suggested that food advertising targeting children was an important factor in the epidemic of childhood obesity raging across the United States. In many countries - namely Europe, New Zealand, South Africa and Canada - the advertising industry operates a system of self-regulation. Advertisers, advertising agencies and the media agree on a code of advertising standards that they attempt to uphold. The general aim of such codes is to ensure that any advertising is 'legal, decent, honest and truthful'. Some self-regulatory organisations are funded by the industry, but remain independent, with the intent of upholding the standards or codes (like the ASA in the UK).

Critiques of the medium

As advertising and marketing efforts become increasingly ubiquitous in modern Western societies, the industry has come under criticism of groups such as AdBusters via culture jamming which criticizes the media and consumerism using advertising's own techniques. The industry is accused of being one of the engines powering a convoluted economic mass production system which promotes consumption. Some advertising campaigns have also been criticized as inadvertently or even intentionally promoting sexism, racism, and ageism. Such criticisms have raised questions about whether this medium is creating or reflecting cultural trends. At very least, advertising often reinforces stereotypes by drawing on recognizable "types" in order to tell stories in a single image or 30 second time frame. Recognizing the social impact of advertising, MediaWatch, a non-profit women's organization, works to educate consumers about how they can register their concerns with advertisers and regulators. It has developed educational materials for use in schools. The award-winning book, Made You Look - How Advertising Works and Why You Should Know [http://www.made-you-look.ca], by former MediaWatch president Shari Graydon, provides context for these issues for young readers. Public interest groups, and free thinkers are increasingly suggesting that access to the mental space targeted by advertisers should be taxed, in that at the present moment that space is being freely taken advantage of by advertisers with no compensation paid to the members of the public who are thus being intruded upon. This kind of tax would be a Pigovian tax in that it would act to reduce what is now increasingly seen as a public nuisance. Efforts to that end are gathering momentum, with Arkansas and Maine considering bills to implement such taxation. Florida enacted such a tax in 1987 but was forced to repeal it after six months, as a result of a concerted effort by national commercial interests, which withdrew planned conventions, causing major losses to the tourism industry, and cancelled advertising, causing a loss of 12 million dollars to the broadcast industry alone.

Public perception of the medium

Over the years, the public perception of advertising has become very negative. It is seen as a medium that inherently promotes a lie, based on the purpose of the advertisement - to encourage the target audience to submit to a cause or a belief, and act on it to the advertising party's benefit and consequently the target's disadvantage. They are either perceived as directly lying (stating opinions or untruths directly as facts), lying by omission (usually terms or conditions unfavorable to the customer) or portraying a product or service in a light that does not reflect reality. It is this increased awareness of the intention of advertising, as well as advertising regulations that have increased the challenges that marketers face.

Future

With the dawn of the Internet have come many new advertising opportunities. Popup, Flash, banner, and email advertisements (the last often being a form of spam) abound. Recently, the advertising community has attempted to make the adverts themselves desirable to the public. In one example, Cadillac chose to advertise in the movie 'The Matrix Reloaded', which as a result contained many scenes in which Cadillac cars were used. Each year, greater sums are paid to obtain a commercial spot during the Super Bowl. Companies attempt to make these commercials sufficiently entertaining that members of the public will actually want to watch them. Particularly since the rise of "entertaining" advertising, some people may like an advert enough that they wish to watch it later or show a friend. In general, the advertising community has not yet made this easy, although some have used the Internet to widely distribute their adverts to anyone wishing to see or hear them.

Bibliography

- Wernick, Andrew (1991) "Promotional Culture: Advertising, Ideology and Symbolic Expression (Theory, Culture & Society S.)", London: Sage Publications Ltd, ISBN 0803983905
- Graydon, Shari (2003) "Made You Look - How Advertising Works and Why You Should Know", Toronto: Annick Press, ISBN 1-55037-814-7

External links

- [http://www.adage.com/ Advertising Age], advertisement industry news
- [http://www.adweek.com/ AdWeek], advertisement industry news
- [http://advertising.utexas.edu/world/ University of Texas at Austin's Advertising related online directory]
- [http://historymatters.gmu.edu/mse/Ads/amadv.html American Advertising: A Brief History], George Mason University history essay
- [http://www.stayfreemagazine.org/archives/18/norris.html Advertising history according to the textbooks]
- [http://www.effie.org/ Effie Awards], an American award for ads
- [http://www.ephinx.com/tvadverts/ Ephinx TV adverts], television advertisements primarily from the UK
- [http://www.visit4info.com/ Visit4Info], download and view ads
- [http://www.brainstorm9.com.br/ Brainstorm #9], a brazilian blog with extensive archive of ads, outdoors, guerrilla marketing
- [http://www.advertisingebooks.com/best_seller_ads/ Create Persuasive and Effective Advertisement] eGuide - Writing & Designing Advertisements

Awareness

- [http://www.ericdigests.org/pre-9219/consumer.htm Educating the Consumer about Advertising: Some Issues]
- [http://www.ericdigests.org/1996-3/advertising.htm Advertising in the Schools]
- [http://www.made-you-look.ca Made You Look], advertising awareness education site for children and parents

Critical views

- [http://www.adbusters.org/ AdBusters], anti-consumerist magazine
- [http://www.arachnoid.com/lutusp/consumerangst.html Consumer Angst] a critical essay about certain advertisements

Advert humor & parody

- [http://blog.miragestudio7.com/category/advertisement/ Funny Advertisement]
- [http://parody.organique.com/ False Advertising], a gallery of advert parodies
- [http://www.saunalahti.fi/~ivanoff/mainos/ Funny Finnish Adverts], with English translations
- [http://www.zeldman.com/adgraveyard/ The Advert Graveyard]
- [http://www.badadverts.co.uk/ Bad Adverts.co.uk], Regular and entertaining reviews of the UK's worst adverts
- [http://www.lileks.com/institute/orphanage/index.html Orphanage of Cast-Off Mascots], a selection of forgotten product mascots
- [http://www.huhcorp.com/ Huh? Corp], a parody of an advertising agency
- [http://www.herringwaffleman.com/ Herring & Waffleman], yet another parody of a communications firm

Category:Graphic design Category:Advertising category:Promotion and marketing communications Category:Marketing ja:広告 simple:Advertising

Marketing

Marketing is the process of planning and executing the pricing, promotion, and distribution of goods, ideas, and services to create exchanges that satisfy individual and organizational goals." American Marketing Association. Many companies, particularly prior to the 1970s, were product-focused, employing teams of salespeople to push their products into or onto the market, regardless of market desire. A market-focused, or customer-focused, organization instead first determines what its potential customers desire, and then builds the product. Marketing theory and practice is justified on the belief that customers use a product or service because they have a need, or because a product has perceived benefit. Two major aspects of marketing are the recruitment of new customers (acquisition) and the retention and expansion of relationships with existing customers (base management). An emerging area of study and practice concerns internal marketing, or how employees are trained and managed to deliver the brand in a way that positively impacts the acquisition and retention of customers. Once a marketer has converted the prospective buyer, base management marketing takes over. The process for base management shifts the marketer to building a relationship, nurturing the links, enhancing the benefits that sold the buyer in the first place and improving the products/service continuously to protect her business from competitive encroachments. Marketing methods are informed by many of the social sciences, particularly psychology, sociology, and economics. Marketing research underpins these activities. Through advertising, it is also related to many of the creative arts.

