As part of a course that I am teaching on Reputation Management, at IIM Udaipur, I asked the students this question “How do you explain Public Relations to a 5-year-old?”. There were many answers and much discussion, but the one that stood out for me was the simplest. One of the 75 students distilled the essence of the big professional-sounding definitions and decoded them in 5-year-old speak. Here is what she said. “I would tell the 5-year-old that – PR is what you do and say to help you make friends that you like…” (in the classroom, playground, and the family).
The reason I love this definition is because it is simple enough for a young person to understand, but at the same time it touches two very key aspects of our profession “the doing” and “the saying”. Very often Public Relations is over-indexed on the last mile communication channel – “the saying” part and we can easily miss out on the vital role that a PR practitioner can and must play in influencing actions and getting companies to do things that can then be communicated. Reputation is built by a set of consistent and purposeful actions, that are then communicated to stakeholders. This definition also brings to the 5-year-old’s awareness the need to engage with multiple stakeholders that are likely to be important at that stage in their life.
It is worth pointing out that this is not about being the most popular or making friends at any cost or of all types. It talks about making friends you like. The ability to engage and identify with a set of people you want and value in your life is an important nuance.
During the break, another student came up to me and asked if this simple definition worked in the context of crisis management and communication as well. As I reflected on it the answer that came up for me was, yes it does, because even if we make a mistake and do something wrong that gets us into trouble, good PR is about accepting this and then offering a meaningful apology plus doing things to make amends. So “PR is what you do and say to help you make friends you like…” still holds true even when confronted with difficult (crisis) situations.
The Public Relations Society of America (PRSA) definition of PR says “Public relations is a strategic communication process that builds mutually beneficial relationships between organizations and their publics.” Translate this into 5-year-old speak and you will notice the definitions align pretty well.
The International Public Relations Association (IPRA) definition says “Public relations is a decision-making management practice tasked with building relationships and interests between organisations and their publics based on the delivery of information through trusted and ethical communication methods.” This definition brings into focus one element that is missing in the 5-year-old explainer – ethics. Doing and saying anything – even if it is not true, to make friends is not okay, especially if it crosses moral, ethical, and legal lines.
In what is now being referred to as a “post-truth world” creating and nurturing relationships that are rooted in trust is truly precious. With AI-powered words, images, and voices, dodging the bullets of fake news, misinformation, and disinformation is going to be a daily affair. “Who can I trust? What can I trust?” – If public relations professionals focus on enabling the companies and brands to do the right things, that build and maintain trust and then communicate them, they will be doing invaluable work. They will be helping their organisations make friends with people that matter to them, for life.
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A trusted coaching and communications professional, Nikhil Dey is a certified life and leadership coach (International Coach Federation - ICF). Nurturing talent and helping clients achieve their goals is what makes him happy. He loves learning from students of communication, teaching courses and guest lecturing at various educational institutions. When he is not working you will find him on the tennis court or out for long walks with his family and four legged friends.
Previously he has held senior leadership positions at Weber Shandwick and Genesis BCW.
He can be reached on twitter @deydreaming
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