Types of markets

The word market originally meant the place where the exchange between seller and buyer took place. Today we speak of a market as either a region where goods are sold and bought or particular types of buyer (summarized from Wells, Burnett, Moriarty, pg. 65–66). When strategizing specialists in marketing comment about markets they are usually referring to the different groups of people and/or organizations. The four major market groups are 1) consumer, 2) business to business, 3) institutional, and 4) reseller.

Product, price, promotion, and placement

In popular usage, the term "marketing" refers to the promotion of products, especially advertising and branding. However, in professional usage the term has a wider meaning that recognizes that marketing is customer centered. Products are often developed to meet the desires of groups of customers or even, in some cases, for specific customers. McCarthy divided marketing into four general sets of activities. His typology has become so universally recognized that his four activity sets, the Four Ps, have passed into the language. The Four Ps are:
- Product: The Product management aspect of marketing deals with the specifications of the actual good or service, and how it relates to the end-user's needs and wants.
- Pricing: This refers to the process of setting a price for a product, including discounts.
- Promotion: This includes advertising, sales promotion, publicity, and personal selling, and refers to the various methods of promoting the product, brand, or company.
- Placement or distribution refers to how the product gets to the customer; for example, point of sale placement or retailing. These four elements are often referred to as the marketing mix. A marketer can use these variables to craft a marketing plan. The four Ps model is most useful when marketing low value consumer products. Industrial products, services, high value consumer products require adjustments to this model. Services marketing must account for the unique nature of services. Industrial or b2b marketing must account for the long term contractual agreements that are typical in supply chain transactions. Relationship marketing attempts to do this by looking at marketing from a long term relationship perspective rather than individual transactions.

Technique

For a marketing plan to be successful, the mix of the four "p's" must reflect the wants and desires of the consumers in the target market. Trying to convince a market segment to buy something they don't want is extremely expensive and seldom successful. Marketers depend on marketing research, both formal and informal, to determine what consumers want and what they are willing to pay for. Marketers hope that this process will give them a sustainable competitive advantage. Marketing management is the practical application of this process. Most companies today have a customer orientation (also called customer focus). This implies that the company focuses its activities and products on customer needs. Generally there are two ways of doing this: the customer-driven approach and the product innovation approach. In the consumer-driven approach, consumer wants are the drivers of all strategic marketing decisions. No strategy is pursued until it passes the test of consumer research. Every aspect of a market offering, including the nature of the product itself, is driven by the needs of potential consumers. The starting point is always the consumer. The rationale for this approach is that there is no point spending R&D funds developing products that people will not buy. History attests to many products that were commercial failures inspite of being technological breakthroughs. The next big thing is a concept in marketing that refers to a product or idea that will allow for a high amount of sales for that product and related products. Marketers believe that by finding or creating the next big thing they will spark a cultural revolution that results in this sales increase. In a product innovation approach, the company pursues product innovation, then tries to develop a market for the product. Product innovation drives the process and marketing research is conducted primarily to ensure that a profitable market segment(s) exists for the innovation. The rationale is that customers may not know what options will be available to them in the future so we should not expect them to tell us what they will buy in the future. It is claimed that if Thomas Edison depended on marketing research he would have produced larger candles rather than inventing light bulbs. Many firms, such as research and development focused companies, successfully focus on product innovation. Many purists doubt whether this is really a form of marketing orientation at all, because of the ex post status of consumer research. Some even question whether it is marketing. Diffusion of innovations research explores how and why people adopt new products, services and ideas. A relatively new form of marketing uses the Internet and is called internet marketing or more generally e-marketing, affiliate marketing or online marketing. It typically tries to perfect the segmentation strategy used in traditional marketing. It targets its audience more precisely, and is sometimes called personalized marketing or one-to-one marketing.

Criticism of marketing

Some aspects of marketing, especially promotion, are the subject of criticism. See the main article Criticism of marketing.

External links

- [http://www.knowthis.com KnowThis.com - Marketing Virtual Library] – an extensive marketing reference site
- [http://www.sosig.ac.uk/roads/subject-listing/World-cat/market.html SOSIG Marketing directory] – a directory of marketing topics available on the web
- [http://www.mediapost.com/ Media and Advertising Directory]
- [http://www.tutor2u.net/revision_notes_marketing.asp Study notes on core marketing topics]
- [http://www.knowledge-community.com/Marketing Knowledge-Community.com] - The Community of Knowledge-Workers worldwide Category:Marketing ja:マーケティング

Publicity

Publicity is the deliberate attempt to manage the public's perception of a product. The product could include anything from traditional goods and services, to celebrities, or works of entertainment. From a marketing perspective, publicity is one of the variables that comprise the promotional mix. The other components of promotions are advertising, sales promotion, and personal selling. Promotion is one of the variables that comprise the marketing mix. Publicity is closely related to public relations. Whereas public relations is the management of all communications between the firm and the general public, publicity is the management of product or brand related communications between the firm and the general public. It is primarily an informative activity (as opposed to a persuasive one), but its ultimate goal is to promote the companies products, services, or brands. A publicity plan is a planned program aimed at obtaining favorable press coverage for a companies products. A basic tool of the publicist is the press release, but other techniques include telephone press conferences, in-studio media tours, multi-component video news releases (VNR’s), newswire stories, and internet releases. For these releases to be used by the media, they must be of interest to the public ( or at least to the market segment that the media outlet is targeted to). The releases are often customized to match the media vehicle that they are being sent to. Getting noticed by the press is all about saying the right thing at the right time. A publicist is continuously asking what about you or your company will pique the reader's curiosity and make a good story? The most successful publicity releases are related to topics of current interest. These are referred to as news pegs. An example is if three people die of water poisoning, an alert publicist would release stories about the technology embodied in a water purification product. But the publicist cannot wait around for the news to present opportunities. They must also try to create their own news. Examples of this include:
- Contests
- Walkathons
- Art exhibitions
- Event sponsorship
- Arrange a speech or talk
- Make an analysis or prediction
- Conduct a poll or survey
- Issue a report
- Take a stand on a controversial subject
- Arrange for a testimonial
- Announce an appointment
- Celebrate an anniversary
- Invent then present an award
- Stage a debate
- Organize a tour of your business or projects
- Issue a commendation The advantages of publicity are low cost, and credibility (particularly if the publicity is aired in between news stories like on evening TV news casts). New technologies such as weblogs, web cameras, web affiliates, and convergence (phone-camera posting of pictures and videos) to websites) are changing the cost-structure. The disadvantages are lack of control over how your releases will be used, and frustration over the low percentage of releases that are taken up by the media. Publicity draws on several key themes including birth, love, and death. These are of particular interest because they are themes in human lives which feature heavily thoughout life. In television serials several couples have emerged during crucial ratings and important publicity times, as a way to make constant headlines. Also known as a publicity stunt, the pairings may or may not be truthful.

Publicists

A publicist is a person whose job is to generate and manage publicity for a product, public figure, especially a celebrity, or for a work such as a book or movie. Publicists usually work at large companies handling multiple clients. The Top US Entertainment Publicists are:
- Lizze Grubman, [http://www.grubmanpr.com Grubman PR]
- Karen Ammond, [http://www.kbcmedia.com KBC Media Relations]
- PMK Public Relations, 1775 Broadway, Suite 701, New York, NY 10019 The Top Australian Entertainment Publicists include:
- Max Markson, [http://www.marksonsparks.com.au Markson Sparks!]
- Harry M. Miller, [http://www.harrymmiller.com.au Harry M. Miller Group]
- Greg Tingle, [http://www.mediaman.com.au Media Man Australia]

Effectiveness of Publicity

The theory Any Publicity is Good Publicity has been coined to describe situations where bad behaviour by people involved with an organisation or brand has actually resulted in positive results, due to the fame and press coverage accued by such events. A good example would be Paris Hilton's many antics, from lurid sex tapes to clumsy behaviour on TV shows actually increasing business at the family's chain of Hilton Hotels. Another example would be the fact that the movie Proof of Life starring Russell Crowe and Meg Ryan, saw commercial success, even though it wasn't very well received critically, perhaps because of the affair between Crowe and Ryan, which led to Ms. Ryan separating from her then husband Dennis Quaid. The reason for this may be due to intense human interest generated by the character's in these events.

External link

- [http://prwritingonline.com/publicitytips.html Publicity Resources]
- [http://www.mediaman.com.au/profiles/publicity.html MMA Publicity Resources - Australian focus] Category:Public relations category:Promotion and marketing communications Category:Marketing

Public relations

Public relations is, simply-stated, the art and science of building relationships between an organization and its key audiences. Examples include:
- Corporations use marketing public relations (MPR) to convey information about the products they manufacture or services they provide to potential customers to support their direct sales efforts. Typically, they are supporting sales in the short run, i.e., to boost immediate revenue, and the long run, i.e., to establish and burnish their brand name for a strong, ongoing market.
- Corporations also use public-relations vehicles to reach legislators and other politicians, seeking favorable tax, regulatory, and other treatment, and they may use public relations to portray themselves as enlightened employers, in support of human-resources recruiting programs.
- Non-profit organizations, including schools and universities, hospitals, and human and social service agencies, use public relations in support of fund-raising programs and staff recruiting, and to increase patronage of their services.
- Politicians use public relations to attract votes and raise money, and, when successful at the ballot box, to promote and defend their service in office, with an eye to the next election or, at career’s end, to their legacy. Public Relations vs. Publicity Although many people believe that “public relations” and “publicity” are synonyms, that view is outdated. Publicity is certainly an important tool in the public-relations professional’s kit, but not the only tool. Publicity refers to activities designed to generate favorable editorial coverage of a product, service, candidate, etc. in the print, broadcast, and online media. The most widely known and used techniques are the news release (press release), news conference (press conference), spokesperson interview, and ghost-writing of articles and essays. The common factor in these and other publicity techniques is that the public relations professional provides information and expert sources to journalists. The journalists then combine what is provided to them by competing public relations professionals with their own independent research. In the best cases, the resulting report in the mass media is a balanced, authoritative, and accurate. If the public relations person’s product, service, or client receives a fair shake from the journalist, and is portrayed accurately, the PR person (or publicity agent) has done his or her job. What techniques does public relations encompass besides publicity?
- Direct communication (carrying messages directly to constituents, rather than through the mass media) with, e.g., newsletters – in print and e-letters.
- Collateral literature, traditionally in print and now predominantly (in most cases) as Web sites.
- Speeches to constituent groups and professional organizations; receptions; seminars, and other events; personal appearances. “That’s just PR!” Public relations is often misused as a synonym for deceptive or unscrupulous efforts to mislead people. But, like other disciplines, such as accounting, sales, and research, public relations is not inherently good or evil. Sincere, honest people use public relations techniques to convey their beliefs, opinions, and recommendations. Dishonest people with talent and experience in public relations sometimes use it to deceive. The same is true of not only other disciplines mentioned above, but also the three learned professions – law, medicine, and the clergy. We all know good lawyers, doctors, and priests – and bad ones who abuse their abilities, status, and professions. In this respect, public relations is no different from accounting or the law.

History

Precursors to public relations can be found in publicists who specialized in promoting circuses, theatrical performances, and other public spectacles. Later, most PR practitioners were and are still recruited from the ranks of journalism. Journalists concerned with ethics question former colleagues for using their inside understanding of news media, helping clients receive favorable media coverage. Highly paid PR positions remain a popular career change choice for many journalists. PR historians say the first PR firm, the Publicity Bureau, was established in 1900 by former newspapermen, with Harvard University as its first client. The First World War also helped stimulate the development of public relations as a profession. Many of the first PR professionals, including Ivy Lee, Edward Bernays, and Carl Byoir, got their start with the Committee for Public Information (also known as the Creel Committee), which organized publicity on behalf of U.S. objectives during World War I. Some historians regard Ivy Lee as the first real practitioner of public relations, but Edward Bernays is generally regarded today as the profession's founder. In describing the origin of the term Public Relations, Bernays commented, "When I came back to the United States, I decided that if you could use propaganda for war, you could certainly use it for peace. And propaganda got to be a bad word because of the Germans.. using it. So what I did was to try to find some other words, so we found the words Council on Public Relations". Ivy Lee, who has been credited with developing the modern news release (also called a "press release"), espoused a philosophy consistent with what has sometimes been called the "two-way street" approach to public relations, in which PR consists of helping clients listen as well as communicate messages to their publics. In the words of the Public Relations Society of America (PRSA), "Public relations helps an organization and its publics adapt mutually to each other." In practice, however, Lee often engaged in one-way propagandizing on behalf of clients despised by the public, including Standard Oil founder John D. Rockefeller. Shortly before his death, the US Congress had been investigating his work on behalf of the controversial Nazi German company IG Farben. Bernays was the profession's first theorist. A nephew of Sigmund Freud, Bernays drew many of his ideas from Freud's theories about the irrational, unconscious motives that shape human behavior. Bernays authored several books, including Crystallizing Public Opinion (1923), Propaganda (1928), and The Engineering of Consent (1947). Bernays saw public relations as an "applied social science" that uses insights from psychology, sociology, and other disciplines to scientifically manage and manipulate the thinking and behavior of an irrational and "herdlike" public. "The conscious and intelligent manipulation of the organized habits and opinions of the masses is an important element in democratic society," he wrote in Propaganda. "Those who manipulate this unseen mechanism of society constitute an invisible government which is the true ruling power of our country." One of Bernays' early clients was the tobacco industry. In 1929, he orchestrated a legendary publicity stunt aimed at persuading women to take up cigarette smoking, which was then considered unfeminine and inappropriate for women with any social standing. To counter this image, Bernays arranged for New York City débutantes to march in that year's Easter Day Parade, defiantly smoking cigarettes as a statement of rebellion against the norms of a male-dominated society. Photographs of what Bernays dubbed the "Torches of Liberty Brigade" were sent to newspapers, convincing many women to equate smoking with women's rights. Some women went so far as to demand membership in all-male smoking clubs, a highly controversial act at the time.

The industry today

According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, there were approximately 122,000 public relations specialists in the United States in 1998, while there were approximately 485,000 advertising, marketing, and public relations managers working in all industries. Public relations agents or "officials," most often called "executives," deliver info to the media or directly to the public to convey messages toward wider audiences, or to specific demographic segments within the public, called "target audiences." Because similar opinions tend to be shared by a group of people rather than an entire society, research may be conducted to determine a range of things such as target audiences, appeal, as well as strategies for coordinated message presentation. PR may target different audiences with different messages to achieve an overall goal. Public Relations sets out to effect widespread opinion and behavior changes. Modern public relations uses a variety of techniques including opinion polling and focus groups to evaluate public opinion, combined with a variety of high-tech techniques for distributing information on behalf of their clients, including satellite feeds, the Internet, broadcast faxes, and database-driven phone banks to recruit supporters for a client's cause. According to the PRSA, :"Examples of the knowledge that may be required in the professional practice of public relations include communication arts, psychology, social psychology, sociology, political science, economics, and the principles of management and ethics. Technical knowledge and skills are required for opinion research, public issues analysis, media relations, direct mail, institutional advertising, publications, film/video productions, special events, speeches, and presentations." Although public relations professionals are stereotypically seen as corporate servants, the reality is that almost any organization that has a stake in how it is portrayed in the media employs at least one PR manager. Large organizations may even have dedicated communications departments. Government agencies, trade associations, and other nonprofit organizations commonly carry out PR activities. Public relations should be seen as a management function in any organization. An effective communication, or public relations, plan for an organization is developed to communicate to an audience (whether internal or external publics) in such a way the message coincides with organizational goals and seeks to benefit mutual interests whenever possible.

Specialization

As industry consolidation becomes more prevalent, many organizations and individuals are choosing to retain "boutique" firms as opposed to so-called "global" communications firms. These smaller firms typically specialize in only a couple of practice areas and thus, often have a greater understanding of their client's business. And because they deal with certain journalists with greater frequency, specialty firms often have stronger media contacts in the areas that matter most to their clients. Added benefits of smaller, specialty firms include more personal attention and accountability and as well, cost savings. This is not to say that smaller is always better, but there is a growing consensus that specialty firms offer more than once considered. A number of specialties exist within the field of public relations, including:
- crisis management
- reputation management
- issue management
- investor relations and labor relations
- grassroots PR (sometimes referred to as astroturf PR)

Methods, Tools and Tactics

General

Audience targeting

The most fundamental rule in public communications is to know who one's audience is, and to tailor every message to appeal to that audience. An "audience" can be a general, nationwide or worldwide audience, but it is more often a segment of a population. Marketers often refer to economy-driven "demographics," such as "white males 18-49," but in public relations an audience is more fluid, being whoever the client wants to reach. For example, recent political audiences include "soccer moms" and "NASCAR dads." In addition to audiences, there are usually stakeholders, literally people who have a "stake" in a given issue. All audiences are stakeholders (or presumptive stakeholders), but not all stakeholders are audiences. For example, a charity commissions a PR agency to create an advertising campaign to raise money to find a cure for a disease. The charity and the people with the disease are stakeholders, but the audience is anyone who is likely to donate money. Sometimes the interests of differing audiences and stakeholders common to a PR effort necessitate the creation of several distinct but still complementary messages. This is not always easy to do, and sometimes – especially in politics – a spokesperson or client says something to one audience that angers another audience or group of stakeholders.

Press conferences

Main article: press conference (also called a "news conference") A press conference consists of someone speaking to the media at a predetermined time and place. Press conferences usually take place in a public or quasi-public place. Press conferences provide an excellent opportunity for speakers to control information and who gets it; depending on the circumstances, speakers may hand-pick the journalists they invite to the conference instead of making themselves available to any journalist who wishes to attend. It is also assumed that the speaker will answer journalists' questions at a press conference, although they are of course not obliged to. However, someone who holds several press conferences on a topic (especially a scandal) will be asked questions by the press, regardless of whether they indicate they will entertain them, and the more conferences the person holds, the more aggressive the questioning may become. Therefore, it is in a speaker's interest to answer journalists' questions at a press conference to avoid appearing as if they have something to hide. But questions from reporters – especially hostile reporters – detracts from the control a speaker has over the information they give out. For even more control, but less interactivity, a person may choose to issue a press release.

Press releases

Main article: press release (also called a "news release") A press release is simply a written statement distributed to the media. It is a fundamental tool of PR work. Press releases are usually sent via a newswire service (such as PR Newswire or Business Wire) to media outlets, where journalists may pick them up and use them as they see fit. Very often the information in a press release finds its way verbatim, or minimally altered, to print and broadcast reports. If a media outlet reports that "John Doe said in a statement today that...", the "statement" was almost always a press release. The text of the press release is usually (but not always) written as a news story, with an eye-catching headline and an article written in standard journalistic inverted pyramid style. This style is effective for reaching harried, and often skeptical journalists who rarely read entire releases. It also makes it easy for journalists to lift entire passages from a release and insert them into their own article. While this practice is frowned upon in newsrooms, journalism is a deadline-driven industry, and it is not uncommon for reporters to occasionally copy or modify a line or two from a press release. PR practitioners, on the other hand, design releases to encourage as much "lifting" as possible, so in essence, the less professional a journalist is, the more successful the release is judged to be. The only time that journalists may copy from a press release in good conscience is if the release provides a direct quote, as in: Senator Smith said, "This is the most fiscally irresponsible bill that the Congress has passed since the Buy Everyone A Mercedes Act." In this case, a journalist may copy the quote verbatim into his or her story, although most reporters prefer to try soliciting an individual quote from the speaker before filing their story. However, because press releases reflect their issuer's preferred interpretation or packaging of a story, journalists are often skeptical of their contents. Of course, the level of skepticism, if any, depends on what the story is and who's telling it. Newsrooms receive so many press releases that, unless it is a story that the media are already paying attention to, a press release alone isn't always enough to catch a journalist's attention. With the advent of modern media and new technology, press releases now have equivalents in these media - video news releases and audio news releases. However, many television stations are hesitent to use VNR's as they appear slighted and not actually newsworthy.

Other

- Publicity events or publicity stunts
- The talk show circuit. A PR spokesperson (or his/her client) "does the circuit" by being interviewed on television and radio talk shows with audiences that the client wishes to reach.
- Books and other writings
- After a PR practitioner has been working in the field for a while, he or she accumulates a list of contacts in the media and elsewhere in the public affairs sphere. This "Rolodex" becomes a prized asset, and job announcements sometimes even ask for candidates with an existing Rolodex, especially those in the media relations area of PR.

Politics and civil society

Defining your opponent

Political campaigns are peak times for defining one's opponents, though the process occurs continually. Organizations and other groups of people can be defined just as easily as candidates. In the 2004 US presidential campaign, George W. Bush defined John Kerry as a "flip-flopper," among other characterizations, which were widely reported and repeated by the media, particularly the conservative media. Similarly, George H.W. Bush characterized Michael Dukakis as weak on crime (the Willie Horton ad) and as hopelessly liberal ("a card-carrying member of the ACLU"). In 1996, President Bill Clinton seized upon opponent Bob Dole's promise to take America back to a simpler time, promising in contrast to "build a bridge to the 21st century." This painted Dole as a person who was somehow opposed to progress. In the debate over abortion, pro-abortion rights groups defined their opponents by defining themselves instead: "pro-choice." Anti-abortion rights groups responded in kind, branding themselves "pro-life." Extrapolating their respective rhetorics, pro-choice groups refer to their opponents as "anti-choice," and pro-life groups refer to their opponents as "pro-abortion." More recently, opponents of same-sex marriage in the U.S. have declared that their opponents are not the gay couples suing for the right to marry in various state courts, but rather the judges who rule in their favor. They are now calling them "activist judges," implying that they impose their personal beliefs instead of objectively interpreting the law. This sidesteps the thorny issue of making millions of gay people an "enemy," and instead focuses attention on the much smaller judiciary, who all Americans can ostensibly agree should be prevented from being "activists" on the bench.

Managing language

If a politician or organization can use an apt phrase in relation to an issue, such as in interviews or news releases, the news media will often repeat it verbatim, thus furthering the message. (This may be considered an example of a meme.) "New Deal" became a description of President Franklin D. Roosevelt's anti-Depression economic plans, and "states' rights/state sovereignty" became near-code words for anti-civil rights legislation. Recent examples come almost solely from Republican politicians: "death tax" for estate tax, "racial preferences" for affirmative action, "faith-based" instead of religious, among others.

Entertainment and celebrity

Playing up one's weaknesses

A famous saying goes "Any publicity is good publicity," and celebrities tend to be fans of this dictum. If a celebrity says or does something embarrassing, he or she will often turn it into a strength and make it part of his or her "image." Of course, this tactic is used just as much with favorable situations as much as with unfavorable ones. A current (2004) example involves the entertainer Jessica Simpson, who gained nationwide prominence when she wondered aloud on a reality show if "Chicken of the Sea"-brand tuna fish was actually chicken or tuna, garnering her a reputation for being slow-witted. But by the summer of 2004, she was being paid to endorse a brand of breath mints called "Liquid Ice." In the product's television commercial, Simpson replicates her earlier confusion by debating whether the mint is really liquid or ice. So although she was previously ridiculed, she (and her advisers) turned her nationwide embarrassment into a lucrative endorsement deal. Top US entertainment publicists include Lizzie Grubman, Karen Ammond (KBC Media Relations), and PMK Public Relations.

Branching out

As Oscar Wilde is supposed to have said, the only thing worse than being talked about is not to be talked about at all. Many celebrities seem to take this truism to heart, because when their popularity (and income) wane, they take on new projects that attract media attention. Considering that a celebrity's celebrity is a brand unto itself, many celebrities are under constant pressure to "reinvent" themselves, as a prophylactic against obscurity. A current trend among American celebrities is the transformation of musicians, comedians, and almost every other sort of performer into children's book authors. Madonna, Jay Leno, Billy Crystal, and several other celebrities have recently written children's books, accompanied by much media coverage. A more traditional way of branching out is the celebrity restaurant. This is especially common among professional athletes, whose time in the spotlight is often limited by the physical demands of their jobs. Basketball player Michael Jordan opened a restaurant in Chicago, Illinois, and singer Britney Spears opened an ill-fated eatery in New York which closed a few months later. Male celebrities like Tim Robbins, Sean Penn and Charlton Heston seem to gravitate toward politics, although some female celebrities, such as Susan Sarandon and Barbra Streisand, also become strong political voices. Younger female celebrities on the other hand are often drawn into the fashion world. Hotel heiress Paris Hilton recently announced that she was starting her own line of jewelry, and Jennifer Lopez has started a line of clothing. And fading star Elizabeth Taylor launched a fragrance called "White Diamonds" several years ago, bringing renewed interest from the media.

Ethical and social issues

Many of the techniques used by PR firms are drawn from the institutions and practices of democracy itself. Persuasion, advocacy, and education are instruments through which individuals and organizations are entitled to express themselves in a free society, and many public relations practitioners are engaged in practices that are widely considered as beneficial, such as publicizing scientific research, promoting charities, raising awareness of public health concerns and other issues in civil society. One of the most controversial practices in public relations is the use of front groups -- organizations that purport to serve a public cause while actually serving the interests of a client whose sponsorship may be obscured or concealed. The creation of front groups is an example of what PR practitioners sometimes term the third party technique -- the art of "putting your words in someone else's mouth." PR Watch, a nonprofit organization that monitors deceptive PR activities, has published numerous examples of this technique in practice. According to PR Watch, it "specializes in blowing the lid off today's multi-billion dollar propaganda-for-hire industry, naming names and revealing how public relations wizards concoct and spin the news, organize phony 'grassroots' front groups, spy on citizens, and conspire with lobbyists and politicians to thwart democracy." [http://www.prwatch.org/cmd/prwatch.html]. Instances of the use of front groups as a PR technique have been documented in many industries. For example, the coal mining corporations have created environmental groups that contend that increased CO2 emmissions and global warming will contribute to plant growth and will be beneficial, trade groups for bars and beer distributers have created and funded citizen's groups to attack Mothers Against Drunk Driving, and tobbacco companies have created and funded citizen's groups to advocate for tort reform and to attack personal injury lawyers. [http://www.spinwatch.org/modules.php?name=News&file=article&sid=482][http://archive.democrats.com/preview.cfm?term=corporate+front+groups] Current issues in ethical and social arenas have been brought to the attention of people from all stratas of the population when it was determined that more than one journalist with a platform had received money from a Public Relations firm for espousing a certain point of view.

Public relations in fiction

tort reform
- Absolute Power (2000 - ) is a British comedy series, set in the offices of Prentiss McCabe, a fictional public relations company in London.

Notes

# Clarke Caywood, The Handbook of Strategic Public Relations & Integrated Communications, McGraw Hill, New York, 1997, p. 23

Books

- Harold Burson, [http://www.burson-marsteller.com/pages/insights/pubs/epu e pluribus unum - The Making of Burson-Marsteller], (2004)
- Scott Cutlip, The Unseen Power: Public Relations: A History
- Stuart Ewen, PR! A Social History of Spin
- J.E. Grunig & T. Hunt, [http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/ASIN/0030583373/202-8960210-3617449 Managing Public Relations], Thomson Learning, 1984
- International Association of Business Communicators (IABC) [http://www.iabc.com/knowledge Bookstore]
- Joyce Nelson, Sultans of Sleaze: Public Relations and the Media, Between the lines, 1989
- John Stauber and Sheldon Rampton, [http://www.prwatch.org/books/tsigfy.html Toxic Sludge Is Good For You: Lies, Damn Lies and the Public Relations Industry] (1995)
- Larry Tye, [http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/0805067892 The Father of Spin: Edward L. Bernays and the Birth of Public Relations] (1998)
- [http://www.pwkpr.com/Public_relations_books/index.htmPublic Relations Bookshop]
- David Phillips [http://www.kogan-page.co.uk/bookdetails.aspx?ISBN=0749435100 'Online Public Relations ']
- Jim Macnamara's, Public Relations Handbook (New Edition) [http://www.pria.com.au/shop 'Available @ the PRIA Bookshop'] (2005)

External links

About the industry

- [http://www.prmuseum.com/ The Museum of Public Relations] offers a look at some of the industry's historical figures
- [http://www.prweek.com/ PR Week], trade publication
- [http://www.imno.org/articles.asp?qid=152&sid=18 IMNO Interviews Julia Hood Editor-in-Chief of PR Week]
- [http://www.odwyerpr.com/ O'Dwyer's PR Daily], another trade publication, occasionally featuring critical essays and investigative journalism about the industry
- [http://www.prsa.org/_Resources/Profession/index.asp?ident=prof1 About Public Relations], by the Public Relations Society of America
- [http://www.prpoint.com/ PRPOINT'S resource materials on PR], containing lot of resource materials for public relations professionals, researchers, students and others
- [http://www.primepointfoundation.org/ Prime Point Foundation], a non profit public trust promoting PR and communication awareness - contains lot of background notes and papers of various seminars and workshops conducted earlier.
- [http://imageaudit.com/ Image Audit], contains the procedures about measurement of image and perception amongst the stakeholders
- [http://www.mediaorchard.com/ Media Orchard], a public relations Weblog
- [http://www.morganmclintic.com/ Views on Public Relations in Silicon Valley], a public relations Weblog

Professional organizations

- [http:www.ipra.org The International Public Relations Association]
- [http://www.cerp.com (CERP) Confederation Europeenne des Relations Publiques/European Public Relations Confederation]
- [http://www.globalpr.org The Global Alliance for Public Relations and Communication Management]
- [http://www.iabc.com The International Association of Business Communicators (IABC)]
- [http://www.kommunikasjonsforeningen.no The Norwegian Communication Association] ("Norsk kommunikasjonsforening")
- [http://www.prsa.org The Public Relations Society of America]
- [http://www.prssa.org The Public Relations Student Society of America]
- [http://www.ipr.org.uk/ Institute of Public Relations, United Kingdom]
- [http://www.prca.org.uk/ Public Relations Consultants Association, United Kingdom]
- [http://www.prss-drustvo.si (PRSS) The Public Relations Society of Slovenia] ("Slovensko društvo za odnose z javnostmi")
- [http://www.cprs.ca (CPRS) Canadian Public Relations Society, Inc.]
- [http://www.youngprpros.com YoungPRPros, a free online PR group]
- [http://www.cipr.co.uk (CIPR) Chartered Institute of Public Relations]
- BPRA (Bangladesh Public Relation Association - [Shobuz])
- [http://www.fpra.org (FPRA) Florida Public Relations Association]
- [http://prisa.co.za (PRISA) Public Relations Institute of Southern Africa]
- [http://www.pria.com.au (PRIA) Public Relations Institute of Australia]
- [http://www.tpra.com/ (TPRA) Texas Public Relations Association]
- [http://www.mepra.org/ (MEPRA) Middle East Public Relations Association]

Research organizations

- [http://www.euprera.org The European Public Relations Education and Research Association (EUPRERA)]
- [http://banglapedia.search.com.bd/HT/P_0310.htm (Shobuz)Bangladesh Public Relation Association]
- [http://profiles.takingitglobal.org/shobuz (Shobuz)Bangladesh Institute of communication studies and Public Relation]

Watchdogs and critics

- [http://www.sourcewatch.org SourceWatch.org] Provides background on PR agencies and practitioners. Focuses mostly on conservative and right-wing PR
- [http://www.prwatch.org/ PR Watch], critiques deceptive PR campaigns
- [http://www.spinwatch.org Spinwatch] Monitors public relations and propaganda
- [http://www.corporatewatch.org.uk/profiles/pr_industry/pr1.htm/ CorporateWatch], a critical overview of the public relations and lobbying industry
- [http://www.prdisasters.com/ Talespin PR disasters], interactive site and book that looks for, posts and discusses examples of PR malpractice from all over the world

Education

- [http://www.ukac.org Division of Applied Communication], Lancashire Business School (UK)
- [http://www.pr-sola.si PR Šola] The Slovenian School of Public Relations (Slovenia)
- [http://www.bicspr.org Bangladesh Institute of Communication Studies and Public Relations], Bangladesh Institute of Communication Studies and Public Relations(Bangladesh) Category:Communication Category:Ethics Category:Public relations Category:Marketing category:Business ethics category:Promotion and marketing communications Category:ISBN needed

Sales

:This article is about the commercial activity. For the commune in France, see Sales, Haute-Savoie. Sales, or the activity of selling, forms an integral part of commercial activity. Mastering sales is considered by many as some sort of persuading "art". On the contrary, the methodological approach of selling refers to it as a systematic process of repetitive and measurable milestones, by which a salesperson relate his offering enabling the buyer to visualize how to achieve his goal in an economic way. Selling is a practical implementation of marketing; it often forms a separate grouping in a corporate structure, employing separate specialist operatives known as salesmen (singular: salesman or salesperson). The successful questioning to understand a customers goal, the further creation of a valuable solution by communicating the necessary information that encourages a buyer to achieve his goal at an economic cost is the responsibility of the sales person or the sales engine (e.g. internet, vending machine etc). The primary function of professional sales is to generate and close leads, educate prospects, fill needs and satisfy wants of consumers appropriately, and therefore turn prospective customers into actual ones. From a marketing point of view, selling is one of the methods of promotion used by marketers. Other promotional techniques include advertising, sales promotion, publicity, and public relations. Various sales strategies exist, such as tit-for-tat which is best if ongoing dealings and interactions are expected. This insight is behind so-called consultative sales process which are used by Saturn to sell cars, as well as for some direct Business-to-Business sales. Several types of sales exist including direct, consultative, and complex sales. Complex sales varies from other types in that the customer plays a more pro-active role, often requiring proposal response to their Request for Proposal (RFP).

Forms

Modes of selling include:
- Direct Sales - involving face-to-face contact
- retail or consumer
- door-to-door or travelling salesman
- business-to-business
- Indirect - human-mediated but with indirect contact
- telemarketing or telesales
- mail-order
- Electronic
- web B2B, B2C
- EDI
- Agency-based
- consignment
- multi-level marketing
- sales agents (real estate, manufacturing) Types of sales include:
- Direct sales
- Consultative sales
- Complex sales

Critique of selling

In theory, the purpose of selling is to help a customer realize his or her goals in an economic fashion. However, in reality this is not always the case. Customers can be influenced to purchase a product or service that initially was not of interest to them. Some salespeople are trained in the art of selling customers things they don't need. Take for example the purchasing of a car: a consumer may have a set of cars in mind (called an evoked set) that she feels match her needs, wants and budget. She may seek the advice of a salesperson given that a salesperson can help her realize the right car given those criteria. This can be a socially useful function; salespeople have specialized knowledge of products that can help consumers make an informed decision. However, a salesperson may also talk a consumer into purchasing a more expensive or perhaps larger car then she needs or can afford. In this context, the salesperson may have usefully helped the customer re-evaluate her needs, thereby establishing a new set of appropriate choices among which included the newer or large car. This again would be a helpful and useful service provided by the salesperson. However, it is sometimes the case that customers purchase a product or service that was not initially intended and remains an inappropriate purchase after the fact. On the other hand, the consumer in this scenario can be held partially responsible for the inappropriate purchase; indeed, "A fool and his money are soon parted." (P.T. Barnum, English proverbs) This dysfunctional behaviour is encouraged by:
- incentives of salespeople to increase their total number of sales, especially where retailers keep track of sales or offer commission-based salaries
- incentives from the manufactures of products or the companies of service providers to salespeople to sell their products where other similar products offered by competitors are offered
- the incentive to sell a customer a product that is in need of being cleared out, despite the fact that a customer may be better to wait for the new product

References

Sales promotion

In marketing, sales promotion is one of the four aspects of promotion. (The other three parts of the promotional mix are advertising, personal selling, and publicity/public relations.) Sales promotions are non-personal promotional efforts that are designed to have an immediate impact on sales. Sales promotion is media and non-media marketing communications employed for a pre-determined, limited time to increase consumer demand, stimulate market demand or improve product availability. Examples include:
- coupons
- discounts and sales
- contests
- point of purchase displays
- rebates
- gifts and incentive items
- free travel, such as free flights Sales promotions can be directed at either the customer, sales staff, or distribution channel members (such as retailers). Sales promotions targeted at the consumer are called consumer sales promotions. Sales promotions targeted at retailers and wholesale are called trade sales promotions. Some sale promotions, particularly ones with unusual methods, are considered gimmick by many.

Consumer sales promotion techniques

- Price deal: A temporary reduction in the price, such as happy hour
- Cents-off deal: Offers a brand at a lower price. Price reduction may be a percentage marked on the package.
- Price-pack deal: The packaging offers a consumer a certain percentage more of the product for the same price (for example, 25 percent off).
- Coupons: coupons have become a standard mechanism for sales promotions.
- Free-standing insert (FSI): A coupon booklet is inserted into the local newspaper for delivery.
- On-shelf couponing: Coupons are present at the shelf where the product is available.
- Checkout dispensers: On checkout the customer is given a coupon based on products purchased.
- On-line couponing: Coupons are available on line. Consumers print them out and take them to the store.
- Rebates: Consumers are offered money back if the receipt and barcode are mailed to the producer.
- Contests/sweepstakes/games: The consumer is automatically entered into the event by purchasing the product.
- Point-of-sale displays:
- Aisle interrupter: A sign the juts into the aisle from the shelf.
- Dangler: A sign that sways when a consumer walks by it.
- Dump bin: A bin full of products dumped inside.
- Glorifier: A small stage that elevates a product above other products.
- Wobbler: A sign that jiggles.
- Lipstick Board: A board on which messages are written in crayon.
- Necker: A coupon placed on the 'neck' of a bottle.
- YES unit: "your extra salesperson" is a pull-out fact sheet.

Trade sales promotion techniques

- Trade allowances: short term incentive offered to induce a retailer to stock up on a product.
- Dealer loader: An incentive given to induce a retailer to purchase and display a product.
- Trade contest: A contest to reward retailers that sell the most product.
- Point-of-purchase displays: Extra sales tools given to retailers to boost sales.
- Training programs: dealer employees are trained in selling the product.
- Push money: also known as "spiffs". An extra commission paid to retailer employees to push products.

Pompeii

:Pompeii is not to be confused with the Roman general Pompey. Pompeii is a ruined Roman city near modern Naples in the Italian region of Campania. It was destroyed during a catastrophic eruption of the volcano Mount Vesuvius in 79 AD. The volcano buried the city under many feet of ash and it was lost for 1,600 years before its accidental rediscovery. Since then, its excavation has provided an extraordinarily detailed insight into the life of a city at the height of the Roman Empire. Today, it is one of Italy's leading tourist attractions and is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. World Heritage Site

Location

World Heritage Site Pompeii is located at coordinates , southeast of Naples, near the modern suburban town of Pompei. It stands on a hill near the mouth of the Sarno River (known in ancient times as the Sarnus). Today it is some distance inland, but in ancient times it would have been nearer the coast. In the 1st century AD, Pompeii was only one of a number of towns located around the base of Mount Vesuvius. The area had a substantial population which grew prosperous from the region's renowned agricultural fertility. Many of Pompeii's neighboring communities, most famously Herculaneum, also suffered damage or destruction during the 79 AD eruption.

Early history

The town was founded around the 6th century BC by the Osci or Oscans, a people of central Italy. It had already been used as a safe port by Greek and Phoenician sailors. When the Etruscans threatened an attack, Pompeii allied with the Greeks, who then dominated the Gulf of Naples. In the 5th century BC, the Samnites conquered it (and all the other towns of Campania); the new rulers imposed their architecture and enlarged the town. It has been supposed that during the Samnites' domination, Rome conquered Pompeii for a while, but these theories have not been verified. Pompeii took part in the war that the towns of Campania initiated against Rome, but in 89 BC it was besieged by Sulla. Although the troops of the Social League, headed by Lucius Cluentius, helped in resisting the Romans, in 80 BC Pompeii was forced to surrender after the conquest of Nola. It became a Roman colony with the name of Colonia Cornelia Veneria Pompeianorum. The town became an important passage for goods that arrived by sea and had to be sent toward Rome or Southern Italy along the nearby Appian Way. In 62 a violent earthquake severely damaged Pompeii and many other towns of Campania. In the time between 62 and 79 (the eruption), it was rebuilt, perhaps richer than before in houses and artworks.

Vesuvius buries the city

earthquake The inhabitants of Pompeii, as those of the area today, had long been used to minor tremors and wisps of gas from Mt. Vesuvius, and in 62 there had been a series of earthquakes serious enough to cause structural damage to houses in town. In early August of 79, all the town's wells dried up, but the warnings were not sharp enough, and the Roman world was stunned when on August 24 a catastrophic volcanic eruption of the volcano buried the city and obscured the sun on a mild afternoon. Coincidentally, the date was that of the Vulcanalia, the festival of the Roman god of fire. The only reliable eyewitness account of the event was recorded by Pliny the Younger in a letter to the historian Tacitus. Pliny saw a remarkable phenomenon occurring over Mt. Vesuvius: a large dark cloud shaped rather like a pine tree emanating from the mouth of the mountain. After some time the cloud rushed down the flanks of the mountain and covered everything around it, including the surrounding sea. The "cloud" that Pliny the Younger wrote about is known today as a pyroclastic flow, which is a cloud of superheated gas, ash, and rock that erupts from a volcano. Pliny stated that several earth tremors were felt at the time of the eruption and were followed by a very violent shaking of the ground. He also noted that ash was falling in very thick sheets and the village he was in had to be evacuated. Also, the sea was sucked away and forced back by an "earthquake", a phenomenon which modern geologists call a tsunami. His description then turned to the fact that the sun was blocked out by the eruption and the daylight hours were left in darkness. His uncle Pliny the Elder had already taken several ships to investigate the phenomenon. On the other shore, Pliny the Elder apparently died from carbon dioxide asphyxiation after lying on the ground.

Lost for 16 centuries

carbon dioxide Thick layers of ash covered two towns located at the base of the mountain, and eventually their names and locations were forgotten. Then Herculaneum was rediscovered in 1738, and Pompeii in 1748. These towns have since been excavated to reveal many intact buildings and wall paintings. The towns were actually found in 1599 by an architect named Fontana, who was digging a new course for the river Sarno, but it took more than 150 years before a serious campaign was started to unearth them. The king Charles VII of Two Sicilies took great interest in findings even after becoming king of Spain. Giuseppe Fiorelli took charge of the excavations in 1860. It was he who devised the technique of injecting plaster into the spaces left by the decomposed bodies to perfectly recreate the forms of Vesuvius's victims. Until that time, Pompeii and Herculaneum were assumed to be lost forever. plaster Some have theorized, without proof, that Fontana initially found some of the famous erotic frescoes and, due to the strict modesty prevalent during his time, reburied them in an attempt at archaeological censorship. This view is bolstered by reports of later excavators who felt that sites they were working on had already been visited and re-buried. A detailed discussion of the erotic art of Pompeii, with pictures, can be found in a separate article. The Forum, the baths, many houses, and some villas remained surprisingly well preserved. A hotel (of 1,000 square meters) was found a short distance from the town; it is now nicknamed the "Grand Hotel Murecine". Pompeii is, in fact, the only ancient town of which the whole topographic structure is known precisely as it was, with no later modifications or additions. It was not distributed on a regular plan as we are used to seeing in Roman towns, due to the difficult terrain. But its streets are straight and laid out in a grid, in the purest Roman tradition; they are laid with polygonal stones, and have houses and shops on both sides of the street. It followed its decumanus and its cardus.

Earthquake, landslide and volcanic damage

cardus An important current field of research concerns structures that were being restored at the time of the eruption (presumably damaged during the earthquake of 62). Some of the older, damaged, paintings could have been covered with newer ones, and modern instruments are being used to catch a glimpse of the long hidden frescoes. The probable reason why these structures were still being repaired 10 years after the earthquake was the increasing frequency of smaller quakes that led up to the eruption. Most of the archeological digs at the site only extend down to the street level of the 79 volcanic event. Deeper digs in older part of Pompeii and core samples of nearby drillings have exposed layers of jumbled sediment that suggest that other events hit the city before the famed volcano, as three sheets of sediment have been found on top of the lava bedrock that lies below the city. Mixed in with the sediment, archeologists have found bits of animal bone, pottery shards and bits of plants. Using carbon dating, the oldest layer has been placed as 8th century BC, about the time that the city was founded. The other two layers are separated from the other layers by well developed soil layers or Roman pavement and were laid down in the 4th century BC and 2nd century BC. The theory behind the layers of jumbled sediment is large landslides, perhaps triggered by extended rainfall. (Senatore, et al., 2004) During early excavations of the site, occasional voids in the ash layer were found that contained human remains. Giuseppe Fiorelli had the idea of filling the empty spaces with plaster. What resulted were highly accurate and eerie forms of the doomed Pompeiani who failed to escape, in their last moment of life (see [http://www.marketplace.it/pompeiruins/orto.htm], [http://www.marketplace.it/pompeiruins/orto2.htm], [http://www.marketplace.it/pompeiruins/orto3.htm]). For some of them the expression of terror is quite clearly visible. Geologists have used the magnetic characteristics of rocks and debris found in Pompeii to estimate the temperature of the pyroclastic flow that buried the city. When molten rock solidifies, magnetic minerals in the rock record the direction of Earth's magnetic field. If the material is heated above a certain temperature, known as the Curie temperature, the magnetic field may be modified or completely reset. Analysis of over 200 volcanic rocks and pieces of debris, such as roof tiles, suggest that the ash cloud had a temperature of 850°C when emerging from the mouth of Vesuvius. It had cooled to below 350°C by the time it reached the city. Most of the materials analyzed experienced temperatures between 240°C and 340°C. A few areas showed lower temperatures of only 180°C. It is theorized that turbulence may have mixed cool air into the ash cloud. (Cioni, et al., 2004)

Unique snapshot

Curie temperature Nonetheless, the town offers a snapshot of Roman life in the 1st century. This moment in time shows that Pompeii was a lively place before the eruption, and evidence abounds of literally the smallest details of everyday life. For example, on the floor of one of the houses (Sirico's), a famous inscription Salve, lucru (Welcome, money), perhaps humorously intended, shows us a trading company owned by two partners, Sirico and Nummianus (but this could be a nickname, since nummus means coin, money). In other houses, details abound concerning professions and categories, such as for the "laundry" workers (Fullones). Wine jars have been found bearing what is apparently the world's earliest known marketing pun, Vesuvinum. Graffiti carved on the walls shows us real street Latin. Latin At the time of the eruption, the town could have had some 20,000 inhabitants, and was located in an area in which Romans had their vacation villas. Many services were found: the Macellum (great food market), the Pistrinum (mill), the Thermopolia (sort of bar that served cold and hot beverages), the cauporioe (small restaurants), and an amphitheater. In 2002 another important discovery at the mouth of Sarno river revealed that the port also was populated and that people lived in palafittes, within a system of channels that suggested a likeness to Venice to some scientists. These studies are just beginning to produce results.

Pompeii in popular entertainment

Pompeii served as the background for the historic novel The Last Days of Pompeii and the British television series Up Pompeii, and Robert Harris' recent novel, Pompeii, a fictional account focused on aquarius (engineer) Marcus Attilius who must repair a fault in the largest aqueduct in the world, the Aqua Augusta, which has failed somewhere around Mount Vesuvius. In the visual arts, The Last Day of Pompeii is a famous painting by the Russian-born Carlo Brullo. In October of 1971, the famous band Pink Floyd performed at the vacant 2,000-year-old ampitheater in Pompeii, to an audience composed of camera operators. The performance was released on video later. "Last Days of Pompeii" is the 1991 rock opera by alternative rock band Nova Mob. The theme park Busch Gardens in Williamsburg, Virginia featured an attraction entitled "Escape from Pompeii," which ferried riders via small boats through the city as ruins toppled around them. Williamsburg, Virginia of 79. Between them and the colonnade, a line of saplings recently planted as replacement.]]

References

- Senatore, M.R., J.-D. Stanley, and T.S. Pescatore. 2004. Avalanche-associated mass flows damaged Pompeii several times before the Vesuvius catastrophic eruption in the 79 C.E. Geological Society of America meeting. Nov. 7-10. Denver. [http://gsa.confex.com/gsa/2004AM/finalprogram/abstract_77814.htm Abstract].
- Maiuri, Amedeo, Pompeii, pp, 78-85, in Scientific American, Special Issue: Ancient Cities, c. 1994.
-

External links

- [http://www2.pompeiisites.org/ Pompeii official web site]
- [http://www.auav46.dsl.pipex.com/p99.htm Herculaneum/Pompeii/Stabiae Website]
- [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/3954659.stm Digitizing Pompeii]
- [http://www.italianvisits.com/campania/pompeii/ ItalianVisits.com]
- [http://www.pompeiithemusical.com Pompeii: The Musical] Category:Roman sites of Campania Category:Destroyed cities Category:World Heritage Sites in Italy ja:ポンペイ

1843

1843 was a common year starting on Sunday (see link for calendar).

Events

- February 6 - The Virginia Minstrels perform the first minstrel show (Bowery Amphitheatre, New York City).
- February 11 - Giuseppe Verdi's opera I Lombardi premieres in Milan
- May 18 - The Disruption of the Church of Scotland took place in Edinburgh
- May 22 - The first major wagon train headed for the northwest sets out with one thousand pioneers from Elm Grove, Missouri on the Oregon Trail.
- July 19 - The SS Great Britain is launched from Bristol.
- August 15 - Tivoli Gardens, one of the oldest still intact amusement parks in the world, opened in Copenhagen, Denmark.
- October 13 - In New York City, Henry Jones and 11 others found B'nai B'rith (the oldest Jewish service organization in the world).
- November 28 - Ka La Ku'oko'a: Hawaiian Independence Day. The Kingdom of Hawai`i was officially recognized by the United Kingdom and France as an independent nation.
- The world's first commercial Christmas cards are printed by Sir Henry Cole in London.
- December 17 - First publication of Charles Dickens' A Christmas Carol.
- James Joule quantifies the conversion of work into heat
- In Barbados, the first black man, Samuel Jackson Prescod, is elected to House of Assembly
- Danish government re-establishes althing in Iceland as an advisory body
- First tunnel under Thames is finished
- Argentina supports Rosas of Uruguay and begins a siege of Montevideo
- Quaternions are discovered by William Rowan Hamilton.
- The Economist is first published.
- Bishop's University is founded.
- Abbeville is founded by descendants of Acadians from Nova Scotia.

Births

- January 10 - Frank James, American outlaw (d. 1915)
- January 29 - William McKinley, 25th President of the United States (d. 1901)
- April 4 - William Jackson, photographer
- April 15 - Henry James, American writer (d. 1916)
- May 21 - Charles Albert Gobat, Swiss politician, recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize (d. 1914)
- June 3 - King Frederick VIII of Denmark (d. 1912)
- June 9 - Bertha von Suttner, Austrian writer and pacificist, recipient of the

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